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QX60 Transmission Swap

54787 Views 45 Replies 23 Participants Last post by  ctang101
Tt appears that Nissan/Infiniti made a surreptitious switch to the QX60s transmission. Last years JX was riding with the the belt variant of Nissans CVT8 but earlier this year the switch was made to the chain CVT8 that from the Pathfinder and V6 Altimas. Some smart fellas on the Infiniti JX forum picked it out, and are not so pleased...

The CVT8 chain drive is the cause of many shudder/judder problems across the Altima and Pathfinder community

It will be interesting to see if QX60 starts CVT shuddering.......
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The jury is still out on the transmission change. I'm very satisfied with the original transmission that came with my JX. The newer transmission has a towing capacity of 5,000 lbs. if that is important. I love how smooth the JX drives and can't comment on the later model JX or new QX60. Still a very nice car.
The jury is still out on the transmission change. I'm very satisfied with the original transmission that came with my JX. The newer transmission has a towing capacity of 5,000 lbs. if that is important. I love how smooth the JX drives and can't comment on the later model JX or new QX60. Still a very nice car.
Im pretty sure its the towing thats ruining the Pathfinder. CVT transmissions are best in small vehicle, low horsepower applications. QX60 is not small or low powered application
This is for the 2014 model.
Have any 2014 owners been experiencing the "judder" with the new transmission?
Have any 2014 owners been experiencing the "judder" with the new transmission?
good question, from my prior knowledge the issue started with the torque converter, and when that did damage it spreaded to other parts of the QX60. I'd imagine that the torque converter any other problem parts be fixed in the one.
good question, from my prior knowledge the issue started with the torque converter, and when that did damage it spreaded to other parts of the QX60. I'd imagine that the torque converter any other problem parts be fixed in the one.
No not QX60, Pathfinder. QX60 hasn't seen this CVT until this year. 2013 Pathfinder owners are pulling their hair out over the shudder/judder. Some have reported small shudders with the 2014 Pathfinders but nothing on the level of the 2013's. I have to assume Nissan/Infiniti would not of made the switch unless they were confident the shudder/judder was limited to a batch of 2013 Pathfinders.
Does anyone know if the 2014 QX is any quicker than the 2013 JX? The 2013 Pathfinder seems to be about a half second quicker to 60 than the 2013 JX while being just 100 pounds lighter...
I don't see it being any quicker. It's still the same car.
I don't see it being any quicker. It's still the same car.
But the transmission is different. The Pathfinder and the JX are the same car, with the exception of the transmission and the Pathfinder is quicker. The weight difference of the two isn't enough to explain the difference in 0-60 times.
I just bought a QX60 over the weekend and during the process I also drove a JX35 they still had on the lot. It seemed the QX60 was slightly "quicker" when driving the same route (some interstate and some back roads) and with the same load and same 18" tires. The QX60 only had about 20 miles on it whereas the JX had ~150 so I don't think break-in or mileage was even a factor.

As far as the transmission I know my QX has the 7th gear but don't recall what the JX had. I imagine if it was one of the last JX's built it likely has the 7th speed as well.

My owners manual says the QX60 can tow 5,000 pounds (no distinction between 2wd and AWD) so clearly a transmission change was made in this mode.
I'll try to clear up a few things here.

First off, I don't know anyone who has taken their JX or QX60 to the track yet, so it's kind of hard to answer young padwan's question. My butt meter says the QX60 may be slightly faster in initial acceleration than the original JX35.

As for the tranny - back around May Infiniti made a mid-year change to the transmission in the JX35. So any JX built after that, and all QX60's, have the new transmission. No one from the factory has stated unequivocally that it's the transmission from the Pathfinder, but that seems to be the sense from everyone. That said, I've not seen any problems from any JX or QX60 customers regarding the transmissions on their vehicles.

And the PF and QX60 are NOT the same car. They ride on the same chassis, and use the same drive-train. They also share seating configuration and some features as well. But the PF is noiser, cheaper, and doesn't have anywhere near the available safety and luxury features of the QX60. It also has a much shorter warranty and Nissan dealers do not offer loaner vehicles when your car is being serviced.
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I'll try to clear up a few things here.

First off, I don't know anyone who has taken their JX or QX60 to the track yet, so it's kind of hard to answer young padwan's question. My butt meter says the QX60 may be slightly faster in initial acceleration than the original JX35.

