RMB5190

iTrader: (2)

The flush / replacement should be a 3x flush. Specify that's the service you want performed. This flushes the system entirely. I'll dig up my old receipt to show what it should look like on the paperwork.

tuscani99

Ok cool... thx man

JSolo

iTrader: (14)

Regarding alignment. Driving straight != alignment in specs. Discovered this with my original tires. No pulling or wandering, but rear tires wound up with uneven wear. Food for thought.

2010G37

Sorry to be responding to an old message, but this is an often repeated statement on these online forums, which has very little basis for it.

Infiniti does not recommend servicing the AT on these cars, and the vast majority of the G37 owners do not get them serviced (and of those who do, very few actually get the 3X flush). If this was resulting in widespread transmission failures, this and every other online forum would've had a ton of threads detailing the experience. As it is, however, the only transmission complaints that you do see for these cars all have to do with transmission programming/reprogramming, which has nothing to do with the fluid. In other words, these transmissions have actually been quite reliable regardless of whether they've been flushed or not.

RMB5190

iTrader: (2)

The reason statements like mine are thrown around is because most G owners, new and old, are under the guise that their fluid is lifetime because the dealership said so...If they said you only had to do oil changes every 20k miles would you take their word for it?

All fluids breakdown - period. The lifetime fluid fable will result in a transmission failure or, at the very least, severe slippage after your warranty has expired....probably around the 100k mile mark; give or take 15k miles from what I've seen/read.

You aren't going to come to the forums to complain because, hey, the car has 100k miles so that's a reasonable amount of time for the transmission to last....right? To build on this, most G37 owners who come on here (now) are picking up the car as the second-third owner and the car has about 75k miles max. If the previous owner never flushed the fluids, and the new owner believes the same BS about a magical lifetime fluid, I can guarantee they will have issues by 115k miles.

That said, you may service your vehicle however you'd like. I'm going to take the advice I've seen given by senior members because...well...it makes sense.


Edit: I'm going to move the field goal posts a bit here but for those modding, the re7r01a turns to glass after 300 ft. lb. tq from 5-7. Fluid changes become pretty essential given the increased power (and more heat) which is going to breakdown fluid that much quicker.

Baadnewsburr

iTrader: (3)

To add to this, there is also the issue of Nissan/Infiniti using "Lifetime" as a term of art.

It doesn't mean forever or as long as the car is on the road, its for a predetermined amount of time i.e say 160k miles which they define internally (I don't know what they define it as 160k is just an example)...

as people on forums and in the used car market are apt to do (And probably more so as the car continues to age), we run these cars beyond the "Lifetime" of the vehicle quite regularly, the manufacturers such as Nissan don't appear interested/motivated in providing support and recommendations for vehicles beyond this. I would speculate that at that point it may just cut into sales/theres no regulatory requirement and theres simply no incentive. This is probably why their maintenance schedule just says to "start over" once you reach a certain mileage although obviously the vehicle has different needs at high mileage.

RMB5190

iTrader: (2)

Thanks for expanding on that Hashim, I feel like the common misconception is lifetime = forever fluid but what they (Nissan) really means is that the fluid will last for what the ideal lifetime of a car might be. Most people, consider 100-150k miles the lifetime of a car. Hence, why you'll see AT owners running into transmission issues around this time if the fluid is never serviced.

Personally, I had a Mazda, 4AT, that started running into issues right at 120k miles with the transmission slipping. Never changed the transmission fluid on it. I believe with these cars, as long as the fluid is 3x D&F every 40-50k miles then there's no reason the transmission won't keep functioning.

JSolo

iTrader: (14)

Maybe lifetime == duration of warranty

2010G37

Actually, no. Infiniti, the manufacturer, is the one saying so. The transmission is also designed in a way that discourages people from flushing it, as a standard flush only gets rid of approximately 1/3 of the fluid.

It's interesting you should bring this up. Back in the day when a number of manufacturers, such as BMW, Mercedes and Porsche, switched their vehicles to full synthetic oil and started recommending only replacing it once a year or every 12-13K miles, the online forums were full of posts like yours making the exact same arguments as you are now, predicting doom and gloom, stating that the manufacturers only care about vehicle failures during the term of their warranty (that's not true, as long term reliability directly affects depreciation, and depreciation has a significant effect on new vehicle sales), were trying to artificially lower short term maintenance costs at the expenses of long term reliability, thereby forcing people to buy new vehicles, etc...

