2005 NISSAN XTERRA Complaints

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2005 NISSAN XTERRA. THE CONTACT STATED WHILE DRIVING 45 MPH THE VEHICLE STALLED AND FAILED TO SHIFT GEARS. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO A PRIVATE MECHANIC, WHO STATED THE TRANSMISSION FAILED BECAUSE COOANT MIXED WITH THE TRANSMISSION FLUID. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE FAILURE WAS NOT REPORTED TO THE MANUFACTURER. THE FAILURE AND CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 108,000. UPDATED 08/20/13*LJ

FORTUNATELY I WAS SIMPLY ATTEMPTING TO BACK OUT OF MY DRIVEWAY WHEN THE VEHICLE WOULD NOT MOVE. I READ NUMEROUS HORROR STORIES OF OTHERS WHO HAD THIS ISSUE IN THE MIDDLE OF THE HIGHWAY SO I AM VERY THANKFUL THAT THIS DID POSE ANY FURTHER RISK OF INJURY ESPECIALLY SINCE I AM 9 MONTHS PREGNANT AND WAS ON MY WAY TO AN ULTRASOUND. AFTER TAKING MY SUV IN, WE LEARNED THAT ANTI-FREEZE WAS LEAKING INTO THE TRANSMISSION CAUSING COMPLETE TRANSMISSION FAILURE AND ULTIMATELY REQUIRING A FULL TRANSMISSION REPLACEMENT. THE COST IS CLOSING IN ON $4,000. NEVER DID I RECEIVE ANY NOTIFICATION FROM NISSAN THAT THIS WAS POSSIBLE AND MY XTERRA DID NOT SHOW ANY SIGNS OF CONCERN. I STARTED RESEARCHING THIS PROBLEM ONLINE ONLY TO LEARN THAT I AM ONE OF MANY WHO HAVE EXPERIENCED THIS ISSUE AND AT A HEFTY PRICE WITH NO HELP FROM NISSAN. I READ ONLINE THAT NISSAN'S ANSWER TO THE PROBLEM WAS TO EXTEND THE WARRANTY TO 80,000 MILES BUT I HAVE JUST RECENTLY PASSED THAT THRESHOLD. FURTHERMORE, I HAVE LEARNED THAT THIS PROBLEM MORE OFTEN BEGINS TO PRESENT ITSELF AFTER 80,000 MILES. I AM APPALLED THAT THIS ISSUE HAS NOT BEEN INVESTIGATED AND MORE IMPORTANTLY BEEN RECALLED SINCE IT COULD CAUSE SERIOUS INJURY IF NOT DEATH. ONE THING IS FOR SURE, MY HUSBAND AND I WILL NEVER PURCHASE ANOTHER NISSAN VEHICLE. I STRONGLY FEEL THAT THE NHTSA SHOULD ANALYZE THE WAY NISSAN IS DOING THEIR BUSINESS NOT TO MENTION FIND A WAY TO COMPENSATE EVERY SINGLE CUSTOMER WHO HAS SUFFERED FROM THIS PROBLEM. NISSAN SHOULD BE ASHAMED OF THEMSELVES AND HOPEFUL THAT NO ONE GETS SERIOUSLY HURT SHOULD IT OCCUR IN THE WRONG CIRCUMSTANCES. *TR

CAR STARTED VIBRATING LIKE IT WAS GOING OVER A RUMBLE STRIP, LOSS OF POWER/RPMS, UNABLE TO ACCELERATE. PROBLEM WAS INTERMITTENT AND GOT WORSE. TOOK IT TO NISSAN DEALERSHIP, AND APPARENTLY THIS IS A KNOWN PROBLEM ON SOME MAKES AND MODELS MANUFACTURED BETWEEN 2005-2010 WITH DEFECTIVE RADIATORS THAT LEAK COOLANT INTO THE TRANSMISSION SYSTEM HENCE DAMAGING IT. SINCE I WAS AT 100,000MILES I HAD A COPAY OF $3000. *TR

A RADIATOR FAILURE CAUSED THE COOLING SYSTEM FLUID TO MIX WITH TRANSMISSION FLUID CAUSING TRANSMISSION FAILURE. *TR

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2005 NISSAN XTERRA. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE VEHICLE SHOOK VIOLENTLY AND SLIPPED WHILE SHIFTING GEARS. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO THE DEALER WHERE IT WAS FOUND THAT THAT RADIATOR FLUID HAD ENTERED THE TRANSMISSION. THE VEHICLE WAS REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS CONTACTED ABOUT THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 98,812.

