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Hey guys,
I have posted before about this similar topic and I’m sorry if I’m beating dead horse. I going to be changing my CVT fluid tomorrow in my 2011 Nissan Altima 2.5 SL and I was wondering how many quarts of NS-2 CVT fluid I will need to do drain and re-fill? I also plan to try and siphon the remaining fluid that sits down in the pan through the drain hole since the drain plugs sits up on the side of the transmission above the pan. There is so little information on the web and everyone says something different. I have 47,000 miles and even though Nissan said the fluid is fine I’m going to change it. I picked up 5 quarts of the CVT Nissan NS-2 fluid already. I found only one really decent video on YouTube but, it was for a 2008 Altima. I am unsure if the fluid capicity is the same as mine on 2011 and if it is the same Jatco CVT. Once again there is so much mixed information and Nissan tells you as little as possible when you go to them. Probably so you will spend $299 – $499 to have the change it. I think NOT! haha
Do you think 5 quarts will be enough for the procedure I described to drain and re-fill? I want to do it now and early since I’m not flushing it all out and the fluid is still in decent condition. I will do it again around 85,000. Thanks everyone!
Here is the link to the YouTube video I found…
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Thanks College Man! Ironically enough I purchased an online PDF Service Manual for $15 that tells me everything 3 minutes before you replied. It looks like I’m not changing the CVT fluid today. I only have 5 quarts. Strange that the one person on YouTube did the procedure on his 2008 Altima and about 5 quarts came out he said. I wonder what that’s all about? I wonder if the 2008 CVT is different than the 2011. I attached the page to help others out from the service manual I downloaded. Thanks.
So I am thinking I should have done a little more research before tackling this drain and refill of my CVT. I took out the drain plug and only about 1.5 quarts drained out. I used a siphon to try and extract more and was able to get another 1.5 quarts out. I couldn’t find an open path inside the drain hole to rout the siphon hose down and into the pan. So my total of 3 quarts removed was very disappointing. There has to be another better and recommended way to change the CVT fluid. The fluid was for sure dirty and had friction material in it. There was a noticeable difference from the old to new fluid color. I was thinking of dropping the pan since the drain plug isn’t located on the actual pan but, instead far above it on the side of the transmission. I didn’t have a pan gasket on hand, it was Sunday and I wasn’t sure if I could reuse the old one. I feel like I wasted the 3 new quarts by only getting the small amount out. I had no choice because I needed to drive the vehicle and had to re-fill and put everything back together. The service manual says 7-3/4 US quarts should have come out?? I check the level and its where it should be on the dipstick. I am so confused! I have also read to disconnect the CVT cooler return line and let it run out of there but, I didn’t want to buy $200 in CVT fluid when all I am trying to accomplish is a quick drain and re-fill.
Any Nissan Mechanics out there able to shine some light on this? When you call the dealerships they act like the know nothing about the CVT and make everything a big secret. It scares me to know they where going to charge me $199.99 to do a drain and refill when only 1.5 quarts freely came out.
I also forgot to mention that I also noticed a much improved performance after changing out only the 3 quarts. I didn’t think it would make any difference but, it feels like the car accelerates smoother and more freely. The CVT seems less jerky, more responsive and quieter. I’m now convinced it did need changed when Nissan claimed it didn’t at 47k. I can only imagine how much better it will feel if I could have gotten more fluid out.
Hello everyone,
I wanted to update everyone and let you all know I completed the drain and re-fill on my 2011 Altima. Per the Nissan Dealership I dropped the transmission oil pan because there is no drain plug on the pan. The drain plugs sits high up on the left side of the transmission way above the pan preventing you from getting adequate fluid out. I made a how-to video on YouTube for your reference,
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