2 Nismos transmission failure after highway driving.
 

Ok, we were in a fun run along with 5 other mostly automatic 370s, 4 more GTRs, a wrx and an old lancer (non-evo), and a bunch of euro exotics going at an average of 140- mph. when it's time to pay at the toll gates...

Only the 2 nismos won't go forward. Exact same symptons. Heavy vibrations and loud clunking noise when we try to go forward (or back). No, smell of burnt clutch tho and last symptom, can't be pushed on neutral.

We had to wait 30-40 minutes or more before we can drive it forward again and had to wait a bit longer to let the car cool down.

Anyone else experienced this? Manual/Nismo owners? This is highway driving so shifting is minimal.... only heavy foot. yeah, I did linger on 5th gear a few times but most of the time, I was on 6th.

additional notes:
1. The other Nismo has an HKS oil cooler so engine temp isn't an issue.
2. yes, I did go on limp mode:) hehe.... my car limited to 5k for a while but I already let the engine temp revert to 2230ish before we stopped.
3. My friend's Nismo, had the tranny fluid change, then drove the car at 140+ mph again and the same thing happened. mine is still sitting in my garage.
4. cars seem to be fine when driven slowly for now.
5. My evo 9 with intake/exhaust/tune mods never gave me a single problem!!!!!

hehe... any info on other mt users would help!

I recall someone else had this happen to them a few months ago, and if I recall correctly, it turned out to be a coolant leak, and the ECU prevented forward motion as a protective mechanism. Have you checked the coolant levels?

Hey semtex!

coolant leak on 2 brand new nismos seem unlikely. Also, the other one had a oil cooler and he says his temps are ok. (mine went limp mode).

a technician said that a suspect could be the rear diff.
but how could it be when we were going on straight lines?

will have it checked tomorrow.

Yes, I agree that it is unlikely. But it's still worth checking just to be sure. However, I just re-read your post and caught the part about loud clunking noises and vibration. A coolant leak isn't going to cause that, so I would agree the technician suspecting the diff. I almost wonder if there is/was an overheating issue with the diff. At those prolonged speeds, the diff might get hot. Perhaps a diff cooler is in order.

this is ridiculous. now I need an oil cooler, a diff. cooler and maybe even a tranny cooler.

man, my evo underwent worse conditions, longer and harder drives, long track times (I let other people track my evo one time), and yet it's never given me problems even after 3 years.

anyways, I'll update you guys what happens tomorrow.

Wow, this is bad news...
Please keep us posted!

This is the only other documented occurrence other than the Edmund's Test vehicle that had a trans lock up in gear. But it wasn't temperature dependent...

I would be very surprised if it is your diff! Then again I don't have a logical guess to contribute either.

Keep us posted.

Nick J.

The differential failed on the first NISMO tested in the States....right before some reporter wrecked it.

Nismo 370Z Differential Failure | Straightline Blog on Edmunds' Inside Line

in for updates

sounds like the diff issue is specific to nismos...is this correct?

Mine has been fine thus far, although I haven't done any driving of that caliber. From about 500-1000 miles the gearbox seemed to get very stiff once the car warmed up, during normal highway driving. I'm at about 1420 now and it feels like it should. I made a post on here about it and someone stated that it would loosen up after some miles and so far they were right. I'll hit the subscribe button on this so I can keep track, keep us posted!

:iagree:

Zeto!

wheres my diy post brotha!

very interesting....

Still waiting on my guy bro! He said he's swapped with WRX hood cuts now :rofl2:

:rolleyes:

Yet another reason not to get a Nismo.

That is possible, my old M3's diff split in two on the highway at normal speeds. And the car was never raced or really beaten on, the diff just literally came apart.

The NISMO uses the same tranny and rear end as the regular w/sports package.

Yep - Lets get some regular 370z's driving @ those speeds and we will see if its nismo specific

I've had my car up at those speeds, but I don't know how long the OP was driving at those speeds. I only had it up there for 10-15 mins, tops.

Is that 140 speed at "MPH" or kilometer/hr? Where in the Philippines could you drive at 140 mph? Even the expressways were pretty crowded.

I am just wondering. Thanks.

i know when i was there a few years back it was 10 rows wide on a 4 lane hwy...and bumper to bumper...no way we were going over 40 mph...:shakes head:

I imagine teh diff on the NISMO is the same as what's on the non-nismo (though I don't know if it'd be the "sport package" diff or the non-sport...)

That said, with 350HP instead of 332Hp - it makes me wonder if some bolt-ons might jeapordize the diff...


