CarComplaints.com Notes: The 2004-2006 Nissan Maxima has widespread transmission problems. It starts with the vehicle jerking when shifting, & progresses to full-blown transmission failure.
Maxima owners report spending $3,000 to replace the transmission, typically around when the odometer hits 100,000 miles.
There's a class action lawsuit filed in late 2011, & it is still in the "discovery" stage. Apparently, these things take time ... far too much time.
10.0
really awful
Crashes / Fires:
2 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
0 / 0
Average Mileage:
124,070 miles
About These NHTSA Complaints:
This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.
So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.
There are serious jerks while driving on a busy road when the automatic transmission switches gears. Happens worst on 2nd gear and 3rd and eventually reduces. This is a major problem and starting happening only after dealer services the transmission at 60K miles. The car is now on 70K and went to dealer once again.. after spending anther $400, I see no result. Vehicle is still moving but can cause serious issues anytime. Replacing transmissions is probably another $3500. It makes no sense until Nissan comes forward to handle this. The car has barely reached 70K.
My 2006 Maxima has 89000 miles on it and started jerking when shifting gears, it began out of the blue. I was at at a stop light and had to back up for a fire truck and then drive forward and then my car jerked and shook the whole car. It had never done that before. I thought the engine was going to fall out. I drove home as slow as I could and my dad met me there. He got in the car and we tested it. Every time you reverse and go into drive it would stall and cough and make so that the engine felt like it was going to fall out of the car. We took it to the mechanic who at first thought it was the transmission fluid being low, so we filled it up. Then after about a week it started again with the jerking after taking it from reverse into drive. We took it to the transmission guy who said it could be the solenoid? so that would be about $300-500. In the end to rebuild the entire transmission on a Maxima with only 89,000 miles it costs $3500-4500 to fix which was absolutely ridiculous!!! Nissan needs to fix their product and stand behind it. Recall the problem and have it fixed before something bad happens.
Car was purchased with bad transmission not knowing that jerking was so bad it felt like a rear end collision had occured. Had it replaced and now its starting to happen for a second time since owning the car. Car will jerk at 20mph and 40mph. The car also accelerates forward when going down hills. Car is a safety hazard waiting to kill myself or others because I just don't know wht will happen. Sad to see Nissan does not stand behind fixing the unsafe transmissions for thosands of people. I will never buy another Nissan and hope that no one gets killed before all the effected cars are off the road. Sad to think that Nissan doesn't stand behind their cars and safety of the owners.an owner of a car that is less than 10yrs old shouldn't have to buy two transmissions in 4 yrs of ownership. Sorry I ever bought this car and definitely let my opinion be heard when others look to buy a Nissan product. I am scared to sell my cr because I feel it is dangerous and has been nohing but a maintenance mobile with continuous stress and fear of what will happen next.
Car failed to accelerate past 20 mph. Transmission kept slipping (jerks felt, and dashboard warning light kept showing up.) car was on highway at the time of incident. Tried pulling off highway, at the first available exit, and car stalled going up the ramp, and once again when at the stop sign, and on the road. Car barely made it back to a safe place off the road.
In a busy shopping mall parking lot vehicle hesitated and jerked when backing out of a parking space. Had to push accelerator down much harder than usual to get the car to back up creating an unsafe condition for any people or vehicles that may have been behind the vehicle, same condition also occurs at times when going from reverse to drive (hesitation and jerking).
- Orland Park, IL, USA
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While driving on the interstate a slowed from the cruising speed for traffic. Upon my attempt to accelerate the engine revved to a high RPM before the transmission engaged causing a hard shift that seemed to torque the engine and car to the side causing a short loss of control of the vehicle at highway speed. Since then, I have had numerous incidents when accelerating from a stop light or stop sign when the the car will just lose power until the transmission jolts into gear.mas it loses power thee have been time when cars behind me almost rammed the back of my vehicle.
