caddop22

1993 Maxima
190K Miles
VG30E

I have read many posts relating to the shifting issues with the Maxima. I am having a problem where the vehicle will not shift at about 25mph and will rev to around 3K RPM. I took the VSS and unplugged it and the speedo stopped working, and no change, so I eliminated that as a problem. I checked the TPS and found no issues but have the following DTC 23, 34, 45, 51. I can not find two of these but most point to injector issues. I took the sensor (no idea what it is called) out of the tranny, drivers side bottom of the tranny and wraps around and connects to the harness at the top of the tranny. I then put it back in but did not connect it, drove the car and no change.

It is a Hall effect sensor that is still magnetized, but have no idea how to test it. According to Airtex this is a Revolution Sensor and is about $245. Could this truly be the problem?

Sorry for the long post but I wanted to try and give all the details I could.

Thanks for any help and/or advice. I hate to get rid of this car.

Laevateinn

iTrader: (3)

There's a diagnostic procedure for A/Ts. Check this out:
http://www.texasnissans.com/fsm/Maxima/1994/AT.pdf

If it doesn't shift at all, your trans might be in fail-safe mode.

caddop22

I did some testing and found that the TCC Solenoid has no resistance at all. I see how to replace it but can't find a vendor that has it alone. Can anyone give me a link to get a price for this Solenoid?

BTW, all other solenoids are testing within range and it makes me think that the TC is not locking in to shift. As I said I can get to about 25MPH and then the car revs to 3000rpm.

I appreciate the link to the FSM, and any advice is much appreciated.

Laevateinn

iTrader: (3)

Assuming you have the RE4F02A trans.
http://www.makcotransmissionparts.com/RE4F02A.html

I think a TCC solenoid is a normally open switch until the torque converter reaches a certain pressure and you test it with a pressure gauge. You mean, no resistance like 0 ohms or O.L. (out-of-limits, open)? TCCs do not affect shifting. It just reverses the fluid flow in the transmission so that the transmission's input shaft is rotating at the same speed of the crankshaft.

Based on your first post, the revolution sensor can be tested for continuity (pg 82 on manual). Since it's a hall effect sensor, wouldn't spinning the axles will rotate the rotor that will fluctuate the meter's reading?

Oh, is the A/T mode switch in normal or comfort?

BTW, fail-safe mode will lock you trans in 2nd gear to allow you to drive to the closest repair shop.
When you said you get to 25 mph and 3k rpm, you can't get any faster and max rpm is 3k?
In Drive gear, when you let go of the brake, does the car roll forward? Or you have to give it gas and start to roll forward when you reach not until about 2000 rpm?
Have you tried driving it in manual 2nd or manual 1st gear?
When you tested the solenoids, I would assume you dropped the inspection pan. Was the fluid glittery (metal shavings of steel and brass), dark and burnt in odor, and/or paper flakes?

caddop22

Thanks for the replies.

I got 0 ohms the first time I checked the TCC Solenoid, but last night I got 3.9 ohms when rechecking it. I might have not had a good ground.

I did test the Revolution sensor and got 612 ohms, so I ruled that out since it is in range. The VSS I unplugged and drove the car and the speedometer did not work, plugged it back in and it worked again. I had the A/T switch in the middle selection, no mode at all. I have always left it there.


Yes the car will move in Drive without giving it gas and it will drive in D2 and D1. In D the car will only go about 25mph and rev to 3000 rpm and not shift after that point. When I let off the gas it jerks a bit like the Torque Converter is trying to lock/unlock.

The fluid was fine, not burnt or any shavings visible. This is the pan on top of the transmission that I removed to get to the valve body.

Thanks again for your help. I need this car back for my daughter to use for work.

CapedCadaver

iTrader: (8)

torque converter does not operate until you are in 3rd gear above 55mph or 4th gear above 45mph, and does not operate at 0% throttle or above 20ish% throttle.

CapedCadaver

iTrader: (8)

if it was in failsafe (3rd-only) you wouldn't be hitting 3000rpm at just 25mph. More like 60mph. So it does not seem failsafe is in play. Being at 3k @25mph sounds more like 2nd gear (accelerating) or 1st gear (coasting).

What's it do if you try and go faster? Does it ever shift at all? Do all other positions (P, R, N) work as expected? The shifter bushings on these cars LOVE to break and fall out, which would cause the indicated shifter position to be different from the position on the sensor, which is mounted on the trans.

IE.. while the car is at 3k and won't shift, push the shifter up a little bit towards or even into N, and see if it shifts then or if it just free-revs.

caddop22

No it does not shift just revs.

