2018 nissan altima question

[guncrasher]

any owners out there.

my car doesn't have shift paddle. only had d and ds mode. have gone thru owner's manual and Google it, even called the dealer. 

how do i shift up or down on hilly road. planning to go out of state next year and there's hills about 7 miles at a steep incline/decline. dealer says just to use brakes. i have never owned a car that didn't have lower gears for hilly terrain.


semp

[Shuffler]

I do not own one but I did do some investigation. They have a continuous variable transmission (CVT). This means there is no set gear changes. You have (D) drive and (DS) Sport Mode.

From reading about them, it seems they have quite a bit of issues with the transmission. Getting on steep inclines will be a sure test. If you start feeling vibrations or losing power.... that is what folks feel when the CVT is having issues and or over heating.

Good luck on your trip, stay safe.

Edit.....  I acquired the following info directly from Nissan... (it actually works much like many side x side offroad vehicles)

The CVT is an automatic transmission that uses two pulleys with a steel belt running between them. To continuously vary its gear ratios, the CVT simultaneously adjusts the diameter of the "drive pulley" that transmits torque from the engine and the "driven pulley" that transfers torque to the wheels.

[BOBO]

It's always been my understanding that automatic transmissions don't allow for engine braking.

[Shuffler]

It's always been my understanding that automatic transmissions don't allow for engine braking.

They do to an extent. It can make your transmission run warmer.

[guncrasher]

It's always been my understanding that automatic transmissions don't allow for engine braking.

they can, I always drove auto transmissions.  the older cars used to have 2 lower speeds, 1 and 2.  in my car a 2014 chevy impala had paddles on the steering wheel, I believe they had 5 "gears". I never used them up hill as it had a v6 engine with enough power to go up hill, so only used the "manual" paddles going down hill.  then they chevy cruze only had it for about 2 months so I dont know much about it as i got rear ended and was totaled.

now on the altima, only info I could find was from some customers reporting that on ds (drive sport or sporty) it seems to slow down the car faster as oposide to just on "d" without stepping on the break.

curious thing I also found is while the car is fast for a 4 cylinder 2.5 engine, for the life of me cant figure out the hp on the engine.  some sites say it's 140 and others 180 for the model i got.  I really didnt bother to ask as when I drove it, I noticed it had more than enough power I needed.  it wasnt as fast as the impala but sure as hell didnt have 120 hp either.  I called 3 different nissan dealers and got 3 different answers. 

it's one of those things you dont think about as the most important thing for me was to be able to get in and out without much effort as I have a really bad back.  dont take me wrong it's a great car, faster than I thought and it looks great inside and out.  black on black but that was secondary thing for me.  I actually have a "ball" full of fluid about the size of an egg on my left elbow as I used it to push me out of the chevy cruze as I had to twist my body to the right.  with this car all i have to worry is get both legs out and use my hands on door opening to help me out.

semp


semp

[SPKmes]

having it in sports would do just as you said as the computer would keep the car to as close as possible to the optimal rev range...

I remember getting a fiat punto to use while my car was getting a cam belt changed on my car.... I thought sheesh man this car has the smoothest gear changes ever... found out it was the CVT system...

[BOBO]

they can, I always drove auto transmissions.  the older cars used to have 2 lower speeds, 1 and 2.  in my car a 2014 chevy impala had paddles on the steering wheel, I believe they had 5 "gears". I never used them up hill as it had a v6 engine with enough power to go up hill, so only used the "manual" paddles going down hill.  then they chevy cruze only had it for about 2 months so I dont know much about it as i got rear ended and was totaled.

now on the altima, only info I could find was from some customers reporting that on ds (drive sport or sporty) it seems to slow down the car faster as oposide to just on "d" without stepping on the break.

curious thing I also found is while the car is fast for a 4 cylinder 2.5 engine, for the life of me cant figure out the hp on the engine.  some sites say it's 140 and others 180 for the model i got.  I really didnt bother to ask as when I drove it, I noticed it had more than enough power I needed.  it wasnt as fast as the impala but sure as hell didnt have 120 hp either.  I called 3 different nissan dealers and got 3 different answers. 