Wife was driving vehicle down the interstate. Engine revved and car lurched. She exited interstate and we took the vehicle to the dealership. Replaced transmission under warranty. 2nd incident occurred coming off a mountain in East Tennessee. Transmission failed and had to ride brakes to flat land, over 3 miles. 2nd incident occurred
Over a period of about three weeks, the transmission on this car went from occasional rough shifting to being stuck in 5th gear all the time. The car would "reset" with the ignition turned off, than the car restarted, but that too failed to work after about a week. The situation now has the car un-drivable. Nissan claims the transmission is totally failed, and an independent repair shop agreed. The car will still do one normal shift cycle when it is cool, but than remains in fifth gear after that.
Excessive/harsh transmission shift 1st, 2nd and 2nd to 1st, problem gets worse after vehicle heats up. Repairs range from $3,000 and up. Vehicle was inspected by Nissan dealership on June 2,2015, I was advised that without repair could cause additional damage. I am afraid that this will cause an accident.
Pulling away from a stoplight, the transmission jerked violently from 1st to 2nd gear of the automatic transmission. The vehicle went into "limp mode" only going to 20 miles per hour on a very busy street with no turn off. Car was towed, and new transmission needed. Nissan will not take responsibility for the repair.
Transmission started shifting hard and occasionally revving before going into gear when starting out or backing up. We had the fluid changed and added lucas transmission fix. This seemed to fix the issue for 3 months or so then it started again. Going to have the transmission checked at a local specialist shop. With so many people having this issue why has Nissan not issued a recall. They pride themselves in selling reliable and quality products this is not so.
It started hard shifting and jerking in the beginning and then it would level out. After awhile it wouldn't go in gear. Took it to get it checked and was told that the transmission needed to be replaced at the cost of $3000 or more. I have friends and family the have had this same issue, with so many people having this issue why has Nissan not issued a recall. They pride themselves in selling reliable and quality products this is not so.
I had my valve body replaced due to hard shifting and a delay in transmission engagement when shifting from park to drive. Vehicle is start to exhibit same symptoms and I was informed the transmission would need to be replaced at the cost of $2,500 vehicle had 148,000 miles on it. Nissan should be held responsible for its inferior quality and workmanship.
My 2006 Nissan Maxima began hard shifting while driving, reversing, and shifting into drive. I took it in to have it serviced over the summer and the Nissan dealership recommended a transmission flush and said nothing was wrong. Of course that did not fix anything. The problem has gotten progressively worse to the point where it can take up to 5 seconds for the car to shift into gear when I am putting it into drive. I contacted the Nissan corporation and they advised me to go to the dealership and have it diagnosed. Well of course now the dealership says we need to have the transmission replaced...to the tune of $3,000. When I contacted the Nissan corporation they informed me there was nothing they could do to help me and that my car didn't fall within the parameters of the cvt transmission extended warranty. So not only are we out $150 for a diagnosis that we already knew what the problem was, but now we have to get the vehicle repaired or it won't be safe to drive. We have owned two Nissan and the previous one was a 1996 Maxima that never gave us any problems. I wish I had that car back and not this "upgraded" model. I use to think that Nissan was a company that stood by its customers and strived for satisfaction, but I now know that is not the case. Will NHTSA ever look into these complaints and force Nissan's hand as far as this transmission issue goes? there needs to be a safety recall, not just a bulletin.
I was driving my car, doing approximately 35mph, when the engine revved and the car bucked. I had my transmission fluid checked, and added what needed to be added, figuring that's what the problem was. It wasn't. the car has continued to do this for the last 3 months, and today the transmission went on the car. I bought the car in 2013 with 88,000 miles on it and no warranty. It is now 2015, and the car has just above 100,000 miles.
The contact owns a 2006 Nissan Maxima. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the vehicle jerked when shifting gears. In addition, the contact stated that when the accelerator pedal was depressed, the vehicle accelerated excessively. The failure recurred on numerous occasions. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic. The technician diagnosed that the transmission needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 100,000.
In heavy traffic, at low speed, car began to rev high when trying to accelerate. Had to have the valve body replaced for $1300. Car has 55,000 miles on it.
The contact owns a 2006 Nissan Maxima. The contact stated that there was a delay when he attempted to switch the gear from reverse to drive. The failure recurred several times. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic for diagnostic testing. The technician diagnosed that the valve body from the transmission needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 92,000.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Randolph, NJ, USA