I've put about 2000ks on a CD00A transmission I installed in my 03. I'm finding 1st is a little hesitant and third can have a very slight crunch, but second is particularly crunchy at low speed/normal driving conditions.

If this was issue was completely new to the CD00A then I would say it's a faulty trans BUT I had a crunchy second gear in my old CD001 ever since my first/only clutch (JWT HD) and flywheel swap.

When I swapped the installed the new trans, I also installed a new pilot bearing, clutch plate, friction plate and a RJM clutch. I also changed out my slave cylinder a while back but I don't recall that coinciding with any issues.

So, is this the clutch not disengaging enough (possibly slave)? Could installation of the shifter guide plate be causing this?

Love to solve this because changing from 1st to 2nd at low speed sounds like I'm a learner driver...

 

how is the integrity of the clutch

 

Brand new clutch and friction plate on the flywheel

 

I feel your pain Timboj, New CD00A is notchy as hell and when car is off sometimes it just doesn't go into any gears... Came across 2 others in my search to see if it resolved after some use to no avail... I'm really mad cause my old transmission was wayyyy smoother but it came with a 3rd gear grind and sometimes lock out(got it for cheap) but in anycase this was suppose to be a happy purchase for my restoration now i feel like nissan dropped the ball... Just yesterday I got locked out of 1st gear at a light... had to kick to clutch like 3 times and it went in smh so now just called nissan today as you can't just swap the part under warranty or take it to them... they have to see it on the car and yes I have to now dish out another $200+ for a diagnosis to get a warranty claim done. I hate dealing with dealers, they always seemed incompetent so im already expecting the worst experience next Week I dont know, its like the transmission at times knows when to find gears and then other times doesn't... it goes in smooth and then it doesn't, Notchy or just complete lock out, such a variance its sad for a new expensive part like this...

What I've Done... Swapped out transportation fluid with new OEM fluid... then swapped in MT-85 at like 700 miles cause it didn't get any better with the new oem fluid... MT-85 Provided a slight improvement but still notchy... With the new transmission and part of the restoration included new oem master +slave cylinder clutch kit and flywheel...

Estimate about 1400 miles on this new cd00a transmission...

Thoughts before anyone else purchases...If anyone is going this route I suggest you take your shifter and install it at the dealer on the new transmission before leavings to see how it shifts thru the gears... Cause from the moment I put everything back together I was in distraught... Reminds me of those with the cd009 when they had the warranty and got like 3 replacements done at dealers under warranty cause one was defective after another way back...

 

Sounds like a clutch issue IMO, first isn't in need of synchronization since the trans should stop as the clutch is disengaged.

 

What type of transmission fluid are you using?

 

Would suggest you try the following simple things first:

- To answer your question: Yes, it could be a misaligned shifter guide plate. Check/adjust shifter plate alignment. This is an often overlooked step. ( https://my350z.com/forum/engine-driv...alignment.html )

- Check fluid - new CD00A (or any new) - as mentioned, the fluid in the new trans as shipped is for shipping only. Might be as simple as needing new fluid or topping it up. OEM Nissan MTF GL-4 spec 75W-85 or Redline MT-85 are recommended fluids.

- Check clutch engage/disengage - most likely hydraulics. Check for full disengagement and power bleed the system.

- Check to make sure you have the correct clutch fork pivot ball installed. '03 350Z (only + earlier Z32) use the long/tall pivot ball whereas '04-06 use the short one.

2003-Only

2004-2006


You need whichever one fits your YEAR unless you swap over clutch fork (due to the nature of the clutch fork - the '03 is uses a steel plated fork, all others ('04-06) with external fork use iron and they have different articulation angles). Using the improper one can lead to binding, which will not allow the clutch to be disengaged properly. I believe the CD00A ships with a short pivot (unless you stipulate its for 2003 model - not confirmed); obviously this is not suitable for '03 with original long pivot. (This is never made clear by any sources of this transmission - nor by Nissan as this is pretty obscure information.) This is a pain because you have to open the entire thing up.

Not heard many complaints about new CD009/00A transmission itself so thinking this is something related to the above. Of course, it could be the transmission but somehow doubt it. Good luck!

 

Interesting discussions, thanks.

I had Penrite in it initially (very good Australian synthetic) but switch to Redline MT-85 (to be sure) for about the last 1000kms. No real change between them.

I've realigned the shifter plate several times and I'm positive that's not the issue. I'm probably going to bleed the clutch again (did it when trans was installed).

Now, the ball/fork is an interesting point. I'm using the new ball and fork that came with the trans, so they would both be the 04+ combo. @MicVelo Are you suggesting I switch back to an 03 combo, or that's unnecessary because my current combo matches?

