Nissan GU gearbox warranty

[evildingo_2]

Hi, I have a 99, st, GU, patrol, tray back, striped 5 Th gear 2 weeks ago. Went to my local Nissan dealer "after reading a forum on this problem" they took my details and I got back to them the next day. Sorry we cannot help. Never learnt to take no for a answer I rang Nissan Manager Customer Service
Nissan Motor Co (Australia) Pty Ltd
Locked Bag 1450
DANDENONG SOUTH VIC 3164
Phone: (03) 9797 4111
I ask if the local dealership had been in touch they use your VIN number as I.D, they said yes and they could not help me. I said I had been reading forums about the faulty 5th gear and main shaft that Nissan has supplied to the consumer, and they change the tune without any problem, saying take it to my dealer and they will fix it, (I priced a exchange gearbox from the good boys at Gympie 4x4 was $1950 (out of a 04 model with only 5000Ks)) thinking my problems were solved I had RACQ tow my Ute to Action Nissan where they removed the gear box only to find all the bearing’s where pitted from the iron particles floating around in the oil, well you need new bearing and you clutch is a on its way, so after "warranty "had finished with me I had a bill $2645 ,, not happy I rand customer service and spoke to Andrew Baker he did not under stand my reason that the bearings where damaged from the steel that had been coming from the main shaft and 5th gear flogging, said I was lucky to get any thing at all in the way of warranty saidâ€

[mickyd555]

thats farked, dont pay them. let them chase ya and really put the pressure on them. if ya in QLD ring the MTAQ, or equivelant body. i wouldnt put up with that..............

[roly]

did they ring you to say bearing are shagged, it'll be $xxxx to fit?


if not you can go them for the cost back

[evildingo_2]

Action nissan in Gympie have got my ute and i got to pay the bill or i dont get it back ,,, I rang last week to see how it was going and they said the bearings are shagged but did not inform me that i was paying for them. Nissan australia said they do parts and i do labour , but they are only paying for main shaft.

[mickyd555]

MTAQ and if they wont help, go see ray martin just dont tell him youve got a bullbar.............

[Hoonz]

they should be paying for the whole lot ...


http://www.accc.gov.au

give these guys a holler they'll sort it out for u

[evildingo_2]

hey thanks everyone for your help i have been on the accc web sight but i dont think they can help ,

[bogged]

www.notgoodenough.com.au

[RN]

[quote="evildingo_2"]Hi, I have a 99, st, GU, patrol, tray back, striped 5 Th gear 2 weeks ago. Went to my local Nissan dealer "after reading a forum on this problem" they took my details and I got back to them the next day. Sorry we cannot help. Never learnt to take no for a answer I rang Nissan Manager Customer Service
Nissan Motor Co (Australia) Pty Ltd
Locked Bag 1450
DANDENONG SOUTH VIC 3164
Phone: (03) 9797 4111
I ask if the local dealership had been in touch they use your VIN number as I.D, they said yes and they could not help me. I said I had been reading forums about the faulty 5th gear and main shaft that Nissan has supplied to the consumer, and they change the tune without any problem, saying take it to my dealer and they will fix it, (I priced a exchange gearbox from the good boys at Gympie 4x4 was $1950 (out of a 04 model with only 5000Ks)) thinking my problems were solved I had RACQ tow my Ute to Action Nissan where they removed the gear box only to find all the bearing’s where pitted from the iron particles floating around in the oil, well you need new bearing and you clutch is a on its way, so after "warranty "had finished with me I had a bill $2645 ,, not happy I rand customer service and spoke to Andrew Baker he did not under stand my reason that the bearings where damaged from the steel that had been coming from the main shaft and 5th gear flogging, said I was lucky to get any thing at all in the way of warranty saidâ€

[InSanE]

i am a mechanic at Nissan and just a few months ago i rebuilt a gearbox on a 2000 GUZD30 patrol under warranty did not cost the customer one cent accept the clutch witch he opted to change while the labour was free nissan have announced it is a common problem and are taking liability for most of the 5th gear fuck ups so i would push your case further

[roverrat]

Has Nissan recitified the 5 gear problem and if so from what build date??

[evildingo_2]

well I rang Ms Val Davis .." dont mater how many kms" ,"how hard you have driven ", but if its over 5 years old they are not going to look at it .. I explained that if is a known prolbem,, its a problem for Nissan reguardless of age , bought this ute because I knew the history of this vechile and if i was to buy a 2001 model with the guts flogged out of it you would fix it ? see said" lucky that Nissan are paying for the main shaft and the 5th gear " i told her about the ACCC,, MTA-Q ,Office of fair trading and the Small claims tribunal which I spoke to all them to-day , Val says well your local dealer is pretty cheap compaired to other's in the country , $576 labour $ 1019 bearing kit $450 clutch $57 machine fly wheel $25 for oil ,, dont know weather they use any gaskets to reasemble the gearbox but im sure ill find out , im going in to pay my $2293 get my ute back as i carnt see things getting any better... Val also picked up that there is still warranty recall on a drag link and the brake pedal bracket for this vechile and it was done, I did remind her that the vechile was over 5 years old , she didnt even laugh but said it is a saftey issue, thanks for all your support everyone ,(ps mid 2002 was the last faulty gearbox installed im pretty sure)

[Hoonz]

Val says well your local dealer is pretty cheap compaired to other's in the country , $576 labour $ 1019 bearing kit $450 clutch $57 machine fly wheel $25 for oil ,,

shes trying to put u off keep it going!

