Report: Nissan settles GT-R transmission class action suit

Although when the GT-R finally found its way into showrooms it quickly became apparent that there was a consequence for all this performance with the transmission becoming a costly Achilles heel for many owners.

With arguably the worlds most effective and efficient all-wheel-drive system on board, it was a tall order to ask the gearbox to bear the brunt of its performance with many breaking after just a few short months on the road.

The cause was usually the first-generation Launch Control system which could result in catastrophic gearbox failure and a $20,000 repair bill which was not covered under Nissan's warranty.

As GT-R owners got together to file a class action suit, Nissan had already realised this issue by introducing a softer, new-generation Launch Control system (LC2) in its revised 2009 GT-R.

This dispute has now reportedly been settled with Nissan offering any owners with the first-generation LC system a new 5 years/60,000 miles once they upgrade to LC2.

Transmissions with LC2 will be fully covered by Nissan for breakages as long as VDC is left on - if Launch Control is used without VDC on then any warranty claim is voided.

Furthermore, where Nissan was previously able to detect whether Launch Control had been used without VDC enabled and void a customer’s warranty, it is now Nissan's responsibility to determine whether operating LC with VDC off was the direct cause of the failure.

So now, if you risk a full launch with VDC off and all is well, you get to keep your warranty.

This decision only applies to owners of the first generation GT-R in the US. All Australian-delivered GT-R's are the updated 2009 model which means they are unaffected by this issue.

Source: NAGTROC