[Blak_on_Blak]

friday may 16, 2008 - transfer case failure

no signs....truck drove fine to work
went to run an errand, took a turn and bang....horrific noises
gotta wait 3 days for parts =(

 

[zebelkhan]

friday may 16, 2008 - transfer case failure

no signs....truck drove fine to work
went to run an errand, took a turn and bang....horrific noises
gotta wait 3 days for parts =(

Sorry to hear that. How many miles on your MO?

 

[Blak_on_Blak]

little over 47k
ive owned it from 21k in 2005...truck has been babied all its life (with me)

 

[Psychosis]

Lost mine when I first got it in '05 (<5000 miles on it); if you want to break it intentionally, try accelerating hard in reverse on a cold day (*crack*).

 

[1st gen]

This is my first post and unfortunately it took me registering because my transfer case kicked it. No sign at all. The dealership gave me some bs about it being driven in AWD on the pavement and thats what causes it to break. What really sucks is I'm out of warranty.

I can't believe how many they have had to fix and they still haven't posted a TSB or recalled any parts.

 

[Eric L.]

This is my first post and unfortunately it took me registering because my transfer case kicked it. No sign at all. The dealership gave me some bs about it being driven in AWD on the pavement and thats what causes it to break. What really sucks is I'm out of warranty.

I can't believe how many they have had to fix and they still haven't posted a TSB or recalled any parts.

Best thing to do at this point is to file a report at NHTSA regarding this transfer case problem. If they have enough complaints, they will begin an investigation. This is what led to the alternator recall years ago - but it has to start with filing complaints at NHTSA first.

 

[DeepBlue]

Guys, I must say...

This thread got me a bit rattled given that I'm a newcomer to MO scene and the fact that I just spent over 20k for one.

However, as damning as some of these reports are I must conclude that they represent but a small fraction of MO owners with a vastly larger number having never experienced any leaks in their TC's or any other catastrophic CVT problems.

In doing some further research I came across this article that specifically mentions this board (and this thread).

http://www.canadiandriver.com/articles/cc/03-07murano.htm

Although, I feel bad for anyone impacted by costly auto repair I also feel that some of us more impressionable new owners should be encouraged to seek out additional info in order to get a better understanding of the big picture. After going through this thread, I actually caught myself thinking that my MO was handicapped in some way and that I would have to spend the next 3-5 years babying it in constant anticipation of something big breaking. When in reality, if I were to go out and compare the cost of similar repairs on my other top choices which I've considered before settling on MO I doubt I would be that far off.

Now this is just my opinion... But, the sad truth is that today’s cars are very complex machines. In order to mitigate the damage one of these costly breakdowns could have on your short term cash flow, it seems prudent to plan on having a bumper to bumper warranty in effect for the durations of your planed ownership of the said vehicle.

 

[kirk55]

Resale Value of 2003

Nissan dealer offered $12,000 to buy an 82,000 mile 2003 Murano All Wheel drive with a known transfer case problem, since that meant I would still be drivining a Nissan, I sold it to another dealer and now drive a Toyota.

The Murano problem is Nissan not backing up its experimental transfer case, the problem is NOT the transmission, we thoroughly enjoyed the Murano and if you have a front wheel drive version, please do not be alarmed. If you have the all wheel drive, buy the extended warranty.

 

[njjoe]

DeepBlue-

Interesting article from canadiandriver.com. The author, Chris Chase, quoted quite a bit from our forum.

The author offered the following praise:

NissanMurano.org is hands-down the best Murano site I came across; it's busy and even better, it's Murano-centric, so no having to sift through loads of posts to find the ones that pertain to the car you're interested in.

Nice! :29:

-njjoe

 

[DeepBlue]

Another interesting source I came accross are actual vehicle complaint reports posted on :

http://www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/complaints/complaintsearch.cfm

I did a search on 2005 Nissan Murano Transfer Case and Auto Transmission.

1 and 6 reports respectively

My next search was my last ride 2005 Jeep GC

2 and 57 reports respectively

First one read like this...

Make: JEEP
Model: GRAND CHEROKEE

Year: 2005
Complaint Number: 10233317
Summary:
WIFE WAS DRIVING OUR 2005 JEEP GRAND CHEROKEE, 5.7L, QUANDRA DRIVE II TRANSMISSION. WHILE DRIVING YESTERDAY A POLICEMAN ON PATROL NOTICED A SUDDEN FIRE UNDER HER CAR. OFFICER SAID TRANSMISSION FLUID WAS LEAKING ONTO THE EXHAUST SYSTEM AND CAUSED IGNITION OF FIRE. OCCUPANTS EXTRACTED THEMSELVES WITHOUT PROBLEM. ENTIRE CAR ENGULFED IN FLAMES AND EXTINGUISHED BY LOCAL FIRE DEPARTMENT. CAR AN ENTIRE LOSS. VERY LENGTHY SERVICE HISTORY WITH THE TRANSMISSION IN THIS VEHICLE PRIOR TO FIRE.


Yikes!

 

[Philc]

Transfer Assembly replaced

I have a 2006 Murano AWD and this is my second Murano. I previously had the 2003 AWD. Never had any problems with the 2003. The 2006 failed with 18K miles. The dealer has been nice by giving me a loaner but its over a week and still have not gotten it back. The car was being driven on a summer day on dry roads and never touched the AWD switch. The car started thumping like a CV joint or wheel bearing. I drove it into the dealer and they test drove it and then got me a loaner.

