The Nissan Cabstar is a series of light commercial vehicles and pickup trucks produced in various iterations from 1982 to the present day. The Nissan Cabstar is also known as the Nissan Atlas, Renault Maxity, the Mazda Titan, the Isuzu Elf and the Mitsubishi Fuso Canter. The Cabstar was produced with a range of manual and automatic gearboxes.
While Nissan commercial vehicles are generally very dependable, there are a range of gearbox issues that they can experience. This is especially important to watch out for if you’re in the market for a used model and you don’t know what kind of maintenance has taken place on the vehicle.
In this article we are going to run through a series of potential Nissan Cabstar gearbox problems and what you might be able to do to prevent them becoming major issues. With proper maintenance and care, there’s no reason your Nissan Cabstar can’t last you up to 200,000 miles.
Difficulty selecting gears
This is one of the most common issues and can sometimes point to major issues with your Nissan Cabstar gearbox. This problem generally comes if you can select certain gears but not others – for example, you might get 1, 3, and 5, but not 2 and 4. This usually indicates a problem with the gear linkage – possibly the selector cable is worn and isn’t engaging properly. If this is the case then it does mean you’ll likely avoid significant work to the gearbox, as it could be just a case of swapping the gear linkage out for a new one.
However, it could be something more serious, and you should have this checked with your local mechanic. If the gear linkages are fine, this could suggest a problem with either the gear stick itself, or potentially worn gearbox synchros or other internal gearbox damage.
Delays in shifting
This is generally a problem with automatic transmissions on the Nissan Cabstar, and delays in shifting are usually as a result of poor maintenance or high mileage. Transmission fluid keeps the internal seals and components of the gearbox lubricated, and when the fluid gets old and burnt, it is not able to lubricate and protect components of the transmission.
Additionally automatic transmissions are complex things, and contain a number of different mechanisms such as clutches, bands and solenoids, all of which can wear out over time and with heavy use. Given that the Nissan Cabstar is a commercial vehicle, it gets subjected to wear and tear far beyond that of a normal car, and therefore should be maintained more rigorously.
If you haven’t had your transmission fluid changed recently and you’re experiencing delays in shifting, this may be a good place to start. If the damage goes beyond worn transmission oil however, you are looking at a significant repair bill for someone to strip the gearbox down and find out what’s wrong with it.
Jumping out of gear
This is usually a manual transmission fault and happens when gearbox synchromesh cones become worn. This can cause the vehicle to pop out of gear at any moment, but may happen when there is more of a load on the gearbox such as when going up a hill. You may also be experiencing a damaged gearbox mounting which is causing the gearbox to move and for the gear to jump out.
If you are experiencing this, you should get your gearbox inspected by a mechanic. If it does turn out to be a synchromesh issue your gearbox will need to be stripped down and repaired by a suitable gearbox technician – and this will be costly. A damaged gearbox mounting will be easier to replace but can be quite labour intensive.
Of course this could be something simpler – maybe the gear linkage just needs adjusting, for example. Despite this you should have your vehicle checked over as soon as possible, as a Nissan Cabstar jumping out of gear is dangerous.
Gearbox noise
Gearbox noise is also a common problem that you may need to deal with. This depends entirely on the type of noise you’re experiencing, but common noises include a cracking noise, a squeaking noise or a whistling noise.
A cracking or banging noise could be worn gearbox mounts – as you change gear, the mounts aren’t holding the gearbox in place so the gearbox moves, causing the banging noise. If this is the case this is a relatively simple fix that a mechanic can have done for you in less than a day and shouldn’t cost too much.
A squeaking noise could be a number of different things – especially if it appears when you’re trying to shift gears. This could be worn synchros on individual gears – so check to see whether it happens only in certain gears. This is an expensive repair, so make sure you get this diagnosed properly by a garage before committing to spending any money on it – as if your gearbox is damaged too severely you may have to fork out for a whole new gearbox.
A whistling or whining noise is generally indicative of damage to the gear teeth or gear hub bearings. The most likely cause of this damage is a lack of lubrication. This is never a cheap fix and is important to get your gearbox checked ASAP.
Old gearbox oil
As we’ve mentioned, old and burnt transmission fluid in automatic transmissions can cause issues with your gearbox, such as delayed shifting. However, manual transmissions need oil too, and if the oil is old it may not lubricate the gears as well, causing wear and damage.
Additionally if this lack of lubrication gets too severe, small metal filings can break off from the gears and cause damage to the gearbox internals. You can prevent this with regular gearbox oil changes, and having a more detailed gearbox inspection if you find metal filings when changing the oil.
Clutch issues
What you are perceiving as a gearbox issue may in fact be a clutch issue. This is only applicable to the manual version, but if you’re finding that the clutch pedal is hard, it could indicate a problem with your clutch cable. Additionally if your clutch is slipping, or you’re finding that the gearbox is crunching when you’re trying to change gear, it could just indicate that your clutch is worn and needs replacing.
If you have difficulty engaging and changing gears even when the clutch is down, or you experience issues with the pedal or a judder when you hold the clutch to the bite, you will need to get your Cabstar booked in for a clutch replacement job.
Check out some of our other transmission/gearbox related articles!
About the author
Marcus Brown is editor-in-chief of The FatMech and is a mechanic with ten years' experience based in London, UK. Having worked for major dealerships for many years, Marcus now works for a local independent garage and has experience working on nearly every make and model of car. Marcus also has a passion for writing and teaching, which is where the idea for The FatMech came from. In his spare time, Marcus enjoys playing golf, doing home renovations and gardening. He lives just outside London with his wife and son.