posted 10-17-2002 02:16 AM               

Ok, the first time I needed a tranny, it was in about 1985 or 1986. The car was a 1974 Malibu Classic with a turbo 350 tranny. My mom had bought the car from an old lady with fairly low mileage (the car had low mileage...not the lady). Then she beat the hell out of it for a few years. Next, it was my brother's car for a few years. I don't even want to think about some of the things that he might have done to the poor car. After that, it was my sister's car for a few years. She beat the hell out of it of course. Then it was finally my car! I beat the living hell out of it for about 2 years before I had to get rid of it (long story). Anyway, the transmission had a leak that somehow went undetected, so I drove around with no fluid until the symptoms started. By then, it was fried. I had to manually shift gears (even though it was an automatic!) So I brought it to a Cottman in NJ because they quoted me like $300-$400 over the phone. I get there, they test drive it and agree that it doesn't work properly (duh), and they charge me $100 to take it apart and tell me what's wrong with it. Big mistake on my part. I was young and gullible and I guess they spotted that. So they claim that they found some very serious damage in there and it would cost another $700 to have it put back together properly! Either that or they could put it back together the way it was, in which case it might not even drive anymore. So I learned a lesson. If you have a tranny that you know needs rebuilding, don't let them tear it apart until they have already given you an estimate for the whole job. Otherwise, they name their price to put it back together! Some people get charged $1500+ fpr what should be a $500 job max! They also managed to mess some things up pretty bad. They left about 5 pan bolts out. And they left the tailpipe dragging on the ground! Plus they didn't rebuild it right because it only lasted a year and a half after that rebuild! I won't use Cottman again. You can if you want!
The next tranny I needed was to replace the above mentioned tranny. I found an Ammco that REALLY needed the business. They gave me a lifetime warranty (including the rebuild!!) for only $450 plus tax!! Such a shame I had to get rid of that car! Ammco did pretty well. But their prices are outrageous these days. It would cost me $1500+ to get a lifetime warranty for the Impala!
The next tranny I needed was for my Impala. I had bought the car just a few weeks earlier, and it turns out that it had a $50 junk yard tranny in it. So I had it rebuilt. Found a place that only wanted $325. Can't remember the name of the place, Just a small privately owned shop. I was pleasantly surprised that they seemed to do a good job AND they didn't tell me it would be $400 more than they quoted me! BUT, a few weeks later on my way to school, it started slipping...I mean REAL bad! It was hardly catching at all. For about 4 miles, I had the engine revved up to about 250,000 rpm while travelling at about 15 mph! That must have been a funny sight to onlookers! I HAD to get to school, or else I wouldn't have abused the car like that. At first, the guy wanted to charge me for towing, but I convinced him that since the thing only had about 100 miles on it, that HE should pay for the towing!! He said the front pump went out. He fixed it.
The next time I needed a tranny (again for the Impala) was about 8 or 9 years ago, after that previous one wore out. And boy did it wear out! Not only did it slip and shift real bad, but the leak finally got so bad that it went through a quart every mile (no joke!) It took 5 quarts to drive to the tranny shop! Having been screwed by tranmission shops in the past, I new I would need to ask certain important things. I asked if it would cover the torque convertor. Answer...yes. I asked if it would cover the mount and the fluid and the gaskets and all the stuff inside the transmission. Answer...yes. Then I asked the price. Answer...$325. Then I asked, "Is this the most you will charge me, no matter what?". Answer...yes. Should have got it in writing! The day after I dropped it off there, he called and said I had hard part damage and that it would cost me another $75. So I said, "I thought $325 would cover all the parts...hard parts...soft parts...mushy parts...all the f'ing parts!!!"
So he managed to extort the extra money from me because I HAD to have my car working. But I did send the whole story to the BBB (found out he had a lot of complaints already...no surprise). When I picked up the car, I noticed that the transmission vacuum line wasn't mounted to the engine where it was supposed to be. He said it was because the last people to rebuild it used the wrong clamp. What a bunch of bull! I could see the bolt head it was supposed to go on, right next to the clamp. They just forgot to do it. Speaking of forgetting to do things...EVERY EXTERNAL BOLT WAS LEFT FINGER TIGHT!!! No joke! My drive shaft started rumbling a few days later. I though my differential was falling apart. Then I noticed the drive shaft bolts falling out! So I tightened them. And just to be safe, I checked all the other bolts they might have messed with (cross member, tranny to engine bolts, etc) EVERY one was finger tight!!! They also told me they fixed my passing gear cable...that it had just fallen off of the gas pedal. The first time I used it, it fell off again! And the tranny started leaking from the tail-end housing (the hard part that he charged me extra for) just a few days after the job was done! AAA Automotive. They're out of business now...no surprise.

posted 10-17-2002 06:10 AM               

"What? I left it there this morning! Parked it right in front of your shop!"

Turns out, he had me mixed up with someone else; someone who had a Montero they were supposed to bring in. Once I described the car to him, he knew just which one I was talking about! Lol! But during the 30 seconds that I thought my car was stolen, all my hair turned gray and then fell out!
Great news though. They do seem to be an honest, reputable place. They could have sold me a new flywheel and mount but they said that they don't need replacing. Saved me a little money even though it could have been easy money for them. And the total will still be the same amount that they originally quoted me. In a perfect world, all transmission shops would work that way!! At least it appears that I found one of the good ones. Won't know for sure until I get it back and drive it home. Can't wait!