differences in radiators in automatic or manual xterra

Muadeeb

Nissan al Gaib
Admin
Location
Dallas
The radiator for an AT has a tube in the bottom that the atf cycles through to help cool it. The manual is convection cooled, so no need for that tube. Running a radiator for an AT in a manual will make no difference.
 

X4Life

Test Drive
Location
Baltimore, MD
I was wondering if you could just use the manual trans radiator with an aux trans cooler for the auto or if theres a difference in doing the mod on the auto vs manual radiator sorry if im confusing you lol
 

Muadeeb

Nissan al Gaib
Admin
Location
Dallas
You can do that. With the SMOD issues the 2nd gen had, several people have just run an external cooler, completely bypassing the one in the radiator.
 

X4Life

Test Drive
Location
Baltimore, MD
I am worried a little of the smod. Im coming up on 75k now and im alnost possitive it was not matic s used in the trans during maintenance before i bought it at 62k. My warrenty covers drivetrain until 92k but i dont want the bad to happen at all if i can stop it soon enough
 

Muadeeb

Nissan al Gaib
Admin
Location
Dallas
2011 is technically out of the danger zone from all the reports I've heard. If you're really concerned about it, go ahead and bypass the internal cooler and just run the external.

S has been the recommended fluid since 2009, so if the shop put J in it, there's a problem with the shop. Nissan won't even sell J anymore.
 

X4Life

Test Drive
Location
Baltimore, MD
My car fax has too many other lubeshops on there for me to believe only nissan touched this truck the fluid looks strange to me not much of a pigment if any at all almost looked like fresh motor oil
 

Mr Bills

Bought an X
Location
Area Code 530
FYI - the difference between Matic J and Matic S is that Matic J is a synthetic blend and Matic S is full synthetic. Both are Dex/Merc ATF.

The belief that Matic J "causes SMOD" is based on Internet Myth citing the fact that Nissan changed the recommended ATF at or near the same time that it began equipping Xterras and Frontiers with an updated radiator. The fallacy of this belief is evidenced by the fact that Nissan changed its recommendation to Matic S for nearly every automatic transmission in its product line, not just Xterras and Frontiers equipped with the faulty Nissan/Calsonic radiator.

Moreover, it is not true that Nissan "won't" sell Matic J anymore. For quite some time after Matic S was introduced and recommended for the Xterra in the U.S., Nissan dealers in Canada continued to sell Matic J. In fact, the Owners Manuals for 2009-2015 Xterras sold in Canada all read: "If Genuine NISSAN Matic S ATF is not available, Genuine NISSAN Matic J ATF may also be used."

Now back to the issue raised in the first post of this thread - In an Xterra with MT there is no reason not to use the radiator for the AT instead of one specifically designed for the MT - just cap the ATF cooling tubes (or not, it really doesn't matter). In an Xterra with AT, any quality aftermarket radiator for the Xterra will work just fine without the risk of SMOD, which in Xterras/Frontiers is the result of a faulty Nissan/Calsonic radiator, not Matic J ATF.
 
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