# Transmission Problems after Replacement/Fix ??



## caolfin (Jan 21, 2016)

Folks

Very new to this so go easy on me 
Got a '59 GTR Black Edition (no mods, 53k miles) 3 weeks ago (moved from 911 997.1 S)
Didnt drive it hard, I'm a confident driver but this car is a BEAST !! so I kept it relatively easy

Simple drive from the supermarket and I get the transmission/engine lights and immediately poo myself :runaway:
Only gears 1-3-5 would work etc etc
I limped to the local Nissan dealer and they diagnosed "Shift Lock C" and said I shouldn't drive it.

I've read extensively about Litchfield etc, hardening the gear machinery, replacing solenoids etc but I'm not sure I want to do that - but will consider it as I go through this (the car is still in Nissan and I still dont know how long it'll be before I get it back)

So - my question is
If I go for a stock fix/repair do I have any confidence that the transmission problems wont come back to me within a relatively short period of time ?? (I can give the car back within next few days if its going to be problematic)

What do you guys think ?
Anyone have multiple failures in same car ?

Let me know
Caolfin


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## AdnanK (Jun 11, 2013)

With Pre 2011 cars, I would take it to one of the GTR specialists and get piston caps and stronger magnets fitted as a preventative measure, what ever you do, don't take it to Nissan, most gearbox issues can be repaired at fraction of the price of a new gearbox.

You can take it to SVM, Litchfields, Keizar to name a few, but there's many more out there.


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## bobbie (Jan 3, 2013)

Take it back to where you bought it from and either demand they fix it or get your money back!

Bobby


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## barry P. (May 9, 2010)

Get in touch with Andy at ACSpeedtech up in Warrington, he is an absolute genius when it comes to GTR gearboxes and will be able to fix it for a fraction of the price Nissan will want to charge. It may just need the solenoids cleaning and the fluid changing however Nissan will want to sell you a complete new gearbox.


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## rob2005 (Apr 26, 2015)

I had a similar issue with mine only a few weeks into ownership although mine was 2/4/6th gears. 

The dealer collected and sent it to Litchfield and it was a Solenoid pack clean and its been fine ever since.

Don't start thinking gearbox rebuild just yet, plenty of specialists who can repair and future proof your box, most mentioned already.


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## Tinyflier (Jun 13, 2012)

barry P. said:


> Get in touch with Andy at ACSpeedtech up in Warrington, he is an absolute genius when it comes to GTR gearboxes and will be able to fix it for a fraction of the price Nissan will want to charge. It may just need the solenoids cleaning and the fluid changing however Nissan will want to sell you a complete new gearbox.


Totally agree, they have just rebuilt my tranny (under warranty - phew!) and what they don't know about GTR transmissions probably isn't worth knowing.

A great team to deal with as well.

David


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## borat52 (Jan 29, 2006)

bobbie said:


> Take it back to where you bought it from and either demand they fix it or get your money back!
> 
> Bobby


If you bought it from a company then take it back to them otherwise one of the Indy's will fix it for sensible money I'm sure.


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## mindlessoath (Nov 30, 2007)

if its under warranty the dealer will replace it with a newer transmission. if it happens again take it to a shop to do preventative repairs on it.


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## caolfin (Jan 21, 2016)

Thanks for the suggestions Guys - all of them make sense

I have a warranty so I am gonna see if I can get the warranty to cover the "stock" repairs & labour and I will add the specialist "hardening" & maybe even stage 1 !
Just a thought - any comments ?


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## barry P. (May 9, 2010)

caolfin said:


> Thanks for the suggestions Guys - all of them make sense
> 
> I have a warranty so I am gonna see if I can get the warranty to cover the "stock" repairs & labour and I will add the specialist "hardening" & maybe even stage 1 !
> Just a thought - any comments ?


All you'll need adding afterwards is the solenoid clips and uprated magnets, some ,including Andy, also recommend the gear stoppers fitted also.


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## AdnanK (Jun 11, 2013)

Tinyflier said:


> Totally agree, they have just rebuilt my tranny (under warranty - phew!) and what they don't know about GTR transmissions probably isn't worth knowing.
> 
> A great team to deal with as well.
> 
> David


Do you have their own warranty? Do you know what it doesn't cover?

