Bertoknee
Date Registered: 09-2018
Location: Philippines
TOTAL POSTS: 86
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Re:
bit of an update about my cvt...
after some research about this cvt cooler business I finally sussed out exactly what the deal was regarding the cvt and its cooler(s).
All the cvt transmissions fitted to XTrails have a 'cvt cooler' ..HOWEVER, its not a proper cooler in the true sense of the word...ie its not a matrix thing at the front of the car. Its the beehive looking thing on the top front of the cvt ..under the battery tray. Actually it is better described as a heat exchanger ..because it relies on engine coolant to equalise the temp of the cvt fluid. My guess is that this is to aid a quicker warm up of the cvt fluid. To me this seems rather questionable and I am half tempted to remove the coolant lines from this 'beehive/cooler' ..and let the fluid warm up naturally. Perhaps in the colder climates it might be useful...but here in Phils ... I just dont think it is beneficial at all ..and possibly even a bad thing. My thinking..and that of others all over the 'net was that heat is a killer of these cvt units.... keep the fluid cool and the chances of it staying reliable greatly increase.
Anyway ..there are 2 types of these 'beehive/coolers' ... a 2 port and a 4 port upgraded one. The 2 port one only has coolant in/out lines and the actual cvt fluid never gets external to the cvt. The 4 port one has both coolant lines AND flow & return lines for cvt fluid. This is the important one because obviously that means the cvt fluid can be routed to a suitable external matrix fitted to the front in the airflow. The good thing is...they are interchangeable ..and the 4 port one can be retro fitted to 'upgrade' the 2 port version. Actually I have a copy of a Nissan work order which details how Nissan techs should do this when a customer complains about cvt problems! .. which of course says clearly that Nissan know this cvt is living on the edge..so far as fluid temperature is concerned at least.
Some models of X Trails came with this upgraded cooler & matrix package from the factory ... perhaps it came as part of a towing pack?.. i dont know exactly. Certainly tho ... my Philippine market T31 did not ..which seems a massive error..given ambient temps here. Consequently I have just completed the retro fit of the 4 port cooler and suitable matrix to my T31. That, along with changing the small filter...and a change of fluid to Amsoil Synthetic and i feel much more confident that it will be reliable now.
I have also just got hold of a new pickup/strainer and pan gasket ..and I'll be changing that too when I get chance.
The upgraded 4 port cooler was about US$100 shipped from China...and a decent B&M matrix was about the same money from Amazon in the US. 20L of Amsoil cvt fluid bought locally was another US$200 ..so..its cost me 400 bucks to get the car to where i feel confident in it. The strainer, small filter & gasket were about 50bucks delivered from Amayama ...
I took some pics of the fitting process..it wasnt difficult at all ... most of the time is spent removing and refitting things for access ..bumper, battery, batt. tray, lh front wheelarch liner. I posted about it on the UK X-Trail forum but will try to get the pics uploaded here too as soon as poss.
I dont know how many Aus T31 cvt units came with the upgraded cooler ... not a clue..but I would suggest that if yours DOESNT..then for around US$400 inc new fluid ..you can fit it..and probably extend the life of your cvt. Even if you wish to retain the Nissan NS-2 ..and just fit the cooler package for $200 US.
My cvt is quieter now than before .. and has not suffered any ill effect from the change of fluid. ...admittedly tho..I have not driven it so much since I fitted the cooler & changed the fluid.
Last edited by Bertoknee, 26/Jan/2019, 12:49 pm
--- Graeme, Cagayan Valley, PH
T31 Series 2 2011 2.5 CVT 4WD
X-5534
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17/Jan/2019, 3:07 pm
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