Problems with 2005 Nissan Xterra POWER TRAIN

Transmission failure because of coolant fluid leaking into it. a design flaw which brought a class action suit against nissan. nissan lost the suit, but did not recall these vehicles for repair. i was forced to pay $3000.00 deductible for the repair, but i may be lucky since many with this problem will not be covered at all. very unfair of nissan. *tr

I noticed the transmission 'slipping' when i pulled into work, especially in traffic on my commute. when i got back in my car 2 hours later, i could barely make it up a 2% grade in the parking lot. i immediately went to a reputable transmission shop who said i was lucky to make it there and not pay the towing charges (he pointed to another xterra that came in the day before). my vehicle was past the (wimpy) extended warranty (mileage) for the class action lawsuit and the age was well past it. it cost me $3750 out of pocket with no hope of financial relief from nissan. the transmission repair store owner said this whole situation (design and lawsuit) was terrible and could have been avoided. lucky i wasn't on the interstate! *tr

I was driving one morning and at the front of my neighborhood is a hill. i had to stop and wait for traffic so that i could go. once i put my foot on the gas i couldn't go anywhere, the engine just revved. so i had to back all the back to my house. my husband is a mechanic and told me it was the transmission. we have now found out what the problem was being that the coolant is getting into the transmission and ruined it. now, at the time i find that there was a settlement, my vehicle has over the 100,000 mile limit. from what i read, the majority of the vehicles are over the 100,000 mile limit when the problem occurs. something needs to be done about this because it could cause a fatality if you are driving and suddenly can't go anywhere fast enough and get hit! *tr

My truck felt sluggish. upon diagnosis, there was transmission fluid in the radiator and the radiator was replaced on 5/7/14. several weeks later, my truck stalled, and i had the intelligent power distribution module replaced. several weeks later, the service engine light came on. this time, there were three transmission codes. the transmission had coolant in it, and was starting to fail. nissan corporate only offers an extension over 100,000 on their powertrain warranty with a $3,500 deductible. with the transmission (rebuilt) being $3,500 and the radiator being $500. it was not worth it to go to the dealership to get a new transmission. nissan failed to notify their customers in 2007 when they became aware of the problem. it would have been a lot less costly for nissan truck owners to buy a new radiator before it failed, then to have also lost their transmissions. it looks like nissan wanted to avoid a costly recall, which will cost them more in lost new car sales in the future. one ceo looks good, the next one will not. *tr

Manufacturing defect in radiator caused transmission failure that could have been quite dangerous under some circumstances. this has been widely reported by huge numbers of nissan owners of various year models and styles. nissan refuses to be accountable for the failure and denies acceptable service to their customers on this issue. *tr

When driving at highway speeds, vehicle would start to shudder and thud into gear. had vehicle checked out and told there was a defect in which the connection between radiator and transmission malfunctioned and coolant mixed with transmission fluid, thereby destroying the transmission and radiator. i have found that this is apparently a very common problem of nissan xterras from 2005 to 2010 that i had no idea about. this really should be recalled on all affected vehicle, because it is such a common problem and if one has over 80k miles they still pay half for the repair and if over 100k miles there is no warranty coverage from nissan. the warranty extension was the result of a class action suit but is not enough when full repair can be $6000 and there has been no warning from nissan that this is a potential problem to look for. *tr

Coolant enters into the transmission system from a defective radiator system and destroys transmission. nissan manufacturer is aware of this, even lost a class action lawsuit, but has not recalled the vehicle. as a result, owners are not aware of the defect until transmission is ruined. nissan only agreed to help repair vehicles, after the fact and only up to 100,000 miles - with the owner still having to pay $3,000 toward repair. since we were not aware of the defect, we didn't do anything preemptive so we had to wait until our transmission was ruined. since we are beyond the 100,000 mile mark, nissan will not accept any responsibility for repair. *tr

The vehicle doesn't move,despite acceleration, no engine light. went to the dealer and after diagnosis they said the radiator was cracked and the transmission was leaking. the cost comes to $7500. contacted nissan they say its not within warranty. theses is a defective design on the radiator. updated 05/01/14

Tl* the contact owns a 2005 nissan xterra. the contact stated that the transmission failed and the vehicle jerked. the vehicle was taken to an authorized mechanic who stated that radiator fluid leaked into the transmission, which caused the transmission to fail. the transmission was replaced. the contact also stated that the fuel gauge failed. the contact did not know if the fuel tank was full or empty. the fuel gauge was not repaired. the manufacturer was not notified. the failure mileage was 140,000.