it's one of those things you dont think about as the most important thing for me was to be able to get in and out without much effort as I have a really bad back.  dont take me wrong it's a great car, faster than I thought and it looks great inside and out.  black on black but that was secondary thing for me.  I actually have a "ball" full of fluid about the size of an egg on my left elbow as I used it to push me out of the chevy cruze as I had to twist my body to the right.  with this car all i have to worry is get both legs out and use my hands on door opening to help me out.

semp


semp

HP depends on where it's measured.  In America it's customary for manufacturers to measure HP at the flywheel but most other markets require it to be measured at the wheel (Brake Horse Power). 

Bad backs run in my family.  Do you use a car cane?

[LNG15]

any owners out there.

my car doesn't have shift paddle. only had d and ds mode. have gone thru owner's manual and Google it, even called the dealer. 

how do i shift up or down on hilly road. planning to go out of state next year and there's hills about 7 miles at a steep incline/decline. dealer says just to use brakes. i have never owned a car that didn't have lower gears for hilly terrain.


semp

My brother has owned a 16 base model before. He recommends that you do ds mode and go light on the brakes for the hills. If you had a Roque SL AWD for example that has its own downhill assist that would be no issue. But that would be the best bet. Go ds and go light on the brakes downhill without running them out.

[guncrasher]

HP depends on where it's measured.  In America it's customary for manufacturers to measure HP at the flywheel but most other markets require it to be measured at the wheel (Brake Horse Power). 

Bad backs run in my family.  Do you use a car cane?

(Image removed from quote.)

sob  , never knew there was one available.  thank you so much sir.  will check right away.  I see it's also multi-function.

semp

[Lazerr]

Is sport mode they are putting in some of these vehicles in essence the same as the overdrive/tow mode my pickup has?

[guncrasher]

Is sport mode they are putting in some of these vehicles in essence the same as the overdrive/tow mode my pickup has?

no, i think ds mode is just a gimick it gives you the feeling of basically stick shift without the stick shift.  it accelerates faster and slows down faster.  mine has od also.

semp

[streakeagle]

I loved my 2005 Nissan Altima, it was a no frills 2.5S base model that I drove until last December 2019, and I owned it from March 2005 with over 282,000 miles. If they were still making Altimas identical to the one I drove for nearly 15 years, I would gladly buy another one. But when it came time to get a new car, my friend that owns an auto shop and has worked on everything including exotics, told me he couldn't stand the transmission in the newer Altimas. His experience alone steered me away from getting another Altima.

[guncrasher]

I loved my 2005 Nissan Altima, it was a no frills 2.5S base model that I drove until last December 2019, and I owned it from March 2005 with over 282,000 miles. If they were still making Altimas identical to the one I drove for nearly 15 years, I would gladly buy another one. But when it came time to get a new car, my friend that owns an auto shop and has worked on everything including exotics, told me he couldn't stand the transmission in the newer Altimas. His experience alone steered me away from getting another Altima.

good thing about it they have an 8 year warranty for engine and transmission.  that aside, I'll probably get something else in a few years.  I owned my chevy impala for 5 years, put 40k miles in it.  I really dont drive that much.


semp

[Shuffler]

I loved my 2005 Nissan Altima, it was a no frills 2.5S base model that I drove until last December 2019, and I owned it from March 2005 with over 282,000 miles. If they were still making Altimas identical to the one I drove for nearly 15 years, I would gladly buy another one. But when it came time to get a new car, my friend that owns an auto shop and has worked on everything including exotics, told me he couldn't stand the transmission in the newer Altimas. His experience alone steered me away from getting another Altima.

Nissan has been using the CVT transmission since 1992. That was another piece of info I had come across.

[icepac]

Most transmissions will downshift if you close throttle long enough.

If you touch the brake pedal just hard enough to activate the brake light switch, most transmissions will go into some sort of "grade retard".