CarComplaints.com Notes: The 2004-2006 Nissan Maxima has widespread transmission problems. It starts with the vehicle jerking when shifting, & progresses to full-blown transmission failure.
Maxima owners report spending $3,000 to replace the transmission, typically around when the odometer hits 100,000 miles.
There's a class action lawsuit filed in late 2011, & it is still in the "discovery" stage. Apparently, these things take time ... far too much time.
10.0
really awful
Crashes / Fires:
4 / 2
Injuries / Deaths:
9 / 0
Average Mileage:
86,782 miles
About These NHTSA Complaints:
This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.
So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.
I bought a 2005 Maxima 3.5 sl in 2006 brand new in South Carolina. I first started having problems when I had my 60,000 mile service. About two weeks after the service my check engine light came on so, I took it to the dealership. They said there was no codes, and cleared the light. I then took my car in for the 90,000 service and once again around a week or two later my check engine light came on. I took it to the dealer and now their was codes saying my egr valve needed to be replaced. I told the dealership the same thing happened when I did my 60,000 mile service. Needless to say their was a recall that they would have replaced it for free but I was just over the mileage where it could have been done at no cost to me. About 3 months later my car jerked really hard, and my car lost complete power then jerked once more and started to move. The gauges in the car went completely out and every light possible on the dash came on. First I was told I have to replace four sensors, and so I did so along with the egr valve. The car ran fine for about two weeks and started doing the same thing. When I went from drive to reverse or vice versa it would jerk real hard before engaging. I then took the car to the repair shop and they said my transmission sensor was bad. I just had it replaced two weeks ago, and now my car is back is the shop doing the same thing. The tcs slip, and every light on the dash is on, and none of my gauges are working. Now they say it might be the computer that is bad. This last time I was on my way home from Missouri and it disengaged and would not put up speed when I pressed the gas pedal. I was nearly rear ended, and had to pull over because my 12 year old daughter was in the car and got scared.
The contact owns a 2005 Nissan Maxima. The contact stated that while driving approximately 55 mph, the transmission began to jerk with hesitation without any prior warning. The contact mentioned that on a separate occasion the gear failed to shift into the reverse or park position and the key would not release from the ignition switch. The vehicle was towed to an authorized dealer who stated the transmission exhibited early signs of failure and the shift lock unit was replaced. The manufacturer was notified and they advised there was not a recall related to the defect. The approximate failure mileage was 100,000. The VIN was unavailable.
The contact owns a 2005 Nissan Maxima. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the rpms would abnormally increase to 8000 rpms. In addition, the gear would slip and the vehicle would refuse acceleration attempts. The vehicle was taken to a mechanic and after inspection, the contact was told that the transmission needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. Neither the dealer nor the manufacturer was notified. The failure mileage was 120,000.
Just after the vehicle passed 100,000 miles, it began to shift roughly between all gears. The car "bucks" when shifting, and sometimes seems to "miss" a shift, revving the engine before settling into gear. I have researched the issue and found many other Maxima owners with cars of about the same age and mileage as mine, indicating this is a manufacturing defect and not specific to my particular vehicle.
At approximately 58,000 my vehicle started slipping and jerking. It gets stuck and doesn't move or will move at very high speed. It is dangerous to drive. When diagnosed by two different mechanics I was told it is a manufacture problem. Contacted manufacture and reported the problem.
- Philadelphia, PA, USA
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After the dealer told me that my manual transmissions needed to be replaced at 60,000, and told me it wasn't under warranty, I went for a second opinion. A local transmission shop told me it wasn't may transmission but rather my clutch pedal bracket and that it was under warranty! I went to a second dealership and had it replaced under warranty. That lasted for about 20-30,000 miles when it started to feel as though I was moving a boulder while depressing my clutch. This past summer, when I was manually pulling the petal back from the floor, I had to replace my fly wheel and clutch because of the wear. My clutch bracket still needs to be replaced again! why is this such a widely known issue with the 2005 mt Maxima and nothing has been done?
The car will jerk really hard switching from 1st and second gear. Sometimes the car will just rev when increasing speed and the car won't move! when U park the car and then go to shift it to drive it actually won't kick in for 7-10 seconds. The only reason I'm making a complaint about it is because I was searching online to see of other people had the same problem and there were literally thousands of complaints with the exact same problem and I don't think its right for me and all the others with the same problem to have to put 3000-3500 for a new transmission when clearly this should be a recall!
