Automatic 2-1 rough downshifting

cg370z

I have the 7AT, and when i slow down at a stop sign or stop light, the transmission will shift from 2nd to 1st and the entire car will jerk like when you downshift a manual without syncro-rev matching. Has anyone else with the 7AT noticed this???? Will this go away after i put some miles on it? i have about 1000 miles already. Any help or advice would be great, i am planning on contacting the dealer about it, but i wanted to hear from anyone else on the forum who might know something that i don't.

THANKS!

spearfish25

I have a 6MT so I can't comment specifically. However, perhaps I can start the discussion and be of some help.

First, this is occurring on an automatic downshift performed by the car? ie, you're not shifting from 2 to 1 on your own? If YOU were doing the shift, I'd tell you it's unnecessary to downshift from 2 to 1 while the car is still moving...just shift to 1st once stopped.

Second, you might be able to circumvent this by shifting to neutral before coming to a complete stop, much as you do in a manual transmission. I haven't driven the 7AT in the 370Z, but many paddleshifters go to neutral with a 'double' paddle pull (ie both at the same time). If you did this when coming to a stop, it may avoid the issue.

The most help will of course come from those who have the 7AT and I'm sure you're waiting for their input...

Amon

I have the 7AT as well, and I dont seem to have this issue. Are you letting the car downshift itself, or are you downshifting?

wstar

He's talking about when you leave the shifter flipped to the left in "Manual" mode and come down to a stop very slowly, like at a traffic light. You start in a higher gear, and the car downshifts for you (very late, and very jerky by the time it gets down to the 2-1 shift). It's pretty noticeable.

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Amon

Hrm, I hadn't noticed that, but I have a habit of just putting it back over into D when coming to a stop. I'll try it out on lunch!

marcussoori

You can shift into neutral in manual mode with the double paddle pull? Wow! Can anyone confirm this?

Oh wait, I have an auto. I'll check it out tonight...can't wait!

New license plate idea: MY F355

wstar

Well, I can reassure you that your car isn't broken. My 7AT does it as well, and a few others have commented on the same. It's "normal".

That said, you can alleviate this by changing your behavior. Leaving it in D instead of M when coming down to a light helps, as does flipping it into neutral. You generally only notice it on slow deccels (like coming down to a light in heavy traffic), you'll never notice a problem when you're driving this car the way it wants to be driven (why on earth would you want to bring a Z to a complete stop? that's no fun!). Save M-mode for when you're really driving, and use D-mode in traffic. Your transmission, your gas mileage, and your passengers who no longer have to endure the 2-1 downshift jerk will thank you

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cg370z

I'm talking about dull "D" mode not manual mode. it downshifts really rough automatically.

molamann

I had the same exact problem with 7AT on "D" mode. It was actually pretty bad at first(first couple hundred miles,) bad enough so that I actually took it to two different Nissan service stations. Both of them told me that it's quite normal since the Z has such an aggressive transmission and it tends to do that coming to a stoplight at low gears. Anyways I don't know if I got used to it or if the transmission got better but it's lot less noticeable now at 3k+ miles.

VCuomo

I noticed the same thing - for whatever reason, on the rare occasion when the car was new and would downshift from 2nd to 1st (and I'm talking "D" or "M" mode guys - it doesn't matter, since the car automatically downshifts when it needs to, even in M mode) it would really jerk. I've got a little over 10K miles on it now, you still notice it but not that much.

BTW, the jerk is normal. Try downshifting (at low speed, of course) a manual from 2nd to 1st and see what happens - unless you're barely moving you'll feel a jerk and hear the engine rev.

joeyz10

when i am on drive mode i don't have any jerking on 2nd to 1st. only on M mode.

frost

< another AT owner who has experienced the "stoplight jerk"
It's enough to where I avoid the paddles unless I'm doing "spirited driving"

juan05

thats why you get maual lol jk idk contact your dealer

wstar

This is going to be a very subjective thing, which is why we get conflicting reports about people feeling it or not, and whether they feel it only in M or only in D, etc. Aside from varying sensitivities in general, it depends greatly on the speed curve you're decelerating at with the brakes (or just coasting down at), and the force you're applying with the brakes at the time of the downshift.

If you get your speed down well in advance of a light (like you're trying to roll and wait for it go green and never stop, for instance), and then get off the brakes around 20mph and just let it coast all the way down from there to the 2-1 shiftpoint on its own in M-mode, you'll feel it for sure.

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Venom

Mine AT does the same thing....the downshift into lower gears isnt as smooth as id like it to be. I dont notice it at all when I put it into normal drive mode.