Calling all Mechanics - Transmission Died / recommend a mechanic in Dunedin

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Blurtie

468 posts

Ultimate Geek

#198844 25-Jul-2016 14:06

Hi All,

Hopefully you guys can help me out! As per the subject, my car's transmission died over the weekend unexpectedly. It was fine on friday for a trip out to the airport and back to pick up the in-laws (25km each way), however later on that night I noticed an issue as we went out to get dinner. We have a steep drive way and putting the car in D i noticed the car was just not engaging into the lower gears at all, it just kept revving the more i put down the accelerator... Shifting the transmission to 1 or 2 worked, as did reverse. So i manged to get up the hill and drive away and found that D would work as long as you're cruising at speed, however if you needed to accelerate (like going up any hills) it would just rev and not drop down a gear. Manually going into 1/2 would be fine again.

Got the car home that night and checked the fluid levels, which looked/smelt fine, but it did look to be on the 'full' side. I was going to get the car checked out, but as i was driving it on sat going up one of the many hills in Dunedin, I decided it was a good idea to put the car into D (as i didn't want to overrev the engine in 2) and that's when it lost all forward gears... so basically i was stranded on the side of the road. Reverse still works if that matters, but i understand that forward/reverse are on different clutches/drums.

My initial search on the internet indicates it could be anything as simple as a sensor failure, or a solenoid to a serious mechanical failure and in need of a replacement transmission.

Does this sound familiar to anyone? Can anyone in the know advise what the problem is and what ballpark figure a fix might cost? Also recommendations on a good, preferably transmission specialist, mechanic in the Dunedin area would be great.

Car is a 2000 Ford Mondeo, so not really worth alot, but it's our only car and we don't have a lot of money to buy anything decent if this car is uneconomic to fix.

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1013 posts

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#1598461 25-Jul-2016 19:13

Hi Blurtie.. are you sure it was the transmission fluid you checked? (and not engine oil, ps fluid or something else)
On level ground? (and usually engine running, trans in 'N' position is required)

I ask because those symptoms could be caused by running out of fluid, or - much less likely - by a very blocked trans filter.

Apart from that it's likely your trans has a major fault. You'll have to tow it to a specialist with the gear to diagnose it.

Is there a warning symbol lit up on the dash? (that would be useful as the code/s will point to a problem)

A good chunk of the cost is removing & installing the trans on jobs like that. Hopefully it's just a module or wiring fault.

Sorry I don't know anyone in the Dunedin area.

Blurtie

468 posts

Ultimate Geek

#1598532 25-Jul-2016 21:00

Hey,

Yep, definitely checked the right trans fluid. But didn't check it when it was running in neutral... It was red/pink in colour and didn't smell burnt at all.

No, i didn't notice any lights flash up on the dash at all...

I bit the bullet and took to a transmission specialist - said the same thing re trans fluid, he ran a diagnostic on it and said that it does actually go into gear but it wouldn't select the appropriate gear or something and came to the conclusion that it was the forward one-way clutch that need replacement with a ballpark figure of $2k... Any idea if that's a reasonable guesstimate? Also looked into the possibility of replacing with a 2nd hand trans altogether (as cheaper than recondition/new trans)... Is it better to just change the part, or change to a 2nd hand trans?

Batman

Mad Scientist
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#1598538 25-Jul-2016 21:18

I'm guessing go with a low ks second hand transmission. But how much is your car worth? If i were you it's time for a new car.

Batman

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#1598540 25-Jul-2016 21:22

Here's my math

If you Car is with 2k
Say second hand transmission plus Labour is 1k

I would put the 1k plus sale of your car say $500 = $1500 into a new car.

The higher the cost of repair the more I'd lean to new car.

Unfortunately if you don't have funds for new car the math might breakdown at the 1k mark

Blurtie

468 posts

Ultimate Geek

#1598542 25-Jul-2016 21:30

Thanks @joker97 noted.

The car itself isn't worth a great money wise, but i guess my problem is that we don't have a lot of savings to get a decent car, we definitely don't want to get a loan to buy a car.

So it's either spend the money on it now for the repair and hope like hell it'll get us another year or two at least (at which time we will probably get the same back for the that we've spent on repairing it ~$2k), or we cut our losses, sell it to the wreckers for next to nothing and use our minimal savings to get an average car (not as good as one we have now) - with no guarantee that it won't break down...

I'm not sure if i'm just being one eye or not, so really looking to hear peoples opinions. The car has been in the family since new, so we know the service history well. I've had the cambelt, radiator, coil pack, thermostat housing, air filters etc replaced recently (most of it done by myself), so this transmission issue really came out of the blue.

On the one hand i'm thinking, if we fix the transmission, then surely that's all bases covered, there shouldn't *touch wood* be any other issues for a few years, apart for an unexpected accident... Or is that a silly way to think guys?

Batman

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#1598544 25-Jul-2016 21:34

How many ks has the car done.
The fact you own it since new changes everything.
Go to the wreckers and source a transmission from low ks car

Blurtie

468 posts

Ultimate Geek

#1598547 25-Jul-2016 21:37

joker97: Here's my math

If you Car is with 2k
Say second hand transmission plus Labour is 1k

I would put the 1k plus sale of your car say $500 = $1500 into a new car.

