[Jah20]

I'm planning on going with a used 2012+ GTR coming from a 2018 370Z and I wanted to know why people avoid the 2014 and 2016 years. I came to the conclusion that the 2011 and older ones I'm not interested in at all because of the transmission issues and they look weird, and 2017 and newer is out of the range that I'm willing to pay for one.

 

[GTRick]

I have never heard of anyone avoiding 14-16, but some people opt for 17+ if they like the facelift bumpers and feel its worth another $20k.

There are a lot of small changes but here are the highlights in mid years.

12+ Transmission reliability improvements
14+ Premium semi-aniline leather packages available.
15+ New headlights, tail lights, softer suspension noise canceling.
16 Unique premium wheels.
17+ New bumpers, side skirts, wheels and dash layout.

 

[HILife GT-R]

The only thing I can think of is the 2016 wheels look like the least popular premium wheels and if your going to spend the money on a 14, might as well get the 15 for the upgraded Head and tail lights. If you can look past those things, don't see why not include them in your searches.

 

[SJH]

I do not know that people avoid 16 but the wheels were a huge change. I personally do not like them at all.

 

[droptopp]

Never heard of anyone avoiding 2014 and 2016 and I’ve been around for a minute.

Buy one snd buck that trend you made up

 

[droptopp]

Edit - so fog lights and a minute change to the front fender is enough to not make the CBAs look weird ?

13 and 14’s were the fastest stock ever made iirc.

P.s. they all have the same transmission 2008-2021 (tuners got better and so did the software)

 

[L.L.]

I've heard of others avoiding the 2014 in the past because of leaking transmission seals. Although I do remember seeing cases of them here and there, I've asked my GTR tech about that in the past and he said it wasn't a widespread thing. It would have been covered under the powertrain warranty back then but now that it is outside of coverage, I wonder if that changes people's opinions of the MY2014.

Two things I can think of regarding the 2016. One, the Premium wheels isn't everyone's cup of tea. I didn't mind them so much and actually preferred them over the DBA wheels so this is subjective.

The second thing is the suspension seems to be much softer compared to previous years which causes the car to lean and understeer more. Having owned a 2015 and now a 2016, I can confirm the 2016 is softer and does understeer. At the same time, it is more comfortable in some parts of town compared to the 2015. The 2016 also shifts much smoother compared to previous years.

If you don't mind the characteristics of the 2016, it is the last year of the DBA. Some do prefer the old front and rear end so it's really personal preference.

 

[ArchEtech]

I bought a 2016 specifically because of some of the characteristics being discussed. The wheels are also a huge plus. They are a little less unique but I like them more than the previous models.

I have noticed there are very few 2016 models when looking.

 

[Geno88]

I LOVED my 16 premium.............wheels are ok looking, but a real Bee-och to clean well.

 

[Gdzilla_]

If you don't mind the characteristics of the 2016, it is the last year of the DBA. Some do prefer the old front and rear end so it's really personal preference.

Okay, this has gone on for years and I'd really like some clarity on the subject.

Since when has the MY16 been deemed the last year of the DBA and going forward the EBA was born? The MY16's to current year are on the same platform/chassis and structural body correct? Just an exterior and interior facelift doesn't constitute a technical change to the platform does it?

Does Nissan even refer to the MY17's as an EBA?

 

[L.L.]

Okay, this has gone on for years and Id really like some clarity on the subject.
Since when has the MY16 been deemed the last year of the DBA and going forward the EBA was born? The MY16s to current year are on the same platform/chassis and structural body correct? Just an exterior and interior facelift doesnt constitute a technical change to the platform does it?
Does Nissan even refer to the MY17s as an EBA?

Glad you brought that up because folks like to use EBA for the refreshed MY17+ when it's still DBA for 2017-19. If I were to say DBA, most would think 2016 or older. It's so confusing. Nissan doesn't officially refer to the MY17-MY19 as EBA which is why I didn't go so far as to refer to the 2017+ as such. The discussions within the community itself (here and FB) has unofficially used the reference EBA for the 17+ and the 20-21 is officially 4BA. Confusing enough?

 

[GTRick]

I've heard of others avoiding the 2014 in the past because of leaking transmission seals. Although I do remember seeing cases of them here and there, I've asked my GTR tech about that in the past and he said it wasn't a widespread thing. It would have been covered under the powertrain warranty back then but now that it is outside of coverage, I wonder if that changes people's opinions of the MY2014.
...
.

