Changing Transmission Oil Filter

I have a 1995 Nissan Quest. I'm getting some transmission herky and jerky when the van is warmed up. I suspect it's the transmission fluid filter. I plan on dropping the transmission pan and replacing the filter this weekend.

The Haynes manual lays out a pretty straight forward process to do this.

I'm asking here if there any gotchas NOT in the manual that I should look out for? Will any "extra" stuff come out I should lookout for? :>) When I "inherited" this car from my son (140k miles), who was given the van, he said the original owner had kept up all the scheduled maintenance. Together, we have put about 50k miles on the van since we aquired it.

Any tips, suggestions, comments would be appreciated. I don't want to screw this up. I think I can get another 50k miles out of the van. I like it a lot.

TIA,

Manjo 1995 Nissan Quest 191k miles

Reply to
Manjo
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If your tranny is acting up, it is probably already too late to fix with a filter change. Changing the filter can be very complicated anyhow. Carmakers usually design their tranny so that servicing the filter is not easy. In your situation I would just change the tranny fluid and nurse the tranny along for as long as it will last. Also, avoid places to to flush your tranny completely. Old trannies and a power flush usually = disaster.

CD

Reply to
codifus

It doesn't really have a "filter" just a screen to keep the big chunks out. You can change it, but it's probably not going to make a difference. At 191K, it's probably due for a rebuild.

Reply to
JimV

codi/JimV,

Thanks for the responses. The tranny does have a lot of miles. I have the kit in hand so I think I'll give it a shot. If it doesn't work, I'll baby the tranny for as long as I can, as you suggest.

Thanks for the suggestions.

manjo

Manjo wrote:

Reply to
Manjo

Chances are your tranny is about to go, and at this point, it is very unlikely you can do anything to make it better. If the problem (jerking) seems to surround shifting, perhaps, but if it's random, you're most likely ready for a rebuild.

Willy

Reply to
Willy

Willy,

I changed the tranny oil and replafced the oil filter. The problem is about the same, except it seems the problem is far less if I take the tranny out of Overdrive (press button on end of RH selector arm).

I'm now wondering if there's an O/D sensor that's going bad. I saw all sorts of wires and assemblies under the engine after I took the transmission pan off to clean it and get at the filter. Any thoughts on an O/D sensor going? I really would like to get a few more good miles out of the Quest. It's a good vehicle for what I need.

TIA for any tips or suggestions.

Manjo 1995 Nissan Quest

Reply to
Manjo

That would correspond with the fact that when over-drive is off, there is less load on the tranny. With OD on, the car gets it's best gas mileage and the tranny is experiencing the highest load from the engine. Sine the Quest feels the same in OD after the tranny oil change, I'm afraid its only a matter of time . . . . . . .

Best thing to do since you would like to keep your minivan is to look for a used wrecked Quest tranny. The Trany should be pretty much same from the 1995-2001. I would double check to make sure. You may be able to find a wrecked, young 2001 Quest tranny to tranfer to yours.

Try car-part.com

CD

Reply to
Codifus

Honestly I'm not sure if the o/d engages as a result of a sensor, but my guess is that your tranny is going to die very soon. My guess is that the reason it is shifting better is because, without o/d, the tranny is experiencing less "tension" (for the lack of a better word) plus, by turning o/d off, you're sort of forcing it to stay in 3rd (or fourth depending on the model).

Willy

Reply to
Willy

There is no "OD sensor". There's a solenoid that engages OD. OD is when the transmission is under the most load, so it makes sense that a failing one will act-up more then.

Reply to
JimV

CD/Willy/JimV,

Thanks for the feedback and suggestions. I'll start looking for a replacement transmission.

How hard is it to rebuild a Quest tranny? Any good manuals out there on the subject?

Manjo

JimV wrote:

Reply to
Manjo

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