Nissan X-Tronic CVT (Continuously Variable Transmission)

CVT vs Automatic Transmission
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The real difference between a continuously variable transmission (CVT) and an automatic transmission (AT) is that while both are technically automatic transmissions and don’t require the driver to use a clutch to manually change gears, a traditional automatic transmission has fixed gears -typically ranging from five to nine in number. Nissan's XTRONIC CVT and all CVTs don’t have any traditional fixed gear ratios at all. There is no “shifting” in the conventional sense of the word. With CVT, shifting is seamless – the vehicle performs as though it has a variable gear for every driving situation, and you won’t feel any shift shock.

Benefits of CVT
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- Stronger acceleration from a standing start
- Rapid & seamless acceleration during merging and passing
- Smooth and quiet at cruising speed
- Always in the right gear - no gear hunting
- Significant improvement in the fuel economy

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[FluteMan]

Please Nissan give us a transmission system that isn't known for inevitably needing a costly replacement

[whkrause]

Sounds great! Drop me a line when you make one that lasts 30, 000 miles!

[AlexKienlen]

You didn't show the part where the CVT breaks and leaves you stranded. You forgot how you extended the warranty on these awful transmissions to 84, 000 miles because they're so failure prone. And you certainly haven't mentioned how a search engine review of "Nissan CVT" provides endless stories of people whose transmissions have failed. CVT is the reason to not buy a Nissan.

[paulzuccariii]

They're pieces of garbage and nissan won't stand behind them. Mine went at 55000 miles! They need to put that "technology" back into the motor scooter it came from.

[ZTFlames]

I honestly do not feel worried about my '14 Sentra. I bought it in June of 2018 with 73, 000 miles pre owned and so far has not given me issues. They had replaced all fluids on the car before I bought it and I drive modest and easy for the best mpg and I usually get great mileage. The issue with most drivers would could be them alone for not maintaining and being aware of of the fluids. Also driving the car so hard to match a speed quicker through acceleration is not how to stand for an economy car. Easy does it. I live in a desert so I try to check the fluids often than most and she is my daily driver. I love my Nissan and I praise my chance to get one even if I am paying too much cause of my dealership. :)

[gibbethoskins]

They forgot to mention how they snap belts and chains usually just out of warranty... oh snap. And how they have a low torque delivery. But I'm sure it will improve with advances in technology.

[noahhardwayguitarvids]

Formula 1 banned the CVT transmission because it can not take the immense horsepower and torque. Most F1 cars produce the same amount of power that 10-12 Sentras produce.

[justinnehls]

2011 sentra sr. Smoothest car ever. I go from 20-70mph at 1500rpm. Love how u can keep the rpm at the same spot and still accelerate. It maintains its speen when u let off the gas too. Its not a very fast car but it feels soo efficient

[michaelperryman]

My Nissan is just fine. I have a Sentra with a CVT. It feels smooth and chill. I'm not trying to win any races, I bought an economic car for economical reasons lol. Want something that gives a shifting feel? Get a manual(Sentra has a 6 speed with the S trim lol). Im getting that Nismo Sentra when available.

Guess what? Jatco also supplies CVTs to Chevrolet, Honda, Dodge, Ford, and etc....

[hussainalhubaishi]

it saves fuel and waste pockets money for repairing

[joserubio]

Just got a brand new sentra 2019 seems like I'm screwed

[depravedchristian]

I had a 2008 Dodge Caliber with CVT. It did amazingly good until about 150k miles. That's when it really started to slip. It was horrible during start and stop traffic in cities. Mainly because it really heated the tranny up. It could cruise at about 55-70 with no real issues, but if you ever had to start and stop after that, then it would really jack up.

So Nissan owners, get rid of your car with CVT before the warranty goes out. Also, get rid of it before anything tears up. Since you can't repair CVT transmissions, your only option is to replace them. That alone is over $6, 000.

I spoke to a Nissan Murano owner, and she had the exact issues I had. She also had 200k miles and I had 167k.