Yes all other positions work as expected. I can take off from a dead stop and haul until 25mph.

Could it be slipping out of gear due to this bushing? If it is worn or deteriorating? That is an interesting thought. I will try to move the shifter around and see what happens.

Thanks for your reply.

CapedCadaver

iTrader: (8)

it wouldn't be slipping out of gear, but the gear selector inside would be mis-aligned relative to the actual valve selector thingy on the transmission case, causing it to "lie" about its true position. My car used to refuse to start in Park, because it was actually in R when the stick said P.

Anyways, when you say it "does not shift, just revs", you mean the engine keeps speeding up beyond 3k, but the car holds steady at 25mph? As if it is slipping (or as if you were riding the clutch, on a manual car)

caddop22

Exactly, just revs but no acceleration at all. I don't feel that it is slipping, just not shifting. I wondered about one of the last comments that had to do with throttle at 25% or so locking the TC in, at that rpm it seems to me that it is trying.

Thanks for the help

Laevateinn

iTrader: (3)

In D2, does it shift to 2nd?
Can you go over 25mph, in manual 2nd or manual 1st?
Hook up a pressure gauge in the trans and check the hydraulic system in D.

Using the manual (pg 10), lock up only operates at 3rd gear with OD switch off while lockup happens in 4th with OD switch on. Also, 2nd gear in D and 2nd gear in manual-2 have the same hydraulic operation WHILE manual-1 low just uses an extra band for compression braking.

If its max speed is 25mph in D only, and it allows the engine to rev up over 3k without affecting speed, that means (most likely) the torque converter is slipping, which will cause the fluid to overheat = more damage. But it should also show in manual 2nd when it shifts to 2nd gear. Unless the temperature sensor is sending false signals to the trans control unit, which can tell the ECU to hold back power and limit speed.

CapedCadaver

iTrader: (8)

you're really going to have to make a video..... if you reach 25mph @ 3000rpm, then continue revving upwards to 4000rpm, 5000rpm, and are still going just 25mph, that sounds like slipping to me. I'd have to see it to be sure, but don't be afraid to rev past 3000rpm once or twice for the sake of diagnosing your problem. If it's slipping, and you can't get beyond 25mph, it's as good as dead anyways.

Let the engine warm up all the way, and with the car stopped, put the shifter in L, and see how fast you can make the car go. Going up to 5000rpm will not kill your engine unless you are low on oil or something. Then put it in 2, try the same thing. It could be that your transmission is shifting up, but that you can't put the power down in higher gears, whereas in lower gears you can. It's often the case that on a stickshift car, the clutch will only slip in higher gears at first (since the engine has to make more torque to produce the same HP at lower RPM), but sometimes drives just fine in low gears.

Also, the TC lockup ONLY works above 45mph in 4th and over 55mph in 3rd. It does not lockup in 1st or 2nd gear ever, or below the speeds I mentioned in 3rd and 4th. You're going nowhere near fast enough to put the lockup into operation.

chrome91

iTrader: (1)

sounds like slipping to me, when the auto trans in my 3rd gen went it did something similar. would act fine for the most part, but sometimes when i went to merge or take off from a stop and gave it throttle, it would rev and not move and then suddenly catch and accelerate. fluid level was fine, nothing burnt, etc

a bad shifter bushing on 3rd gens will usually cause a no-start in park because the computer doesnt read that the gear selector is in P and wont let it start. if that happens, you should be able to start it in neutral. had that on mine, sometimes nothing happened when i turned the key like a bad starter would. i had to go behind the car, rock it back and forth, and the pawl would catch and let me start it. then one day the bushing just completely went and i couldnt start it no matter what and i replaced it. shifter will feel sloppy if the bushing is gone too. very common problem on 3rd gens

CapedCadaver

iTrader: (8)

on several occasions I would get N instead of D. I temporarily got in the habit of putting it in 2 then moving up to D. But it was a $4 part and took 15 minutes to fix, so I didn't have to deal with it for long.

chrome91

iTrader: (1)

yeah it was annoying as hell, always did a no-start in the worst places too. i remember one time i went into a automatic car wash and when it was done i had to jump out and rock it back and forth, guy behind me probably thought i was making sweet love to it

years ago i told one place i thought the bushing was bad, they said they checked it and the bushing was fine. so i went to another place (coincidentally enough the place i work at now) and they said it was the starter, i said i thought it was the bushing but whatever you know more than me. still happened time after time and i went back for like 3 or 4 starters before i said i know its the bushing, sure enough it was. funny thing a year ago a guy had a 3rd gen and he said the shifter felt sloppy, i just said order the friggen shifter bushing and i bet my left nut that fixes it. i changed it and sure enough it did

CapedCadaver

iTrader: (8)

Just made this video in my Z31. Same VG30E engine, and more or less the same gearing/ratios/tiresize. Yes i know my sig says my car is a Turbo 5spd and this video is a non-turbo automatic... I have more than one Z31

At no point was I ever at full-throttle, just easing the speed up to demonstrate what a healthy non-slipping transmission will behave like when locked in the lower gears. The needles are kinda dim (front-lit cluster, not backlit) but hopefully you can see where they are pointing or at least guess based on where the main body of the needle is pointing. Full-screen @ 1080p might help.

