When i planned to start on a green light suddenly my xterra didn't shift the next change.

I have just one month with this vehicle, i am the second owner and i am very disappointed with this issue. I am just reading your comments and I am getting noticed that I am in big problems with this.

This vehicle was bought brand new in Mexico dealer by his frist owner, the dealer imports this vehicule from usa.

I will go to the dealer tomorrow. Right now I have a big concern and I don't know if somebody of you can help me.. The first owner didn't do all the services in the dealer, will this affect the dealer responsibility in situation of an obvious problem that applies to a recall? I have heard that there is an additional part that prevents this failure, could somebody share more information about this, photos if possible? I will appreciate your help.

best regards

It started with the shuddering around 40-50 mph. Went on-line to see if I could figure out what it was and found out about the radiator problem. Took it into the dealer the next day and they confirmed it was the radiator that had caused the transmission to be ruined. Said they couldn't cover it because it was past warranty. I got Corporates number and they pretty much said the same thing. This is the dealership I bought the vehicle from also. They said they wanted $6700 to remove both and replace with an after market radiator and remanufactured transmission. I asked for some mercy because I felt I was getting screwed but they offered none. So I called other dealerships in the area and found one that would do the SAME work for $5200. Told my dealership (Nissan of the Eastside in Bellevue WA) to pound sand and removed the vehicle from their premises. Got it back 4 days ago and all is fine so far. But am working on a 12 month 12000 mile warranty, no too reasssuring.

I joined this club upon my return from a nice weekend in Atlanta. I noticed my vehicle had been violently shaking (seemed like driving on really rough road) while shifting and downshifting between 2nd and 3rd gears. I also began losing acceleration while driving back from Atlanta which really freaked me out.

Having the vehicle looked at by a local transmission specialist tomorrow, and will probably get them to replace the transmission fluid, then I will be taking this vehicle to a dealership for a trade-in ASAP. I am 24 years old, have owned 3 nissans throughout my lifetime (all bought and paid for by myself) and will NEVER be owning another. This really bites because I currently owe about $6k on my car note, and this is really going to hurt my current finances.....

Apparently I am not alone in this problem. Nissan is acting like they extended the warranty, which would make them a nice guy. But....they only told the dealers about the problem in case a customer reported the problem. Why was this not a TSB or a full recall??? I am currently waiting...and waiting... and waiting to be denied a claim for reimbursement for the new radiator and trans flush. Still need the trans replacement. I am wondering if the magical number of 80,000 was picked because it was the point of when the problem happens. Then Nissan is released from liability cause remember they were nice to extend the warranty. What a joke and incredibly poor customer service. Wonder how many people are never again buying a nissan.

I was on my lunch break and on my way back to the office. Stopped at a red light, hit the gas on green and R PM's shot up and the Xterra would only go 5MPH. I had it towed to the Nissan dealer. While waiting for a call back for from the shop I Google d "known transmission issues for 05 Xterra" and I came across this site. I kept my fingers crossed and prayed that it was just a sensor gone bad and that I wasn't facing the same problem as the other folks on this site. The wait wasn't long. They called back within 30 minutes of receiving the Xterra. The radiator corroded and leaked water into the transmission. The radiator and transmission needed to be replaced. Total cost was $3663.82. The OEM parts and the labor were at a discounted rate. Plus I received 10% off that price and paid $3297.43 out the door (due to a miscommunication and a chat with the service manager) I know the damage could have been worse if I had paid full price for the parts and labor. I opted for an after market radiator to save $300.00. The transmission was a rebuilt OEM from Nissan. I called around to a couple of other local transmission shops. Some of the quotes were ridiculous and other shops wouldn't give a quote unless I had the Xterra towed in. I had already paid $60.00 to have it towed it to the Nissan Dealer. The good thing about having the repair completed at the Nissan Dealer was the 3 Year 50K mile warranty. The downside to that is that I cant do the bypass fix to prevent it from happening again or it voids the warranty. I figure at 50K or 3 years from the repair I'll have the bypass completed and slap an oil pan warmer on the transmission. It would have been nice to have known about this problem before hand, but who really Google's anything about their car until after the problem occurs. The car is running great but then again it was running great before it broke down. I think that's the worst part is that it came out of nowhere with no warning signs. I'm just thankful that it didn't happen on our way back from L.A. that prior weekend.

