Every auto vehicle I've ever had did this when it was cold out and the vehicle itself was "cold soaked", so I'd say it's normal. I don't have first had experience with the Frontiers though as mine is a 6 spd
How exactly is a hard shift better for the tranny than a smooth shift? When I approach -4F, My tranny kicks into the next gear so hard that it sounds like I've been rear-ended, and often breaks traction on ice/snow. And this is under light acceleration. I've had a LOT of automatic transmissions, but I've never experienced anything as horrific as my Frontier. The lash to the drive train that this has to be causing makes me sick to the stomach and has me considering another vehicle since Nissan refuses to do acknowledge that there is an issue. But hey, I'm just a lowly engineer, so I could be wrong.it could be a characteristic of the new fluid - but harder shifts are better for the tranny anyway, so its not hurting it.