D40 auto box shuddering

[ericcs]

06 2.5 d40 auto
I posted about 6 years ago, the shuddering at about 90 kph in lock up when under load. others have asked the same question, and while a lot of theories were put forward, i haven't heard of a proper solution.
I have lived with this issue for 170k, and now after driving from Brisbane to Canberra today towing a trailer, and having the car shake to bits on every slight incline, I have had enough. I am a curious if anyone who experiences this issue, has finally found a solution.
Only happens around 90kph+- in top gear and locked up. kicking down or backing off, stops the vibration, which resonates heavily through the car!
any clues?
cheers,eric

 

[Aaron31]

Probably unrelated (and unhelpful - sorry Eric) - if I hoof it off the line, mine will grumble at me (as in it makes a different, low rumble noise) which you can feel thru the truck and it *feels* like its slipping. Only does it from a standing start when in a hurry. Doesn't do it in 4LO. Beyond that it doesn't bother me.

 

[ericcs]

no such issue with mine, smooth all the way, except for the 90kph area on lock up only. haven't noticed it in 4low

 

[waky53]

When you say in lock up, do you mean overdrive on or off?
Transmission specialist has told me to only tow with overdrive off.
Do you have any trouble codes or pending codes?

 

[ericcs]

When you say in lock up, do you mean overdrive on or off?
Transmission specialist has told me to only tow with overdrive off.
Do you have any trouble codes or pending codes?

the problem started at around 60k, not long after i bought it. Now has 230k, has never thrown a code in it's life, touch wood. with no load, it's easy to dodge the issue, but just an empty 7x5 box trailer is enough to annoy the transmissin into shuddering on the slightest incline.
these transmissions are known to be touchy and kick down too early!

 

[dilmah]

What sort of temps are you getting the ATF up to when towing underload? Id say its a programming issues with the TCM. It cannot decide whether to kick down a gear or hold it. My old EL falcon use to do the same thing when I was really pushing it

 

[ericcs]

What sort of temps are you getting the ATF up to when towing underload? Id say its a programming issues with the TCM. It cannot decide whether to kick down a gear or hold it. My old EL falcon use to do the same thing when I was really pushing it

i can create the shuddering whenever i want to just by accelerating at the right speed, and that is with just me and the car. Just happens easier with a load!
it has been suggested it is the lockup solenoid, but the symptoms feel like tailshaft bent like a boomerang. doesn't happen below 80kph or above 100kph!

 

[happy john]

G'day Eric, these people are experts with D40 autos, they do alot of upgrades and fault finding.
http://aspleyautomatics.com.au/

 

[ericcs]

G'day Eric, these people are experts with D40 autos, they do alot of upgrades and fault finding.
http://aspleyautomatics.com.au/

thanks John, i'll call them tomorrow!

 

[Old.Tony]

There's an easy way to tell where the vibration is coming from.

1) Drive in 1st gear and slowly accelerate until the tacho shows 2000rpm. If there's no vibration, it's not in the engine.

2) Drive in 4th gear (overdrive off). Accelerate to 100km/h gently. If there's no vibration at all, it's not in the drive train (back of the gearbox to the wheels).

3) Still at 100km/g, press the OD button to engage 5th gear. Any vibration? There may be a quick (mild) thump followed by a drop in revs as the TCC engages. At 100km/h you're above the "really should engage" point (it feels like around 95km/h in my car). Don't worry, there's another point around 125km/h where it doesn't give a shoot and engages the TCC anyway (or it does in mine).

4) Slow to 65km/h (my car engages the TCC at 69km/h) in 5th and re-accelerate to 100km/h. Vibration? If so, it's definitely the torque converter.

The clutch (TCC) had some issue that Nissan never explained and they replaced the TCs under warranty. Yours is well and truly out of warranty, but I wonder if they'd come to the party if you coughed labour?

If they won't at all and you want to keep the car, have a chat with Wholesale Automatics in Victoria. They build a TC that has a lower stall speed that bolts straight in and by all accounts is a superior product to the stock one.

The stock TC has a stall speed somewhere in the 2700-3100rpm range. This is the engine RPM at which the TC will grip tightly and transfer power more effectively into the gearbox. This means that accelerating at 2700rpm is more fuel efficient (because of the more effective power delivery) than accelerating at 2000rpm.

