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You have a dipstick.... what is the condition of the fluid? Is it bright, cherry red, or is black/ burnt. This is the key to the whole debate.
A 15-year-old car, with ≈160K miles, if the fluid is good, I would be more inclined to leave it alone assuming the car shifts normally. If the fluid is black/ burnt then I'd change it.
For reference, my last ATF flush/ fill was 10 years ago at 69,500 miles. I am currently at 116k and my fluid looks brand new. I know I probably should change it, but for this I prefer to leave well enough alone especially at the rate I drive these days... This is just my 10¢.
I have not pulled the dipstick yet. I wanted to make sure before I started on this, that I had everything that I needed it including good information about the quantity of new fluid to add on the initial drain and fill.
I'm sure your transmission is benefiting from a relatively early fluid drain and fill. I'm just worried that this vehicle may suffer if too much new fluid is introduced too quickly. I believe new fluid will benefit the transmission, but from what I have read here and on other sites, it can be tricky depending on the situation.
I can only imagine what the pan and magnets look like . The car has really never been driven hard. Again, it's primarily a daily driver with a 3 mi round trip and an occasional 500 mi road trip. It shifts without issues now. But since it's not my vehicle, I did not keep up with the service ticket when she picked it up after the 60,000 mi request to change all of the fluids.
I'm going to try and perform what should have been done by the dealer at 60,000 mi.
Now I check the service sheets.
Lesson learned.
I was just pointing out that CVT and ATF fluids are two entirely different formulations that are not interchangeable.
When it comes to brands, think of it this way: everyone has a opinion. And their favorite. Just like fine drink, some prefer the el-cheapo Thunderbird or Ripple while others like Louis XIII or The Macallan Black. Both will get you blitzed, but the after effects... In other words, you get what you pay for.
Again, OEM, or any quality, name brand ATF will be fine as long as it is Matic-S equivalent.
Rude? Hardly. If I was rude, I would have told you to go ahead and use it. In reality, I could care less what fluid you use. But for the sake of other folks reading this thread and to prevent mis-information...
The transmission in your Q60 is a RE7R01A which is a 7-speed FIXED GEAR automatic transmission. It relies on hydraulic pressure to change between gear ratios. It is NOT a CVT (continuously variable transmission) which uses a internal belt-driven pulley system. In this system neither the pulleys nor the belt are fixed thus a infinite number of gear ratios is output based on driver demand. Given this continuous output there are no shifts. Two entirely different transmission systems requiring two entirely different fluid formulations to operate.
Now, if you had read ALL OF the information in the link you provided (instead of looking at the picture) you would have noticed the following:
In your defense, I will acknowledge that many industries classify the CVT as a automatic transmission, which is proper. And, yes, the listing does mention "Automatic Transmission." However, there are two types of auto tranny's: fixed gear and variable. So, yes, it can be confusing "at a glance."
So, NO, the fluid you asked about in the O'Reilly link will not work.
Last edited by ILM-NC G37S; May 11, 2023 at 08:26 PM.
The transmission in your Q60 is a RE7R01A which is a 7-speed FIXED GEAR automatic transmission. It relies on hydraulic pressure to change between gear ratios. It is NOT a CVT (continuously variable transmission) which uses a internal belt-driven pulley system. In this system neither the pulleys nor the belt are fixed thus a inf.
this right here was what I didnt know. thats all you had to say or something like that. I was under the impression the tranny was a CVT.
Genuine question, if you don't know the difference between a CVT and our AT are you sure you're good to be changing the fluid yourself?
I doubt many do know the difference. Automatic transmissions are complex mechanical devices and I'm amazed that they last as long as they do...
CVTs themselves get a really bad rap as manufactures like Nissan have been using them for a while and have since had some reliability issues with their CVTs (my sister has owned 3 generations of Maxima, no CVT issues at all), so confusing our reliable and mid-range performance RE7R01A (yes, the BMW ZF-sourced 8-speed automatic transmission is higher performance) with a CVT may send the automotive purists off on a tangent. CVTs are to transmissions what front wheel drive is to drivetrains.
