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Auto transmissions all bad?


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Hello I've been seriously looking into purchasing an R50 Pathfinder or QX4 however one thing has concerned me. And all of the scouring and reading I've done on the internet including this for him I seem to read nothing but bad remarks about the automatic transmissions in the R50. This has me afraid to purchase an automatic transmission thinking it's not a matter of if but when it will fail and unfortunately there are not many manual trans mission R50 s near me.  Am I correct in this assumption or are there people out there with good experience with auto trans especially once you add a lift and bigger tires.

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I bought my pathfinder new in Dec of ‘00. It’s a ‘01. I did anything but baby it and even properly maintain it as I was fairly young back then and didn’t know much better nor have money to stay up on all required maint. I just early this year had the trans rebuilt at 220,000 miles. From what I’ve heard the transmission in these is close to bulletproof. Not to mention I run 35” tires which has to add stress on the trans. 1,100$ to rebuild and it’s been good as new since then.


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My trans is at 336,000 miles and operates perfectly.

It is a bit annoying with 4” lift and 33” tires that it downshifts on the interstate whenever there is a little rise in the road.
But that’s not a transmission problem.

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14 hours ago, CNAM said:

I bought my pathfinder new in Dec of ‘00. It’s a ‘01. I did anything but baby it and even properly maintain it as I was fairly young back then and didn’t know much better nor have money to stay up on all required maint. I just early this year had the trans rebuilt at 220,000 miles. From what I’ve heard the transmission in these is close to bulletproof. Not to mention I run 35” tires which has to add stress on the trans. 1,100$ to rebuild and it’s been good as new since then.


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$1100 to rebuild an automatic is insanely cheap. I rebuilt my own and had nearly that much in parts.

 

One key to making one of these transmissions to live is adding an external cooler. I also added a thermostat so when cold the external cooler is bypassed. The transmission will not shift correctly when cold. you need to direct the fluid through the radiator to get some warmth first.

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You may be confusing the R50 (96-04) & R51 (05-12), as the early production R51 (05-08) had a ton of transmission failures due to bad radiators. The trans cooler inside the radiator would fail, causing engine coolant to mix with trans fluid, commonly referred to as the strawberry milkshake of death (SMOD), which would then quickly kill the transmission. If the radiator was replaced with an upgraded unit, or if the radiator was bypassed with a quality external trans cooler, prior to this happening, those transmissions are going a minimum of 200k miles as well.

 

As far as the durability of the transmission in the R50, I've seen several well maintained units still fulfilling daily driver duties with over 250k miles, original drivetrain components still intact. My 96 had almost 200k when I sold it 3 years ago, it's still going strong, and my 01 currently has 180k, no issues.

Edited by 01Pathmaker
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17 hours ago, neilca said:

 

 

17 hours ago, neilca said:

$1100 to rebuild an automatic is insanely cheap. I rebuilt my own and had nearly that much in parts.

 

One key to making one of these transmissions to live is adding an external cooler. I also added a thermostat so when cold the external cooler is bypassed. The transmission will not shift correctly when cold. you need to direct the fluid through the radiator to get some warmth.

Ah, neilaca, your CA is showing. I get work done on vehicles in Seattle & Kansas City & it’s like it’s two different worlds. The West Coast is ridiculous on parts & labor but unfortunately that’s where the R50 is located. I’ve actually bought my last 2 vehicles elsewhere & shipped or driven them back, saving thousands on each-thank heavens for the internet.

 

As for transmissions, I can only vaguely remember a post from enjoi408. The shop that rebuilt my engine after the power valve debacle says they can’t ever remember fixing a Pathfinder transmission but that they did Xterras regularly. At TowndawgR50’s (& now neilca’s advice), I’m going to add a cooler as I want another decade & 100K out of mine.

 

WARNING-If you are looking to buy, immediately secure the power valves. It’s a relatively easy & inexpensive fix but failing to do so can be tragic. Just search it on the forum!

Edited by RainGoat
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23 hours ago, RainGoat said:

 

Ah, neilaca, your CA is showing. I get work done on vehicles in Seattle & Kansas City & it’s like it’s two different worlds. The West Coast is ridiculous on parts & labor but unfortunately that’s where the R50 is located. I’ve actually bought my last 2 vehicles elsewhere & shipped or driven them back, saving thousands on each-thank heavens for the internet.

 

As for transmissions, I can only vaguely remember a post from enjoi408. The shop that rebuilt my engine after the power valve debacle says they can’t ever remember fixing a Pathfinder transmission but that they did Xterras regularly. At TowndawgR50’s (& now neilca’s advice), I’m going to add a cooler as I want another decade & 100K out of mine.

 

WARNING-If you are looking to buy, immediately secure the power valves. It’s a relatively easy & inexpensive fix but failing to do so can be tragic. Just search it on the forum!

I am on the east coast in GA. I had quotes of $3000 to rebuild mine. This motivated me to do it myself.

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