hey guys i have a 1.6 sentra se sedan that is my daily beater. great car and runs perfect. i want to change the atf and what not . but i am not familiar with automatic transmissions at all . what type of atf does it take? can i flush it myself or can i just change whats in the case? where is the filter and should i change that as well??? here is a pic of my civic , and the sentra just for fun . thanks alot!
The transaxle has a metal screen that does not need to be replaced, unlike the filters in many other transaxles. You simply remove the drain plug and drain as much of the transmission fluid as you can, put the plug back in, and replace through the transaxle dipstick hole with new Dexron III ATF. I use Valvoline Maxlife ATF (not the stop leak stuff), but everybody has a favorite. Note that this procedure only gets about half of the old fluid out, so you may want to do it again after a bit of driving to replace most of the fluid if it hasn't been changed for a long time. Also note that the force of the fluid draining out sort of back-flushes the metal screen, which apparently Nissan thinks is good enough that a replaceable filter is not required.
No problem!
As I recall I usually get about 5 quarts out when I drain mine. Just pour the old stuff into an empty jug, i.e. wiper fluid jug, and put the same amount of new stuff back in. You're better off to put a bit less in and get it just right later once the trans is up to temp (you know how to check the level properly right?). Overfilling can cause frothing and damage, so this should be avoided.
Last edited by mrgoose : Mar 22nd, 2007 at 10:03 PM.
You can use Dex III, but Nissan recommends Nissan ATF Type "D," which is actually the first formula of Dexron and is said to be better at preventing valve stick in the valve bodies. It's a little pricey at $6/qt.
You can use Dex III, but Nissan recommends Nissan ATF Type "D," which is actually the first formula of Dexron and is said to be better at preventing valve stick in the valve bodies. It's a little pricey at $6/qt.
I don't believe this is true. Nissanmatic D is Dexron III, I've asked the Nissan dealership about this. Back when the car was made, you could use Dexron II or the Nissan version of the time. Dexron III is the new, better standard for the fluid. In fact you may get additional benefits from a high-mileage Dexron III ATF like Valvoline Maxlife, since it's formulated for transaxles that are starting to show signs of their age.
Now that I look back at my last post, I'm not sure what exactly I was trying to say. I guess I responded sleepily first thing in the morning, and misread the post I was responding to. Looking at it now, it seems perfectly reasonable, and I don't know what I was disagreeing with. Sorry about that.
Though, to be fair, you probably didn't need to make an asinine comment about premenstrual syndrome. It's not like I said anything offensive or disrespectful to warrant your response.
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