Final CVT fluid drain and refill

[bbhero]

Well did the final drain and refill on my Nissan Altima VQ two door coupe. 4.3 qts of Eneos CVT fluid taken out and put back in... Was 306k miles plus when that was done. 4 total drain and refills done... I am very pleased with how much quieter the car has been since doing the first changes with the Eneos CVT fluid. Surprised me a good bit that the fluid that drained out still had a blueish color still in it after 20k miles... Can't hardly see the fluid on the dipstick now... May need to borrow CT8s seeing eye dog Rex to help see it...

 

[JustN89]

306k miles? That's pretty impressive! On an Altima, no less. I've been hard on Nissan's CVT, but clearly you've got a good combo going with maintenance and the V6. I've been under the impression for a while now that the V6 seems to be better for Nissan's CVTs than the 4 cylinder.

 

[blufeb95]

Originally Posted by JustN89

306k miles? That's pretty impressive! On an Altima, no less. I've been hard on Nissan's CVT, but clearly you've got a good combo going with maintenance and the V6. I've been under the impression for a while now that the V6 seems to be better for Nissan's CVTs than the 4 cylinder.

To have 306k on a Nissan with a CVT sounds like mostly highway driving, My theory on what destroys CVT belts is stopping and going and constantly inching up that occurs with in city driving, I'm sure it puts a lot more stress on the belt to get the car moving from static friction than it does to keep it rolling, probably why the Versa comes in a 4 speed still because they're used for Taxis.

 

[FordMan59]

What has been your fluid change interval over the life of the car? When you do fluid changes do you do multiple changes within a few thousand miles to get most of the fluid changed out or one change very 20, 30, etc. miles? I've got a '16 Versa and plan to do fluid/filter changes every 30K miles.

 

[bbhero]

Originally Posted by JustN89

306k miles? That's pretty impressive! On an Altima, no less. I've been hard on Nissan's CVT, but clearly you've got a good combo going with maintenance and the V6. I've been under the impression for a while now that the V6 seems to be better for Nissan's CVTs than the 4 cylinder.

I tend to agree... I think the V6 is actually a better pairing with the CVT.... I think the higher torque motor helps keep the CVT in a better mode of operation in low speed high load situations. The car has certainly seen a whole, whole lot of highway driving... I also think the issues with other CVT transmissions is having the wrong fluid put in them later or having the ECU poorly programmed from the factory.... Which causes a lot more wear and issues from being in too high a gear in lower speed circumstances.

 

[bbhero]

Originally Posted by FordMan59

What has been your fluid change interval over the life of the car? When you do fluid changes do you do multiple changes within a few thousand miles to get most of the fluid changed out or one change very 20, 30, etc. miles? I've got a '16 Versa and plan to do fluid/filter changes every 30K miles.

Man I didn't change the CVT fluid until 283,500 miles... I did 3 drain and refills last October be through November... I do think you are right to change the fluid in your car every 30k miles... Especially if you are doing a lot of stop and go driving.

 

[tbm5690]

The CVTs behind the V6s are more robust than those that are mated with the 4 bangers...both Jatco but higher strength belts to handle the additional power. I wouldn't say the V6 variants are over-built, but in some applications I definitely think the other units are under-built. If the OP went 283K on original fluid, that's impressive even for highway miles. These like many transmissions are just picky with fluid...keep it fresh and you'll be good. The first sign that I get that it's time for a change is a slight whine if I'm punching it and in the 5000+ RPM range.

 

[GSCJR]

5000+ RPM on a CVT? You're brave! I try to avoid pushing it past 2500. Lol

 

[bbhero]

Originally Posted by GSCJR

5000+ RPM on a CVT? You're brave! I try to avoid pushing it past 2500. Lol

Man.... I have hit 5000+ rpm almost daily for 7+ years In fact just two days ago I just about hit 6,000 rpm.... GSD.... Getting Stuff Done

 

[GSCJR]

Maybe that's the key to success! Okay, I'll start hammering on it from now on. Lol

 

[Ram02]

My wife's 13 accord has the CVT in there I've done 3 drain and fills every 30k the first drain the fluid was very dark the other two drains the fluid still looked brand new. I feel like I'm wasting money doing them now . I used Honda CVT fluid and her car has 109k now .

 

[JTK]

Nice! The VQ35's and CVT combo do seem to be the better of the Nissan combos. Plus this Altima is the 2dr variant which is pretty rare and probably made in Japan, if that makes a difference. It's great to hear the Eneos CVT fluid works out well in these. Once I'm beyond 60K miles on my 2019 Pathfinder, I'll be going with aftermarket CVT fluid as well.

 

[bbhero]

Originally Posted by JTK

Nice! The VQ35's and CVT combo do seem to be the better of the Nissan combos. Plus this Altima is the 2dr variant which is pretty rare and probably made in Japan, if that makes a difference. It's great to hear the Eneos CVT fluid works out well in these. Once I'm beyond 60K miles on my 2019 Pathfinder, I'll be going with aftermarket CVT fluid as well.

Yeah the Eneos CVT fluid certainly an option... I actually got my last 5 for $10 a quart... Not too shabby. Yeah there are very few 2 door Altima coupes out there... I know the Lexus 2 door coupe is even much more rare to see... I have seen only 2 -3 of them in the wild. One of them actually resides in a neighborhood right near me. A red Lexus 2 door coupe.