As for the tranny - back around May Infiniti made a mid-year change to the transmission in the JX35. So any JX built after that, and all QX60's, have the new transmission. No one from the factory has stated unequivocally that it's the transmission from the Pathfinder, but that seems to be the sense from everyone. That said, I've not seen any problems from any JX or QX60 customers regarding the transmissions on their vehicles.

And the PF and QX60 are NOT the same car. They ride on the same chassis, and use the same drive-train. They also share seating configuration and some features as well. But the PF is noiser, cheaper, and doesn't have anywhere near the available safety and luxury features of the QX60. It also has a much shorter warranty and Nissan dealers do not offer loaner vehicles when your car is being serviced.
This is true on many levels, people just seem to think that because they ride on the same chassis that they are the same car which isn't the case. The best way to know this for sure, for anyone, is to test drive BOTH vehicles and go off of your experience of each
This is true on many levels, people just seem to think that because they ride on the same chassis that they are the same car which isn't the case. The best way to know this for sure, for anyone, is to test drive BOTH vehicles and go off of your experience of each
I also think that some people are "blind" to nicer levels of refinement. Especially people who buy American cars. They "don't see a difference" between the lesser interiors in their American cars and imports, don't hear louder road noise, etc.
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I also think that some people are "blind" to nicer levels of refinement. Especially people who buy American cars. They "don't see a difference" between the lesser interiors in their American cars and imports, don't hear louder road noise, etc.
exactly

you really have to look at all the details to appreciate the premium vehicle riding on a chassis that shared with a lower end model.

car makers these days just don't bolt up different parts, they just aren't as interchangeable as they were before, now there a bigger difference, it basically becomes a whole new vehicle.
mechanically QX60 and Pathfinder are different. Don't call them different vehicles, they are NOT. They offer different features and comfort, yes, but they are still mechanically identical.

If the owners manual says QX60 is rated for 5,000lbs then yes the switch was made, the JX was only capable of 3,500 lbs. The difference in "quickness" may be explained that the PF CVT uses a chain, while the JX's CVT (last year) was belt driven. The torque itself is enough to get a heavy vehicle up to speed quicker.
I'll try to clear up a few things here.

First off, I don't know anyone who has taken their JX or QX60 to the track yet, so it's kind of hard to answer young padwan's question. My butt meter says the QX60 may be slightly faster in initial acceleration than the original JX35.

As for the tranny - back around May Infiniti made a mid-year change to the transmission in the JX35. So any JX built after that, and all QX60's, have the new transmission. No one from the factory has stated unequivocally that it's the transmission from the Pathfinder, but that seems to be the sense from everyone. That said, I've not seen any problems from any JX or QX60 customers regarding the transmissions on their vehicles.
If I'm not mistaken, the initial PF vs JX test drives by Car and Driver showed the PF with 1/2 second faster on 0-60 and 2/10 of a second faster on the 1/4 mile. It was due to the regearing. Added 7th gear lowering the ratio on the 1st gear for the boot in towing. I say gearing, but you know what I mean. The times were not that different.

As for no problems with the tranny's, that is not correct. The there a multitude of problems with the PF tranny and some of the JXs produced with the new tranny after March 2013. The shuddering issues is fully known and has now been recognized by Nissan. Feel free to reference any PF forum for examples.

Please reference TSB ITB13-20a regarding the VIN range for this TSB. Keep in mind that this TSB has been revised a third time. Nissan has acknowledged that the shudder is not one thing but one of three different items that can be causing the shuddering. The TSB has not been publicly posted yet, but it does reference hooking up a computer the car and driving for 30 mins. The computer then tells the tech what the issue is that is causing the problem. I believe the issue could be a computer update, the torque converter, the solenoids, or the valve body, if I'm not mistaken.

JATCO has apparently begun pulling the new tranny and swapping out all three parts, relabeling them as Remanufactured and doing full tranny swaps on JXs and PFs. Pretty sure if your QX60 was built on 07/13, you should be okay.

Hopefully, no on here has had the issue or is out side the VIN range.

Since SINECURE works for a dealer, maybe he'd be so kind to get a copy of the TSB and post it for us.
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Sorry you had trouble reading/understanding my post.

I said, I've not seen any of MY customers have problems. And I was talking about Infinitis, not Nissans.

I'll see if I can get to the TSB. I'm a salesperson, not a tech. Take anything I say with a grain of salt (see sig).
QX60 is also weighed down by its refinement. all the luxury and comfort add quite a bit of heft..
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