The higher the cost of repair the more I'd lean to new car.

Unfortunately if you don't have funds for new car the math might breakdown at the 1k mark

Well 2k is a very conservative figure i have in my head... I've looked on trade me, and the same model/year cars are listed for 3k+ (which i know really means it's worth round 2k-ish). But, i've had a look around for other cars in that bracket and there's nothing that makes me think it's a good idea, esp seeing as you don't know whether the car will run for a week or a year...

As i said in my prev post, we've had this car in the family since new, so we know the service history of it and do most of the general servicing on it myself... It's just been a good reliable car up until now.

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Blurtie

468 posts

Ultimate Geek

#1598575 25-Jul-2016 21:43

joker97: How many ks has the car done.
The fact you own it since new changes everything.
Go to the wreckers and source a transmission from low ks car

Thanks, wasn't sure if i was being unreasonable or just not facing the cold hard facts.

Car has now clocked up almost 260k km, but the engine was changed to a refurbished engine round the 120k mark by the ford dealership.

The transmission specialist said he was going to call a few of his contacts to source a 2nd hand part. Sadly my mechanical abilities do not stretch as far as doing a transmission replacement so am going to leave it to the professionals.

Batman

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#1598580 25-Jul-2016 21:53

Engine only lasted 120k? Do save up for another one ... Make sure you know the history of the "new" transmission

Blurtie

468 posts

Ultimate Geek

#1598582 25-Jul-2016 22:00

joker97: Engine only lasted 120k? Do save up for another one ... Make sure you know the history of the "new" transmission

Yeah, not sure what went wrong - we bought the car off the in-laws roughly 5/6 years ago, but they did mention this. Didn't think too much of it at the time...

The thing I like about the car is, it seems to have a good following, tonnes of information out there in various forums etc. Any issues I've had have been solved quickly and cheaply using those forums.

Fred99

13684 posts

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#1598584 25-Jul-2016 22:17

I'm pretty sure that there's a long history of issues with that particular Ford transmission (CD4E) crapping out in various Ford and Mazda models. So it's a problem as to what to do, don't be surprised if the $2k estimate goes higher ($3.5k is realistic IMO). Will they give a firm quote? (I doubt it - as it'll be an unknown quantity until stripped down) A used trans may be cheaper, but what's the warranty going to be on it? I've heard of cases where the mechanic workshop won't guarantee used trans for more than the (typically 3 month) warranty offered by the wrecker/parts suppliers that they're effectively passing on, but they'll warrant their workmanship. How this stacks up with the CGA is a good question, theory being that they can't contract out of the CGA, but you're buying a used product - and if the replacement trans died outside of that 3 months, I suspect you'd be in for a battle to try and get it put right.

260,000km - I think it's about time to call it quits. If it was me, I might consider buying a used trans and fitting it myself, cost a weekend working on it, but even then I wouldn't get too excited unless I got the used transmission cheap.

I've got a car here (actually given to my son a couple of years back) that we bought with about 60,000km on it. It cracked a cylinder head at about 110,000km - no apparent reason why, didn't overheat, not a model known for that issue (Nissan) sometimes it just happens, perhaps a casting fault that had been there since new. I fitted a used engine ($300&GST) - it's now done about 270,000km.

riahon

946 posts

Ultimate Geek

#1598655 26-Jul-2016 04:56

Fred99:

<snip> it's about time to call it quits. If it was me, I might consider buying a used trans and fitting it myself, cost a weekend working on it, but even then I wouldn't get too excited unless I got the used transmission cheap.

I've got a car here (actually given to my son a couple of years back) that we bought with about 60,000km on it. It cracked a cylinder head at about 110,000km - no apparent reason why, didn't overheat, not a model known for that issue (Nissan) sometimes it just happens, perhaps a casting fault that had been there since new. I fitted a used engine ($300&GST) - it's now done about 270,000km.

Nissan E13/E15 motor? Cracked in the camshaft housing and pushed oil through the water system?

Blurtie

468 posts

Ultimate Geek

#1598676 26-Jul-2016 07:37

Fred99:

I'm pretty sure that there's a long history of issues with that particular Ford transmission (CD4E) crapping out in various Ford and Mazda models. So it's a problem as to what to do, don't be surprised if the $2k estimate goes higher ($3.5k is realistic IMO). Will they give a firm quote? (I doubt it - as it'll be an unknown quantity until stripped down) A used trans may be cheaper, but what's the warranty going to be on it? I've heard of cases where the mechanic workshop won't guarantee used trans for more than the (typically 3 month) warranty offered by the wrecker/parts suppliers that they're effectively passing on, but they'll warrant their workmanship. How this stacks up with the CGA is a good question, theory being that they can't contract out of the CGA, but you're buying a used product - and if the replacement trans died outside of that 3 months, I suspect you'd be in for a battle to try and get it put right.

