YACT: Car w/ manual transmission moves while in neutral

[ahurtt]

Ok gear heads, what could cause this problem? Here's the deal: 2000 Nissan Xterra with manual stick shift transmission.
Parked on a flat level surface.

To start my car, it requires you push the clutch pedal all the way to the floor. So I do this and then start the ignition. After the engine starts I push the stick into the Neutral position. I then take off the parking brake. I then let up the clutch. If I do not have my foot on the brake, when I let up the clutch the car will slowly lurch forward as if being pushed from behind EVEN THOUGH the car is in neutral. It isn't a violent jerk or anything, its just a slow lurching forward. It will stop when it rolls into the curb. It does this lately on cold mornings. It stops after driving enough to warm up the engine. I notice also that in the first few minutes of driving also until the car warms up there is a faint "whining" sound emenating from somwhere under the hood that seems to increase and decrease in intensity as I manipulate the clutch / gears. Once it has warmed up sufficiently there is nothing noticeably wrong any more. What could cause this? Is my transmission about to blow up or could it be fixed by something as simple as replacing the transmission oil? Opinions?

 

[Vic]

Your trans oil is sludging up. Change it. Or you will have more serious problems.

 

[kumanchu]

Originally posted by: Vic
Your trans oil is sludging up. Change it. Or you will have more serious problems.

sounds pretty reasonable to me.

 

[Pho King]

Ghost ride the Whip!

 

[Zenmervolt]

Originally posted by: Vic
Your trans oil is sludging up. Change it. Or you will have more serious problems.

Seconded.

ZV

 

[MercenaryForHire]

Originally posted by: Pho King
Ghost ride the Whip!

:laugh:

- M4H

 

[Soundmanred]

"Is it using any gas since it's in neutral?" is the real question here and everyone knows it.

 

[Sphexi]

Originally posted by: Vic
Your trans oil is sludging up. Change it. Or you will have more serious problems.

This is the most likely problem, especially since you said it was mostly on cold mornings. I had an older car though, that the master cylinder was starting to go on, so even pushing the clutch to the floor didn't fully engage it, and when I shifted to neutral it didn't actually switch positions in the trans, so I'd let off the clutch and it'd still be partially engaged. Giant pain to figure out, then fix.

 

[Zenmervolt]

Originally posted by: Sphexi

Originally posted by: Vic
Your trans oil is sludging up. Change it. Or you will have more serious problems.

This is the most likely problem, especially since you said it was mostly on cold mornings. I had an older car though, that the master cylinder was starting to go on, so even pushing the clutch to the floor didn't fully engage it, and when I shifted to neutral it didn't actually switch positions in the trans, so I'd let off the clutch and it'd still be partially engaged. Giant pain to figure out, then fix.

When you pull the lever out of gear, the transmission is out of gear. Period. End of story.

A stuck clutch can make it more difficult to pull the lever out of gear, but if the gear lever is in neutral, the transmission is absolutely, positively not in gear.

Now, if the shift linkage is screwy, then it could hang in gear, but that's an entirely different problem.

ZV

 

[ahurtt]

Thanks guys. I will try replacing the transmission gear oil and see if that fixes it. Wish me luck. I am going to try to do it myself. Never done this before but it doesn't look too hard. Anything I should be aware of (other than the obvious don't be directly under the drain plug when you take it out)? I assume I should do this procedure while the engine is still warm but not hot or running.

 

[iamwiz82]

Take out the fill plug before the drain plug. You don't want to strip the head on the fill plug after you already removed the oil.

 

[Whoozyerdaddy]

How cold are we talking? At -20 and colder that sort of thing is normal. Changing the tranny fluid might not do anything.

 

[ahurtt]

Originally posted by: iamwiz82
Take out the fill plug before the drain plug. You don't want to strip the head on the fill plug after you already removed the oil.

Good one. I wouldn't have thought of that. Thanks.

 

[ahurtt]

Originally posted by: Whoozyerdaddy
How cold are we talking? At -20 and colder that sort of thing is normal. Changing the tranny fluid might not do anything.