[Adsman]

I just replaced a gearbox from a GU into a GQ. The gearbox came out of a 2002/2003 model and it had the fifth gear and main shaft replaced under warranty. Nissan said that by 03 all the faulty gearboxes had been replaced but during 2002 the gearboxes were a mixture of good and bad. Apparently the first tell tale sign is a rusty colour in your gearbox oil. They also recommended the GU gearbox oil be replaced every 40 000km. Hope this helps roverrat.

I agree with Hoonz they're trying to deter you from claiming. Chase them up and make them pay! Another idea is to speak to the ombusinessman they maybe able to chase it for you or give you a contact who can. If that fails call "a current affairs" and let them threaten Nissan with a media flogging.

[evildingo_2]

Well the presure finaly got the better of me, and I could not have a civil phone call from any one to do with Nissan, they are pushing customers away the GU patrol is a good truck in 4.2 td model , but from the rest of the post's I have read which is pages upon pages the 3.0 lt has cost them dearly. I will be wrighting a letter to the manger of Nissan Motor Company Australia whit lots, of article's from other forum site's like below.


On Monday, April 18, 2005
trendy asked for information on Patrol GU 5th Gear Problems
The question

Hi all, a quick question for all the gu patrol 4.2 turbo owners. The 5th gear problems reported by so many people, has occured to an uncle of mine who is now stuck in Norseman WA. waiting for replacement parts. My question is does the later model GU's still have the weaker 5th gear or have nissan strengthed it up, and or, is their a stronger alternative to nissan. He also stuffed the spline and being told only genuine nissan parts are compatible, can any one confirm or deny this please.If there are alternatives where can we find them. Thanxs in advance, Trevor.

Reply 1 of 4 posted 18 Apr 2005

GUPatrol replied to the question


Trevor, The faulty splines are from production models 2000 to 2001 (although some late model 1999 and some 2002 are included). The only way to tell is by the VIN. The problem was a stuffup by the gear/spline manufacturer. Models before then are OK, models after that are OK (I got it in writting from Nissan). Nissan fixes them under warranty even if the car is out of warranty. Problem involves all models which use that gearbox 3.0L 4.2TD and Petrol 4.5 As far as the compatible parts go, if NIssan does it NIssan pays and they supply the parts, I would make sure they do it so they PAY!! I hope this (first hand info) helps William FollowUp 1 of 2 posted 18 Apr 2005
Member - Roachie (SA) posted this followup

G'day Trevor, William is spot on....I've had to have mine changed too. The fact that the shaft has to be replaced is no surprise, as this was the part that was faulty in the first place. What happened was that the machining process failed to make the spline on the shaft long enough to go all the way through the inside of the 5th cog. I saw the cog and shaft that came out of my gearbox and there was sooooo much slop between the 2 items, I found it barely believable that they once belonged to one another.The outside teeth of the 5th gear is not the problem, only the inner spline area. There is no aftermarket fix. I haven't had any dramas with mine since it was changed. Good luck to your uncle mate. Cheers Roachie

FollowUp 2 of 2 posted 18 Apr 2005
trendy posted this followup

Thanxs william as this effects my 2000 model 4.2 turbo as well, although i have been aware of the problem and have never towed in 5th gear unlike my poor old uncle. I will get him and myself to contact nissan with his and my vin no. first thing 2morrow. Mine has 208 k's on it now but his has only 106 k's. I might be pushing my luck as mine is still in tact.



Reply 2 of 4 posted 18 Apr 2005

trendy replied to the question


Roachie thanx for the info this time frame for 5th gear probs also effects my 2000 model but I have done 208 k's now so i may be pushing my luck. On another note I will let you and all the other forumites know how the turbo mods I'm having done this friday effects my overheating. Big job and big bucks, but money well spent if it fixes it. FollowUp 1 of 2 posted 18 Apr 2005
Member - Roachie (SA) posted this followup

Thanks Trevor, Can you tell me if your overheating problems only occur when under a fair sort of load, or all the time? Mine only occurs occasionally and with the cooler weather coming soon, I may not be able to tell if I've been unsuccessful until next summer. Sorry for hijacking the thread. Roachie

FollowUp 2 of 2 posted 18 Apr 2005
trendy posted this followup

Roachie my adress is TRJC@bigpond.com.au contact me for full breakdown if you wish. But the long and the short of it is my vehicle is rareley under 2.8 tonne then ther's the trailer, minimum 1.5 for small one and 2.5-3 for the big one. My beast overheats in just about all situations when i'm pushing it ( nearly always ), can do it nearly when I want it to. If I keep the throttle to less than 3/4 flat and keep revs to less than 3000 the problem is much better, but this means travelling at 70km/hr out west for long periods at a time. So I must get it fixed b4 I fall asleep behind the wheel. Cheers Trevor. P.S will keep you posted.