Transmission failure due to a problem well known by nissan. coolant entered through a failed radiator and causes failure of the automatic transmission. timing chain failure also well known by nissan. *tr

Internal radiator transmission cooler cracked leaking coolant into the transmission and destroying it, rendering it useless. the transmission failed on me while i was driving and the vehicle gave me absolutely no warning lights or any indication of an issue occurring with the transmission. i had no advance notice so i was unable to avoid any damage to my transmission. *tr

I took my car into the shop because of a rumbling noise and shake that was happening while driving. it feels like hitting the safety strips on the edge of the road by the shoulder. the mechanics pulled things apart and identified that there was radiator fluid and engine coolant leaking into my transmission. there were also metal shavings mixed in with the fluids. *tr

Suddey i found my heat not working. strange, i was low on coolant and no visible leaks. while researching this i came across all the complaints of transmission failure due to the defective welds on the atf cooler within the radiator. i immediately went to dealer and had everything checked out and pressure tested for leaks. they said all is fine and tested ok, we have no idea why you would be low on coolant. mind you, at this point there is 79k on the odometer and we all know nissans lame warranty extension is useless due to the convenient mileage cap completely and obviously is in their best interest. appalling and 100% a safety issue and complete negligence. in an effort to be pro active i ordered an aftermarket radiator and installed it myself. i also flushed and refilled tranny fluid. i am now about to break 100k. i'm now worried about the timing chain issue nissan also doesn't want to deal with. anyone reading this should be pro active and change out your radiator and flush your transmission immediately, it's all you can do right now to prevent a bigger issue. it also cost me $400 to do myself. the quote from the dealer was $1500. good luck to all, i argued and called and called and nissan could care less and wouldn't even consider any help whatsoever . this was my wife and i's 5th nissan. never again!!!!!!

Radiator coolant and oil mixture and due to that, the transmission makes the car vibrate to an undrivable point affecting the driver ability to conduct a safe operation on the road including busy highways. *tr

There is a manufacturer's defect with the radiator in which it cracks and leaks fluid into the transmission, which then destroys the transmission. when we called nissan to ask if they were going to stand by their product, they told us there was nothing they could do for us. *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2005 nissan xterra. the contact stated that while driving approximately 60 mph, the transmission began to slip gears before becoming inoperative. the engine was turned off and upon restarting, the vehicle resumed normally. the vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who informed the contact that the transmission fluid had turned into a dark brow, almost black color. the vehicle was not repaired. the manufacturer was notified of the problem. the approximate failure mileage was 125,000.

Transmission/radiator recall i own a 2005 nissan xterra offroad v-6. i purchased this vehicle in sept. 2005. with the exception of an air intake problem within a few months of purchase, i absolutely loved this vehicle! until it went over 90,000 miles in feb. 2014, the transmission just stopped and went into neutral while driving at highway speed in the fast lane on a busy interstate highway. fortunately, i was able to pass over the other lanes of traffic and make it to the shoulder before the car rolled to a complete stop. i let it sit and cool and started it up again to find that i was able at least drive it to the dealer. it was then that i was first made aware of the radiator/transmission recall and subsequent issues. they "serviced" the cooling system by replacing the radiator hoses and clamps and flushing the system out and telling me that that will fix the problem. (at my expense of course) they checked the transmission and said that it was functioning normally with no problems. fine. 2 years and 6,000 miles later while driving at highway speed on a los angeles freeway (it is sometimes possible) the transmission suffered a catastrophic failure and switches into neutral leaving me trying to and weave my way to the opposite side of the freeway where there is a shoulder before i loose momentum. then the vehicle was non operational and i was stranded 100 miles from home. in the 2 years since, this vehicle has had a complete transmission rebuild, has been in the shop 4 more times and had 2 more catastrophic transmission failures while driving on the highway. the important point to be addressed here is that the investigation into this recall ended and it was determined not to be a "safety hazard". well, when my vehicle failed on a blind curve on ca st hwy 74 (the corridor of death), with no median or shoulder, it became a real time safety hazard to me.