Transmission started slipping. Looked online, see that Nissan was "nice enough" to extend the warranty on the RADIATOR, that is leaking fluid into the transmission, to 80K mi. How hospitable of them. Since, even according to my Nissan dealer, the problem doesn't occur until after 100K. And he ought to know. He himself owns a 2005 Pathfinder and his daughter owns a 05 Xterrra. Guess what? This problem that Nissan doesn't think is really a problem? Well, it happened to both of their vehicles, too. To the tune of $3500 each repair. Turns out, my radiator also leaked fluid into the transmission, ruining the radiator, the silenoid valves, and basically the entire transmission. I couldn't afford the $3500, so i took it to a local garage, and he's fixing it today for $2280. What a deal. Called Nissan consumer complaints and filed a complaint there. I mentioned the Class Action Lawsuit that is still outstanding. They gave me a file number, said they'd look into it and call me back. I'm not expecting much really. What I would like is a reimbursement of my $2280. I love this car, overall. The only things wrong are the things that Nissan KNOWS are wrong, as they have extended warranties on these items. However, their shown lack of integrity to their customers is eating at me. If it's broken, pay for the fix. Apparently there is a bypass option that MAY cost a couple hundred, but would have prevented this from happening. Why not at least offer that to customers? Stalling and dragging out recalling ANYTHING when you know for a fact that there are problems is a horrible way to conduct business. I have been a huge proponent of Nissan (I previously owned a Maxima) and the Xterra, I have always cheerleaded for. I believe I've changed my mind. It's not the problems themselves - no vehicle is without problems - it's the company's complete denial and lack of acknowledgement that was the proverbial final straw for me.

my story is just like most of these. transmission shifting hard and shaking. contacted Nissan and waiting for a decision on what they will do. what a nightmare. this never should have happened. they owe it to their consumers some kind of warning about their faulty radiators. if they had even suggested that i replace my radiator on my own ( out of warranty), this wouldnt be such a disaster.

Update from Aug 26, 2012: o.k. put in a new radiator, rebuilt transmission, all in $ 3,500. Transmission rebuilt at AAMCO. Long story short, they tried to screw me on the valve body, ( part only available through Nissan) they tried to charge me $1,600. I found it online, at an Arizona dealer for $750. I told them I got it cheap because I had an open case with Nissan. That B.S. saved me a lot of money. Please use these online resources, car complaints and the others, the class action suit, ect. This is bullshit, lets force a recall and reimbursement !. I have been reimbersed by Nissan for another recall in the past, there is hope.

My story is very similar to others posted here. I have a 2005 Nissan Xterra, automatic. I had an extended warranty on it up to 94k miles. I recently noticed a jerking in the truck when braking at approx 10mph. Brought it to dealership where I purchased it new and where I've had every repair and service completed. I was advised by Nissan mechanic that my inter cooler is leaking into transmission fluid. He could not tell me what caused the radiator to go bad just that that's what he believes the problem to be and if in fact that is the problem it is unrepairable!!!! He said it costs approx $30k to fix and so obviously not worth it and that I would have to junk the truck. He also said that just to be sure that is the problem he will flush all my fluids for me and wanted me to drive the xterra as much as I could for the next 3 weeks and then bring it back to him and he would confirm if in fact it is an inter cooler leak.

Funny thing is Nissan put a new transmission in my xterra last September when it was at 92k miles. I wasn't even having any problems with it. Brought it in for a regular service and was advised I needed a new transmission but it was covered under warranty and the new warranty would be good for 12k miles. They could not tell me at that time why the transmission went out, just said it did. Sounds fishy to me. They should be liable since they either missed the radiator problem when it was under warranty or lied about it. Also, why was I told by their mechanic to junk the truck? I have talked to multiple mechanics including a different Nissan mechanic who said I need a new transmission and radiator, not to junk the truck!!!

I own 2 nissans and even rent nissans and I hope they do right by me and take care of this problem that they were obviously aware of. I've seen multiple complaints on the same issue. I've done all my services at Nissan and have been a loyal customer. I have talked to Nissan Consumer Affairs 3 times about the issue and I'm still waiting for a resolution. Let's see what they do. Otherwise it's the local tv stations and getting on board with the class action lawsuit!

