Help! Strange First 4th-Gear Shift After Startup – Is This Normal?

[pathywithzd30]

Hello everyone,

I’ve noticed a curious behavior on my 2001 Nissan Terrano (4-speed AT, Jatco RE4R01A):

 

• Right after I start the engine, the transmission only shifts into 4th gear once the engine is held at around 2000 rpm.
• Once I’ve done that initial pull-up, subsequent runs shift into 4th at much lower revs as expected—cold or warm.
• If I shut the engine off and restart, the same high-rpm requirement for the first 4th-gear shift returns.
• No fault codes appear on OBD2.

 

FYI, my Terrano has the ZD30DDTi(turbodiesel engine), so I’m seeing the 2000 rpm threshold; gasoline models might have a different shift point.

ATF has been properly replaced, and there are no issues with normal shifting—no shocks or slipping.

 

Please tell me how yours shift.Sorry if I missed any previous threads on this.

Thanks in advance for your feedback!

Edited July 21, 2025 by pathywithzd30

[Matari]

 TBH, take my advice with a grain of salt since I don’t have the same engine. But in my experience, 99% of my car’s shifting problems were caused by a faulty transmission control module and none of the faults showed up when scanning with OBD2. If you have a friend with the same car, try swapping the TCM and see if the problem goes away.

Edited July 22, 2025 by Matari

[pathywithzd30]

17 hours ago, Matari said:

 TBH, take my advice with a grain of salt since I don’t have the same engine. But in my experience, 99% of my car’s shifting problems were caused by a faulty transmission control module and none of the faults showed up when scanning with OBD2. If you have a friend with the same car, try swapping the TCM and see if the problem goes away.

Thank you for your information!

 

There are almost no cars of this type in Japan.So I bought used TCM fits my model,and try swap following your advice.

And I'm suspicious about Revolution Sensor.But can't identify which sensor went bad on my transmission...many sensors on it.