There's a good animation here which shows how one form of CVT works:
CVTs can pick any gear ratio it wants at any time. As such, its pretty efficient and consumes less fuel. It's likely also much easier to build hence cost savings. They also spend less time hunting for gears in hilly areas (i.e. 70% of the terrain here in CA), which our transmission gets knocked for in many of the reviews I've seen online.
The main advantage of a traditional auto like the one in our cars is that it offers a "more engaging driving experience". For the ultimate in engagement, many select the manual trannie over the automatic, but those are a dying breed.
A CVT can not handle high-HP/ high-torque applications like a typical gearbox (auto or manual) can. The ribbed belt just can not endure that level of stress without slipping or snapping. Even under normal/ light usage the belt will still have to be replaced at some point just like the engine accessory belt.
CVT's are purely for economy. Not performance. And, as disengaged as most drivers's are these days, they would not know one from the other nor care to bother asking unless "ClikClok" or "Flutter" told them to.
Last edited by ILM-NC G37S; May 13, 2023 at 08:38 PM.
Anyone have a suggestion on a Filter/Gasket Kit? 2011 G37S Auto. Place that is doing the drain & fill said do you want the filter and gasket replaced. I'm like yeah.
Anyone have a suggestion on a Filter/Gasket Kit? 2011 G37S Auto. Place that is doing the drain & fill said do you want the filter and gasket replaced. I'm like yeah.
Not sure if the filter should be touched. Nissan made them not replaceable in the sense of they do not sell it separately. Many seem to warn against replacing it.
The only decent one seems to be from: Oregon Performance Transmission, part number: NTP-92600G. It is made in Taiwan. As for the pan gasket, get the OEM one.
Last edited by Krzysztof47; Jun 13, 2023 at 11:21 AM.
I bought the fluid through Amazon but they are going to return it. I am waiting to hear back from Cerritos Infiniti. They quoted me 155+ tax for the drain and fill. That is a great price if it covers the labor and oil. My car felt great today on the little run it had. I am 45 miles away from Cerritos, but the other place that was going to do it was almost as far.
I bought the fluid through Amazon but they are going to return it. I am waiting to hear back from Cerritos Infiniti. They quoted me 155+ tax for the drain and fill. That is a great price if it covers the labor and oil. My car felt great today on the little run it had. I am 45 miles away from Cerritos, but the other place that was going to do it was almost as far.
That's a great price for a drain and fill from an Infiniti dealership @ezbme
Around here, I was quoted the following for up to 5 quarts drain and fill:
$268.90 (Infiniti)
$186.00 (Nissan)
The Nissan dealership is closer and two of the Master Techs from the Infiniti dealer that closed its doors work there.
For this service there is no pan drop, no filter change (btw Raybestos makes a filter and gasket kit). The Infiniti service advisor I work with also said they recently increased the recommended interval to 60K, and that they no longer do "fluid exchanges" (~10 quarts) after the initial exchange in the 30-40K mile range.
I last had mine done at 40K, so they want me to return at 100K. Car is right under 70K now.
I have been debating whether or not to just let the car sit overnight, then jack the front up the next morning and drain all the fluid from the transmission cold (use drain plug, but make sure the fill plug breaks loose as well). If my estimates are correct, that amount will be between 3.5-4 quarts ($40 worth of fluid), which I will then measure and refill through the fill plug the same amount of fluid that was drained out.
I purchased the following a while back to help with the job:
My wife's Honda Pilot destroys ATF because of the VCM (puts rear cylinders to sleep, uses the torque converter to minimize vibration), so I have been following the simple drain and fill procedure (every other oil change, or ~10K) on it for over a year and the transmission works great (note that it does have a dipstick). Feels much simpler than the more elaborate procedure where one lays under the car while its running and fluid drizzles out the fill hole potentially onto the garage floor (as noted in the video below, he also addresses the filter)
I have yet to find anyone that has taken this "put back what your drained" route, so I'm hesitant. If it's as simple as it appears on the service, I'd perform the service every 10K miles.
I must be overlooking something.
Last edited by socketz67; Jun 15, 2023 at 07:06 PM.
In other words, you get what you pay for.