[michaelperryman]

This was spoken from a dealer in a forum:

I'm gonna start off saying that I work at a Nissan dealership and I'm gonna explain what I see on a daily basis and I will give you input from a dealer perspective. Fail safe happens when the transmission overheats. That's what it's designed to do. Cvt fluidlevel is a huge factor. I don't know if this has been covered but there is a special way to check the fluid. We use consult 3 and monitor a temp count. After the temp count is where it should be the fluid is set. The fluid is not set at the full mark though. If its set there it's overfull and will cause it to whine and go into fail safe. Usually when it whines it's because the fluid is aerated. The fluid is usually set in the middle of the crosshatch marks to 3/4 depending on fluid temp. This is why we see so many people with transmissions that are over full. Coolant protection is also a factor. There are tools out there to check freeze protection. Nissan recommends -34 degrees for proper cooling of the transmission. I seen some overheat at -48 degrees. I live in Colorado so it usually doesn't get that hot. The hotter the climate the easier the transmission will overheat if the coolant protection isn't set right. If your doing it yourself try to mix the coolant and water to -25 degrees. That would be more ideal. Seems to cool a lot better. And so everyone knows This is for all cvt equipped nissans. Rogues aren't the only one with these issues. Altimas and sentras have the same issues. Now if anyone has been in a front end collision And the radiator replaced make sure it's a Nissan radiator. Here is an example. Customer came in had the transmission replaced 30k miles ago. Transmission kept going into fail safe and whining. Level was good on the transmission but coolant protection was off. Set freeze protection where it should be and took on a long test drive. Same issue. Found out that it was in a front end collision 6 months earlier and a Aftermarket radiators don't cool as well as oem ones. We replaced with a Nissan radiator and problem never came back. Now I have a 2005 Nissan altima. You better believe if my radiator cracks I will probably replace it with a aftermarket radiatorbecause I don't have a cvt transmission. These transmission are so sensitive to heat its crazy. Now there are always times that it may need a transmission and if that's the case then it will be replaced. Usually when this happens a check engine light comes on or there are some codes stored In the ECM. 

Now I want to talk about aftermarket fluids. Don't use them. There are some fluids out there that are suppose to be compatible but I wouldn't trust it. Talking to some of the engineers I have talk to said these aftermarket fluids Dont have the same qualitys and will cause the transmissions to overheat and or damage it. Plus at my dealership if you have different fluid and a transmssin concern you can kiss that warranty goodbye. Now I know people think that most dealerships think of ways to get out of warranty repairs. Well that's not all true. There are def some out there though. I get paid for warranty work. If I could replace a transmission daily under warranty I would. Thats how we get paid. Now nissans calls these things back to inspect to see what has failed. . If you cover something under warranty and Nissan calls it back then it had better have some sort of failure. If nissans finds out that it not they kindly send it back to us and charge us for the repair. It's really s*** sometimes even when it's Nissan fault. I see a lot of chrome pieces have tiny rust spots on them on a lot of armadas and pathfinders and Nissan won't warranty it. Nissan has charge the dealership I work for numerous times stating that it's not a defect when it clearly is. What I'm trying to say is that not all dealerships are trying to get out of warranty work. We do however have to protect ourselves so we don't get charged back for repairs. I hope the people on these boards can find trustworthy dealerships. From hearing some the of the stories on here it's no wonder why dealerships have bad names. In the meantime if anyone has questions own anything feel free to message me anytime.

[jponzy]

So innovative that it will even disassemble itself

[petercoletti]

I've done 240, 000kms with my 2010 Murano II, 3.5 CVT, so far no problems with the CVT, the motor on the other hand chews timing chains every 40, 000 kms, Its been great and used for towing a double horse float around, If I wasn't poor I would buy a new one....

[danielbriese]

My ST murano has 240, 000kms on it and its still fine. Still runs smooth

[rich]

Ooh! Show the part where it fails spectacularly at 50k mi every single time

[sma]

My sentra 2014, doesn’t have a good pickup, feels to change to corolla

[cindyseibert]

So INNOVATIVE that it falls apart! CVT with a cooling system that cannot handle the transmission, overheats, goes into fail safe. When your car starts shaking, jumping like a frog, it is too late. Trans is gone and you need a new one. Nissan knows this CVT will go out just after the 60K mi warranty. INNOVATIVE. Read your manual, Nissan wants you in their dealerships every 5K miles, so they can juice you. I was at a dealership, overheard the Technician talking to a senior gentlemen who was using a coupon for an oil change. The Tech said "you need to tell me about the coupon beforehand". WHY? So Nissan can find other things to fix and compensate for the coupon? Secondly, he told this customer, you have a nail in your tire, you need a new set of tires. Really?
Just fix my car Nissan!

[RaceProtocol]

I own a 2010 sentra ser with cvt. I went to the drag strip and to lapping days, enjoy the most of this transmission. It's less fun then stick, but down shifts are kinda cool. Upshift are automatically compiled by the computer.