Reply 3 of 4 posted 19 Apr 2005

Kumunara (SA) replied to the question


I have a 2000 4.2TD Patrol and have done in my fifth gear. Rang Nissan and they are fixing it. I am not happy about being without a vehicle but I am happy that Nissan is willing to admit that there is a manufacturing fault and are fixing it. Not all manufacturers show that integrity. The Ford Pinto is an example. This is my third patrol and while Nissan continue to provide this type of service I will continue to be a Nissan owner. FollowUp 1 of 1 posted 19 Apr 2005
trendy posted this followup

Kumanara, I totally agree regarding the after sales service nissan is showing in relation to the gearbox, it's just a shame they don't extend the same courtesy to those of us experiencing overheating problems as well. Overall am quite happy with most aspects of the vehicle, 208000 heavy towing k's and still going so can't complain too much. Regards Trevor.



Reply 4 of 4 posted 19 Apr 2005

trendy replied to the question


Thanks to all who responded my uncle is getting his fixed in a hurry at Norseman WA and Nissan has agreed to look at his claim when he puts it in writing at the end of his "big trip". Sounds promising for him, no luck for me until I break mine. But with no towing in 5th gear so far nissan say should not be a problem for me. Time will tell. FollowUp 1 of 1 posted 20 Apr 2005
Glenn D posted this followup

How's it going, I was in a similar situation last year, 5th gear letting go north of perth. We werent towing anything but had the vehicle packed to the hilt. Had the 5th gear/mainshaft replaced at Perth, the dealer we went to insisted that Nissan only supplied parts and I had to fork out about a grand to get it fixed It was only when the exchange gearbox started playing up and we went to another dealer did we find out everything was covered. To my surprise when I wrote a letter to Nissan on return to Sydney all labour costs were refunded . Have to admit I was sceptical about getting money back that I had already forked out. My Patrol is a 2001 3.0td an had 100000 on the clock at the time. Hope your uncle gets his money back as well. Glenn





Member - John replied to the question


Gary, You should have no problem having the gearbox repaired under extended warranty as Nissan has been rebuilding literally hundreds of early GU gearboxes. My local Nissan guy has done about 160 now and he replaces ALL the bearings as well as the new 5th gear and shaft (a better part that won't break again). You can drive in 4th no probs without doing any more damage as all that happens is the 5th gear spline wears off inside the 5th gear cog, the rest of the gearbox works fine except for the accelerated wear of all the bearings due to loose metals particles. A precursor indication is severaly discoloured gear oil, turns a orange reddish colour. Many Nissan service people in the big smoke don't see it to much, but the guys out in the bush should be very familar with the problem. With the VIN number they should be able to get waarant approval from Nissan, even if the vehicle is ex-warranty. JohnS


Marco, Contact Nissan even if it is out of warranty. The problem batch is from 2000 to late 2001. There was a manufacturing fault in the 5th gear spline which causes it to strip. The fix is a new 5th gear and a new main shaft

Bill, I have GU TD 42, built date September 1999. During my return from an extended trip in far north SA I detected a very faint whine at around 110K in 5th gear. After removing the 7.50 x 16's and putting back the 10.5 x 16's the extra road noise was enough to hide the whine. Took the car to my local Nissan dealer and was told that the build date did not fall within the build dates the fault was occuring in. A test drive did not show up any noise however, to the dealership's credit they drained the g/b to reveal the tell tale orange discolouration of the oil which they told me is a characteristic "side effect" of this fault. Car was out of warranty but repaired at no cost. I understand that the whine can get progressively worse in a very short time, particularly during heavy towing in 5th gear. However, if detected early, avoiding the use of that gear will avoid further damage.

Do you know what the 'orange' discoloration was caused by? Wouldnt be heat, or filings, could be a seal or something maybe? Very handy bit of information though for other GU owners that change their own oil!


There is definitely a problem with the GU 5th gear but it is unclear if there is a build date range of affected vehicles or the problem is still there. One of our work GU 4.2TD's has just been done after dropping 5th gear on an all day high speed run from Derby to Pt Hedland. It had done 38,000km with a lot of high speed, high temp highway running. I know the driver and his driving style pretty well and would say he is not guilty of pushing it a low speeds in 5th (plenty of drivers are of course). One of the Nissan service agents up here has allegedly now repaired over 100 gearboxes, many I know were Telstra and NDC vehicles which I know get a pretty hard life, are heavily loaded and have plenty of unsympathetic drivers. My GU has done 35,000km in the same conditions as my colleagues and my local service guy is adamant that 5th will pop in due course. Build date is around June 2002. I understand they fail in various ways, but usually 5th just suddenly ceases to drive but all other cogs remain working. Others have told me that down changes from 5th to 4th become difficult when the problem is looming. I would expect few would fail in the hands of careful owner drivers. BTW, all the Tojo's up here driven in similar conditions don't have this sort of problems but have plenty of problems with worn seals and bearings in the whole drive train it's just that it happens more slowly with no sudden failures. I would still back the Nissan drive trains for long term trouble free life (with regular maintenance) JohnS Derby, WA



