— A Nissan and Infiniti JATCO CVT8HT lawsuit has been filed by two Missouri men who claim they wouldn't have bought their vehicles if Nissan would have warned them about the transmission problems.
According to the lawsuit, the continuously variable transmissions (CVTs) jerk, hesitate and lack power, making driving a dangerous chore.
Plaintiff Terry Miller says he purchased a new 2013 Nissan Pathfinder from a Missouri Nissan dealer, but since that time Miller has allegedly had nothing but trouble from the JATCO CVT8HT transmission.
The plaintiff says it doesn't matter if the Pathfinder is stopped or accelerating, the transmission hesitates, shudders, jerks, bucks and has no power.
Miller says the dealer responded to the problems by claiming the symptoms didn't occur at the time Miller complained, so technicians wouldn't attempt any repairs other than for repairs related to transmission recalls.
Plaintiff Michael Rose purchased a new 2013 Infiniti JX35 and since then until now, Rose says he has constantly complained to Nissan about transmission problems. The dealer allegedly continues to tell the plaintiff nothing can be done because the transmission doesn't act up when the plaintiff brings in the vehicle.
According to the lawsuit, the JATCO transmissions have "belt slip conditions" caused by transmission chain drive failures to transfer power through the transmissions when accelerating.
Nissan started reprogramming the CVT control modules with updated software, but the lawsuit alleges Nissan still doesn't inform the plaintiffs about the transmission issues.
About two months prior to the purchase of their vehicles, Nissan issued technical service bulletin (TSB) NTB13-002 titled “VOLUNTARY SERVICE CAMPAIGN / 2013 PATHFINDER TCM REPROGRAM” that provided dealers with instructions on reprogramming the transmission control modules to fix the shaking and hesitation problems.
However, the plaintiffs allege the fix didn't work, which is why Nissan issued another TSB (NTB13-086) titled "2013-2014 ALTIMA V6 SEDAN AND PATHFINDER; JUDDER DURING LIGHT ACCELERATION.”
Dealers were allegedly told the vehicles could shake and hesitate when accelerating and the only fix was to replace the transmissions if the vehicles were built before December 2012.
The plaintiffs claim the transmission problems continue even with multiple service bulletins and repair attempts, proof that Nissan is fully aware of the alleged defects.
Nissan also allegedly refuses to honor its warranties even though the automaker knows about the CVT issues.
The Nissan and Infiniti JATCO CVT8HT lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri - Terry Miller and Michael Rose, v. Nissan North America, Inc.
The plaintiffs are represented by Lemberg Law, L.L.C.
