Looking for advice

[JustN89]

Good morning folks. I hope the weekend went well.

I've posted about this car before, but for the many who aren't aware, I have a 2005 Impala that I've owned for about 3 years now and that I'm trying to replace. I bought the car at 117k miles, with a complete history of the vehicle. It was purchased by an elderly couple who was local to the dealership that I worked at, it was serviced at the dealership and had been kept in pretty good shape. It was no garage queen, but it was taken care of. They serviced the transmission at 106k miles (don't know if it was done before then) and then traded in 11k miles later. Well, I found out why. It has the notorious hard shift (p1811- Max Adept/Long Shift) when the fluid warms up. We drove it about 1k miles before I dropped the pan and replaced fluid/filter and installed a TransGo shift kit. We are now at 128k miles and while it still starts every time and always gets us where we need to be, we are looking to replace it.

Our financial situation is such that while we could afford another car payment, it would be much easier for us to just buy another cheap cash car ($2000-4000). However, I've been looking in DFW and OKC trying to find something that would fit into our budget and we really can't find anything. We've gone and looked at a handful of cars and we've walked away unimpressed by everyone. Either the interior is torn up or high priced maintenance items have been ignored. It is a tough pill for me to swallow because while the transmission in my car might have a death sentence, I've done a ton of PM on our Impala and the interior is in great shape. The cooling system has been completely redone (including a new radiator), it has new shocks/struts, new spark plugs/wires, new fuel filter, etc. It just seems a bit incredible to me that I can't find anything halfway decent in our price range (which admittedly isn't a ton of money, but it's not table scraps either).

I'm approaching the point where I think I'd almost rather just pay to replace the transmission and drive the car for another 5 years as opposed to taking on a mystery vehicle that should be reliable, but hasn't been exactly well taken care of and probably needs quite a bit of money in PM too. Is this crazy? Would you take the risk and buy a new used car or pay for a transmission rebuild/replace in the Impala? I don't know exactly how much replacing the transmission would cost me, but I'm sure it wouldn't cost me more than buying a new used car.

Thanks in advance and sorry for the long-winded post.

 

[WyrTwister]

If the Impala is paid for , stick a transmission in it and do a spill and fill every year .

Best of luck to you .

 

[skyactiv]

I think your best bet is to fix the Impala rather than gambling 2-4K on a POS that might need who knows what months down the road.
Price the different transmission shops in your area. Some of the redneck shops in a bad area of town do work a lot cheaper. My niece as an example
had the automatic in her 03' Accord rebuilt a few years ago at such a shop for less than a rebuilt exchange unit cost at an auto parts store.
Her Accord is still going.

 

[Trav]

If you are no longer getting the p1811 just run it unless you really want to get rid of it now. I did on of these with the kit for a member here and he got a lot more miles and years out of it, it never failed.

 

[FordBroncoVWJeta]

I would drive it till it grenades it self. Then go from there.

 

[Chris142]

The trans is shifting ok except a hard shift? Run it till it dies,if it ever does.

 

[Kira]

You asked, "Is this crazy?".....Well, you are indeed crazy.
Circumstances and considerations like these have never come up before on BITOG.
Selling a 14 year old car and looking for a replacement?.....unheard of!
^^That was a joke^^

Drive the thing as you have been. I assume you lift your right foot when the hard shift comes around.
Since you installed a TransGo shift kit I guess suggesting LubeGard red bottle is amateurish.

 

[JustN89]

Thanks for the input everyone.

So some clarification is needed, I think. The shift kit has gotten rid of the hard 2-3 shift that we use to get, but a new issue has reared its ugly head. I get a thunk when accelerating from a dead stop, which clinebarger mentioned in one of my other threads on this tranny that it was probably a worn input shaft apply piston. We can live with this, but it makes me think that this is just another sign that the tranny is trying to die on me. I was kind of leaning towards replacing it too, so I'm glad to hear that I'm not alone in thinking that. I'll have to price a tranny rebuild/replace in DFW. I don't think that I want to wait until it gives up the ghost because we do use that vehicle every day.

 

[SirTanon]

Keep driving it for now.. It sounds like while it will eventually die on you, you do likely still have a reasonable amount of time to drive on it. During that time, keep your eye out for a reasonably-priced replacement or repair kit. I'd say odds are good that something will pop up that will surprise you. At least you're not forced to just take a bad deal right now.

 

[The Critic]

If everything else is in good shape, I would invest in a transmission. $2500-$4K isn't very much nowadays and is almost guaranteed to buy you a car that needs work.

 

[NO2]

I'd sell it and get a 3-5 year old reliable car like an Accord or Camry. The '17 Accords (and before) had the bulletproof 2.4L 4 cyl (avoid the 6). Camrys last 20 years if well maintained. While keeping the Impala is probably a better financial decision, you are reaching the point in the life of the car where it starts to become unreliable. It might cost you a net of $10-12K, but you'll get an additional 10+ years of life. You may still have some warranty remaining as well.

Invest in a new head unit with Android Auto and Carplay and you'll have an up to date vehicle. Not much else has changed besides the electronics.

 

[Uphill_Both_Ways]

JustN89, I found myself on the same horns of a transmission dilemma last month with my '08 Impala. The saga is here.

Like you I was trying to decide whether to dump the car for whatever I could get or fix the thing.

I chose to have the transmission rebuilt because the rest of the car was and is in good shape because I keep it that way, and I didn't want to buy someone else's problem or even a new direct-injection-only nightmare, whether full-size or compact. Used direct-injection-only cars were out of the question. So for me, it made more sense to get the transmission fixed.

 

[The_Cams]

Shop around and see what numbers you're looking at. A good shop should be able to have a good idea of what's wrong by the symptoms. 128K isn't a heck of a lot of miles, and assuming the engine is solid, unless there's something nagging you about the vehicle, fix the tranny.

 

[JustN89]

Thanks again for the advice everyone! I do appreciate it.

I find myself agreeing with the majority here- a rebuild is likely the best endeavor. Hopefully I can find a place willing to do it without completely breaking the bank.

I just love the 4T65E!

 

[clinebarger]

Originally Posted by JustN89
Thanks again for the advice everyone! I do appreciate it.

I find myself agreeing with the majority here- a rebuild is likely the best endeavor. Hopefully I can find a place willing to do it without completely breaking the bank.

I just love the 4T65E!


If you can live with it for roughly 12-13 months....I'll have my shop/business up & going by then. Of coarse I can't compete with a shop that will simply throw a "Banner" kit at it & call it good!
PM me for pricing.

 

[tiger862]

Buy transmission from dealer and get 3 year 36000 mile warranty. Most times cheaper than rebuild with a better warranty.

 

[StevieC]

If the car is in excellent shape and you know the history, I'd invest the money in having the transmission rebuilt. Find a reputable shop to do it.
Have them apply any part updates there might be for the unit including programming your PCM/TCM as required.

Example: The 62TE in my Caravan has had numerous updates since they started with this transmission and has something like 28 software revisions depending on the vehicle, year, and build date of the transmission.