260,000km - I think it's about time to call it quits. If it was me, I might consider buying a used trans and fitting it myself, cost a weekend working on it, but even then I wouldn't get too excited unless I got the used transmission cheap.

I've got a car here (actually given to my son a couple of years back) that we bought with about 60,000km on it. It cracked a cylinder head at about 110,000km - no apparent reason why, didn't overheat, not a model known for that issue (Nissan) sometimes it just happens, perhaps a casting fault that had been there since new. I fitted a used engine ($300&GST) - it's now done about 270,000km.

Thanks for the heads up. This is really what I'm looking for, an indication of reasonable costs so that i can make an informed decision...

The transmission specialist hasn't given a firm quote yet as he said he was still trying to source 2nd hand transmission first, but based on initial conversations we've had, the 2k figure was brought up...

yes, i know the car's getting on, but i can't really see us getting another car (if we cut our losses with this one and using our savings) as good as this one. Most of the cars in our price range look to be slightly newer 2001-2004 with high-ish mileage - anywhere from 160-200k on the clock.

Good suggestion re replacing with a 2nd hand trans myself, unfortunately i think it would be beyond my level of expertise. Would definitely not be confident in doing it at all.

Fred99

13684 posts

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#1598710 26-Jul-2016 08:41

riahon:

Fred99:

<snip> it's about time to call it quits. If it was me, I might consider buying a used trans and fitting it myself, cost a weekend working on it, but even then I wouldn't get too excited unless I got the used transmission cheap.

I've got a car here (actually given to my son a couple of years back) that we bought with about 60,000km on it. It cracked a cylinder head at about 110,000km - no apparent reason why, didn't overheat, not a model known for that issue (Nissan) sometimes it just happens, perhaps a casting fault that had been there since new. I fitted a used engine ($300&GST) - it's now done about 270,000km.

Nissan E13/E15 motor? Cracked in the camshaft housing and pushed oil through the water system?

No - GA15(DE). Crack was indeed between oil and water galleries and it sure did pump oil into the coolant - the crack extended as a hairline through to the top of the head - not close to a combustion chamber. First and only sign of an issue was that it had pumped so much oil into the coolant that it congealed and floated to the top, on starting and then running there must have been no coolant flow through the head, pressure built up so fast that it couldn't escape through the radiator cap (which was probably gummed up with that gunge anyway), so ka-boom - a coolant hose under the intake manifold exploded, spraying the entire engine bay with congealed yellowish margarine stuff.

Fred99

13684 posts

Uber Geek

#1598734 26-Jul-2016 09:10

Blurtie:

Fred99:

I'm pretty sure that there's a long history of issues with that particular Ford transmission (CD4E) crapping out in various Ford and Mazda models. So it's a problem as to what to do, don't be surprised if the $2k estimate goes higher ($3.5k is realistic IMO). Will they give a firm quote? (I doubt it - as it'll be an unknown quantity until stripped down) A used trans may be cheaper, but what's the warranty going to be on it? I've heard of cases where the mechanic workshop won't guarantee used trans for more than the (typically 3 month) warranty offered by the wrecker/parts suppliers that they're effectively passing on, but they'll warrant their workmanship. How this stacks up with the CGA is a good question, theory being that they can't contract out of the CGA, but you're buying a used product - and if the replacement trans died outside of that 3 months, I suspect you'd be in for a battle to try and get it put right.

260,000km - I think it's about time to call it quits. If it was me, I might consider buying a used trans and fitting it myself, cost a weekend working on it, but even then I wouldn't get too excited unless I got the used transmission cheap.

I've got a car here (actually given to my son a couple of years back) that we bought with about 60,000km on it. It cracked a cylinder head at about 110,000km - no apparent reason why, didn't overheat, not a model known for that issue (Nissan) sometimes it just happens, perhaps a casting fault that had been there since new. I fitted a used engine ($300&GST) - it's now done about 270,000km.

Thanks for the heads up. This is really what I'm looking for, an indication of reasonable costs so that i can make an informed decision...

The transmission specialist hasn't given a firm quote yet as he said he was still trying to source 2nd hand transmission first, but based on initial conversations we've had, the 2k figure was brought up...

yes, i know the car's getting on, but i can't really see us getting another car (if we cut our losses with this one and using our savings) as good as this one. Most of the cars in our price range look to be slightly newer 2001-2004 with high-ish mileage - anywhere from 160-200k on the clock.

Good suggestion re replacing with a 2nd hand trans myself, unfortunately i think it would be beyond my level of expertise. Would definitely not be confident in doing it at all.

Unfortunately I suspect that to make a safe "informed decision" - you're more or less stuck with the option of a rebuild/recond job from the mechanic you're using - but it's probably worth getting a second opinion from an auto transmission specialist.

I see someone on TM selling used Ford trans with Mondeo listed, start price $459, various options for warranty 10 days, 90 days, 6 months. Could be worth talking to them - they may also know "back yard" guys who'll do a transmission swap "on the cheap". I'm not recommending that as a good way to go, as it could bite you hard, but it is an option if you're truly stuck and want to keep that car on the road.

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