I HAVE EXPERIENCE WHAT MANY OTHER OWNERS OF A NISSAN XTERRA HAVE EXPERIENCED WITH A DEFECTIVE RADIATOR. A LEAK IN THE RADIATOR HAS ALLOWED COOLANT TO MIX WITH AND CONTAMINATE THE AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION FLUID, RESULTING IN DAMAGED INTERNAL TRANSMISSION COMPONENTS AND A DAMAGED INTERNAL TRANSMISSION COMPUTER. IN LESS THAN A WEEK SINCE NOTICING LOSS OF POWER IN MY VEHICLE IT BECAME INOPERABLE. DUE TO THE HIGH NUMBER OF THESE INCIDENTS INVOLVING THE NISSAN XTERRA TRANSMISSION PARTS HAVE BECOME IMPOSSIBLE TO FIND TO REBUILD THE TRANSMISSION. AS A RESULT THEY ONLY RECOURSE TO RESOLVE THIS PROBLEM IS A COSTLY $6000 REPLACEMENT OF THE TRANSMISSION. *TR

STARTED VEHICLE AND BEGAN TO DRIVE WHEN THE VEHICLE APPEARED TO HAVE NO POWER. CONTINUED AROUND THE BLOCK TO RETURN HOME AND REALIZED THAT THE VEHICLE WAS NOT SHIFTING GEARS. IT APPEARED TO BE STUCK IN 2ND GEAR AND WOULD NOT SHIFT UP OR DOWN. SHUT VEHICLE DOWN AND TRIED AGAIN BELIEVING THAT PERHAPS "SOMETHING WAS STUCK" WITH THE SAME RESULTS. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO A TRANSMISSION MECHANIC WHO DIAGNOSED THE PROBLEM AS GLYCOL CONTAMINATION IN THE TRANSMISSION REQUIRING AN ENTIRE REBUILD OF THE TRANSMISSION. UPON RESEARCH OF THE INTERNET, I HAVE DISCOVERED THAT THIS IS A KNOWN PROBLEM TO NISSAN WITH THE 2005 XTERRAS AND OTHER NISSAN VEHICLES. WHILE IT IS ACCURATE THAT NISSAN DID OFFER TO EXTEND THE WARRANTY FOR THE RADIATOR (THE KNOWN SOURCE OF THE PROBLEM) THEY DID SO WITHOUT EXPLAINING THE FULL EXTENT OF THE PROBLEM OR KNOWN POSSIBLE CATASTROPHIC EVENTS IF THE RADIATOR LEAKED. THE RESULTING EVENTS OF A LEAKING RADIATOR IS A DAMAGED TRANSMISSION REQUIRING A FULL REBUILD DUE TO THE GLYCOL CONTAMINATION. *TR

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2005 NISSAN XTERRA. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE DRIVING 45 MPH, HE ATTEMPTED TO ACCELERATE BUT THE VEHICLE DID NOT RESPOND. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC FOR DIAGNOSIS. THE CONTACT WAS INFORMED THAT THE TRANSMISSION WOULD NEED TO BE REPLACED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE VEHICLE HAD NOT BEEN REPAIRED. THE FAILURE AND CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 115,000.

THE 2005 NISSAN XTERRA WITH AN AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION WAS DRIVING FINE, THEN SUDDENLY JERKED INTO FOUR WHEEL DRIVE LOW. THE VEHICLE WOULD BARELY MOVE AND THE RPM GAUGE WOULD RISE, BUT WOULD NOT CHANGE GEARS. THE OIL PRESSURE ALSO DROPPED DRASTICALLY. NOW, THIS HAS BEEN OCCURRING FOR THE PAST TWO WEEKS, WITH THE VEHICLE RUNNING WELL SPORADICALLY AND INCONSISTENTLY. HOWEVER, THE TRANSMISSION IS NO LONGER JERKING INTO FOUR WHEEL LOW (OR THE INDICATOR LIGHTS AREN'T SHOWING THAT IT DOES). AT TIMES, THE XTERRA WILL NOT EVEN MOVE OR GO INTO GEAR, BUT THE RPM GAUGE WILL RISE. I HAVE TAKEN THE XTERRA TO TWO DIFFERENT GARAGES AND BOTH HAVE INFORMED ME THAT I NOT ONLY NEED A NEW TRANSMISSION, BUT A RADIATOR AS WELL. THE ESTIMATES THAT I HAVE RECEIVED RANGE FROM $3,500 TO $5000. *TR

THE CAR WHO WAS BEHIND ME ALMOST GOT ME BECAUSE ALL OF THE SUDDEN MY CAR SPEED LOWER DRAMATICALLY, I TOOK IT TO THE NISSAN AND LEFT IT THERE, THEY CALL ME AND TOLL ME IS A PROBLEM WITH THE TRANSMISSION AND EVERYTHING WAS GOING TO COST ME REPAIR IT $7,500 WITH LABOR AND PARTS, THEY HAVE THE GODS TO TELL ME THAT IS BETTER TO SELL IT BECAUSE THE CAR IS NOT WORTH FIXING IT, THAT CAR COST ME $37,000 BRAND NEW TO AT LEAST HAVE IT FOR 10 YEARS I BEEN CHANGING THE OIL FREQUENTLY SO I HAVE NO PROBLEMS, BUT NISSAN IS ONE OF THE WORSE CAR EVER SOLD, MY FRIEND HAD AN 2004 ALTIMA AND AFTER 5 YEARS EVERYTHING WAS FAILING ON THAT CAR WORSE THAN MY X TERRA, I SWEAR I WILL NEVER BUY NISSAN AGAIN IS BAD INVESTMENT FOR THE MONEY. *TR