Bad solenoid???

Hi. I'm looking to buy a 1995 taurus with the 3.0 v6, and suposedly it has a bad solenoid in the transmission thats keeping it from shifting out of low gear, and going over 25 mph. Would this even be something worth wasting money on, and if so how hard would it be to replace?

How much are you paying for the car ?

The guy is wanting $500. The price is negotiable. I haven't gotten the chance to give it a test drive but he also says that's the only thing wrong with it.

I guess the next question is why doesn't he get the solenoid fixed, then price the car more in line for what it's worth with a working transmission, if that's really "the only thing wrong with it"? There were a bunch of these cars sold, I think you'd be better off to spend a bit more on one that you can test drive and really check out.

-Rod

I guess the next question is why doesn't he get the solenoid fixed, then price the car more in line for what it's worth with a working transmission, if that's really "the only thing wrong with it"? There were a bunch of these cars sold, I think you'd be better off to spend a bit more on one that you can test drive and really check out.

-Rod

Eh he says it's cuz he works 90 hrs a week and had no time to. I could understand where he's coming from. But Im just looking for Somethin that runs. Maybe a fixer upper for dirt cheap. Would this prove to be an easy fix, or would I have better luck throwing more money at my caprice hopin it'll run?

If it's truly just a bad solenoid, then it wouldn't be too bad or too expensive to replace. Depending on the past maintenance on this transmission though there could be other issues that may even be masked by the symptoms of a bad solenoid. You might press this seller for some paperwork where it was professionally diagnosed as being just a bad solenoid, and the estimate on what it would cost to fix.

-Rod

I did press him about it yesterday and he said he had a few mechanics look at I along with some friends. He's pretty sure that's what it is. Looking into it, it'll cost about $45 for the solenoid, and is supposedly simple change out. However it's starting to sound more like a bad idea investing into it cuz all I can think is if I do fix it, what'll go wrong next. I'm starting to think ill pass on it and ask the shady Mexican at work what he's got for sale.