Well. . .I suppose at night lately with windchill it might have been below 20 F but I am not positive. It may have gotten down in the mid-20's. This morning when i got in the car it was about 33 F outside and it did what I described. But I don't know how much that temperature had come up from what it had been overnight. I guess I'll have to make a mental note to see if it does it after sitting in the work parking lot all day before I go home. But what about the "whining" noise it makes? Is that normal for cold temperatures too? I don't recall ever having had this problem in the winters for the first few years I owned the car. It is more of a recent thing I think.

 

[Gamingphreek]

Originally posted by: ahurtt

Originally posted by: Whoozyerdaddy
How cold are we talking? At -20 and colder that sort of thing is normal. Changing the tranny fluid might not do anything.

Well. . .I suppose at night lately with windchill it might have been below 20 F but I am not positive. It may have gotten down in the mid-20's. This morning when i got in the car it was about 33 F outside and it did what I described. But I don't know how much that temperature had come up from what it had been overnight. I guess I'll have to make a mental note to see if it does it after sitting in the work parking lot all day before I go home. But what about the "whining" noise it makes? Is that normal for cold temperatures too? I don't recall ever having had this problem in the winters for the first few years I owned the car. It is more of a recent thing I think.

Lol windchill doesn't matter to cars. It only is the temperature as perceived by living flesh (ie Humans; Dogs)

Back on topic though. 33F is not nearly cold enough to give a transmission problems. The car will still have to warm up, but Transmission fluid is good into Sub Zero temperatures IIRC (-30 I want to say, but I could be way off)

-Kevin

Edit: About the whining noise, well its kind of a vague description and hard to diagnose without hearing it and looking. Is it whining as the car moves? Other than that off the top of my head, the best I can say is it is a 7 year old car. It is going to make some noises. Check the belts and make sure everything is fine.

 

[fbrdphreak]

Find a Nissan forum and read about changing the tranny fluid, or buy a Haynes manual. I wouldn't go for it without specific knowledge of what you're doing - you never know what weird sh!t has to be done.

 

[Gamingphreek]

Originally posted by: fbrdphreak
Find a Nissan forum and read about changing the tranny fluid, or buy a Haynes manual. I wouldn't go for it without specific knowledge of what you're doing - you never know what weird sh!t has to be done.

If his car is moving, correct me if I am wrong, wouldn't the transmission need to be flushed not just drained and refilled?

Also OP, get some BG Transmission Additive. BG is probably the only brand I would ever add to my car in any way shape or form. That should also help release any pollutants.

-Kevin

 

[jupiter57]

Yep!
Older, heavy trans. "grease" is causing friction "turbulence" inside, meaning that the input shaft turning at full speed is in turn trying to spin all the other gears all the way back to the tailshaft, residual, in other words.

TIP: Be sure your car is up to operating temperature before attempting to drain, so the old "grease" will be warm and thin rather than cold and stiff.

 

[ahurtt]

Originally posted by: Gamingphreek

Originally posted by: ahurtt

Originally posted by: Whoozyerdaddy
How cold are we talking? At -20 and colder that sort of thing is normal. Changing the tranny fluid might not do anything.

Well. . .I suppose at night lately with windchill it might have been below 20 F but I am not positive. It may have gotten down in the mid-20's. This morning when i got in the car it was about 33 F outside and it did what I described. But I don't know how much that temperature had come up from what it had been overnight. I guess I'll have to make a mental note to see if it does it after sitting in the work parking lot all day before I go home. But what about the "whining" noise it makes? Is that normal for cold temperatures too? I don't recall ever having had this problem in the winters for the first few years I owned the car. It is more of a recent thing I think.

Lol windchill doesn't matter to cars. It only is the temperature as perceived by living flesh (ie Humans; Dogs)

Back on topic though. 33F is not nearly cold enough to give a transmission problems. The car will still have to warm up, but Transmission fluid is good into Sub Zero temperatures IIRC (-30 I want to say, but I could be way off)

-Kevin

Edit: About the whining noise, well its kind of a vague description and hard to diagnose without hearing it and looking. Is it whining as the car moves? Other than that off the top of my head, the best I can say is it is a 7 year old car. It is going to make some noises. Check the belts and make sure everything is fine.

