BriGuyMax

iTrader: (4)

Your drivetrain is warrantied for 5 years or 60K miles...you're not even close to being out of warranty.

methylal

Nice. Well that helps out then. The problem is not too severe, but since I got the car 2 months ago and finally found out about this problem, I figured I needed to get it replaced ASAP. However, if I have another 2+ years, then I may not sweat it until I can figure out how to reproduce it for them.

Thanks for the info.

--meth

BriGuyMax

iTrader: (4)

I'd recommend taking the car to a different dealer. When I had the problem...all i had to do was take the car in and say it was griding into gears with the clutch fully depressed and they replaced my trans no questions asked.

methylal

Yeah, I called Nissan Consumer Affairs and they were of the issue. I understand that the dealer wants to "see/hear" the problem, but I wish they could simply look at the tranny model/rev number and see if it falls into place of earlier revisions needing to be replaced.

If they don't have anything by the end of today, I am going to pick my car up so I have it for the weekend and maybe next week I'll try another dealership.

--meth

BriGuyMax

iTrader: (4)

How itermitent is the problem right now??? It took mine a few months before it started doing it all the time from the time it started.

methylal

I've only owned the car 2 months and I can say that it's maybe done it 5-6 times since I've owned it. I got it with 10k on it and now have 12.1k on it.

I picked up my car from the dealer as they were unable to "see/hear" the problem. So I called another dealer (Peachtree Nissan - Atlanta). I told them about the problem and that they may not be able to replicate it. The dude told me they know about the problem and can set me up. He said bring it by Tuesday morning and he'll start working on it. So I guess we'll see how it goes with round 2.

--meth

BriGuyMax

iTrader: (4)

good luck!

methylal

So I dropped my car off Tuesday (5/31) at a different dealer than I did originally (Peachtree Nissan). The dude was cool. He called me today (6/1) and said they ordered a new transmission for me and it should be in on Monday, so I can come pick my car up and they will do the replacement Monday, which should only take a day.

Kick ***. Finally, I won't have to deal with this anymore.

--meth

little_rod

I bought my car with 3K miles on it, and the guy before me had run over something in the road which put a dent in the transmission. Well, he got a new transmission for that dent. Now I have a problem at 35.5K miles with grinding in both 5th and 6th gears, just got off the phone with my dealership, they are replacing the transmission at no charge. So this will really be the 3rd transmission for the car overall, even though the first one was only in there for like 3K miles.

Now they say they won't replace the clutch cause that isn't covered after 12K miles, only the transmission, so I would have to pay to get the clutch replaced. Anyone else run into this problem?

BriGuyMax

iTrader: (4)

I had a feeling a different dealer would take care of your problem...congrats..let us know how the new trans works.

BriGuyMax

iTrader: (4)

I'm pretty sure it's near impossible to "dent" a trans case. They'll crack well before they bend.

Why would you need a new clutch @ 12K miles? I just upgraded mine @ 37K to supplement my turbo kit and my factory clutch looked basically brand new. I've road raced and drag raced the car frequently since I got it in Jan 03.

stopgo

I took my '03 Touring in for routine maintenance about three weeks ago. I mentioned to the service folks that I was prolly due for some brake work on the front wheels, asked them to look into a rattle coming (presumably) from the Greddy exhaust and also indicated that my tranny was acting the butt again (during a maintenance visit some months ago the service tech informed me that the previous dealership had done a very poor install of my first replacement tranny... the rubber boot under the car was hanging in shreds and he advised me to keep an eye on it).

Let me interrupt quickly to give props to the service department at Darcars Nissan of Rockville, MD. These guys have been fantastic advocates and without their initiative I'd likely be stuck with a shitty transmission and a bad attitude towards Nissan.

Anyway, after a couple of days the service folks call me to let me know that they've ordered a new tranny and asked whether they could keep the car until it came in. I told them that, frankly, I didn't want the car back until it all work was completed (in the midst of all of this it was discovered that my flywheel had "hot spots" and the techs recommended replacement. They even offered a pretty good deal on a lightweight NISMO flywheel; so either I got sorta lucky or I got swindled pretty hard. I mean, "hot spots"? WTF is that?!?). The new tranny was installed last week at which point the techs took it for a test drive and discovered an "unusual noise" coming from under the car. The techs explained that they pulled a brand new Z off the lot to peek around underneath it and compare it to my car to determine the cause of the noise. Once again they deferred to Nissan USA who told 'em to go ahead and replace the transmission AGAIN!

I figure they got less than 5 miles out of the third transmission. And this brings the grand total to FOUR transmissions in 2 years/25K miles. Trannies 3 and 4 were installed within days of each other, which has to be some sort of record.

I haven't gotten the car back yet but I'm already considering my options regarding getting rid of this car.

little_rod

Well, the 12K thing is from Nissan, that is the amount of time they will warrantee a clutch. I assume they say 12K cause they will only replace it when it is defective.

I'm at 35K now, and I told them to go ahead and replace the clutch while they are there, since I have seen a wide variety of miles when people's clutches have gone out. They told me if I replace it now, I can save on the labor that it would have cost just to do the clutch. Since they have to remove the transmission anyway, I only have to pay $200 for the clutch. If I waited til I needed a clutch, they said it would be $500. I went ahead and did it, although I know if I was to go forced induction I will regret it, but I'm not sure if I will be doing that or not.

methylal

Update:

My car is at Peachtree Nissan getting the transmission/clutch replaced as I explained earlier. They said it would be done in a day. However, it was not (of course). I took it in Monday morning and so they gave me a courtesy car today (Pontiac Grand Am (HA)). They should be done with it tomorrow morning.

New Transmission
New Clutch
New Window Regulators (Felt Stabilizers) - for the greasy streaks on the windows

I'll give you guys an update on its drivability when I get it.

--meth

arizzee

iTrader: (28)

If the dealer is trying to charge you for a clutch, they're screwing you. The clutch is now part of the tranny swap (at least that's what my service advisor told me). I had 18,674 miles on my '03 when my tranny was replaced about two weeks ago.

methylal

little_rod -

Yeah, as arizzee said, the clutch is part of the tranny swap. Mine is, at least.

--meth

neo

I listened to the "rattle" on a 2005 in netural and it was THE SAME as my 2003 Z. I had them crank it up and listened and it was exactly the same...

BriGuyMax

iTrader: (4)

You've discovered the drivetrain noise that is completely normal for all 350Zs. That's what you get for having heavy duty bearings in a performance oriented transmission.

Ever listen to a C5 vette?? They are even louder.

daequitz

Trans and throw-out bearing replaced last week at 6,383 miles. Quick turnaround. Dealer was great!

methylal

Finally....
NEW CLUTCH and NEW TRANMISSION at 12.5k miles. Everything is running perfect and so smooooooth. I love it. Hopefully, this is it.

--meth