Curious to see how it compares to what others offer.


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## Tinyflier (Jun 13, 2012)

AdnanK said:


> Do you have their own warranty? Do you know what it doesn't cover?
> 
> Curious to see how it compares to what others offer.


Warranty was 3rd party cover supplied by the dealer on purchase.

Covers pretty much everything including "wear & tear" as wells as breakages. Limited to £5k per claim but unlimited claims for 6 months.

Saved me from a significant bill!

David


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## snuffy (Mar 26, 2014)

All Nissan will do is tell you that you need a new gearbox at £22k because they are incapable of fixing anything.


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## Takamo (Oct 18, 2005)

Speak to Iain himself at Litchfields and I'm sure he'll advise you, he's not interested in giving big bills unnecessarily


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## TABZ (Apr 30, 2003)

Takamo said:


> Speak to Iain himself at Litchfields and I'm sure he'll advise you, he's not interested in giving big bills unnecessarily



Do they build/repair the boxes in house or is this out sourced? 

OP as many have suggested above Alan at ACSpeedtech is the man for the job here.


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## goRt (May 17, 2011)

TABZ said:


> Do they build/repair the boxes in house or is this out sourced?
> 
> OP as many have suggested above Alan at ACSpeedtech is the man for the job here.


In house, you only have to walk round their workshop to see it being done


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## AdnanK (Jun 11, 2013)

TABZ said:


> Do they build/repair the boxes in house or is this out sourced?
> 
> OP as many have suggested above Alan at ACSpeedtech is the man for the job here.


Alan at ACS is where I would take it if it was me, them or Kaizar.

Tbh, you can't go wrong with any of the big players.


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## TABZ (Apr 30, 2003)

goRt said:


> In house, you only have to walk round their workshop to see it being done



Thanks, I assumed most of the big names out sourced the majority of gearbox builds but dealt with the basics such as clutch and baskets in house.


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## BAZGTR530 (May 19, 2011)

1,3,5 or 2,4,6 is just a solenoid issue i believe,easy fix see Kaiser


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## ACspeedtech (Aug 25, 2011)

BAZGTR530 said:


> 1,3,5 or 2,4,6 is just a solenoid issue i believe,easy fix see Kaiser


Or pressure sensor or clutch seal or clutch basket or stuck shift fork to name a few more.

Do you have the fault code at all?


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## Adamantium (Jun 24, 2002)

TABZ said:


> Thanks, I assumed most of the big names out sourced the majority of gearbox builds but dealt with the basics such as clutch and baskets in house.


Litchfield are a Dodson master dealer. As a result they have had extensive and expensive in house training in all parts of dis and re-assembly of stock and aftermarket gearbox components. I doubt there's anyone better for transmissions in Europe at least.

To the OP, please forget about the hardening that you have mentioned twice. I assume you are referring to superfinishing which at present has not been shown to be of any real benefit yet it does require a complete gearbox strip down. I think if you are really worried about gear (not necessarily gearbox) strengthening, which I wouldn't worry about below 700lbft, then you need to look at after market gears.


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## caolfin (Jan 21, 2016)

Has an ECU map ever caused a sudden transmission failure that you know of ?

Apparently my car had a map on it that Nissan would not even look at until it was repaired.
It was taken to a specialist who removed the map and was able to get all the gears to work again, but it was not very smooth shifting between gears.

The latest news is that they have only tested it a little bit and the problem has not yet come back.

Are you aware of anything like this on this forum ?

Please reassure me


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## goRt (May 17, 2011)

Take it back to the seller, it's their issue

Sent from my D6603 using Tapatalk


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## Iggy GT-R (Dec 15, 2012)

What goRT said!!


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## Robbie J (Jan 8, 2005)

it sounds if the seller/Nissan have cleared the fault and driving around

the solenoids will still need cleaning

suggest that they pay for a independent to do this! save everybody in the long run and the indy will be able to tell you how bad it really is

if its a clean you can pay to have the clips and magnets added

the map issue may be they didn't do the clutch relearn well, if they did this


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## zed1 (Aug 13, 2013)

I'm taking my MY10 to Kaizer within the next month or two for a gearbox re-build. No problems with it but I don't want any. At 54k miles, it'll be cheap insurance.


