Auto Transmission Help Please

kazul

Some of the more experienced/qualified guys on here might be able to help me.
My '98 Cefiro/Maxima has developed a slight vibration recently. Sitting still with foot brake applied and gear engaged it vibrates through the steering wheel and pedal box. No vibration in P or N, engine idling smooth and steady.
It's only very slight and recent. Dropped it into Advance to get T&B done on monday and asked them to check it out. Felt fine to their mechanic who also checked the ATF.
I'm gonna check engine and tranny mountings myself tomorrow - hope the torque converter is not on the way out.
Any ideas or advice greatly welcome

Volvoboy

When ya say he checked the ATF, did he check the level or did he see if it needs changing? The ATF should always be a red colour (same as power steering fluid) If its black or discoloured it will need changing along with the filter. ATF boxes dont require much maintainace bar the ATF, which is often over looked. I recently got mine changed the fella who did it said it probably was overdue at 50000 miles :eek:

Also it's not a good idea to have it in drive when your stationary, bang it in N.

kazul

Cheers Volvoboy. I'll check the ATF myself tomorrow, unfortunately car maintainance is one of those, "If you want something done properly...", situations for me these days .
As for putting it in N, kinda defeats the purpose of an auto IMO.

Anybody know what might be causing the vibration or if it's likely to be the torque converter?

Big Nasty

It's a fairly powerful car so it's gonna pull a wee bit more in D than a smaller engine. I have to put my car in N when stationary otherwise she's biting at the bit and heating up the box no end, but that's a different story in fairness!

Same as sitting at a in a manual in gear with you're foot on the clutch you are going to receive a minimal amount of vibration, more in fact as the car is actually in gear and defeating it's logic by holding her back with the brake. Of course this is something we tend to do in autos all the time but you can certainly expect more vibration return through the stick when she is stationary in drive as opposed to being in N/P.

mike65

The reason to stick it in N when stationary for more than moment or two is cos if some silly sod rear-ends you the trans will be toast. or am I thinking that'll only happen in P?

kazul

I'm a bit of a car hypocondriac so it might not be as bad as i'm making it out to be. Gonna get the hands grubby tomorrow I think.
It drives my Da mad when I pre-emptively replace/repair stuff on my cars (I need to use his workshop and he's good for second opinions).
I should double-check the ATF cooler as well I guess.
I was half thinking of changing it but I'd be back to square 1 with another motor then.

Anyone wanna buy an imported, ex-taxi "Imperial Cruiser". Lovingly maintained by an enthusiast?

Honda08

kazul wrote: »

Some of the more experienced/qualified guys on here might be able to help me.
My '98 Cefiro/Maxima has developed a slight vibration recently. Sitting still with foot brake applied and gear engaged it vibrates through the steering wheel and pedal box. No vibration in P or N, engine idling smooth and steady.
It's only very slight and recent. Dropped it into Advance to get T&B done on monday and asked them to check it out. Felt fine to their mechanic who also checked the ATF.
I'm gonna check engine and tranny mountings myself tomorrow - hope the torque converter is not on the way out.
Any ideas or advice greatly welcome

try this

when in D and you feel the vibration, turn on the front headlamps and fogs ( as atest) , sometimes the engine idles a little low, and causes vibration, turning on the lights should bring the revs up enough to stop the vibration or make it feel a lot less!

works for me. this is a common problem with autos. some people ignore it, some people hate it...

check the car manual, to see what the recommended schedule is for changing the fluid.

moving an auto box into N when stopped at lights causes extra wear on gearbox components. when you are driving car, should be in D.

danjo

kazul wrote: »

who also checked the ATF.

Forgive my ignorance but what is an ATF ?

Volvoboy

danjo wrote: »

Forgive my ignorance but what is an ATF ?

It's the term used for Automatic Transmission Fluid.

milltown

From what the OP describes I wouldn't be jumping straight to the conclusion that it's a transmission issue. The tranny in D is the only example given that has the engine under load. Honda08 is on the right track with checking the idle speed in D. You could also just hold your left foot on the brake and use the right to rev it slightly to see how far the resonance goes.

If you have access to a workshop and are still worried, I'd pop the back up on axle stands (RWD yeah?) and run it in D with the handbrake on for a minute or two while you try and find what's vibrating. It could be a mount on it's way out or it could just be the idle speed causing the car to resonate.

kazul

Didn't get a chance to look at it today (baby duty :rolleyes:)
But something did dawn on me, changed the plugs to correct heat rating recently. Long story short, garage that did a big nixer job on it for me let the apprentice do the work (supervised by 2 others). Seems that service was done with 3.0 parts/data.
Vibration could be due to correcton of plugs and K&N Panel Filter

Had reason to be in a camry taxi of the same vintage today and am relatively smug in the knowledge that mine is a way nicer/more cofortable, well-sorted motor compared to some other similar cars.

Gonna hold on to her until at least Ocober when I'll finally have some NCB and can get something a bit more fun

kazul

Had a chance to have a quick look at the car just now. It seems that the idler pulley bearing is making some noise. I'm not sure if this is causing the vibration but I might get a new one and a new set of belts to see if it makes any difference.
It turns out that the a/c compressor was disconnected at some stage (probably to help fuel economy) and the belts don't look great.
I'll try to source the parts and post an update when the work is done.