Car problem-tansmission question

[golfgal]

We have a Saturn SL2 that the kids drive (well DS17 now, the twins next year). DS had some problems with it yesterday and we think the transmission is going-suspected this was going to happen sooner or later, 140,000 miles. The rest of the car is in great shape so the dilemma is fix it or get another used car. If we fix the transmission can we expect, on average, to get another say 60,000 miles or more out of the car? I wish I knew more about cars. Any info is appreciated.

 

[The Mystery Machine]

No right or wrong answer here. What is the blue book of the Saturn and yr of the car? Look up KBB, Edmunds, Auto Trader, etc and find the private party sale. With a bad transmission the car will not get that private party price.

What price range would you replace it with? That is the million dollar question.

If this is just a beater for the teens, then you fix the transmission. You say it is in good shape.

Now if you buy a used in the 5000 range as a replacement, that might be worth it to dump it and move on. Of course you will have to fix the transmission to get the private party sale price anyway.

So here is what we do as buyers of used only....

We would fix the transmission and then sell it later. Get another yr or so out of it and then upgrade if necessary.

Don't feel bad. The transmission is going out on our Yukon, plus some front end parts. YIKES.

 

[Golf4food]

As PP said, who knows? But I can promise you a $2,000 transmission is cheaper in the short and long term than a $10,000 new car. People always get stuck on the one time price of a major automobile repair and immediately want to go out and just buy a new car that is going to cost them a LOT more money in the long run, no matter what the up front cost might be. Very short sighted. We've been guilty of it in the past ourselves (ironically, trading in an SL2 on an ION from Saturn in 2004, lol).

 

[golfgal]

As PP said, who knows? But I can promise you a $2,000 transmission is cheaper in the short and long term than a $10,000 new car. People always get stuck on the one time price of a major automobile repair and immediately want to go out and just buy a new car that is going to cost them a LOT more money in the long run, no matter what the up front cost might be. Very short sighted. We've been guilty of it in the past ourselves (ironically, trading in an SL2 on an ION from Saturn in 2004, lol).

The options we are weighing are to fix this car-who's body is in perfect shape or buy a used car for around $4000.

 

[HelenePA]

The options we are weighing are to fix this car-who's body is in perfect shape or buy a used car for around $4000.

There is no guarantee your new used car wont have more problems than the one you have now.

 

[luvmy3]

The options we are weighing are to fix this car-who's body is in perfect shape or buy a used car for around $4000.

I had to replace the transmission in my mini-van, but because I have connections it only cost me the cost of the used transmission. If I had to pay for labor it could have easily cost $4000. Did you get an estimate on what the cost to replace/repair the transmission was?

 

[golfgal]

There is no guarantee your new used car wont have more problems than the one you have now.

That's the whole problem. Someone else brought up the issue that the engine may be failing too so who knows. I HATE buying cars.

 

[The Mystery Machine]

That's the whole problem. Someone else brought up the issue that the engine may be failing too so who knows. I HATE buying cars.

So you do not know what is wrong with the car yet. Figure that out first.

 

[C.Ann]

We were in a similar position once.. Body of the car - and all other parts - were in great shape.. The car had 120,000 on it and the transmission went.. Since everything else about the car was fine we decided to go with getting the transmission.. It cost us $1200 and my DH drove the car every day for another 5 years..

If there are other issues - or the body was rusting out - I would ditch it and hope you get lucky with a "new" used car..

 

[SandrA9810]

a rebuilt transmission should cost you under 2000. And find some one that only does transmissions, but not like AAMCO. If we went with our regular maintance guys, they would've had to charge us over 4 grand, but refered us to a little pop place that gave an estimate of 1800 at most.

Find a good mechanic shop and run a whole diagnostic test. Might cost you a couple hundred, but well worth it if you try to sell it too. That way you're completely honest with a buyer.

Can you kids help come up with the money?? Or a portion since it's their get around car? Nothing like growing up...

 

[golfgal]

We have a good mechanic and we have been keeping an eye on the transmission for a couple years. Last time we talked he said it would be around $1500. He will look at it on Wednesday and let us know what is up then.

 

[Kimberly]

I never had much luck with rebuilt transmissions. My first car, a pontiac, had the transmission rebuilt at 160,000 miles, and then 10,000 miles later, it went again. Just a word of warning, since rebuilding the transmission may just patch things up, but it may not fix the issue that's causing it to break down.

For me... I'd either buy a new transmission entirely, or buy a new car. I just don't like putting off the inevitable.

 

[bettymae1121]

I'd fix it. I have a '98 SL2 with 168k miles on it, runs like a champ (with the exception of one small problem, see below). For some reason, good reliable used cars can't be had in my area for less than $5k that I've ever seen, so the transmision would have to cost more than $5k to be worth it, and I know they don't cost that much.

Just to be sure though, you should have the computer checked out. Our transmision has been acting a little hinky but only when we put it into gear, once on the road it's fine. DH says it's NOT the transmition, it's the computer may be going bad so the card doesn't "know" right away what gear it should be in when we move the gear shifter. The computer is also giving off a few other error codes (dh has one of those diagostic thingies you plug into the OBD) so he's pretty sure it's just the computer, as everything else checks out okay. Can I say what a help having a car-repair savy DH is?

 

[golfgal]

I'd fix it. I have a '98 SL2 with 168k miles on it, runs like a champ (with the exception of one small problem, see below). For some reason, good reliable used cars can't be had in my area for less than $5k that I've ever seen, so the transmision would have to cost more than $5k to be worth it, and I know they don't cost that much.

Just to be sure though, you should have the computer checked out. Our transmision has been acting a little hinky but only when we put it into gear, once on the road it's fine. DH says it's NOT the transmition, it's the computer may be going bad so the card doesn't "know" right away what gear it should be in when we move the gear shifter. The computer is also giving off a few other error codes (dh has one of those diagostic thingies you plug into the OBD) so he's pretty sure it's just the computer, as everything else checks out okay. Can I say what a help having a car-repair savy DH is?

It is more than a computer problem, it is making funny noises and driving strangely. It sounds like the same car you have '98 SL2.

 

[AnnaS]

We are actually having this work done now. We have a Pathfinder that is about 10 years old in great shape and has less than 70,000 miles. We are hoping to get it back tomorrow. Will let you know final cost.

 

[tar heel]

Tough call. We've done major repairs like that twice, and both times it was the right move. The problem, of course, is that you don't immediately know whether it was the right decision.

We put a rebuilt transmisison in a 1994 Dodge Caravan and drove it another 70,000 miles. The Grand Caravan I drive now had a blown engine around 75,000 miles. We were still making payments on it, so we opted to put an engine from a wrecked car in it for $2,400. That vehicle now has 198,000 miles on it and is going strong -- of course, the engine only has about 150,000 since we chose one from a low mileage van.