The Wholesale Automatics one has a stall speed of 2400rpm, so it's transferring power at a lower RPM and therefore wasting less RPM getting the power to the gearbox. It will result in fuel savings and lower rpm gear changes.

 

[happy john]

thanks John, i'll call them tomorrow!

Hope you get if sorted Eric, I can see your frustration. The Bt 50/Ranger is now having problems towing over 2 tonne overheating and hunting for gears. Checking the tcm needs special equipment. Best to find a hill and show the mechanics how the problem eventuates under load. They normally pussyfoot around and find nothing.

 

[ericcs]

There's an easy way to tell where the vibration is coming from.



4) Slow to 65km/h (my car engages the TCC at 69km/h) in 5th and re-accelerate to 100km/h. Vibration? If so, it's definitely the torque converter.

this is the point that applies to me
using this method, i can get it to shudder at around 90kph every time but applying the right amount of throttle to load it up. normal driving, i can get around this, but with steeper gradients amd a load behind the car, it's almost unavoidable, unless i back right off!

 

[ericcs]

Hope you get if sorted Eric, I can see your frustration. The Bt 50/Ranger is now having problems towing over 2 tonne overheating and hunting for gears. Checking the tcm needs special equipment. Best to find a hill and show the mechanics how the problem eventuates under load. They normally pussyfoot around and find nothing.

170k and 7 yrs, i'm finally getting too old and cranky, so it finally needs to be sorted!

 

[Black_Outlaw]

Probably unrelated (and unhelpful - sorry Eric) - if I hoof it off the line, mine will grumble at me (as in it makes a different, low rumble noise) which you can feel thru the truck and it *feels* like its slipping. Only does it from a standing start when in a hurry. Doesn't do it in 4LO. Beyond that it doesn't bother me.

I know this exact noise. It's like the engine is being torque reduced and then slowly fed back in.

I tried everything to get rid of it, fresh fluid, more boost, less boost - but it's just there. Must be a "Nissan" thing

 

[Aaron31]

Glad its not just me!
I'd hate to think what it would (try and) do with 2.5T in tow!

 

[Old.Tony]

If it's the torque converter (used to be a common thing in D40 autos but Nissan replaced the TCs under warranty) then even with a heavy load on it won't do much more than its doing now.

Nissan were supposed to replace the TCs. I do not know if there was a recall for them. What wouldn't hurt is making a friend of the service manager at a Nissan dealer and asking them if Nissan would come to the party and replace the TC since it was a known problem and your car was "overlooked". It's worth a try!

 

[Leprechaun]

The clutch in the torque converter can develop hot spots which causes the shudder, try adding a tube of this http://www.lubegard.com/~/C-230/Instant+Shudder+Fixx if that fails you will need a new T.C.

 

[Foxtrot16]

I have a similar problem in my auto gearbox - I had to get anew one in because the old one crapped itself towing due to the crappy design flaw.

Anyway the new auto box would shudder between 80 - 100 kph and I took it back to Nissan (Melville Nissan in WA) who said it's normal and I have to put up with it, from memory they said it is just the torque converter.

Despite trying to argue with them that it shouldn't be normal they don't care and I just don't have the money to fix. Now I just turn off overdrive completely and it stops.

Once the the D40 dies I am never going to own another Nissan again due to their customer service!!

Karl

 

[Lowey]

Fix for shudder

Hi, sorry for digging up an old thread, but I have a customers Navara at my workshop doing an identical shudder to yours. So far, I’m on transmission number 2 fitted to it, and no difference. I swear it is the lock up in the converter, but it’s obviouslt not, as 3 transmissions won’t have exactly the same fault. Any help appreciated please.

 

[Old.Tony]

I wouldn't worry about an old thread, that's what they're for.


My own gearbox has done this now, but it's inside the gearbox. Had the torque converter reconditioned, valve body replaced, it's greatly improved. Apparently there was a small amount of water in my gearbox, which the guys are hoping hasn't done a lot of damage (they've cleaned up everything and put a new valve body in).



If you've changed boxes, there's no chance it could be the physical parts of the gearbox. TCMs, however, are coded to vehicle VINs (to reduce theft) and you are supposed to reprogram the TCM when installing a new valve body or gearbox (Nissan do this reprogramming task) and only then does the gearbox begin to behave normally (this is what my auto box mechanic told me, and what two separate Nissan service department heads told me).