About Me

Responsible Car Care

Do you remember what it felt like the first time you were left with your own car? I remember just feeling so happy and free, and so I decided to try to help my own teenagers get a car of their own. However, after we found the right cars to buy, it was immediately clear that they needed to learn how to take care of their vehicles. In addition to talking with them about regular maintenance, I also started focusing with my kids to figure out a routine maintenance schedule that would help. They were great to work with, and now I can honestly say that their cars are beautiful inside and out.

Search

Archive

Latest Posts

Tags

Responsible Car Care

4 Things You Can Do After Your Car's Transmission Fails

by Bessie Fox

One of the worst things that an automobile owner can hear is that their car's transmission has failed. Without a transmission in good repair, it is not possible to drive an automobile on a daily basis. Unfortunately, transmissions do not last forever and they can be quite expensive to replace. There are several things that you can do when your vehicle's transmission fails, such as:

Get Rid of the Car

Before you replace the transmission in a vehicle, it is important to think about the age of the car, how many miles it has on it, and its current retail value. If you drive a vehicle that is more than a decade old and has a lot of miles on it, it most likely is not worth a lot of money. In this type of situation, spending the money to have the transmission replaced or repaired may not make financial sense. When your car is only worth a few thousand dollars, you may be better off selling it to a junk car company instead of spending a lot of money to have it fixed.

Have the Transmission Rebuilt at a Local Transmission Shop

If your car still has a lot of value, you may want to consider having your failed transmission rebuilt at a reputable local transmission shop. During the rebuilding process, mechanics will take your car's transmission apart, clean all of the components, replace the parts that are worn or or broken, and then put everything back together. If you choose to have your transmission rebuilt, make sure that you choose a highly rated transmission shop that has mechanics who are very experienced at rebuilding transmissions.

Purchase a Used Transmission

When you don't have a lot of money to spend dealing with a transmission that has failed, you may want to consider buying a used transmission and having it installed at a transmission shop. There are a number of online retailers who sell used transmissions, or you can also opt to visit local car junk yards to source one. One thing to be aware of is the fact that transmission shops do not warranty used transmissions brought in by customers, so if there are issues with the transmission after it is installed, you will be out the amount of money that you spent.

Buy a New Transmission

Purchasing a brand new transmission to replace a failed transmission is the most expensive option, but also guarantees that you won't have transmission problems again for a long time. This is a good route to take if your car is newer and is worth a decent amount of money, but is no longer under warranty. 

Share