I was driving on an interstate highway where the speed limit is 70mph. car begins have a large rumble. can't tell if it the rear end, the drive shaft or transmission. there is no pattern to the rumble and it continues for several weeks, so i take it to an auto repair shop. they tell me that i have water in my transmission fluid, which was caused by a cracked line in the radiator. i am told to check on the internet, because this is a big problem that lot of nissan xterra owners are facing. so, i check it out and the issue is huge. i bought the xterra about 2 years ago and during that time was never contacted by anyone warning me of this issue. now, at the time i find that there was a settlement, my vehicle has over the 100,000 mile limit. from what i read, the majority of the vehicles are over the 100,000 mile limit when the problem occurs. my vehicle still will drive and only get the rumble occasionally, but i now know it's fate. it's ashamed that i could not have been warned by nissan before facing costly repairs. nissan could have saved us lots of headache and money if we had know and been able to be pro-active before the damage was done. *tr

Automatic transmission fluid was cross contaminated with coolant due to faulty radiator. this is a know problem with nissans xterra and pathfinders. nissan is aware of the problem but refuses to take responsibility for the problem. nissan sold products with poor manufacturing quality that cause this catastrophic malfunction. current nissan owner are stuck with a repair bill for 5 to 6 thousand dollars or with a truck that they can't drive of sell because nissans refuses to take care of its customers. *tr

The transmission became stuck in 3rd or 4th gear and would not accelerate. then it worked for a few days. after that it got stuck in 1st and would not shift. it is currently stuck in 3rd or 4th again. the transmission fluid is a red brown foamy color. it is giving a code of p1754. *tr

Transmission died and needs to be replaced, due to the radiator issues of the xterras from the year. *tr

My 16 year son was driving home at 11:00 pm on the interstate when, with no warning, the car lost all acceleration power. he was able to get the car to the side of the road and turn the car off and on and got it into 3rd gear. it would not work in drive. he proceeded very slowly for a short distance until he would lose acceleration power. he had to continue to turn the car off and on the highway multiple times to get it home that evening. he continued very slowly with his flashing lights on. it subsequently had to be towed. thankfully, it did not result in a crash on the interstate. the car is black and it was very dark. it would've been very difficult for someone immediately behind him to react on the interstate. my son's safety was severely compromised. the problem turned out to be the radiator/transmission problem nissan is already being investigated for (nhtsa action number dp12004). it required a new radiator, a new transmission and a new transmission computer as this was all ruined with the catastrophic failure of the radiator. the cost of repairs was $4632.97 including the tow charge. nissan has been aware of this problem for quite some time and even settled a class action lawsuit for this very issue a few years ago. had they voluntarily recalled the vehicle and fixed the problem, my son would not have been put in this dangerous situation and the costs would have been minimized. i desire for nissan to be held liable for this - you have received literally hundreds of the very same complaint. please conduct a recall on the xterra, pathfinders and frontiers you know are impacted. we were fortunate not to have a crash resulting in injury or death; the next family may not be so lucky. *tr

While driving and in flow of traffic vehicle lost all power, but rpms would still increase due to faulty transmission in the xterra. faulty transmission leads to mixing of the radiator and transmission fluid causing loss of acceleration. almost caused an accident with another vehicle. *tr

A few days prior to this vehicle's shut down, i had noticed when driving at either 40 mph or 60 mph, the vehicle would start to 'vibrate'; the feel was as if driving on the highway and the tires are driving over the meridian entering the brake down lane. the alignment wasn't the issue. the day of incident, i was driving on a 50 mph main street, when approaching 40 mph, the vehicle shut down. after about 10 minutes, the vehicle started back up, enough time to drive 5 minutes back home. once towed to the garage & after inspection i was told there was a crack in the atf line which caused coolant to mix with transmission fluid in result causing my transmission to fail. of course i just went over my 100,000 ml warranty, my vehicle is just at 126,000 ml! i am the only owner of this vehicle & have done well maintaining it. after doing research on this issue, i am disgusted with nissan not taking ownership to this situation! this model alone has the most complaints with this specific issue, and to only do an extended recall up to 80,000 ml is ridiculous when this issue appears to happen from 90,000 ml +!!!!!!! i bought this vehicle brand new, with the hopes to have it live for almost 300,000 ml, which i was told by the dealership prior to me buying. this company used to have a great reputation.....let's pray they try to get it back. i hope nissan owns up to this situation & is just not sitting around until a death happens to recall it! *tr

