Should there be a vibration in a 2008 Nissan Altima?
April 25th, 2009 | 
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I just bought a 2008 Nissan Altima with a cvt motor. There seems to be a vibration though. It’s on and off. The dealer that I bought the vehicle from told me it was normal because of the cvt motor. Everyone else i’ve spoke with disagrees.
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Every car vibrates some.
could be the tires
It’s supposed to Vibrate when you take-off. I got scared also with my 08 Maxima when I got it, but the dealer is right. CVT Motor does not shift, vibrates instead. Now if it’s vibrating @ high speeds (shaking on the express way), you need to take it back and make use of your warranty!!
CVT motors are not supposed to have what people call “shift shock”. When the transmission shifts through gears and you can feel it. CVT if i remember correctly was a technology used by farm equipment. If you have a vibration while driving, determine at what speed range (driving in a parking lot or on the freeway) and location (steering wheel vibrates, feel it in your seat or feel like the whole car is vibrating). Most likely if you bought used, warranty will not cover tire balance but will probably cover diagnosis of the problem. Good luck.
Try driving another 2008 4 CLY 2.5 liter or is your’s a V-6 3.5 liter? Altima and see if that car has the same vibration. If it is normal the same noise vibration will be in different cars. AND Continuously Variable Transmission or CVT generally does not vibrate at all. Motors vibrate wheels tires vibrate brakes judder pulsate. Each Vibration has a specific frequency and speed at which they occur.
Have the same thing in my 2007 maxima, its at lower rps right ? Nissan considers this “normal ” so nothing to worry about it its the CVT, which i learned to hate eghhh