NHTSA Complaint #10463271 — 2005 NISSAN XTERRA

FIRST INCIDENT OCCURRED IN APRIL 2011 - WHILE DRIVING THE TRANSMISSION BEGAN TO FAIL AND WOULD NOT SHIFT. I HAD TO HAVE THE VEHICLE TOWED BECAUSE IT WOULD NOT DRIVE FASTER THAN ABOUT 15-20 MPH. THE NISSAN DEALERSHIP DIAGNOSED THE PROBLEM AS "INTERNAL FAULT IN VALVE BODY" AND REPLACED THE VALVE BODY. THIS INCIDENT COST ME $1568 AND A WEEK WITHOUT A VEHICLE; WENT IN TO DEALERSHIP ON 4/20 AND I PICKED IT UP ON 4/27. SECOND INCIDENT OCCURRED IN JUNE 2012 - WHILE DRIVING WITH MY KIDS IN THE VEHICLE, ON A BUSY STREET, THE TRANSMISSION BEGAN TO FAIL AGAIN AND WOULD NOT SHIFT. ONCE AGAIN, THE VEHICLE WOULD NOT DRIVE FASTER THAN ABOUT 20 MPH. THIS TIME I HAD THE VEHICLE TOWED TO A LOCAL TRANSMISSION REPAIR SHOP. THE DIAGNOSIS WAS "FLUID IS FULL, BUT IS BLACK AND BURNT, DIPSTICK FOR THE TRANS IS CRUSTY LOOKING..." THE TRANSMISSION SHOP REBUILT THE TRANSMISSION AND REPLACED ALL FAULTY PARTS, INCLUDING THE VALVE BODY. THIS INCIDENT COST ME $3865 AND ELEVEN DAYS WITHOUT A VEHICLE; WENT IN TO TRANSMISSION SHOP ON 6/15 AND I PICKED IT UP ON 6/26. IN FOURTEEN MONTHS, I HAVE HAD TRANSMISSION FAILURE AND HAVE HAD TO REPLACE THE VALVE BODY EACH TIME, A VERY EXPENSIVE PART. IT IS SIMPLY UNACCEPTABLE THAT THE MANUFACTURER PATCHES THE VEHICLE, INSTEAD OF FIXING IT, NOT TO MENTION CHARGES THE OWNER FOR THEIR DEFECT. *TR