I started to notice a problem while driving on the highway and thought it may be a engine oil issue. i knew there was something wrong because it did not feel right when driving the car it on the highway. attaining the speeds on the highway was difficult and slow. when braking it was also slower to react. i took it too nissan thinking it an easy fixed, i paid $700 dollars to fix whatever they could analyze. i thought the problem was solved, but no. then i was hit with a $3000 to replace the transmission and radiator, which was known about back in 2010. what a rip off nissan, you knew there was an issue and you neglect to inform your customers. i hope you go bankrupt now! *tr

When i am driving on the highway doing 65 or 50 miles an hour the car would slow down and cars behind me would almost hit me. this car was on a recall for the transmission and was fixed. the same problem came back on the transmission and nissan would not fix it. information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u.s.c. 552(b)(6). *tr

Driving 35 mph, vehicle suddenly stops. by reading all the other complaints in regards to the transmission, the coolant mixing and contaminating the transmission fluid. sounds exactly the same issues. will be bringing to get final diagnosis. all other recalls have happened to my xterra, and i am the original owner. *tr

2nd owner of 2005 nissan xterra. first had issues with heat not working when at a complete stop, then car would begin to vibrate on the hwy, and now car is having issues up shifting. 2 mechanics have told me the same thing, stating defective radiator was leaking fluid into transmission. now i must replace both at about $4000. after doing some research online, i have found this is a common issue with this model and nissan has not issued a recall. jeopardizing the safety of many and being very costly to those who can not afford a major issue like this. *js

Vehicle moving along interstate in heavy traffic at 60 mph when acted as if it was shifted into neutral. almost got hit twice trying to coast to side of road. there was no response to trying to accelerate, shifter still in d position. engine temperature rose quickly. shut engine off engine, to prevent a fire. sit there momentarily, restarted the engine, temp came down, transmission engaged, drove home. husband investigated and found oily substance in radiator and transmission low in fluid that was a pasty looking material now on dipstick. refer to the nissan radiator defect class action lawsuit settlement case is in re: nissan radiator/transmission cooler litigation, case no. 10-cv-07493, u.s. district court for the southern district of new york. we were never notified of a recall or the suit, when we would have qualified for assistance from nissan. does the state of new york decide reparations to the rest of the country while i am now poor and need a car and can't afford to repair it. how many more failures are out there? includes pathfinder and frontier models. also discovered vin number on top of dash was incorrect. thanks. *js

Transmission has a jerk, and it turned out to be due to the oil and coolant mix in the transmission. this has been an ongoing issue and several complains have been filed, no extended warranty,dealer or anybody is covering the cost. it is a very expansive repair and i can not afford to fix on this financed vehicle. nissan must pay for the repair. *tr

I had my transmission and radiator replaced in my 05 nissan xterra in dec 2010 at 69,000 miles due to defect of radiator leaking into transmission which caused me to brake down on a 2 lane highway. the nissan service/dealer in kingston ma where we purchased the vehicle tried to tell us all that was needed was a radiator and transmission flush but we had already contacted nissan corporate and found out we were entitled to a new transmission and radiator assembly due to a recall. they unwillingly replaced both assemblies. i have now experienced a 2nd brake down on an on ramp entering the highway and could not move my car as the transmission again failed at 153,900 miles. i had it towed to the nissan service/dealer in kingston ma and was informed the transmission we had put in 2010 was only under warranty for 1 yr/12000 miles and i am responsible for all repair costs. i have to think that the original repair was not done properly and the same problem existed in the new assemblies that were put in as a new transmission should last longer than this. i feel my safety and the safety of other motorists was put at risk due to these problems as severe accidents could have occurred due to the fact that the my vehicle lost the ability to move at all on the highway in two different incidents. nissan should be held responsible for not fixing the initial problem properly. *tr