My uncle had a 98 or 99 model Patrol wagon (not sure what engine, think it was a diesel) But I do know he went through 3 (yes three) manual gearboxes. 5th gear was the issue I think. He drives like an old lady so it wasn't his drivibg style and he NEVER took it off the black stuff. All were replaced under warranty, 1st one they had to rip out of a vehicle on the floor (no spares were in Oz), they never even got to fit the new one to the shop car, by the time it got here from Japan my uncle's gearbox blew again.

there are specfic problems endemic to the Nissan Patrol and Nissan are aware of the issues but have chossen not to do a product recall apparently the manufacture was aware of a poorly cast /manufactured 5th gear spline for vehicles made between 1999-2001.


Some of the 5th gear sets were machined wrong to small/big on the Patrol gearboxes.Nissan knows about this but dont know which boxes the faulty gears were fitted to ,,so no recall.Nissan just wait for your gearbox to go bang before fixing.


There is a common problem not only with nissan but other makes as well when overloading 5th gear. Nissan is aware, and so far I believe have fixed under warranty, a heap of vehicles with stripped 5th gears and splines even if they are outside the 3 yrs 100 thou warranty. Just talk to your local dealer or ring Melbourne direct to get straight answers, my uncle has just been through this last week. I do stacks of real heavy towing and have got more than 200 k on mine now but I don't use 5th gear at all. My 100 series cruiser, before my td42 patrol, went through 3 sets of gears before toyota and me decided not to use 5th gear at all. Their stance was if you are going fast enough use 5th gear, but this was obviously incorrect as I only ever put it in 5th at more than 100 kph but still stuffed 3 boxes in 18 months. Hence my Patrol now, hope this helps. Regards Trevor.


2000 and 2001 patrols gear boxes were manufactured with a spline that was too short and the fifth gear fails. The problem is for 3.0 4.2 and 4.8 patrols. If it goes you contact Nissan Customer Service in Melbourne. They can tell from the VIN if the Nissan was manufactured with the faulty spline. If it was they send a fax to a Nissan Service Centre. You take the vehicle to the service centre and they fix the problem without charge. The problem has nothing to do with towing, etc. It is a manufacturing fault and Nissan cover it even if the vehicle is out of warranty. I am in the Kimberleys on Long Service Leave at the moment. Mine went travelling from Fitzroy Crossing to Derby. I took my vehicle in to the Nissan Dealer at Broome on Monday and had it back repaired on Friday.


A quick way to check is to have a look at your gearbox oil. If there is a problem the oil will be dirty and rusty in appearance. Mine was rebuilt in Perth and then they checked it out again in Canberra and found the oil dirty and rusty looking. Accused me of not yaking care of the veh till I explained that it had been rebuilt in Perth. Anyhow they found out that the Old spec parts had been put in over in Perth so had to rebuild it again. Nissan Aus reckons it is OK to tow in 5th but RAC says no.



On Sunday, November 14, 2004
jon jenkins asked for information on Nissan paid for 5th gear and labour in GU
The question

Hi People Some good news, Nissan paid for the busted 5th gear and other parts which saved me bout $2000. Thanks to all the people who replied, appreciated. jon PS if you have to have this done, its a good time to put in a clutch :-) Dr Jon Jenkins Parliament House Sydney NSW www.trac.org.au

Reply 1 of 5 posted 14 Nov 2004

Leroy replied to the question


I think it shows good customer service (even though at times people have had to nudge them a little) and a faith in it's products despite the fact that this prob can be traced back to 1999 models. Always good to hear good news Jon. Leroy

Reply 2 of 5 posted 14 Nov 2004

Dave ....Adelaide replied to the question


Hello Jon what year is your Patrol ??....I also have gearbox probs , mines a 2000 4.2 turbo diesel........Cheers DAVE FollowUp 1 of 1 posted 15 Nov 2004
Leroy posted this followup

Just take it back to the nissan dealer if you have list 5th. It's a well known prob and they are fixing it outof warranty. Leroy



Reply 3 of 5 posted 15 Nov 2004

jon jenkins replied to the question


Hi Dave My Patrol is a Feb 2000 model 4.2 TD with 170,000 on the clock. Started with a shudder at low speed in 5th which was not rpesent in 4th at the same road speed. Just got progressively worse. Initially though unis or diff but replacement didn't fix problem. Now the box is better than new :-) Nissan were very good and simply did it without question. I must admit I have not always had this sort of response from Nissan but this certainly makes up for a lot of niggles in the past. jon Dr Jon Jenkins Parliament House Sydney NSW www.trac.org.au

Reply 4 of 5 posted 15 Nov 2004

joc45 replied to the question


Hmmm.. Nissan recently rebuilt my 5th gear on my Dec-1999 build TD4.2-T, but charged me $100 excess on the extended warranty. It does state that in the warranty book, but it seems that I'd have come out of it cheaper if I didn't have the extended warranty, since it looks like they're rebuilding them way beyond the normal warranty. Anyway, it's fine now. Gerry