Several decades later, the recommendation is still in place and the engines are running just fine.

Well, that's the biggest "duh" ever!

All fluids do break down, but this statement does not advance this discussion in any way. The question is whether you have independent testing or other evidence showing that there is a compelling reason to flush the AT fluid at 100K miles. Are there threads on this or other online forums from G37 owners with transmission failures?

Can you please provide links that support this statement. I have been reading Infiniti forums for many, many, many years, and have never seen anything that would support your statement. Neither have any of the Infiniti service departments with whom I've spoken, who are otherwise more than happy to recommend excessive and unnecessary services and to take your money.

Huh? There are plenty of G37's out there with hundreds of thousands of miles on the odometer. Many of those high mileage owners have posted on this forum.

2010G37

Please post some links that support this assertion.

Online forums have a tendency to significantly magnify vehicle issues, as those with problems are a lot more likely to post. Hence, the reason, for instance, that there is a number of threads about the rear timing cover gaskets, which is a fairly unusual, but very expensive issue on the G37. Yet, there are very few, if any, threads about transmission failures, even though the VAST majority of the G37 owners either follow the Infiniti recommendations with respect to the AT fluid, or, to the extent that they do get it flushed, only do a 1X flush, which accomplishes virtually nothing, as it leaves out 2/3 of the old fluid.

So, who are all these AT owners running into transmission issues at 100K miles?

RMB5190

iTrader: (2)

3x drain and refill is the typical recommendation. Using your approximation, 1/3 + 1/3 + 1/3....

Recommendation is in place yet, European brands are hardly known for their reliability. Source: Three engine failures and two transmissions in my family @ dealer recommended intervals...Not sure if that counts as independent testing or the issues my Mazda experienced at 120k miles qualifies.

Nope. Just based off of what I've read about in the 1.5 years here and the correlation between no service + mileage = issues/failures...Didn't save the threads...only thing that stuck out was comments such as "Miles?" and "When was the last fluid change?" I've seen the recommendation enough times and seen the DIY flushes to realize the 7AT fluid requires attention before 100k miles. Seemed more like common sense to me at that point so I went with the majority on this one.

There's plenty of G owners that will highly recommend you change the fluid before 100k miles...https://www.myg37.com/forums/g37-sed...atf-flush.html

It's literally the 2nd post.

Other heretics like myself:

https://www.myg37.com/forums/d-i-y-i...rop-clean.html


That might not be what you're looking for but you handle your maintenance schedule how you'd like. I'll do me and recommend what seems to make the most sense to me to others. If you can offer a reason why one shouldn't change their fluid - I'm all ears.

As for the RTG issue (since you mentioned it), while it isn't a huge issue it's worth mentioning as a possible issue for pre-2011 owners that they should be aware of. While the online communities might blow up an issue, let's also consider the VAST majority of customers that can't even point out a throttle body. Failures related to the RTG, or the 7AT negligence in this case, could be going un-reported as the customer isn't a car guy/gal and simply doesn't post about it. Again, I'm going to echo the recommendation on this forum of the 3x D&R.

Lastly....Joined in 2012 and your first post was to me? Can we be friends?

2010G37

To confirm, after posting about "AT owners running into transmission issues around this time if the fluid is never serviced," there are no examples of G37 owners experiencing transmission failures.

Doesn't this answer your own question that I have quoted, as the vast majority of the G37 owners out there either follow Infiniti's recommendation not to replace their transmission fluid, or, the few who do get it replaced, only get a 1X flush or drain and fill, which does not accomplish anything as 2/3 of the old fluid remains in the transmission. Yet, this forum and all the other Infiniti forums out there have very few, if any, reports of transmission failures. The same goes for the Infiniti service departments and independent mechanics, all of whom would love nothing more but to get you to spend more money with them. Yet, none of them do any routine transmission flushes/drain and fill on the G37 transmissions and have come across very few, if any, transmission failures. Shouldn't this tell you all that you need to know about your theories that are based on your experience with totally different transmissions made years ago by totally different manufacturers?

Oh come on, there is no such thing as an "unnoticed" transmission failure, as it affects drivability. It's not something that you can miss.

Ha, I actually did not realize that I even had an account here. I saw your post, decided to register to post a response and then the website told me that I already had an account. Go figure.