From 0:00 to 0:15 I'm in position "L", already going 22mph at about 3,000 RPM. I hit the gas, car accelerates to about 40mph at 5800rpm.

From 0:16 to the end I'm in position "2". The trans is in 2nd gear the whole time. Low RPM off throttle, hit the gas from 18mph and it snaps firm to 2500rpm, and goes all the way to 55mph @ 4800rpm.

Let me know how yours compares.

caddop22

In the video what you show from 0:00 to 0:15 is what I am getting in D. No acceleration after that point.

I did notice that I have to tap the shifter to get the car into D. I brought this up because of the posts relating to the shifter bushing being a problem.
I would hope this could be the problem, as it is an easy fix.

Thanks for the video

CapedCadaver

iTrader: (8)

what about in "L"? Can you run the car up to 40mph in 1st gear, or does it still top out at 25mph while RPM climbs to redline? At no point in my video was my car in "D".. Just "L" and "2"

CapedCadaver

iTrader: (8)

also, if you unbolt the left side of the catalytic converter heat shield (2 10mm bolts) and pull it down a bit, you can see where the shifter comes through the floor.

This is what it looks like when the bushing is gone. You see there is a ton of freeplay allowing the shifter to move without the cable moving.

CapedCadaver

iTrader: (8)

better daytime video of my car... you can actually see the needles now. Timing are still the same, 0:00-0:15 in "L", 0:16 onward is in "2".

caddop22

I am going to try both steps when I get home and will post what happens.

Darkwing48

iTrader: (1)

I'm not complete sure if we are experiencing the same, but one night my car wouldn't go faster than 30 mph. I could not remember the revs but it wasn't shifting. It lead up to the rebuilding of my transmission. Unfortunately, it happened in a neighborhood I wasn't familiar with. Fortunately, It was very late and I've used the 10 freeway, with hazards, to get back to I place I knew.

Laevateinn

iTrader: (3)

So what was wrong with the trans that they rebuilt?

Darkwing48

iTrader: (1)

I've lost the upper gears and the torque converter. I have to look at the records to be exact.

CapedCadaver

iTrader: (8)

did you ever get around to doing the L and 2 tests?

caddop22

Sorry for the delay, busy with work.

Yes I did the test and was able to emulate what you did. I saw a similar test in the FSM A/T section. I got the same results.

I have a few things to mention so please bare with me. I had the battery out of the car for about three days, and when I put it back together I drove it for about ten minutes. At this time I checked the codes again and this time I got an 11 Camshaft Position sensor. Not sure if that could cause this problem.

I have a bit of a back story that I would like to relate to you as to when the problem actually started. When I bought the car a few months ago it had an after market am/fm cassette player in it. I took it out because it would not hold memory and pulled the after market pig tail harness out. I left it that way and all of these things happened such as the seat belts stopped retracting, the interior lights stopped working, etc. I put the pig tail back in and all of that was solved. Then all of the sudden this transmission issue just appeared. It seems like it came out of nowhere. I had no indication of transmission problems before the radio removal. At this time there is no radio in the car, only the pig tail connected to the factory harness.

It is perplexing to me how this can happen other than the Anti-theft is doing something.

Thanks again for all of your help all.

Laevateinn

iTrader: (3)

Try to put in the headunit just for comparison. See if the problem still exist

chrome91

iTrader: (1)

i cant think of how a headunit would affect the trans at all unless as you said its something anti theft. or maybe something to do with a ground circuit

caddop22

I put the after market radio back and it made no difference. I do not have the factory radio or I would try that.

I am gonna keep checking things until I figure this out. If it is internal, at least I will know.

Thanks for all the help.

Laevateinn

iTrader: (3)

Pressure testing is really the best diagnosis you can do. Check the manual where to hook it up to test a certain gear. Transmission pressure gauges come with long hoses so you can fish it thru the opening in the hood and the cowl where the wipers sit. tape the gauge in front of the windshield and drive it around. Drive it around and record PSI. Pull over and move onto the next pressure port.