Reply 5 of 5 posted 15 Nov 2004

Member Eric replied to the question


just had a mates done , all covered

On Monday, July 28, 2003
petprass asked for information on Patrol 5th Gear
The question

Well it just happened to me as well. Driving in 5th along the Bass Highway on Saturday morning, doing exactly 100 with cruise control (according to GPS not speedo which is out about 8% because of larger tyres) and whizzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz, bang, crash!! I instinctively deactivated the cruise control as the engine was now reving at about 20k! rpm and knocked the gear lever back to 4th. Awfull rattling and grinding sounds started to come out from under the bonnet - like a bearing that has collapsed. 5th gear does not work at all. I called the dealer this morning and told them that 5th gear had gone and that I was bringing in the Patrol. The guy on the desk said something like - "Oh yeah short machined spline on 5th gear syndrome." Anyway when I got to the dealer and saw the service card made up for me, it said "Noisy 5th gear"!!!! So I said - no 5th gone, dead, no more, deceased, gone to a ...... you know how that sketch goes. So then I thought - these guys are not going to do this under warranty are they. Someone got to the guy on the desk between the time I spoke to him on the phone and when I got there. So when I asked the first response was - is it still under warranty!. I said yes - it was purchased in August 2000 and it has done 86,000k's. Response was - we will have a look at it to see if it is not just WEAR and TEAR! Here I go again with these guys - reading some of the prior posts on this problem, there were quite a few people who said that their dealer replaced the gearbox with no questions asked under warranty - even in one case when the vehicle was just out of warranty. I hope I don't have a battle comming. Peter btw - I do not tow a heavy trailer. I do have a medium caravan that we tow twice a year, but hardly ever in 5th (unless it is a flat road with not much wind). Also I never go into 5th below 80 kph.

Reply 1 of 5

Michael replied to the question


Hi there, no battle i think, your car probably fall in the time slot for this problem, but i'd say they would try it on. I think Nissan will continue fixing this problem years out of warranty, they really cant afford any more bad press for mechanical complaints that are of an obvious manufacturing nature.. At least you are just inside your warranty , thats a good backstop. Michael FollowUp 1 of 1 posted 28 Jul 2003
petprass posted this followup

I called my leasing company and they said that they will be wanting it done under warranty unless the dealer can demonstrate that there has been abuse or mistreatment of the vehicle. Luckily I have been meticulous in having the vehicle serviced right on the due times, so it shows that I look after the vehicle. But that I think is what is really annoying me - the sevice people at the dealer know me. I get along well with the service manager, they can see that the vehicle is well looked after and yet they are still playing the "game" with me. I will be looking for another dealer after this is fixed.



Reply 2 of 5

peck replied to the question


What this country needs is a Ralph Nader. With better lobbying maybe we can force the Government to do something about the rubbish these car manufacturers are forcing on an unsuspecting public. Nissan have obviously known about this problem for some time but refuse to recall the affected vehicles hoping most vehicles will survive beyond warranty period. What I would like to know was when (precise date) Nissan became aware of the problem and how many vehicles they knowingly sold with defective gearboxes. My 5th also went at almost identical time and ks but I had no trouble in getting dealer to replace at Dubbo/Cobar whilst I was on holidays. What p*ssed me off tho was the week I had to wait to get it fixed! My holidays are precious and I consider Nissan owe me a week!

Reply 3 of 5

Andrew(WA) replied to the question


petprass I doubt you will have any dramas but if you do, make sure you put a call into Nissan Australia themselves, explain the situation and your knowledge of this well known and documented problem. Get their response in writing. If they give you the run around, remind them that the 'media' would probably be happy to it on your behalf. YOU'LL get it fixed. Don't worry about that. cheers FollowUp 1 of 1 posted 28 Jul 2003
Andrew(WA) posted this followup

And another thing.... If Nissan don't think there is anything wrong with the gearbox....why did they change 5th gear (only) from November 2001 onward.??



Reply 4 of 5

petprass replied to the question


Well thanks to this Forum, this afternoon I printed a few posts that set out the problem quite well - especially the one from "desert" in Feb this year. I ran through a few facts that were listed and I was immediately told that it would be done under warranty. Feeling confident I then asked why they didn't have spare gear box parts for this problem as it is so common - other dealers do! No reply came - I just have to wait two days for parts to come from Sydney and then to be installed. Peter

Reply 5 of 5

Member - John replied to the question


You should not have any problem with Nissan honouring the warranty as they have covered many hundreds of these failures. we have recently done one in Alice Springs and one in Broome in our GU coil cab work trucks. Both had all the bearings and offending 5th gear shaft done promptly under warranty. A full overhaul is necessary because of all the loose metals shards distributed around the innards of the gearbox ... don't accept mere replacement of the 5th gear bits. Some city based dealers may have minimal experience with the problem but the guys out bush sure know about it. JohnS


On Thursday,
peck asked for information on 5th Gear in Nissan Patrol
The question

Can anyone tell me when Nissan became aware of the problem with 5th gear in the GU Patrols?

