# UK R35 Transmission failure, warranty, service etc



## E5.UNICORN (Jul 17, 2009)

Hi to all. Just wanted to share my latest experience with my black 09 with 4950 miles on the clock. I was doing a regular run from Norwich to London and back. Parked the car up for an hour with absolutely no problems and smooth as ever! I came back to the vehicle and pressed the start button, my instrument cluster from “transmission checking” went on to “transmission malfunction” and “engine management malfunction!!!!” You could imagine my fear on what was happening, after all the problems the earlier model of the R35 has had on its transmission and first gear selection etc:runaway:.

Once these faults appeared I put the car in to gear and ran it for about 50 yards or so and no second gear, just first so I pulled it over and went for my black GTR card from my wallet and rang for a tow:nervous:. As I made the call I found out that RAC has the contract of dealing with the concierge service for the GTR and were not able to touch the vehicle in any way apart from delivering the vehicle to my local HPC (Marshalls, Cambridge).

As I work in the automotive diagnostic and electronics field I gathered the error was just a fault code as the vehicle and transmission had given me absolutely no previous problems and the car was perfect in every other way. The transmission has been smooth as the day I bought it.

Bearing in mind this was Sunday afternoon within 3 hours of calling RAC they had the car collected in a fully enclosed trailer, had a cab pick me up & drop me off at local National hire centre where I was given a MK6 Golf to get me back to Norwich. I returned it immediately as it was the worst MK Golf ever!! But that’s another story:chuckle:.

Leaving the vehicle with my local HPC (Marshalls Cambridge) for a couple of days I rang them up to be told that the transmission sump had been removed & the transmission gears had been checked but they had been told by Nissan head office they had to wait for a specialist engineer to arrive with a sump gasket which wouldn’t be until the 12th of Jan. At this stage I was pretty pissed as it was only the 13th of Dec 09 and I only had the car 2 months having spent 60k. Speaking to Marshalls they told me this will be the way to go otherwise a new gear box will probably be installed so they got me to phone Nissan so I could now get a claim started against the warranty and to arrange a further hire vehicle for 3 weeks which I did. Nissan UK themselves were great with no problems and immediately arranged a new fully loaded insignia with sat nav and auto box which I was happy with especially with the weather we were having at the time. 

3 weeks on and I have the vehicle returned back to me in a fully contained trailer and all now seems to be OK:wavey:. Speaking to Marshalls in length regarding the fault, and as I suspected no faults were found with any of the gears, just a good clean, new fluid, new gasket and all faults cleared. My HPC engineer at the end told me it could have been some dirt that got in to gears which could have triggered the fault which will disable the gearbox only allowing first and in some cases all of the odd gears to work to save the box, but as most of the techs are still learning from the vehicle there is still a lot of red tape on what they are allowed to do.

In the end, my warranty story has been a very positive experience. Dealing with RAC, having the car picked up and having 2 hire cars immediately when I needed them and keeping them for a month or so. An excellent service by Marshalls @ Cambridge as always and Nissan UK being spot on. I cannot complain in any way at all apart from being without my GTR:bowdown1:.

Last thing before I sign off till something else happens to me worth writing about, I’m glad I haven’t had anything done to the car which could have risked the warranty in any way. Being an extremely busy professional I have no time arguing with companies and getting solicitors involved. I’m sure if I did not have a warranty it would have been a new gearbox and sundries totalling £12,000 as this would have been the worst case scenario with my case with the warranty. My advice to all is that if you’re not a mechanic or have good friends in the field which can help you out honestly keep your warranty intact by keeping the car standard. Nissan have given a 60,000, 3 year warranty a very bold thing to state with no negatives and no major parts to be replaced until 40,000k. 

Good Luck and problem free driving to all!

E5.Unicorn.


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## tokyogtr (Feb 14, 2008)

Good feedback. I wonder if the error codes were stored in the TCM or the ECU... If in the ECU, the COBB AP would have been able to clear them. I know COBB are working on the TCM now so in future it might be able to clear them too.

I guess as your car was stock standard you did the right thing. But for us who use COBB, it's nice to know we can at least reset the system and try to get home...


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## E5.UNICORN (Jul 17, 2009)

TCM and ECU as the tranmission failure also triggers engine malfunction in many cases as is the same on many other vehicles. If cobb will have DTC access and ability to clear them easily it will be good but i feel sorry for the person tha has cobb and deletes the codes seeing them come back immediatly. In this case you will end up going to your local delear whom may start to rub his hands toghether. You guys in Japan are very lucky as you are leaving in the home of the GTR which costs £30,000 and alot cheaper for parts, repair, diagnostic access etc. Unfortunetly in the UK this car is less than 12 months old official and prices for repair are extremely high and to find someone local outside the main dealer circle to even plug in to the vehicle is near enough impossible.