In all honesty though, you are in good company, as regardless of the manufacturer online car forums have always been full of posts from people trying to second guess vehicle manufacturers' maintenance recommendations. Automotive technology changes over time, however, as do the chemical properties of the fluids and the way that they are used, so the fact that we all used to change our oil every 3K miles or used to flush our transmissions every 40K miles does not mean that we should continue to do so in the future. To me, if even the online car forums, which are always the first ones to pick up a problem and to magnify its significance (because, again, those with a problem are significantly more likely to post about their experience) have no posts from people complaining about widespread transmission failures, then you're wasting your time and money worrying about it.

RMB5190

iTrader: (2)

I understand what you're saying but to just ignore the fluid change just because Nissan/Infiniti says you can vs doing it every 40-50k, as a preventative measure, is really a roll of the dice. These cars are engineered to break at some point...I'm not trying to find out what Nissan considers 'lifetime' when I'm in a situation where I absolutely need my car to not fail me. A 3x D&R @ 50k intervals takes that gamble out of the equation.

Assuming you keep the car for quite a while, the service is a total of 300-400$ x 3 (assuming you keep the car from 0 to <200k miles) vs dealing with the headache of a transmission replacement. If you're someone who puts all of 3k miles / year on the car then maybe it's something you don't concern yourself with. The car will most likely be traded in by the time the 50k marker is even hit. As someone who put 30k miles on the car during the first year of ownership, with plans to keep the car another 2-3 years, I'm choosing to be proactive with a 3x D&R every 40-50k and that's what I recommend to others; especially if they're buying new. In other words, "Stage 0' the car. They may choose to take my advice or roll the dice, it's their car.

On the same note, I'd also recommend doing the differentials and t-case as well during those intervals. I drained and refilled mine at 40k miles and it would've passed for sewer drain off.

2010G37

If it was a roll of the dice, the online forums would be full of posts by the G37 owners with failed transmissions.

It sounds like doing this has a psychological benefit for you, which is perfectly fine. Let's just not pretend that there is any scientific basis behind this recommendation, or any experiential concerns in the form of the actual failed transmissions (there are none).

Given the absence of any transmission failures, this recommendation falls in the same category of people still doing oil changes every 3K miles, or arguing against the extended synthetic oil change intervals in BMW's, Mercedes and Porsches, etc...

So, more fluid changes are better? Under this theory, why not shorten transmission fluid changes to 20K miles? Why not do oil changes every 3K miles?

By the way, it's not like transmission fluid changes can't harm your transmission. Depending on the way that it's done, it can actually stir up metal shavings and debris and cause a failure. This is the reason that good transmission shops will all tell you that even for cars that do have recommended transmission fluid replacement intervals, if the fluid hasn't been changed during the manufacturer recommended period, it is actually safer to leave it alone than to do it for the first time much later.

Just because you specify a "drain and fill" as opposed to a "flush" absolutely does not mean that the service tech will appreciate the difference either. None of the Infiniti/Nissan service technicians routinely perform the G37 transmission fluid replacements, so there's no guarantee that it'll be done properly. So, for all the hand wringing about this, you are failing to take into account a very real possibility that you'll pay a couple hundred dollars for the service and actually damage the transmission.

If, in the same posts, you would also clarify that you have no scientific or experiential basis for your recommendation, there wouldn't be a problem.

Instead, you make statements like "Seems like everyone who doesn't do it or buys a G that has never had it done blow the transmission up around the 100k mile mark." This statement is actually false, as there are no threads, either on this forum or other Infiniti forums, that complain about the G37 transmission failures, period.

It is a very common misconception that a darker transmission fluid color is somehow significant. Infiniti has even issued a service bulletin explaining the issue and included a picture of brand new fluid versus transmission fluid after only 3,500 miles: http://www.infinitig37.com/TSB/ITB11-036.pdf

As the information bulletin makes clear:

• This fluid darkening is a normal condition.
• The fluid does not need to be changed because of the darkening.
• The fluid’s lubrication properties and quality are not diminished because of the darkening.

As the same Infiniti service bulletin makes clear, the fluid darkening occurs during the first 2K to 3K miles, so if it's the darker fluid color that causes you to conclude that it needs to be replaced, you'll be replacing it every 3K miles or so.

blnewt

iTrader: (13)

All moving part lubricants break down over time, if you don't want to service your ATF then just don't.