Reply 1 of 6

mick replied to the question


Gidday peck, What problem, petrol/diesel, what year Mick FollowUp 1 of 2 posted 26 Jun 2003
peck posted this followup

2000 4.2 turbo diesel cab chassis. Done 70000km and 5th gear disintergrates - sounds like a bucket of bolts. Am wondering if Nissan were aware of problem when I bought vehicle new - may be breach of contract in knowingly selling me defective product.

FollowUp 2 of 2
johnsy posted this followup

Dont panic go to the dealer see what he say's and if he wants to muck around ring Niss Au and get them on to it .There's a kit for it and you should get it done under warranty even if your out of it.



Reply 2 of 63

Michael replied to the question


Hi Peck. check in the achives, someone details the fault start date and production duration,. regards Michael FollowUp 1 of 1 posted 29 Jun 2003
bill posted this followup

hi peck.. also have a 2000 4.2td , build date sept 1999 no problems at this stage with gear box.. did you have any warning of pending trouble. do you pull heavy loads while in 5th ?. have tried to find out whether fault is inherant or due to faulty manufactoring but seems to be a number of stories around. let me know how you go with nissan.. you can contact me direct on peyers@tpg.com.au what is the build date of your truck.. regards



Reply 3 of 6

crowie replied to the question


Peck The problem is particulalry common with people who use 5th when towing heavy trailers etc.

Reply 4 of 6

mark replied to the question


hi peck in sept 2001 my gu 3 ltr wagon with 25000ks done 5th gear at litchfield nat park nissan darwin repaired vehicle , they tried to blame me for towing my off road camper to long in 5th gear 1 week off road whilst their the mechanic told me mine was the 7th patrol they had done with same problem , service manager told me that the case hardening had worn off the main shaft caused by 5th gear floating back and forth on the shaft , my next service was at MT isa out of curiosity i asked the mechanic about 5th gear they had done about 15 patrols with same problem FollowUp 1 of 1 posted 18 Jul 2003
Bob Y. posted this followup

Mark, While it seems to be common(?) in some Patrols, some tojos are almost as bad. Had a 79 series in Isa for repairs to g'box(syncro on one gear only speedo had stopped working and noise loader than a cat loader), and when I rang to inquire if it was ready, mechanic said, "which one? we've got 3 in here with same problems." Hooroo...



Reply 5 of 6

Patsy replied to the question


You have now got me worried about our 2002 4.2TD ST Cab Chassis. Whilst we do not tow(we have a 350 kg compact slide-on) I am still concerned that this may happen to ours. $50k plus is a lot to pay for a vehicle only to then have something like that happen - with Nissan blaming the operator as well. FollowUp 1 of 1 posted 16 Jul 2003
peck posted this followup

Patsy, I don't think you need worry with a 2002 model regarding 5th gear. Nissan have fixed problem but beware of many others. I have just finished writing to Nissan regarding totally unsatisfactory motor vehicle. Have had major cracking in chassis around coil spring supports at rear - Nissan reply ... "sorry you have overloaded the vehicle!" Be careful about any aftermarket suspension aids as this gives them an out. If you want copy of my letter complete with photos let me know.



Reply 6 of 6

Bob Y. - Qld replied to the question


Only use 5th gear above 80 kmh.

Bob Y have seached my instruction manual and nowhere could I find any instructions regarding limitations of 5th gear!



Peck, Only my advice to anyone who uses a 5 speed Patrol/Tojo/Pajero/whatever. Do you think Nissan would put any limitations in print, this would be admitting a weakness. And as you've found out, there is a weakness. 5th is an overdrive gear, so shouldn't be used at lower speeds. Found this out in a Datsun sedan many years ago, to my expense. Its your vehicle, you can drive it as you wish. Hooroo...





The question

Just as general info I thought I would share what I have been told about the above 5th gear problem in the GU's Today, as a result of feed back from the forum I rang around (Perth) dealerships and the Nissan info line and posed the question "What have nissan done about the 5th gear issue in the GU's"??? Some played dumb and some thought about it for a while before playing dumb. After some discussion the 'common' theme was "Nissan don't recognise it as a problem but if you think there is something wrong, bring it in and it will be fixed for nothing" Funny to be so sure about an 'unrecognised problem' One dealership said that they have had no correspondance from Nissan about the matter at all, but agreed they had fixed a few early ones. Another said that they are aware as is Nissan and they are fixing them whether in or out of warranty for nothing!!!!! YAHOO The nissan customer service line was a waste of time..not commital admit nothing. I aslo quized them over the oil capacity issue..ie. the early models took around the 6litre mark but now they put in 8ltrs. I was advised there was no changes to the sump, but I believe they shortened the dip stick to reflect the extra two litres or so they now run as standard. Newer models already stipulate the updated amounts in the manuals. With this info I still believe the 3.0L is a good/great car. Bad stories are few and far between and you have to take into account how many there are on the road. It's one of the best sellers at the moment and there are reasons for that I guess. Hope this info helps someone. Great site, very helpful. Hope this means something

