CVT Transmission starting to fail

[kevvvinc]

Hey everyone. At 44,350 kilometres, it appears that my cvt is going to fail.
I was sitting in a drive through when my Kizashi surged, rpms dropped, came back up again and as I released my foot off the brake pedal there was a sound something to extent of metal rattling around in the engine compartment.
I pulled over after getting my deliciously unhealthy food and opened up the hood. Checking the fluid of both the engine and the transmission, I found the transmission fluid to be thick, milky and greenish/yellow. At this point there wasn't much I could do except to continue my way to the office.
Throughout the drive, the transmission started to whine alot under both acceleration and braking while the vehicle would surge/ jerk back and forth when moving forward in traffic while making the rattling sound. The whine is not the ugly noise the car makes around 3000rpm going up hills. This sounds more like wind whistling through a cracked open window. I have scheduled my 45k service appointment on Jan 16th. Hope that this transmission will not quit before then. I have had issues with my cvt as early as 15,000km with a 3-4 second long reverse engagment which the dealership claimed was normal. My partner and I both have 2012 Kizashi's in Ablaze red and both are awd. Mine has 44k, the other 20k. The other Kizashi takes no longer than 1.5 seconds to engage reverse. Mine has been slamming into reverse with an extended delay for a long time. While my Kizashi was getting some bushings replaced on the front end at around 40k, the tech mentioned that my transmission felt "odd" and perhaps there was an update available. The service manager checked and there was no such update for my car.
I bought a Kizashi for longevity and it's wonderful handling. It's powertrain and size both erk me but what can one do. Especially for the price I got mine for! If any other members have had any issues with their Jatco CVT's please let me know. Oh and what the heck is with the fluid!?

[murcod]

I assume (hope?) you've still got warranty coverage?

There's no way you can get it to the dealer sooner? Perhaps push them for a loan car as it sounds serious and might suddenly fail completely.

[bootymac]

Yikes. Try to get to the dealer ASAP and keep us updated.

[~tc~]

When you tell the story to the dealer, you better change up some of those details. Finding the fluid to be like you did and continuing to drive it for two weeks is going to be classified "abuse" and you'll lose your warranty protection.

[SamirD]

When you tell the story to the dealer, you better change up some of those details. Finding the fluid to be like you did and continuing to drive it for two weeks is going to be classified "abuse" and you'll lose your warranty protection.

Yes, please listen to this advice as I think you've got a serious problem that could completely wreck the car if it's not covered under warranty.

The green fluid has got to be antifreeze, and I bet the transmission cooler built into the radiator failed and allowed the coolant to mix with the transmission fluid. NOT GOOD. I've seen this happen on aftermarket radiators, but never factory, especially when our oem ones are made by Nissens, a top-line manufacturer for German marques.

Anyways, here's what you need to do.
1. Stop driving the car! Rent a car and have the Kizashi TOWED to the dealership on a flatbed if its awd, to protect that system from damage.
2. Check the coolant level when the car is cold. If there is next to nothing in the radiator, then it's exactly as I suspected--radiator failure.
3. See if your transmission fluid is waaaay overfilled. It should be if the radiator failed.

You have to understand that coolant doesn't mix well at all with oils like engine or transmission. Hence, the noises. It's actually a miracle that the transmission got you anywhere at all, and PRAY there's no damage to it. If there is too much wear damage in the transmission, you killed it with that final drive to work.

Have you had any coolant or transmission service done lately? Or at all? If anyone worked on the car and didn't do something right, they might have caused this and you might have some legal recourse there, especially if there was some sort of warranty.

[Woodie]

Your car should have never left the Burger King parking lot, except on a hook.

[KuroNekko]

I agree with the others. Tow the car to a dealer and claim warranty repairs. This should be covered by powertrain warranty.

CVTs suck, but the one in the Kizashi isn't known to be problematic.

General rule of thumb with CVTs: Do NOT get a CVT vehicle if it's bigger than a midsize sedan and it has more than 6 cylinders. I know someone with a 2014 Nissan Pathfinder with about 4,000 miles on it. It's on the SECOND CVT already and the second one is already failing. It's actually a known problem with that car. The owner hired a lemon law attorney.
Nissan is blaming JATCO, but I really think it's because Nissan is trying to put CVTs in vehicles not suited for them. They seriously ruined the venerable Pathfinder by making it a CUV with a CVT. I used to want a Maxima but now they are only offered with a CVT. Pass.

Personally, I think CVTs are garbage and an excuse for automakers to not focus more on advanced engine technologies for fuel efficiency. Some companies like Mazda deliberately avoid them yet their cars are just as efficient yet more fun to drive. This was the whole mission behind their "SkyActiv" technology. Even Chrysler (once notorious for shitty transmissions) is avoiding CVTs and going for 8 and 9 speed transmissions designed by ZF.

Good luck with your repair.

[SamirD]

Yeah, I used to think cvts would be great, but they seem to be great only in theory.

The Kizashi gets the same mileage as my 155hp 95 Altima with an automatic. Yes, the Kizashi has a little more power at 180hp, but it's the same displacement at 2.4L. (The Altima compression could be increased with different rods, and one owner that did this and dyno'd it got about 180hp out of it--same as the Kizashi 15 years later! ) It's actually one of the reasons I like the car--reminds me of a more modern 'classic' Altima.

I think if efficiency was key, we would have moved to a fully variable valvetrain that uses soleinoids instead of cams. Less mechanical loss and infinitely tuneable at every rpm. You could also rev to some crazy rpms if the solinoids could keep up.

Another technology is a something I looked into years ago for the Galant, and looks like they've evolved into a serious company: www.coatesengine.com. Their Coates Spherical Rotary Valve eliminates the camshaft as well as all the oiling system needed in the upper head. In their tests, a 5L engine maxed out at 5700 rpms with regular valves while they spun the same engine at 14850 rpms with more airflow. Now that's what I'm talking about.

[kevvvinc]

Okay I got in touch with Suzuki Canada and their representative said he would speak to a tech and let me know if I should continue to drive the car or not.
Such a strange issue. I don't think CVT's are built for longevity.
I'm sitting in my office without much concern. I know what happens when coolant/water mixes with oils. I haven't checked much else. That is the job of the techs at the dealership.
Hopefully Suzuki will have my car towed to the dealership. ownership of this car is getting pretty interesting. Hopefully our other Kizashi doesn't have an issue with the cvt in it.

[kevvvinc]

Okay, Dorji from their customer service said he spoke to a tech and based on the information that I have given them, they said to continue driving the Kizashi till my service appointment on the 16th.
I asked for him to email me a statement stating what he said as proof to protect me.
Fingers crossed. Will report back in if anything happens before my service appointment. Cheers.