That is, if it's the cause of the issue.

Ok guys, here is what we know so far. Differential oil boiled/burned and emits an intense stench. We replaced it with Royal Purple diff oils.

I'm also replacing the engine oil (I limped mode remember?) and at the same time installing an HKS oil cooler. Also changed the tranny oil just to be sure. The guy whom I bought the car from has been great and assisting me with everything I need.

I hope my car will be back to normal.

http://i767.photobucket.com/albums/x...5/L1010941.jpg
http://i767.photobucket.com/albums/x...5/L1010942.jpg
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above: the real stinky oil after only 300 miles in the odo. I forgot to take a pick of the deformed drain plug bolt. It has a plastic covering and it was slightly deformed. (the plastic, not the metal parts). Just goes to show how hot the oil was. How could this be? We were going in a straight line. changing lanes was minimal.

I'll know tomorrow if the car is better. I'll prolly Dyno it so it can go 140 mph in a safe environment... see if the diffs boil again (at the same time, get a baseline dynapack reading). better to test it in a shop than in a highway in the middle of nowhere.

that's mph. kmh would be 210-220ish. All people who have high performance cars usually take them to Nlex, Sctex and Skyway. It was also a holiday:)

and yeah, sometimes the roads are totally devoid of cars that going 250 kph/160ish mph (on my evo) would be "safe". Btw, I think the ones who have exotics (porsches, lambos, ferraris can go around 300 kph or 190-200ish mph)

south super highway is always terrible. Nlex (north) and sctex would be awesome specially during holidays. I guess you could search youtube for keywords: "funrun, nlex or sctex".
and I guess it's easier to get away with speeding over here than the states:)

Don't agree..

Imo... Yet another reason to be cautious when buying a 1st year model.

Thanks for the update! A couple of FYIs. It is normal for diff oil to stink after it's been used; the bad smell doesn't necessarily indicate that something has gone wrong with the fluid. It's still good that you changed though. I changed both my diff and trans fluid over to Redline at around 2500 miles. (I wasn't having any issues though.) Also, just in case you aren't already aware, DynaPacks are notorious for reading too high. That's just something to be aware of if you're planning to compare your baseline to readings from other makes of dynos. Nice looking Nismo, btw!

I just re-read your post and caught this part. There's your problem right there. You haven't even finished the break-in period. You're pushing it too hard considering how low your mileage is, IMO. These cars are known to run hot early on. The high oil temps, for example, were a very controversial issue earlier in the year when everyone's cars were still new with low mileage. What we've all noticed now that some time has passed is that as we put more miles on our engines, the temps drop. My recommendation is that you go easy with things until you complete the break-in mileage -- that's just my suggestion of course; you're free to do whatever you want.

http://i618.photobucket.com/albums/t...09-83003AM.jpg

You should definitely heed the break in warnings. That would really help. BUT an all out failure like that is still unacceptable IMO. Either way, EVO. There. Now my post has it too. Can we stop that now?

Okay wait a second. You guys took a NISMO up to 140mph with only 300 miles on the ODO? The car wasn't even broken in. No wonder why you had a failure. I have had my car sit at 160 mph for 30 minutes before several times, never had a issue. And that was on a course not public roads.

Sorry, but diff oil is really stinky..."burned" or not.

+1 on having to take it easy during the break-in period. i can't imagine ragging my car out with only 300 miles on the ODO.

I had my first trackday at 600 miles on the ODO or something and My car runs great ;)

Damn I need to check my diff oil.

yeah, my fault for not heeding the break in.... but there were other 370s on that day, we are all in a convoy, one was another mt, and atleast 3 others were AT. Yes, they all have higher mileage than my car but I'm quite sure that most of them have yet to break the 1200 mile barrier either. the other nismo that stalled had 500++ miles on it with an oil cooler. I was trailing an AT 370 and not overtaking anyone.

we were in a convoy of 18 cars..... more than half of them have low mileage (bnew gtrs and 370s, porsche panamera, r8).

hey kannibul,

the shop/guy I took it to has been working on cars for a while now and whatever smell it was, they say it's not the usual stench:)

Insanity driving at those speeds with a brand new car (before breaking in the engine). Throw your money away it's easier.

hey man! yeah, I will only compare dynapack readings with other dynapack readings. thanks!

the real indication that the oil may have gone too hot is perhaps the molten plastic lining inside the drain plug:) but still the opinion that it's extraordinarily stinky is from the shop guys, and they've worked on cars for a while now.