The only other thing comes to mind (and I hadn't considered it until this discussion) is while clutches are the same across all DE years, the clutch slave isn't. I'm still using an 03-04 (Centric premium). Could the problem be that I should be using an 05-06 with the CD00A? If so, kinda feels like a stupidly simple solution...

 

@Timboj Interesting find on that slave cylinder... Not even Z1 picked up on that as shown on their website as they normally have options between the year of Z's... But it could also be that they are the same... Naturally I've seen many parts interchangeable, even though dealerships may have different part numbers and say they don't match but still are the exact same product... I wonder now the pin size of the 05-06 slave cylinders and overall measurements... Going to check in with some of my Z friends to see if they have old slave cylinders (if they have an 05-06 specifically) so i can compare as I have my original 03 slave cylinder laying in the garage. The only thing with my cd00a is that even if the car is off... The transmission is even harder to get thru gears and sometimes even lock out until I kick in the clutch again and it will pop in...

@MicVelo Also Interesting with potential regard to disengaging the clutch... Prior to getting my new CD00A (I have an 03) I had ordered the complete clutch fork upgrade kit and had it in my possession... but with the new cd00a it came complete, surprisingly. So I returned the kit. I wish I had compared the depth between the cd001 and cd00a fork/pivot ball design vs old... While I did know of the difference, now that I have it in and experiencing such problems I wish I looked into it more but because it came OEM complete I didn't think to check twice as it was made for our Z (de models). I believe it may equate to the same distance as the new fork was alot thicker but even a 1/4 of an inch can make a huge difference in disengagement.

Overall the transmission ordered (CD00A) fits all 03-06 DE Models and comes ready to install. However there is always room for further details when issues arise and finding out why.

Appreciate you guys💯

 

Hopefully someone here can validate, but I assume there is a material difference if the two models are sold side by side. Even if it's a difference of millimetres somewhere that could translate into something material in the applied force.

There's a thread here that includes pictures of both: https://www.350z-uk.com/topic/112598...r-differences/

 

Yes, cause even aftermarket companies recognize the difference between the 03 and 06 😑as I'm finding out & exploring rockauto part #'s as well rn lol... Hopefully I can get my hands on one soon, as even though the cd00a is made for our cars, with the change in fork/pivot on the later year models it maybe one piece of the puzzle thats needed to help match the new trans set up. Was curious and checked master cylinders #'s but thats the same across the board, no difference. Let's see...

 

Welp just to follow up... The 06 pin is shorter!... How the internal parts appear the same on the dealership website is interesting, as they are certainly not... size difference is nearly 1/4 of an inch (Left digital caliper in garage) but with a regular ruler its about a 1/4 short. Usually people will raise hydraulic pressure (via CMC) and even extend a CSC pushrod for more disengagement and smoother shifting in some cases. So to see a smaller rod was interesting... Clutch slave housing however appeared to be the same not much difference... Experimental but I might just swap the pin in real quick to see how it plays out.

 

Thanks for the update. I assume the newer cylinder is longer/moves further to make up for a shorter pin? It would be great to see what the full extension of either setup is from mounting points to pin end, but the reality is you'd need to test the difference in clutch fork engagement to incorporate your master pressure and how the slave reacts to measure anything meaningful.

I'm still curious as to why the master and clutch doesn't change parameters through the DE years (change for HR of course), but the slave and transmission does. Surely there's a good reason for it.

 

Hey did you ever ending up changing the slave cylinder? If so did it help, I did the exact same thing you did and swapped to a Cd00a and have notchy feeling gears just like you describe. Thx!

 

I only changed it over a few weeks ago actually. Tbh I struggled to feel the difference between them.

The thing that really 'fixed' it for me (still a slight, occasional reluctance on 1-2 shifts) was lengthening the rod movement on the RJM pedal. I think it just wasn't putting enough pressure on the clutch at full depress. I also adjusted the stiffness from the default setting of 75% as I always found that too light, down to 25% and then realigned the rod angle. It's much better now.

 

That makes sense I'm going to go ahead and get the slave cylinder because I have some junk there anyway. What do you mean by adjusting clevis angle do you mean you set the adjustment to where the clevis pin/U shaped bracket moved easily if you wiggle it?

 

That's meant to be rod angle, my bad (I'll update). Ideally the rod would be perfectly aligned with the receiver through the entire range of movement, but because there is an arc involved and some level of adjustability it's very easy to position it in such a way that the rod is makes excessive contact with its receiver and scrapes/wears. I had a little bit of rubbing previously but that's fixed now.

From memory I don't think that's an issue with the stock pedal because you can only adjust the rod length from the clevis, slightly.