Yes, I think the whining noise stops when the car is not moving. I just had all the belts including the timing belt replaced about 2 weeks ago. However, I am pretty sure it has been doing this for longer than that. It wasn't anything caused by the mechanic at the shop or anything. Keep in mind also, while this car is about 7 years old, it still only has about 50K miles on it.

 

[Gamingphreek]

Originally posted by: ahurtt

Originally posted by: Gamingphreek

Originally posted by: ahurtt

Originally posted by: Whoozyerdaddy
How cold are we talking? At -20 and colder that sort of thing is normal. Changing the tranny fluid might not do anything.

Well. . .I suppose at night lately with windchill it might have been below 20 F but I am not positive. It may have gotten down in the mid-20's. This morning when i got in the car it was about 33 F outside and it did what I described. But I don't know how much that temperature had come up from what it had been overnight. I guess I'll have to make a mental note to see if it does it after sitting in the work parking lot all day before I go home. But what about the "whining" noise it makes? Is that normal for cold temperatures too? I don't recall ever having had this problem in the winters for the first few years I owned the car. It is more of a recent thing I think.

Lol windchill doesn't matter to cars. It only is the temperature as perceived by living flesh (ie Humans; Dogs)

Back on topic though. 33F is not nearly cold enough to give a transmission problems. The car will still have to warm up, but Transmission fluid is good into Sub Zero temperatures IIRC (-30 I want to say, but I could be way off)

-Kevin

Edit: About the whining noise, well its kind of a vague description and hard to diagnose without hearing it and looking. Is it whining as the car moves? Other than that off the top of my head, the best I can say is it is a 7 year old car. It is going to make some noises. Check the belts and make sure everything is fine.

Yes, I think the whining noise stops when the car is not moving. I just had all the belts including the timing belt replaced about 2 weeks ago. However, I am pretty sure it has been doing this for longer than that. It wasn't anything caused by the mechanic at the shop or anything. Keep in mind also, while this car is about 7 years old, it still only has about 50K miles on it.

Well if it only does it while the car is moving, regardless of speed and what not, I would have to say Brakes and Brake Calipers.

-Kevin

 

[Vic]

Originally posted by: ahurtt
Thanks guys. I will try replacing the transmission gear oil and see if that fixes it. Wish me luck. I am going to try to do it myself. Never done this before but it doesn't look too hard. Anything I should be aware of (other than the obvious don't be directly under the drain plug when you take it out)? I assume I should do this procedure while the engine is still warm but not hot or running.

Yes, you want the trans oil to be warm when you drain. So you should do it after driving. Definitely, you don't want to be under the drain plug. Gear oil is some of the nastiest sh!t on earth. If you don't know already, you will find out. Check your owners manual to make sure you buy the right oil too, as not all cars take the same stuff. Most use 90 weight gear oil (the nasty stuff), but some use regular engine oil, and a few even use ATF.
An important note: use jackstands to lift the car instead of ramps if you can. This will ensure that the car is level for proper draining and refilling. Also make sure to check the manual for the proper amount to add, but expect that you will not have to add that much as trans oil rarely drains out completely. Do not overfill. You may (most likely will) need to buy an inexpensive pump to add the oil.
And hey, it doesn't hurt to call the dealer or a trusted shop to see what they will charge for this. It might be less than you think. Maybe even the same as doing it yourself but without the mess and hassle.

 

[ahurtt]

Originally posted by: Gamingphreek

Originally posted by: ahurtt

Originally posted by: Gamingphreek

Originally posted by: ahurtt

Originally posted by: Whoozyerdaddy
How cold are we talking? At -20 and colder that sort of thing is normal. Changing the tranny fluid might not do anything.

Well. . .I suppose at night lately with windchill it might have been below 20 F but I am not positive. It may have gotten down in the mid-20's. This morning when i got in the car it was about 33 F outside and it did what I described. But I don't know how much that temperature had come up from what it had been overnight. I guess I'll have to make a mental note to see if it does it after sitting in the work parking lot all day before I go home. But what about the "whining" noise it makes? Is that normal for cold temperatures too? I don't recall ever having had this problem in the winters for the first few years I owned the car. It is more of a recent thing I think.