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## tokyogtr (Feb 14, 2008)

E5.UNICORN said:


> TCM and ECU as the tranmission failure also triggers engine malfunction in many cases as is the same on many other vehicles. If cobb will have DTC access and ability to clear them easily it will be good but i feel sorry for the person tha has cobb and deletes the codes seeing them come back immediatly. In this case you will end up going to your local delear whom may start to rub his hands toghether. You guys in Japan are very lucky as you are leaving in the home of the GTR which costs £30,000 and alot cheaper for parts, repair, diagnostic access etc. Unfortunetly in the UK this car is less than 12 months old official and prices for repair are extremely high and to find someone local outside the main dealer circle to even plug in to the vehicle is near enough impossible.


not to rub it in but it gets better here as there are now loads of GT-R's on the market. seems the novelty has worn off. i've found distressed sellers offering at less than Yen5m now, from Yen9m brand new. here's a selection of dealer cars (almost 50):

Æü»º GT-R Ãæ¸Å¼Ö - Yahoo!¼«Æ°¼Ö

it's going to be cheaper to buy a 2nd gt-r to use for spare parts than getting brand new parts from nissan.


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## paul__k (Dec 8, 2007)

Interesting that HPCs can remove the gearbox sump now just a shame the specialist took so long to come out.Glad its all OK now.


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## Lindsay Mac (Apr 12, 2008)

E5.Unicorn Excellent post. 

I agreed with you, I don't need the hassle so Miss Standard for me. 
Brake upgrade when they need replaced.

L


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## E5.UNICORN (Jul 17, 2009)

Lindsay Mac said:


> E5.Unicorn Excellent post.
> 
> I agreed with you, I don't need the hassle so Miss Standard for me.
> Brake upgrade when they need replaced.
> ...


Thanks. Yep, I think the brake upgrade and some better performance transmission fluid will be on the list for the next service in around 900 miles. I had the Miltek y pipe on the list but as motioned by Marshalls to me, they would have been obliged to tell Nissan about the upgrade which they were certain would have caused some issues and the hire cars wouldn’t have been so quick to arrive. I’m still itching to get more mods done but after this little scare I rather have the better service on the warranty. The performance is second to none anyway so Looks like ill be concentrating more on cosmetic upgrades.


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## Lindsay Mac (Apr 12, 2008)

I am interested to hear whether your HPC is happy to use a better performance transmission fluid. I know it "makes sense" but again where would that put you regarding a clear cut warranty claim. I mean one that we don't have to threaten with lawyers etc.


So far no engine, power mods for me
Basically if I want something faster I'll buy a ......mmmmmm.....now there's an issue !

(still hanker after a GT3 though)


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## bhp (Sep 13, 2008)

thanks for posting up this info. just goes to show that cobbed or standard the gearbox will still fail. This can happen to any car and not just modified cars. The failure is more to do with the low quality tranny oil being used and not sensible power upgrades.

If Nissan turned around and refused a warranty claim because of a similar issue to this then all of us cobb user's can point to this thread as an example to show them that there is a fault from factory.

Also if you use upgraded tranny fluid your warranty is void. so if you want to do that then might as well get it cobbed aswell


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## r34mspec (May 30, 2007)

I think this has just made my mind up,im playing it safe when mine arrives!


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## E5.UNICORN (Jul 17, 2009)

bhp said:


> thanks for posting up this info. just goes to show that cobbed or standard the gearbox will still fail. This can happen to any car and not just modified cars. The failure is more to do with the low quality tranny oil being used and not sensible power upgrades.
> 
> If Nissan turned around and refused a warranty claim because of a similar issue to this then all of us cobb user's can point to this thread as an example to show them that there is a fault from factory.
> 
> Also if you use upgraded tranny fluid your warranty is void. so if you want to do that then might as well get it cobbed aswell



Personally I would love to cobb mine, but im still fairly young and I cant have a vehicle taken up all my time if anything goes wrong (time is money and so on). Regarding tranny fluid, you are allowed by law to use the same or better quality parts for service etc. This was introduced to keep the after market service and sales sector fair between main dealer and private garages. I’m sure ive seen a write up about it on the forum and ive seen it on litchfields website and other write ups on the net. If you have cobbed yours your warranty is definetly void without question as this is a performance mod and takes the cars setup away from the factory desired setup for the car. 
My claim was worth around £4000 and did not pay a penny and ended up with a new tranny oil for 1000 miles till my next service. Not trying to put anyone off cobb or other performance mods but if like me you are a professional who just wants to drive a excellent performance car hassle free I suggest you get as much advice as possible on warranties etc before you get anything done as you could end up with a car that can possibly cost you more in time and effort then any other prestige mark. This is unless you are in the automotive sector and can handle any issues the GTR throws at you.


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## E5.UNICORN (Jul 17, 2009)

Lindsey Mac,

A better quality Transmission fluid does not void the warranty. The fluid must be the same or better quality then Nissans. Best to ring your service manager before your 6000 mile service to confirm.


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## ChuckUK (Jan 1, 2009)

Is there no 3rd party warranties you could purchase to cover mods? I know not the same as Cobb but guys like Superchips offer a 10k warranty.


