2001 Cent *cold* slips in R and thunks ONCE into 1st

[filipg]

Update: As I read that other valves wear and I don't see them listed on the "replaced list", I will opt for the $400. It's not worth it to me to take another $2500 chance - not if this tranny has a history of wear and premature death. Besides, I will sleep easier when it comes to ask the selling price in 1-2 years when I move up in car :-)

Cheers,
Fil

[BNaylor]

Originally Posted by filipg

Nope - it's due to be done Wed. Hmm, their princes must have gone up since you had yours done. The R&R total comes to 2,479.10 with tax for the 1yr/12k miles warranty. The 3yr/36K is another $399.

I hope everything worked out well for you. That is a real horror story considering you only had 23K miles on the car.

I see the prices in the Northeast continue to get ridiculous. Left N.J. 40 years ago.

I got a 4T65E rebuilt tranny on an '01 Impala LS swapped out in its entirety at Phoenix ReTran in Phoenix, AZ for $950.00 plus $375.00 labor. That includes a 12 mos/12K warranty. Drove in from El Paso, dropped it off in the morning and picked it up that evening.

They've got trannies for all the GM "W" bodies.

[bignoisey]

I just read your story. I'm the guy that started that harsh shifting thread. Nice to know I'm not the only one out here with 4T65E transmission woes. I just decided to live with my 2000 Century as-is, and its now got near 90K miles and still acting the same. I've concluded the 4T65E design is a nice idea, but since I've read about so many similar problems with this model, maybe they are just trying to make the thing too smart (after all the auto transmission in my 78 chevy pickup was still working fine when the rest of the truck was all worn out (280,000+ miles). And that was with only about 4 fluid changes over its entire life. That's the kind of trouble free life I would expect. It's nice that the computer can adjust the transmission and do diagnostics, but just maybe its just too complex for the real world. No, Probably just a bad design or someone trying too hard to keep costs down. If they can save 10 cents on a million transmissions made, that adds up. So the only change in mine is that the TCC stayed in lockup (twice now) on a highway trip. That really makes it shift rough. But it seems to stop after I park it for f minutes. So I may visit my friendly Aamco store too. But last time I was there It took half a day for them to just look at it. I concluded if they were that slow, I'd better plan on having the work done when I can give up the car for several days. PLease let us know how your repair ended up. Do you recommend Aamco?

[filipg]

Ok, got it back. It drives like the day I got it with 16K miles. No delay at all (relative!) when shifting P->R or R->D. Before, that took about 1.2 seconds. The only thing I notice is a knocking sound like something is hitting something else (only appears at low RPM, engine warm, in P or N) and, what I was told to expect, the front aligment is off. My wheel is now about 3-4 degrees CCW for the car to be driving straight and there's a LF wheel shimmy. Sigh. I'll just have an aligment done - I'd rather they focus on the rattle :-)

Thanks for your help,
Filip

P.S. I did get the 400$ for 3/36 warr - too many other things can go with this tranny. Total was 2900. I guess I'll keep it 3yrs as it's not transferable :-(

[BNaylor]

Originally Posted by filipg

P.S. I did get the 400$ for 3/36 warr - too many other things can go with this tranny. Total was 2900. I guess I'll keep it 3yrs as it's not transferable :-(

$2900??? Ouch!

[GTP Dad]

I am glad to see you got the vehicle back and you are happy with the way it runs. The 3 year warranty is a good choice although a little salty. I usually don't recommend too many places but I have had good luck with AAMCO and really have had no problems with their work or service. I hope you have a lot of wonderful driving ahead.

Regards,
GTP Dad

[bignoisey]

Thanks for sharing your experience. Now I have a better idea of what it would cost to have my 2000 Century transmission repaired. It looks like it will cost $2000-$2500 (min) to have it repaired. Since mine has 90,000 miles it could be higher I'd guess. Kelly Blue book value for trade-in/private sale is $3650/$5445 assuming excellent condition (i.e. trans must be repaired first). I'm just wondering if it's worth the cost. The rest of the car is working just fine though.

[GTP Dad]

Why not! You spend $2K and the car lasts another 90K miles. Have you priced new cars lately, even with rebates they are way too high not to get your car fixed. It is well worth the investment to fix the transmission and keep on driving.

[BNaylor]

Originally Posted by GTP Dad

Why not! You spend $2K and the car lasts another 90K miles. Have you priced new cars lately, even with rebates they are way too high not to get your car fixed. It is well worth the investment to fix the transmission and keep on driving.

Thats a good point. You're sort of stuck between a rock and a hard place. My experience with Buicks is they are built like battleships. Too bad the 4T65E tranny typically goes out on you before the rest of the car.

Good luck in the decision making process.

[GTP Dad]

You might want to check e-bay as I have seen some brand new 4t65E transmissions on there for sale at around $800. You would have to have someone install it for you but it would be a whole lot cheaper than a rebuild.

[GTP Dad]

Check this out! http://motors.search.ebay.com/98-Gra...27QQsofocusZbs