I have a 2005 nissan xterra and i'm having a problem with the transmission i place it in gear and heard a pop and then the vehicle did not want to go anywhere. after doing some research i have come to the conclusion that there are many others having the same problem. if nissan knows this is a problem they should be held responsible for repairs no matter what the mileage is on the vehicle. i will not be buying another nissan if they don't want to stand behind there products. a couple of years ago the fuel sending unit went bad and it cost me 1200.00 dollars to have it fixed and it was also a known problem. *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2005 nissan xterra. the contact stated that while driving approximately 25 mph, the engine rpms increased excessively but the vehicle failed to accelerate. the contact mentioned that the check engine warning light was illuminated. the vehicle was towed to a dealer where it was diagnosed that the radiator fluid was mixed with the transmission fluid. as a result, the transmission would need to be replaced. the manufacturer was notified of the failure. the vehicle was not repaired. the approximate failure and current mileage was 116,208.

Tl* the contact owns a 2005 nissan xterra. while driving approximately 40 mph, the vehicle shook. the failure occurred multiple times. the dealer stated that the transmission and radiator needed to be replaced. the vehicle was not repaired and the manufacturer was not notified. the approximate failure mileage was 142,000.

The car had been driving fine and then all of a sudden it would not shift into a higher gear. the rpms would just increase. at times the car would not even go into any gear what so ever. finally managed to get it to a dealership where they told me it was the transmission fluid mixing with the radiator fluid. told me i needed both replaced and quoted over $6500 for the fix. check engine light was on at the time, but i was also having a problem with the fuel gauge (also another known problem in xterras). *tr

When driving at various speeds i began to notice the engine bogging down when changing gears. upon taking it to my mechanic i was told that there was a leak between the transmission and engine coolant systems. the fix would require a replacement of both systems totally approx. $6000! apparently this is a "known issue" with 2005-2010 xterras. upon contacting nissan i was told that since my vehicle was over 100,000 miles that there was nothing that they could do for me. if this is a known issue, and a rather major one at that, i'm not sure why there hasn't been any recalls or some kind of fix. *tr

My 2005 nissan xterra with 75600 miles jerks when it shifts. after doing my own online research and bringing to the dealership, it was discovered that the radiator was leaking coolant and mixing into the transmission fluid. there is an extended warranty for this defect to 80,000 or 96months. i qualified for the mileage but not the service duration (6 months overdue). the dealership said it would be a $2500 copay to replace my radiator and repair my transmission. i talked to nissan consumer affairs but they refused to help and said $2500 is my only option. this radiator is a known issue and should be a recall for all the damage it caused. i've owned many nissans before and had great loyalty to them. nissan should be held accountable for knowing about their faulty radiator and not fixing them before they caused further damage! *tr

Coolant leaked into the transmission, causing transmission failure. estimate of $5800 to repair. *tr

My 2005 nissan xterra have this common problem where the radiator leaks into transmission and cause the transmission to stop working. and since i was over 100,000 nissan dealers want to charge me a copay of $3000. *tr

I began to have vibration in my vehicle when i reached speeds of 45 mph and got worse around 65 mph. i took my car to nissan twice in aug. 2013 and was told it was road vibration. in early nov. i took my car to my local mechanic for this problem and was told the vibration wasn't road vibration and that it was either my drive shafts or transmission. on nov. 17th i drove from altoona pa to upper marlboro md and arrived around 2 am. i went to drive my car into dc on the morning of the 18th and when i put it in reverse it backed up, but when i put it in drive it wouldn't drive forward. after shifting through the gears for a few minutes my car drove forward so i parked it in my driveway. my car hasn't been able to be driven since. when i put it in gear and press the gas the engine just revs. when i start my car i can hear the engine and transmission making a whining noise. my radiator also broke in late august of 2013 and needed to be replaced. *tr

My daughter was driving our 2005 nissan xterra and suddenly the car would not accelerate, she floored it and after a while it got back up to speed enough for her to pull off the highway through 3 lanes of traffic and onto the side road. the car now sits in my driveway because it will cost over 6,000 to repair (the car book value is a bit less than that). the transmission/radiator will need to be replaced because the fluid has gotten into the transmission. nissan is aware of this issue and still continues to let their customers bear the brunt of their defective product. thank god my daughter was not killed on the highway due to the sudden loss of speed/control. i hope it does not take someone dying from this defect in order for them to recall and pay to replace/repair this issue. perhaps someone already has but no one knows yet. i had to drive the car home from the mechanic shop just a few miles and was unable to accelerate several times and was almost hit twice. we have bought her a new car (not a nissan) and are trying to find someone to purchase the nissan and fix it themselves or sell it for parts. we now have a useless auto that is no longer worth a dime and we are out several thousand in resale value. how can this be legal? when will this finally be taken seriously? *tr