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## _shaun_ (Jan 16, 2007)

Hi Mate,

Glad to hear the service at Marshalls was trouble free - I am getting mine from them as well. Did you deal with Phil or was this after he left?


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## Azrael (Nov 18, 2009)

bhp said:


> The failure is more to do with the low quality tranny oil being used and not sensible power upgrades.



The failures actually have more to do with low quality materials and build in the gearbox itself.


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## E5.UNICORN (Jul 17, 2009)

_shaun_ said:


> Hi Mate,
> 
> Glad to hear the service at Marshalls was trouble free - I am getting mine from them as well. Did you deal with Phil or was this after he left?


I think hes left. I was dealing with a guy called mark.


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## rblvjenkins (Mar 8, 2008)

Interesting thread.

My car has Cobb Accessport and Milltek Y pipe and it goes and sounds SO much better than standard. Just at the weekend a standard R35 drove past as I was walking and I was amazed, and frankly disappointed, at how Primera like it sounded.

Whilst I understand people not wanting to risk it, for me the car only becomes complete when it's unleashed a bit.

For me, modifying is the whole point of the GTR....


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## E5.UNICORN (Jul 17, 2009)

rblvjenkins said:


> Interesting thread.
> 
> My car has Cobb Accessport and Milltek Y pipe and it goes and sounds SO much better than standard. Just at the weekend a standard R35 drove past as I was walking and I was amazed, and frankly disappointed, at how Primera like it sounded.
> 
> ...


when im your age and have some time for myself (and the money) i would be doing exactly what you do.


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## rblvjenkins (Mar 8, 2008)

E5.UNICORN said:


> when im your age and have some time for myself (and the money) i would be doing exactly what you do.


Good point


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## Zed Ed (Oct 24, 2007)

rblvjenkins said:


> Interesting thread.
> 
> My car has Cobb Accessport and Milltek Y pipe and it goes and sounds SO much better than standard. Just at the weekend a standard R35 drove past as I was walking and I was amazed, and frankly disappointed, at how Primera like it sounded.
> 
> ...


Spot on

Y pipe is fab

We'll have 3 GTRs that sound great, and one that sounds like a Primera,at Anglesey on 20th Feb.

You coming?


.


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## SurreyUMSGTR (May 19, 2009)

Zed Ed said:


> Spot on
> 
> Y pipe is fab
> 
> ...


She may sound like a Primera (i cant get organised to get the y-pipe changed) but she still goes some! :flame:


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## R33_GTS-t (Apr 27, 2005)

Who's to blame for the gearbox? Borg Warner or Nissan?


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## RodB (Mar 19, 2008)

I hope this isn't something that means I'm about to have a problem, but... 

Driving just now, accelerating out of a roundabout on to a dual carriageway, auto change up to 5th, tran temp at 82,( around 80 mph) power goes, and get clutch overheat warning. Coasting down to a stop, when light goes out and power restored.

Perhaps a software glitch, except that gears made a grinding noise just before light came on.

Should I be worried? Anyone else had this?

Rod


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## Spazpeker (Mar 26, 2008)

RodB said:


> I hope this isn't something that means I'm about to have a problem, but...
> 
> Driving just now, accelerating out of a roundabout on to a dual carriageway, auto change up to 5th, tran temp at 82,( around 80 mph) power goes, and get clutch overheat warning. Coasting down to a stop, when light goes out and power restored.
> 
> ...


Same thing happened to me about 4 months ago, switched of and on and it has never happend again

it was coming off a roundabout as well in the rain


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## EvolutionVI (Sep 6, 2005)

RodB said:


> I hope this isn't something that means I'm about to have a problem, but...
> 
> Driving just now, accelerating out of a roundabout on to a dual carriageway, auto change up to 5th, tran temp at 82,( around 80 mph) power goes, and get clutch overheat warning. Coasting down to a stop, when light goes out and power restored.
> 
> ...


Mine did that on wet road a few times.....scary if you put the foot down full throttle and then only RWD works......thats a few meters sideways then....till you realise something is wrong


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## R33_GTS-t (Apr 27, 2005)

That's pretty poor. I had that once with an R32. Nice to know they've moved the electronics forwards....


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## rhds14 (Nov 16, 2005)

Man, these are the reasons owning an R35 scares me. If something goes wrong with my R33 its usually pretty easy to diagnose and possibly fix yourself. One is pretty helpless with these cars. I guess the cobb gives you some advantages but you do hear a lot of complaints about trans. Good luck, Im sure its still an amazing vehicle. Wondering what Primera is??


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## s2gtr (Jun 30, 2001)

rhds14 said:


> Man, these are the reasons owning an R35 scares me. If something goes wrong with my R33 its usually pretty easy to diagnose and possibly fix yourself. One is pretty helpless with these cars. I guess the cobb gives you some advantages but you do hear a lot of complaints about trans. Good luck, Im sure its still an amazing vehicle. Wondering what Primera is??


Primera:










:chuckle:


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## E5.UNICORN (Jul 17, 2009)

i drove one of those for a few months, and come on the R35 sound nothing like it.


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