Valid point but I dont think the leaking transmission seals are very common anymore. The bad seals were fixed under warranty early on. While a small sample set, Ive had two 14s and neither had any problems. I havent heard anyone else complain of this issue in the 3 years Ive frequented this board either so I suspect the problematic cars were fixed years ago.

The main reason to opt for a 15+ in my opinion is the new lightning bolt headlights and ring tail lights. You can always swap these out on earlier years so I wouldnt pass on a clean 12-14 if it has low miles and the price is right.

 

[L.L.]

Here are some previous discussions regarding the 2014 issues for prospective owners to draw their own conclusions...

https://www.gtrlife.com/forums/topic/203481-2014-transmission-leak/

https://www.gtrlife.com/forums/topic/106891-2014-gtr-transmission-leaking/

https://www.gtrlife.com/forums/topic/188153-another-2014-gt-r-with-transmission-leak/

https://www.gtrlife.com/forums/topic/105719-2014-gtr-transmission-issues/

https://www.gtrlife.com/forums/topic/188873-2014-transmission-leak-saga-continues/

https://www.gtrlife.com/forums/topic/300226-transmission-output-shaft-seal-leak/

https://www.gtrlife.com/forums/topic/197314-2014-issues/

 

[GTRick]

@L.L. Im not doubting this was once a concern but all of those threads are 5-7 years old (2014-2016) with the exception of one from 2018 but it was about a leak in a 2011 GT-R. This supports my assertion that the cars with this issue were sorted early on under warranty or we would still be hearing about people with this issue in the last several years.

 

[L.L.]

While I agree that most would have been addressed under warranty, there are many variables and different driving conditions where the problem may not yet have surfaced. Low mileage, babied, garage queens come to mind.

It's just something to consider. Although the OPs started threads 5-7 years ago, the discussions do continue through 2020-2021 in some of the threads. Have to consider that active participating traffic on the forums have decreased significantly in the last 5 years.

Nissan replacing the entire trans was their way of addressing it even if it wasn't absolutely necessary. If out of warranty, it's not the end of the world and trans replacement might not be necessary. Shep sells the seals to address the leaks and, from what I understand, the process isn't that invasive.

 

[*14TrakEDN*]

I never had a problem with my 14 TE factory trans and I tracked it lightly for 2 years.
After that I upgraded it to a Shep 2.5 at FBO.....About 1.5 years ago I went with a Shep Stage 4 for the build I'm planning.
I did destroy the factory 5th gear in the Shep 2.5 at FBO levels.....Factory gears only last so long.

 

[GTRick]

Bought my current 14 with 5k miles and only put another 4k on it 2.5 years so it qualifies as a garage queen. No problems. My first 14 I daily drove rain snow and sunshine from 19k-27k miles and no issues with that one either. Both modded to FBO and both very reliable cars only requiring the scheduled maintenance.

The only posts I found on this seal issue in the last few years were people inquiring about this or people replying they have no problems. It appears the warranty replacements Nissan put in werent prone to fail again.

All in all, the GT-R in any year is a pretty damn reliable car for the performance level compared to some of the other platforms out there, especially from 2012 onwards.

 

[9TR]

Glad you brought that up because folks like to use EBA for the refreshed MY17+ when it's still DBA for 2017-19. If I were to say DBA, most would think 2016 or older. It's so confusing. Nissan doesn't officially refer to the MY17-MY19 as EBA which is why I didn't go so far as to refer to the 2017+ as such. The discussions within the community itself (here and FB) has unofficially used the reference EBA for the 17+ and the 20-21 is officially 4BA. Confusing enough?

Correct and good post. Personally I think it's best to refer to the MY17-19 cars as facelift DBA cars. But it seems like most people will continue to refer to them as EBA.

 

[[email protected]]

I have a 14 that was lemon titled because of transmission leaks. Nissan replaced the transmission in the first year and the new transmission didn't leak.

At this point, I doubt there's any 14s left that still have leaky transmissions. Don't think anyone was keeping a GTR for 7 years and leaving a leaky transmission untreated.

 

[jnl16]

2014 no transmission leaks, but I had a clutch seal start giving issues at 30k miles