Reply 1 of 5 posted 18 Feb 2003

rickwagupatrol replied to the question


hiya andrew. funny thing this si. i asked magic nissan the same question a few weeks ago. ie " have nissan fixed the 5th gear problem"? the reply was that in the gu111, the shaft was updated at the factory, so there should be no problems with them. hummm, makes one ponder where the truth lies, doesn't it? rick FollowUp 1 of 1 posted 18 Feb 2003
Andrew posted this followup

Rick, You'll love this then Giant Nissan was one of mobs I spoke to. The answer from the Guy I spoke to was, " Yes, I think it has been addressed by Nissan but they do it direct with Japan. Japan I think has rectified the problem." OK, so asked from which model or build date was it effected..He replied " I don't know and you wouldn't be able to find that out" What crap...as if they (nissan) wouldn't know. anyway I like your answer, i've got a GUIII



Reply 2 of 5 posted 18 Feb 2003

Nordave replied to the question


I have a friend who runs an engineering business. He made up a special jig to change out GU gearboxes for the local Nissan dealer. The dealership keeps a spare and rotates the gearboxes through to fix the 5 th gear.

Reply 3 of 5 posted 19 Feb 2003

desert replied to the question


As one who has suffered the 5th gear failure, I shall share what I gleaned after repairs to my box. If anybody wishes to authenticate the following, then contact the dealers in either Port Augusta or Kalgoolie, as the failure is distance and load specific, as you will see... The internal splines machined in the 5th gear and the corressponding external splines on the mainshaft have too much clearance between them and this does not allow a full spline contact. It is a machining problem that has crept into production, probably at a component supplier that makes the gears for Nissan. 4.2 litre and 3.0 litre boxes are effected as they are the same box(apart from the odd leaf-sprung trayback). The faulty parts are from year 2000 to October2001. Mine is May 2000 build and it failed. Now, it appears that not all Nissan dealers have heard or had the problem in.It was not a general recall as it was not deemed to be safety related. The dealers that have done the most boxes are the above. This is because most failures occur in vehicle that are towing large vans and long periods in 5th, hence either end of the Nullabor plain. My local dealer at Seymour had not heard of the problem after I had returned. Kalgoolie and port Augusta have each done in excess of 30 to 40 claims and now stock a change over box to speed up the process for the client. Mine is a tray-back and the failure occurred at 80km/h as I began to lightly, read lightly, accelerate out of Pimba on the Nullabor. A huge, loud,metal grinding noise will frighten the be-jeezus out of you and you loose drive in 5th. No other gear is effected, apart from a rather sick noise in reverse too. The dealers will advice you that driving in 4th gear will not do any more harm. I then drove across to Kalgoolie (1100km) in 4th to have the box repaired under warranty. It had done 60,000km at the time.It is a $1200 job, charged back to Nissan. They replace the mainshaft, 5th gear with modified components that have a greater surface area (longer) spline contact. It's a 2 day job. THere is no warning of the impending failure. I was not towing, but did have about a ton on the back. Common incidents usually involve caravans and/or heavy laden vehicles crossing over cattle grids and washouts. There are none of these in Melbouren, that is why some dealers are ignorant of the problem. I have photo's of the parts that were removed from my car. That's the story. Nothing to do with loose nuts, weak synchro's, poor driving habits. Faulty parts is the story. The modified parts have been on the assembly line since, I think,January 2002 so now more problems since.Nissan WILL NOT DO THE FIX UNLESS IT HAS ALREADY FAILED. I have a contact high in the company, AND HE COULD NOT GET HIS DONE prior either. FollowUp 1 of 3 posted 19 Feb 2003
Peteg posted this followup

Desert, Well put, we must have posted at the same time. Agree that manufacturing tolerances (ie limits and fits) are the issue as this is the only way that the spline can start to flog. This may also have something to do with heat and the length of drives done (ie bigger cog expands more than shaft) which also fits your Nullabour situation versus Melbourne. Mine went without major towing on 4th to 5th at end of a passing lane - must admit at pretty well full boot. I believe that a sign is a ticking/rattle (nothing alarming - was going to mention it at the next service) which can be heard when passing close to concrete barriers window down. In mine this happened for about 2-3000k's before the big bang. I must say that I did not buy and pay for a 5 speed box to have to leave 5th alone. The trucking industry would go broke if they did not use their O/Drive cogs. Hence I think the advice about not towing in 5th gear is a recognition of a perceived weakness in the box design. This of course assumes one does not lug in 5th Pete G

FollowUp 2 of 3 posted 19 Feb 2003
Stevo posted this followup

Desert, I own a TD42 with a build date of August 1999. Upon returning from a long trip in the far north of SA last year (not towing) I noticed an almost inaudible whine in 5th gear at around 100km/hr. Upon changing the 12 ply "pizza cutters" I use for such trips, back to the 10R 16's the increase in tyre noice was enough to completely mask the whine. With all due respect to my local Nissan Dealer (small family owned) although the noise couldn't be heard it was investigated and the characteristic orange discolouration of oil associated with this very fault was detected and new parts were installed under warranty!!

