here is a place to get good used japanese transmissions.
I have purchased two of these and installed them- takeoffs from recycled japanese cars- and they looked and ran like brand new. they actually looked as if they’d been pulled off of new cars- cars are recycled much more often in Japan than in the USA.
of course it’s a crapshoot, and you don’t know what you’re going to get, but in my case, it was well worth the cost.
b.
Hm… just called the place and suddenly, they say I need a new axle or they won’t warranty the repairs. Huge bullshit alarms going off left and right, but what’s a girl to <I>do</I> exactly?
FYI, they claim the axle boot on the driver’s side is ripped and has allowed salt, corrosion, etc.
Hello, the bullshit alarm should be going off, but an axle halfshaft shouldn’t be a big deal. DIY, a reman halfshaft is around $120 for many cars. It isn’t uncommon to have a CV joint boot tear- some automatic car washes will do it in a heartbeat, or a piece of road debris.
Keep looking around for used trannies- like the link I sent you, or others. Best of luck!
Mark
They may be telling the truth about the axle. It’s common for the boots to split, and once they do, if you don’t replace it right away, you’ll get dirt inside the joint and ruin it. Like Mark said, it’s not a particularly expensive repair, and I would think that if the transmission’s being taken out anyway, it shouldn’t be difficult for them to do. There are places that specialize in rebuilding axles, and you could probably get a rebuilt one for under $100. They are probably much more expensive new.
Ugh, what a mess.
Still, for the benefit of other people reading this, I will echo what others have said and what I told you over the phone: a good used car, even with several major maintenance-style repairs figured in, will cost you a shitload less than a new car (per year). The only problem is dealing with the annoyance of having the car in the shop, and being able to handle the fact that you can’t plan for the damn problems that arise.
Plus, I like how not buying a new one is giving the finger to the consumerist economy. Whee!
I don’t know if all towns are like this, but in Ann Arbor there seems to be a very reliable word-of-mouth recommendation system for the good repair shops. There is one repair shop in town that is supposed to be fantastic, but they are always booked up solid (plus they tend to close when hunting seasons open). However, back when I had an American car I regularly called them for recommendations and they were always happy to refer their overload business to the better places in town. Gotta love that.