New Trans or Sell car

[bunka]

So, I posted earlier about my car hesitating at around 50- 60 km an hour. I took it to the dealership, after three trips, a transmission fluid, filter and strainer change that did nothing to alleviate the issue they have told me the transmission needs to be replaced which is SUPER irritating when they did not do all the testing they should have before.

Anyway now I either cough up $3500 for the new transmission and install or sell the car. The trans has been rebuilt once and we are second owners so I am thinking it is not worth it especially since this more than we paid for the car.

Thoughts or advice? What could I sell the car for? It only slips a little at the moment when under load.

This stinks! I've only owned the car for three months.

 

[Lewis7789]

$3500 for a new trannsmission is the dealership cost. That's far from the real-world cost. I'm assuming your have an automatic tranny and that you're not a weekend mechanic like most of the rest of the members and myself. You could find a used auto-tranny for $300 and install it in 8 hours with a friend. It's really not tough to do. Even if you asked around perhaps a local Mazda member would install it for you for $100-200. Or take it to a local trusted mechanic and he can swap it for you in a couple days.

I know it sucks when things break but it's not the end of the world, or your Protege5. Keep your head up, mate.

 

[bunka]

Hi Lewis7789!

Nope, not a mechanic at all however I am concerned about the car being reliable afterward. I knew that was the dealership cost and, after all my dealings with them, I know they are not very honest.

It is automatic but given the fact that I really don't know much at all about cars, I am worried about finding a used transmission that's decent and a trustworthy person to install it. The thing is I think the rest of the car is in good shape...ha ha everything but the most important thing.

I do have a good mechanic here that I use and I do trust them. What I would want to know would be whether this will work in the long run or will I have to do it again and again.

This whole mess seemed to start after the car was rear-ended about two months ago and took about 6 weeks and a solid chunk of cash to figure out what it was so, like I said, I am worried this could turn into a money suck.

Thanks though, I will see if anyone wants to help.

 

[jbrewer4639]

$3500 for a new trannsmission is the dealership cost. That's far from the real-world cost. I'm assuming your have an automatic tranny and that you're not a weekend mechanic like most of the rest of the members and myself. You could find a used auto-tranny for $300 and install it in 8 hours with a friend. It's really not tough to do. Even if you asked around perhaps a local Mazda member would install it for you for $100-200. Or take it to a local trusted mechanic and he can swap it for you in a couple days.

I know it sucks when things break but it's not the end of the world, or your Protege5. Keep your head up, mate.

absolutely.

I would source the tranny on the net or junkyard. I wouldn't use the stealership for much of anything

 

[BOOSTR]

$3,500CDN is insane! Definitely call local recyclers and source a used replacement. Most will give you a limited warranty. Have your mechanic install new fluid and a transmission service kit for peace of mind on it.

 

[bunka]

Thanks everyone...I'll see what I can do. Could doing this extend the car life to more than a year or two?

 

[canadian357]

Probably. Out of curiousity, whereabouts in Canada are you? If you're close by I'd be willing to lend a hand, or at least help find a good trans.

 

[MazdaSpeeder]

bunka,
Of course, used engines and transmissions are always a bit of a gamble, and I understand your hesitation. But the reality is, if you don't put a new tranny in there, the car is worthless. You no longer have any equity in it because no one will buy a car that doesn't have a working drivetrain. A used transmission might end up being a waste of money, but if you do your research, you're more likely than not to end up with something reliable. Buy a transmission that has low miles on it, and talk to sellers about where it came from (wrecked car, engine failure, etc). Have your mechanic replace and check over everything before he installs it. The reality is, it's still probably going to cost less than half of what the stealership quoted you. If you have a good mechanic you trust, put it in his hands. More than likely, you'll end up with a good transmission that will allow you to enjoy your P5 for years to come. Good luck, let us know what happens!

 

[bunka]

Hey Canadian357,

I'm in Calgary...so you know constantly freezing but since your in Edmonton you know what I mean. I'll see what I can scrounge up around here with our mechanic's help and I really appreciate your offer.

Thanks MazdaSpeeder, I'm going to start calling around and talk to my mechanic and see what he thinks.

Will keep you all posted. Thanks everyone!

 

[BOOSTR]

Try to find out what other vehicles share the AT in your P5. It will help to broaden your search when you know interchange applications.

 

[MaxPower]

First of all, you need to take the car to a trustworthy mechanic and get it diagnosed properly. Try to find a independent Mazda-specific mechanic.

Then you can talk about the cost of a used tranny/installation with him. If it needs another tranny, it will probably be less than $1000 ($400 for the tranny and $600 for installation), which is a lot cheaper than a new car. Yes, it will be a gamble, but that's the downside. Try to get a low mileage tranny to maximize your odds.

 

[P-Funk!]

^Yes!

I am not so sure (from the OP ) that it even IS the tranny.

So many other things need to checked first. The air intake hose comes to mind. Coils?

And then, yeah, a good junkyard tranny. They are not known bad-actors in our cars - so reliability is not really an issue.

 

[MaxPower]

As P-Funk! said... you've described the car as "hesitating" and "slipping", but neither of those convincingly points to the transmission. Definitely get it diagnosed properly, without assuming it's the transmission.

 

[bunka]

Hi all,

It would be great if it was not the transmission however I took it to the mechanics I trust, the couldn't find anything so sent me to AAMCO who said nothing was wrong with the transmission, so I took it back to my guys who still couldn't find anything and suggested the dealership. Initially they thought it was just the tranny fluid and so they replaced all that along with the filter and strainer and I drove away within 5 minutes the slipping happened. I was ticked off so they ran a bunch of tests last week and told me that it was slipping in 4th gear and without the computer saying anything they think it can only be the transmission.

Here my post from earlier: http://www.mazdas247.com/forum/show...gain-at-80km&p=5575094&highlight=#post5575094

I really appreciate all this help! It would be amazing if it wasn't the transmission!

On that note anyone recommend any Mazda mechanics in Calgary?

I am at a loss.