Lol windchill doesn't matter to cars. It only is the temperature as perceived by living flesh (ie Humans; Dogs)

Back on topic though. 33F is not nearly cold enough to give a transmission problems. The car will still have to warm up, but Transmission fluid is good into Sub Zero temperatures IIRC (-30 I want to say, but I could be way off)

-Kevin

Edit: About the whining noise, well its kind of a vague description and hard to diagnose without hearing it and looking. Is it whining as the car moves? Other than that off the top of my head, the best I can say is it is a 7 year old car. It is going to make some noises. Check the belts and make sure everything is fine.

Yes, I think the whining noise stops when the car is not moving. I just had all the belts including the timing belt replaced about 2 weeks ago. However, I am pretty sure it has been doing this for longer than that. It wasn't anything caused by the mechanic at the shop or anything. Keep in mind also, while this car is about 7 years old, it still only has about 50K miles on it.

Well if it only does it while the car is moving, regardless of speed and what not, I would have to say Brakes and Brake Calipers.

-Kevin

Thanks but I am fairly certain the noise has nothing to do with the brakes. The noise stops after the car warms up. And it just doesn't sound like it's coming from the brakes either. It's not quite that kind of a noise. I am fairly certain it has to do with the transmission as the noise changes in intensity and pitch immediately when I manipulate the clutch or the stickshift.

 

[amicold]

Originally posted by: Gamingphreek

Originally posted by: ahurtt

Originally posted by: Gamingphreek

Originally posted by: ahurtt

Originally posted by: Whoozyerdaddy
How cold are we talking? At -20 and colder that sort of thing is normal. Changing the tranny fluid might not do anything.

Well. . .I suppose at night lately with windchill it might have been below 20 F but I am not positive. It may have gotten down in the mid-20's. This morning when i got in the car it was about 33 F outside and it did what I described. But I don't know how much that temperature had come up from what it had been overnight. I guess I'll have to make a mental note to see if it does it after sitting in the work parking lot all day before I go home. But what about the "whining" noise it makes? Is that normal for cold temperatures too? I don't recall ever having had this problem in the winters for the first few years I owned the car. It is more of a recent thing I think.

Lol windchill doesn't matter to cars. It only is the temperature as perceived by living flesh (ie Humans; Dogs)

Back on topic though. 33F is not nearly cold enough to give a transmission problems. The car will still have to warm up, but Transmission fluid is good into Sub Zero temperatures IIRC (-30 I want to say, but I could be way off)

-Kevin

Edit: About the whining noise, well its kind of a vague description and hard to diagnose without hearing it and looking. Is it whining as the car moves? Other than that off the top of my head, the best I can say is it is a 7 year old car. It is going to make some noises. Check the belts and make sure everything is fine.

Yes, I think the whining noise stops when the car is not moving. I just had all the belts including the timing belt replaced about 2 weeks ago. However, I am pretty sure it has been doing this for longer than that. It wasn't anything caused by the mechanic at the shop or anything. Keep in mind also, while this car is about 7 years old, it still only has about 50K miles on it.

Well if it only does it while the car is moving, regardless of speed and what not, I would have to say Brakes and Brake Calipers.

-Kevin

Yep, perhaps a slightly sticking pad. Pop off the wheel you suspect, put the car into neutral (manual, shouldn't be a problem I suppose) and try and spin the rotor/hub assembly. It should be sort of difficult but not painfully hard. If it is, check to make sure the pads are "floating" in their proper positions. You might have rust/bur's preventing them from seating 100%, just grind any gunk off.

 

[Vic]

No, it's not the brakes. Read the damn OP. Manual transmission problems are extremely easy to diagnose. Push in the clutch. Does the problem/sound go away? Then it's the tranny.

 

[Gamingphreek]

Originally posted by: Vic
No, it's not the brakes. Read the damn OP. Manual transmission problems are extremely easy to diagnose. Push in the clutch. Does the problem/sound go away? Then it's the tranny.

I did read it but I stopped reading half-way through. I saw whining when the car was moving and immediately thought brake pad. Sorry OP, teaches me for trying to post while doing HW lol.

-Kevin