I had a complete loss of motive power and needing to be towed to a shop. the shop diagnosed the problem as a failed transmission fluid cooler located in the radiator assembly that allowed coolant to mix with and contaminate the automatic transmission fluid, resulting in damaged internal transmission components and a damaged internal transmission computer. there were no warning signs leading up to or just prior to the failures. the transmission and radiator now need to be replaced. *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2005 nissan model xterra. the contact stated that he replaced the radiator as a precaution to avoid radiator fluid from mixing with the transmission fluid. the contact had not experienced a failure. the current mileage was 83,000.

I was slowing down at an intersection to prepare to stop when i heard a clunking sound from under my car and then service light came on. when i pressed the gas pedal to go, i heard my engine rev but only got very little acceleration before it moved forward. it happened again at another intersection so i drove home carefully. speculating that it had to do with the transmission, my husband and i did the research and found that there was a class action lawsuit regarding to engine coolant in the transmission. we were surprised that i was never alerted to this serious problem by nissan. we called the dealership to see what could be done. at first they lied about the problem but when confronted with the knowledge that we knew about the lawsuit, then they acknowledged there was problem. then they weren't going to help us because they claimed that my vin was not part of the recall. my husband told them that the class action lawsuit, did not say it was for select vin numbers. we were told to bring it in, which we did and then they informed us we still had to pay $2500. if i had been informed of the problem, i would have had it fixed before it became serious. this website gives the best info to what happened: http://www.ncconsumer.org/nissan%20frontier%20pathfinder%20xterra%20oil%20cooler%20transmission%20defect.html. we were never told about this issue even when we had the dealership do the oil change previously. the worst part is that they knew about the issue but did nothing to help fix the problem before it became a serious issue. this type of negligent practice should be investigated and nissan should be held accountable and the victims should not have to pay at all since it was preventable and is dangerous for the driver, passengers and all vehicles on the road should it stall in traffic. thank you for your time and consideration. *tr

Transmission started slipping in high gear, because of a leak from a known faulty radiator letting coolant into transmission. *tr

Engine coolant leaked into the transmission, causing transmission failure. replacement transmission is required. *tr

We have learned that sometime in late 2007 nissan motor corporation issued a warranty extension for the transmission oil cooler / radiator assembly for the subject vehicles to 8 years, 80000 miles ? up from the standard 3 year, 36000 mile bumper-to-bumper warranty. nissan motor corporation, to our knowledge, has not been conducting any preventative inspections of the subject vehicles to help consumers prevent catastrophic transmission failure. consumers report that nissan motor corporation is denying their warranty claims and as a 'courtesy measure' will offer to replace the failed oil cooler at a discount. the additional two years or 20,000 miles with a $3000 deductible is, at most, a sad joke at the expense of consumers. nissan has been aware of this problem since 2007 and has undertaken no preventive measures to protect consumers from failure. *tr

The engine started to overheat and the vehicle transmission started to shift irratically. there was an oily substance in the coolant reservoir. i contacted the dealership and was told that this is a known condition requiring replacement of the radiator and rebuilding of the transmission. i was told that since there was 101000 miles on the vehicle, that the entire $3800 for repair would have to be borne by me . i tried driiving the vehicle several times afterwards with the same result. it has been parked in front of my house for 6 months now as i don't have the money to repair. *tr

This is a common problem where the radiator leaks into transmission and destroys transmission. i just learned of this issue last week, and have an appointment with nissan dealer tomorrow. my xterra is starting to shift erratically. i fear it has been compromised. i don't see how they can get away with not recalling this. it is irresponsible and unethical. please help. *tr

While accelerating, after pulling from a county road onto a state highway, my vehicle "stuttered" and immediately lost power to the drive train. discovered that i had water in my transmission. *tr