FollowUp 3 of 3 posted 19 Feb 2003
Andrew posted this followup

Dersert, Excellent piece of background, many readers will appreciate seeing that. I hope your right about when they started to address the problem, I have a GUIII Built in May 2002. Thanks again.



Reply 4 of 5 posted 19 Feb 2003

PeteG replied to the question


Andrew, I suppose you could put this down to the mighty $$$ and "marketing". It is an absolute load of rubbish that they are "unaware" of the problem. My Jul 2000 GU 3.0l did 5th at 72k's some 12 months ago. I asked the dealer for a look at the stripped down box and was shown the replacement parts. Basically a new mainshaft and cog were provided with an increase of about 1/3 on the spline length. These parts were supplied by Nissan The reports you obtained show just how out of touch or untruthful the dealerships can be. Caveat Emptor - let the buyer beware - a very good reason to support this great website. As an aside whilst my vehicle was in dock the dealers workshop was full of (about 10) Pulsars having serious surgery (ie engines out). I asked if there was a problem and was told well no not really. A mate has one and is having serious oil consumption issues whilst his dealer stuffs about. Still - all said and done can any one show me a dealer or manufacturer who stands out from today's shabby pack. Unfortunately in today's environment the customer is increasingly becomong the front line of the Quality Assurance program. I don't hold any hope for change unless we can motivate our sluggish Consumer Affairs Dept's to put the interests of the consumer ahead of Big Business. Whilst I have been treated OK by the dealer and Nissan this is not really all that re-assuring overall, as often what results are obtained depend on one's individual efforts as one weaves through the dumb silence, can't hear it, we'll look into it further, see if it still does it and then just plain dumb marketing "we are the mister nice guys - would you like to buy a nice new car from us" , when all you want is to know the truth and have your problem fixed. In my experiences over the years Nissan are ahead of Ford and Mitsi, however, perhaps thats just me. As with all things new, I guess progress happens in a series of forward and backward steps and when they get it sorted they will have a good vehicle. All said and done really what choices do we have - progress is progress or we'd all be driving around in well recycled T Fords. For those interested DOTARS (access through Fed Gov website) may be an avenue - especially if safety is involved. They list all manufacturer recalls. Regards Pete G FollowUp 1 of 3 posted 19 Feb 2003
Andrew posted this followup

Well said Pete G

FollowUp 2 of 3 posted 21 Feb 2003
Rickwagupatrol posted this followup

Andrew and Pete G. Shouldn't this problem with the 5th gear be treated as a safety issue? I mean, i for one wouldn't like for it to go when my missus is driving with all the kids in the car, up the freeway at 100kmh, then bang, there goes 5th gear. she would freak out. I shudder at the consequences!!! rick

FollowUp 3 of 3 posted 22 Feb 2003
Andrew posted this followup

Rick I agree, and if it was a $30 job, I'm sure it would be a recall issue....trouble is, it's a $3000 job and who's gunna put their hand up for that??? Not Nissan I would suspect. It's one of those things I suppose where, if Nissan recalled all of them, it would cost a shit load..and really some may not need replacing. So, if they run with a policy of "fix'm when they break'm" I guess they think the customer is happy and they have saved a heap of money. What we need is customer awareness....media. That sort of advertising and investigation sure makes people take note and the suppliers run for cover. If this info was 'out there, common knowledge' imagine how it would effect sales. If nothing else, i'm sure we would end up with an answer as to just when, and from what build date the matter was rectified. Andy



Reply 5 of 5 posted 19 Feb 2003

desert replied to the question


Some further on the 5th gear blow-ups. On reflection, I did complain to the dealer, at time of service, early in the vehicles life, approx 35,000km, of a slight whine in 5th at about 93 to 95km/h. The said they road tested the car, but could not fault it. And, to be fair, it would be a very hard fault to diagnose. Then, as time wore on, I noticed that shifting down from 5th to 4th, like when slowing coming into a town for example, you had to consciously give the gear lever a small tug to get it out of 5th. Those symptoms have since disappered since the rebuild so I can only conclude that they were small warning signs of the impending failure.

[evildingo_2]

I forgot to inform that if you have the model like mine with a gearbox issue , the first sign is changing from 5th to 4th , it gets harder and harded the wear is more predominate. then finaly zinggggg there she blows

[roverrat]

Would a build year 01/2002 Series be suseptable?? 4.2TD

[MadDan]

Would a build year 01/2002 Series be suseptable?? 4.2TD

can't say about the 4.2's but i've got a late 01 3L and it just got replaced after it's 80 thou service... they picked the wear up in the oil and nissan replaced it

[Adsman]

roverrat the TD42 models are affected as the 2002/2003 gu ute coil cab turbo 4.2D I got my gearbox from had been repaired at less than 40 000km. The ute was owned by local council, water service department.

[gu4800]

Are the 4.8 petrols affected (2002)?

Or, is the box different between 3.0, 4.2 and 4.8?