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## snuffy (Mar 26, 2014)

caolfin said:


> Apparently my car had a map on it that Nissan would not even look at until it was repaired.


Did Nissan actually use the term "repaired" ? Because that implies they deem having a car mapped as some kind of damage to the vehicle.

It would not surprise me however as this would be yet another example of "Nissan Thinking".


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## Chronos (Dec 2, 2013)

zed1 said:


> I'm taking my MY10 to Kaizer within the next month or two for a gearbox re-build. No problems with it but I don't want any. At 54k miles, it'll be cheap insurance.


what are you getting rebuilt that will stop any future problems? and how much does it cost?


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## caolfin (Jan 21, 2016)

snuffy said:


> Did Nissan actually use the term "repaired" ? Because that implies they deem having a car mapped as some kind of damage to the vehicle.
> 
> It would not surprise me however as this would be yet another example of "Nissan Thinking".


No, sorry if I gave the wrong impression

They said they would not even start looking at it until the map was taken off the car.
Almost as bad I guess.
They were not interested in checking the oil for particulates or anything until the map was taken off the gearbox

They were perfectly nice, and from their point of view you can understand but its still "not my problem" attitude


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## caolfin (Jan 21, 2016)

goRt said:


> Take it back to the seller, it's their issue
> 
> Sent from my D6603 using Tapatalk


Hi GoRt
Absolutely right - and to be fair the guys that I bought it off have been really good and are dealing with all the repairs etc

Its the "not-knowing" that is annoying me and waiting every day for updates and not getting them is a nightmare

Spent a large part of my working life trying to get my hands on a GT-R and straight away fall into the gearbox trap - sad !

Nissan really should do something significant to support "hardening" these gearboxes - like a recall of older models ?!


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## zed1 (Aug 13, 2013)

Chronos said:


> what are you getting rebuilt that will stop any future problems? and how much does it cost?


Amongst other things, new oem solenoid pack, Dodson gears, and up rated circlips, large magnets.


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## Tinyflier (Jun 13, 2012)

caolfin said:


> Hi GoRt
> Absolutely right - and to be fair the guys that I bought it off have been really good and are dealing with all the repairs etc
> 
> Its the "not-knowing" that is annoying me and waiting every day for updates and not getting them is a nightmare
> ...


I completely empathise with you on this. I had mine for 2 weeks and then had the "R-1-R" shift failure problem rear its ugly head. Luckily for me I had an excellent dealer supplied 3rd party warranty that footed the (not small) rebuild bill for the work done by ACSpeedtech.

My understanding about Nissan's approach to gearbox defects is they restrict it to supplying a new box - I don't think they are able/willing/interested in opening them up and resolving the problem.

As others have said I believe you really do need to have yours referred to an independent specialist for diagnosis/resolution.

I can't recommend ACSpeedtech highly enough and I don't mean that as any discredit to Lichfields or Kaizer (Sly has worked on my 350z many times), but the expertise and effort put in by Andy and his team to make my box better than OEM was exceptional. You would NOT be disappointed.

David


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## goRt (May 17, 2011)

caolfin said:


> Hi GoRt
> Absolutely right - and to be fair the guys that I bought it off have been really good and are dealing with all the repairs etc
> 
> Its the "not-knowing" that is annoying me and waiting every day for updates and not getting them is a nightmare
> ...


I'm glad that the seller is being decent.
There have been numerous incremental changes to the boxes over time.
If you aren't experiencing issues and stay stock torque then there should be no issues. Later gearbox software versions have provided smoother changes and a more sympathetic launch control.
Those in the know regard gearboxes as relatively low cost to fix ie the same to strengthen before failure as it is to fix post failure - if rods / positions go then it's expensive to get back to stock before starting to strengthen things.

Sent from my D6603 using Tapatalk


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## Chronos (Dec 2, 2013)

zed1 said:


> Amongst other things, new oem solenoid pack, Dodson gears, and up rated circlips, large magnets.


gonna cost you 20k upwards easy, hope you have deep pockets. probably cheaper to just fix it, if it breaks.


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## Adamantium (Jun 24, 2002)

More like 10-12k


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## Chronos (Dec 2, 2013)

Adamantium said:


> More like 10-12k


for a FULL dodson gearbox including geraset??? i would have thought more..


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