 

[njjoe]

Philc-

Welcome to the forum.

It's a shame to hear about the transfer case, but the good news is that it happened while covered by the warranty.

Has the dealer given you an explanation as to the reason for the week's delay? Also, did he say why the transfer case failed?

-njjoe

 

[Philc]

Transfer Case Failure

Its been 6 working days due to the holidays and they still have the Murano. Maybe get it back today. They said they ordered a new assembly.

 

[Warhammer]

Both MO's I've had up to this point have had no issues. Here are the details:

MO #1 -- 2003 SL AWD (loaded & purchased new) had over 60,000 miles on it before i gave it up.

MO #2 -- 2004 SL AWD (loaded & purchased used) is slightly over 30,000 miles and has no issues.

I'm surprised to see how many people are having this issue. It will definitely make me keep an eye out.

 

[Philc]

Finally Got the Car Back

The Dealer had the car 8 working days not including holidays and weekends. They said they were waiting on the part. They replaced the KA01AA R&I TRANSFER ASSEMBLY. Its done and hopefully will hold up. The vehicle is a 3 yr lease with 14 months to go. Don't think I'll be buying it when the lease is up.
Brought the car in clean but they left it out on their lot so now its covered with dirt. You would think a new car dealer would want to return it as clean as when I brought it in. They said the case was not cracked and the internals went bad. Service manager has no knowledge if they improved the design or not.

 

[njjoe]

Re: Finally Got the Car Back

They said the case was not cracked and the internals went bad.

Out of curiosity, are there any new oil spots on your driveway or garage floor?

-njjoe

 

[Philc]

Transfer Asembly Failure

My car is kept in my garage. I do my own maintanance because I like Mobil One and there are no oil spots in my garage.

 

[wilwil]

transfer case faliure

We love driving our 03 SE Nissan Murano WHEN it is on the road. My wife had been the primary driver of this vehicle and she has a short highway commute to work.

At 129,000KM (80,000 miles) we had to replace the transmission $5K (with all of Nissans special CVT (expensive) fluids). 15 months later (24,000 KMs) we now have to replace the transfer case. We have been quoted about $3400 in parts and $1300 in labour to do this plus possibly a drive shaft.... $10,000 in repairs in 15 months (plus normal routine maint. - oil changes/brakes)

We did not experience any warning signs of this happening, and all my vehicles are meticulously maintained. Oil changes every 5K, winter tires on factory Nissan rims, it did not tow anything- just carried a bike rack...

After owning a Nissan Maxima (why did I sell that car) to an Xterra (nice, but not for highway driving) to my Murano - I will never buy a Nissan again. My Hondas were better, my Audi A4 is better and the Saab I owned with higher miles and what I thought was a money pit now looks good compared to this Murano.

Nissan Canada has been very difficult to work with and dealers play dumb. I have an open case with Nissan Canada and I am waiting for them to get back to me.

After surfing the net, I have found many others with the transmission and/or transfer case issues -- Nissan has made some serious design/engineering mistakes with this product and will not look after it.

I will be happy to get rid of this sorry excuse for a vehicle. (I still like the look and drive when it works but a vehicle is useless to me when it is at the garage all the time)

Any suggestions on help with Nissan Canada would be appreciated.

 

[NYMURANO]

Transfer case and Diff went

I went through 2 transfer cases and one diff. all within 40k. the first tc went at about 6 grand.

 

[nitely]

TC Leak Update

Hi everyone,

Last January I had Desert Nissan Las Vegas check my tc/differential/cvt oil leak and said they did not see any leak. I went to them again yesterday and told them they better check again cause the leak is still there. So, after 2 hours of waiting they spotted an oil leak remotely away from the transmission--right under the oil filter--he said that this is sorta common failure and its under warranty and he will order the part for it. I told him that I am more concern about the leak by the transmission--transfer case. They said the mechanic did not see any. So as I tried to explain to him where to look he took me to my car and I pointed out to him where it is. At last he saw it and finally admitted there is a leak there somewhere--by the tc/differential area. Another hour later he just gave me my keys and said that he will order the part for the oil filter leak and the differential seal and should be there by next week. Not exactly sure which seal he is replacing but he mention diff seal. I hope that is the one connected to the transfer case. He also mentioned that he will give me a rental during the repair next week. Hope the seal replacement will do the job. Have not heard any weird noises yet but I dont know how much oil has leaked out of that differential/TC to have any internal damage. Crossing my finger. Still under warranty--just about getting there. 44K /8 months left on drivetrain warranty. I'm just happy that he finally saw the problem and admitted that there is a leak there--same area as my pix on previos post. I think one has to actually/physically point out the leak to the service sup or mechanic himself for them to acknowledge the problem. Wait and see next week what will happen. The sup did mention that they had to put dye so they can make sure where the leak is coming from. My worry is the TC--I read somehwhere that it is a sealed unit and there is no drain/filler bolt there. IF thats the case they cant put any dye there. Took a peek at the underside of my car as I got home and there was a lot of oil there by the diff/tc way more than before. I guesss when they had it leak out they just did not bother to wipe it clean.