Transmission Service 2004 Nissan Sentra - Pull Pan?

[Fitz98]

Working on my son's '04 Nissan Sentra with 250k miles while he is back from college.
He was experiencing a few situations where the transmissionmission would have a little troubles engaging into gear at cold startup. Everything worked fine once he got going. I topped off fluid and it seemed to help a little.
This fluid has never been changed.
I am familiar with the concept and debate of not changing/flushing fluid when miles are this high when proper service has not been maintained, but I think in this case, I should roll the dice. I am thinking just a drain and fill, not a flush.
The fluid is a little brownish and has a bit of an odor that I would lean towards the burnt smell.
I would normally want to pull the pan to clean the magnet and inspect the pan to see what evidence there is about potential wear.
I have not had good luck changing pans in the past without leaking on my Expedition. Ended up having to use factory rubber or silicone gasket in combination with Hylomar Blue to stop leak. Factory gasket alone did not work (I did do extensive prep work and filed pan surface to make sure holes were not mis shaped) .
Looking for advice on whether I should pull pan (Which I would like to do, but more importantly, if I would risk a leaking seal by changing it and any advice on transmission seal... Dealer OE gasket, RTV, Hylomar).

 

[buster]

I would do a pan drop/filter change. Maybe throw a qt of Bardahl ATF conditioner in as well.

 

[gman2304]

I am familiar with the concept and debate of not changing/flushing fluid when miles are this high when proper service has not been maintained,

This entered my mind when I bought my high mileage 2005 Chevy with the 4L60 E with 162,000 miles. I ended up doing quite a few siphon and fills using Supertech Dexron, plus a bottle of LG Red in mine and never changed the filter or dropped the pan. It was shifting like butta when I sold it two years ago with 248,000 miles. As usual YMMV but it worked out well for me.

 

[ripcord]

I'm pretty sure that unit has a transmission drain plug. Since I'm kinda lazy, I would just do a drain and refill. Maybe a couple of times with a drive in between, depending on how dirty the fluid is. Any fluid labeled as Dexron III compatible is fine.

 

[JavierH19]

Internet says matic d which is the older thicker stuff. The green bottle transmax high mileage works great for old 4 speeds. My old 4 speeds have liked that the most so far. Home depot and amazon sell it for cheap. I think I'd do two or three spills. Change the filter on the last one not the first one. If the shifts feel a little slow use a bit of atf type f. Disconnect the battery so the tcu maybe resets. type f helps to quicken up shifts since it has no friction modifiers which is what causes slippage though intentionally so it's smooth instead of stiff. Did that on my old silverado and ranger with great results they shifted a lot more quickly and still couldn't feel anything. If you overdo it the shifting can be felt which isn't good as shock loading isn't good for the rest of the driveline.

https://msdspds.castrol.com/bpglis/...EAF92768025805600724B2B/$File/BPXE-AFE8TS.pdf

https://www.homedepot.com/p/CASTROL...atic-Transmission-Fluid-1-qt-151DD0/205159600

https://www.amazon.com/Castrol-Tran...nsmission/dp/B00DILUC6U?tag=ustxtaddt-20&th=1

 

[MrBubba]

The transmission is likely on its way out considering the mileage.

What I would do is do a drain/fill change out that filter and run some Lubegard and see if you cant buy it some more time.

 

[GSCJR]

With that amount of mileage, my suggestion would be to pull the pan and do a thorough service.

 

[slacktide_bitog]

Nissan is smart enough to include a drain plug for the transmission, so you don't have to drop the pan

Do the job cold, like first thing in the morning, then when you drain it, measure how much came out, and refill with the same amount. It's not worth dropping the pan, and the filter is almost there just for show.

If you use Lubegard or some other additive, keep that in mind when measuring how much ATF to fill with, so you'll have to subtract the amount of Lubegard used. While they're mostly known for their additives, Lubegard also makes complete ATF.

 

[Kira]

With "Moon Mileage" I'd just do a D&F.
After driving 500 miles and noting any changes, do a pan drop with filter.
Your 'brownish with a bit of odor' fluid won't mind the second round of new fluid.
Decide as you go.

 

[Lubener]

At that mileage, I would surely drop the pan, clean the maget, pan and change the filter. The only additive I would use would be lubeguard. Before reinstalling the pan, place a straight edge on the sealing portion. You might have to use a ball peen hammer to flatten the area where the bolt holes are. If the pan is flat and you don't over tighten the bolts, it shouild be leak free.

 

[Sayjac]

Honestly with those miles on the Sentra, imo servicing the transmission could be ****ed if you do, ****ed (auto censored) if you don't. Based on description of how transmission acting, I'd start by trying just a simple d&f using Maxlife FSMV. Then run it for a while, put on some miles, see how goes. If there's some improvement or at least gets no worse, do another d&f and if you want to try a Lubegard additive with it, go for it. Having some experience with a Nissan of that era I expect it does have a transmission drain plug.

As an aside, I'm going to say your Senta isn't the Spec V, because if it was was I highly doubt it would still be going at those miles, or even close. Anyway, good luck.

 

[martinq]

AT servicing isn't complicated once you've done it a dozen times.
- drain & drop the pan
- clean the pan and the magnets
- crack loose the filter and/or valve body to get extra fluid drained
- assemble, fill, test drive
- double check fluid level

The most important thing for the transmission is:
- clean fluid
- clean magnets
- don't overheat

The filter doesn't make much difference as the magnets do the most important filtering.

 

[Egg_Head]

With that amount of mileage, my suggestion would be to pull the pan and do a thorough service.

This and load up on the AAP Valvoline Hybrid ATF for $1.45/qt.

 

[Nessism1]

I've posted this several times previously, but when I put Maxlife in my 2006 Sentra, same transmission as discussed here, it shifted like crap. Shift flair and late shifting, particularly when cold. Use what you want, but this is my experience.

With that many miles, I'd drop the pan and change the filter, assuming there is one. I haven't done that level of research to know either way.

 

[ripcord]

I've posted this several times previously, but when I put Maxlife in my 2006 Sentra, same transmission as discussed here, it shifted like crap. Shift flair and late shifting, particularly when cold. Use what you want, but this is my experience.

With that many miles, I'd drop the pan and change the filter, assuming there is one. I haven't done that level of research to know either way.

I'd just use regular SuperTech ATF. It's a conventional Dex/Merc formula. Chances are that the transmission is on its way out anyway.

 

[SC Maintenance]

As mentioned, spill and fill. The pan likely has a gasket (most of that vintage do). The "filter" is likely no more than a screen. There are likely a couple magnets. Whether cleaning them does much is open for debate.

I would do a spill and fill and see if it gets any better.

 

[Fitz98]

I like the idea of pulling the pan to clean magnets, pan and inspect.
Easy to do, just concerned about leaks in gasket upon re-install. Guess I am a little traumatized from my experience with my Expedition.
I do have a drain bolt which makes it easy.
FWIW, the filter is a screen and is not replaceable without removing valve body. Apparently one of the bolts that holds the filter has a nut on the back side of the valve body which prevents re-installing that bolt without taking it apart.