This was my first major issue with the Xterra. While I was driving to work, I had to stop at a stop light & once the light turned green, the transmission then would not shift. I had to have the xterra towed to the Nissan dealership. The Nissan dealership not only lacked customer service (took them a week to receive an overnight shipped valve body & they dodged my phone calls by letting me sit on hold on the telephone) but also the ability to fix my xterra. Their diagnosis, for this event, was an "internal fault in valve body." I would honestly go buy a different car if I could, but I simply cannot because I am a single mom trying to finish my degree. However, in the meantime, I spread the word to friends & family to avoid buying a Nissan; that they aren't worth the money nor the headache.

Update from Jul 20, 2012: This is the second time for the valve body in the transmission to fail for my 2005 Nissan Xterra. The transmission failed this time while I was driving on a very busy street with my two kids in the vehicle!! Thankfully, I was able to get to a parking lot that was located near the busy street.

Due to the pain of dealing with the Nissan dealership the first time, I decided to have the Xterra towed (again) to a local transmission repair shop. Confused as to why I was having a transmission problem AGAIN, fourteen months after I initially had the transmission fixed at the dealership, the local transmission repair shop informed me this is a common problem with Nissan's. The local transmission shop rebuilt the transmission and replaced all faulty parts.

First, I do not agree with the fact that I had to pay to fix the valve body the first time (4/2011), which was only a patch & the Nissan dealership obviously knew that! $1568 to fix this vehicle the first time.

Second, I once again have the same problem with the transmission (6/2012) and am out MORE money...$3865!!

Third, this is only a 2005 model vehicle, the durability and performance should be better than this.

I was really lucky to catch this problem with my XTerra before I ended up on the side of the road. I just so happened to be getting ready to take my car to the shop for it's 100,000 mile service. I was checking the internet for my dealership's phone # and decided to look at some websites to see what the current ratings were for my 2005 Xterra. I started reading all of the horror stories on website after website about the radiator problems and transmission failure. It started freaking me out. I had a 2005 Xterra with 105,000 miles on it!!! I read a couple of stories where the heater had quit working properly....omg....my heater had not been putting out heat for 2 winters!!! I live in FL, so it was never really a big deal. Anyway, after reading all of the stories, I saw one site that recommended that if you are concerned about this problem, to go look at your Xterra's coolant reservoir and see what the coolant looks like. If it's neon green like it's supposed to be, you're probably OK, but if it's brown and looks like chocolate milk, you're in trouble. I looked at mine and lo and behold, it was brown. I immediately drove it to the dealer (never had the jerking or shuddering problems) where they checked it and verified that the coolant had mixed with the transmission fluid. Not too much longer and I would have been stranded by the side of the road with a totally destroyed vehicle. I made them drain the fluids and fill that baby back up with clean fluids, then I drove it to a Mini dealership where I traded it for a Mini Cooper and got $10,000 for the Xterra on my trade in. The service department at the Nissan dealership was rude and angry when I demanded my car back without being repaired and they were upset with me that I wasn't going to buy another NIssan. I was lucky to run across the transmission problems and check mine before I actually had transmission failure.

This will be the 2rd recall I have had to have fixed. The 1st one (fuel tank sensor) was over the mileage that Nissan had approve the fix for, however they did fix it. The 2nd one was the engine sensor my car died on the freeway... I got the recall in the mail the day it happened. They fixed that without a problem. Now I find out my radiator failed and cooling fluid was leaking into my transmission basically ruining both. There is a recall, AGAIN there is a mileage limit of 80k. When the last recall happened I asked about any others. They told me about the radiator but NOT to worry that it would be ok. YA and now they say it failed and NISSAN will not approve the fix. I will fight this to court if I have too! I am a single mother and depend on my vehicle. I can't afford a new car I am getting ready to take a 16% cut in pay and benefits. Nissan has shown me more than once they are not a company to be trusted or depended on. I will NEVER buy another NISSAN... EVER.

Had to have my XTerra towed 25 miles from my work to my mechanic because it would not start... battery was fully charged... starter was ok... Then my trustworthy mechanic calls me today and tells me he has some bad news. Something that HARDLY EVER HAPPENS happened to my Nissan... the metal in the radiator "failed" and allowed radiator coolant to go into the transmission, which has a transmission computer chip. The radiator fluid "fried" the computer chip and now I have to pay around $5000 to completely replace the radiator and transmission. My mechanic tells me that this is really a freaky thing to have happen... that it isn't normal. But with just a little bit of googling, I find that this is a VERY WELL KNOWN AND COMMON PROBLEM with 2005 Nissan XTerra's!!! I am going to call NISSAN about this... They know that this is a mechanical product problem!