I bought this car less than a week ago. It's already beginning to jerk and clunk when shifting between 1st and second gear. Yesterday it began to rev and then jump back into gear whenever I tried to pull away from a stopped position. I took it back to the dealer and he paid $1700 + to have the transmission rebuilt because he felt bad for selling me a junk car!. but from what I'm hearing from other drivers with the same car a rebuild only helps for about 6 months or so then the car acts up again.... I'm in the U.S. marines and I need a reliable car to go home and check on my sick father every so often and this isn't seeming so reliable.
Transmissions jerks really hard then grinds while driving (taking off) until it eventually does it every time I try to drive it and is now parked due to it possibly causing an accident. The jerking started at 75,000 miles every now and then until it became consistent up to 127,000 miles then parked!
The contact owns a 2005 Nissan Maxima. While driving approximately 20 mph, the vehicle jerked forward abnormally. The failure recurred intermittently while driving at different speeds and while at a complete stop. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer for diagnostic testing or repairs. The approximate failure mileage was 105,000.
The contact owns a 2005 Nissan Maxima. The contact was traveling 35 mph when the vehicle stalled. The vehicle restarted but failed to accelerate. The vehicle was towed to the dealer who diagnose that the transmission needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The VIN was not available. The failure and current mileages was 62,000.
My 2005 Nissan Maxima with serious transmission problems. 1. there is a major delay after the shift lever is put in drive 2. between 1st to 2nd gears the car clunks and jerks into gear causing the tires screech 3. after about one hour of driving and I come to a stop, the car will not to move or respond as it should. I can be at 3000 RPM at a stop sign and the car will just creep along until it builds up speed. If I don't let off of the gas after speed starts building up to 20 mph, it well club and jerk into gear almost causing the car will to turn out of control.
I was stopped at a red light and when light turned green, I started forward, car moved and then just revved. Car behind me had to slam on brakes to avoid hitting me. Car was moving and then when it should have shifted, it froze. Was terrified to drive it after that.
The contact owns 2005 Nissan Maxima. The contact was driving 2 mph when the engine exhibited a loud, abnormal noise and the vehicle refused to accelerate. The check engine light was also illuminated and the vehicle became hard to shift. The vehicle was inspected by a local mechanic who stated that failure was related to the valve body. The dealer was notified and suggested to have the transmission replaced.the manufacturer was made aware of failure and advised to have vehicle inspected by the dealer. The current mileage was 81,000. The failure mileage was 75,000.
The contact owns 2005 Nissan Maxima. The contact was driving 25 mph when the vehicle began to jerk excessively. The vehicle was taken to a mechanic who inspected the failure and advised that the transmission needed to be replaced. Neither the dealer nor the manufacturer was notified of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was 72,000.
The contact owns a 2005 Nissan Maxima. The contact was driving 60 mph when the vehicle began to jerk and change gears independently. The vehicle was taken to the dealer for diagnosis. The transmission was flushed however the failure recurred. The vehicle had not been repaired. The VIN was unavailable. The failure mileage was 155,000 and the current mileage was 160,000.
Car revs up on its own, also slips when accelerating I parked the car and gear would slam when shift from park to drive, reverse and whenever shifted told it is due to a bad body valve which is a very common problem for the 2004 thru 2006 Nissan Maxima and other Nissan models.
I purchased my vehicle and the power train was fine. I started having problems when my vehicles shifts. It makes hard jerks when shifting and the rpms rev up uncontrollably. I got online to research for recalls and have yet found one but what I did find is numerous reports of the same exact problem I'm having. This is a very dangerous situation. I contacted Nissan Corp. To see why there is no recalls with so many people obviously having the same issue. I was told that NHTSA deals with all recalls. There is also a class action lawsuit coming together on this issue. I'm just trying to make it know that so many of us are having to pay thousands of dollars to have this issue with our transmissions corrected. This has got to be a defect in this certain year, make, and model. Please help with this situation before someone gets seriously injured or killed. I have three small children that ride in this vehicle. I worry everytime I drive with them that something terrible is going to happen. I feel Nissan should be completely responsible for this. Thank you for your time and consideration that it takes to look into situations like this. It is deeply appreciated.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Lawton, OK, USA