You may have a sign, or you may not. I didn't whatsoever and it just failed on me after a long highway drive. No warning signs of any kind. The CVT is not rebuilt, but replaced, and it is costly. Since you are the original owner and probably on original fluid(?) I would just make sure your fluid level is where it should be and add a bit if needed. It is very hard to say whether or not you should replace it at this point. Some will say no and others might suggest it. I believe Nissan will suggest not to replace it at the current mileage, if it hasnt been replaced in the past (but that may depend on the dealer...profits outweigh your best interest). Also, Nissan won't rebuild or give you a rebuilt unit, they will only put in a new one, and if I remember correctly, it was around $4500 for mine at the time (fortunately covered by warranty).

 

What srT4URBO said. Mine failed with no warning, no sign, the CVT ran perfectly and then simply failed on me while I was on a road trip through Arizona, some 2,000 miles away from home. Stranded for a week in Flagstaff. The cost to me was around $5,000 out of pocket paid to the dealership who did the CVT replacement because mine was 10 months passed the extended warranty. Nissan Canada would not offer any kind of good will assistance with the repair even though my MO only had 75,000 miles when the CVT failed.

So yeah, good luck, it's a bit of a time bomb, no, it is a time bomb.

 

To the OP. You have an 11 year old car with 120,000 miles. If and when the transmission fails, the repair will be around $4-5000. $4128 is the quote I just received for a 2WD model. That amount includes changing the rear main seal while the trans is out. Only you can decide if the rest of the vehicle is in good enough condition to warrant the minimum investment of $4k to keep it on the road when that time comes. You are probably better off selling today for its current value, take the 4K you don't spend on a trans and add that to it and update your vehicle. Our 2005 Murano was purchased new and has only 68,000 miles. The warranty replacement transmission only lasted 2 years and 19,000 miles, less than half the miles the first transmission lasted and Nissan is offering no further assistance. I will be taking the $4000 and putting it down on a different vehicle. Not sure how long the CVT will last with the constant whirring noise but I plan to find out.

SRT4URBO I can tell you first hand that Nissan Dealerships are NOT installing Brand New CVTs when you go there for a replacement. Under warranty, or as a customer pay the CVT you will get is a Re-manufactured unit. The warranty on the replacement transmission is only 12 months 12,000 miles if you are out of the transmission extended warranty period of 10 years/120,000 miles.