Tranny shop to AVOID

[rjhansen]

COTTMAN TRANSMISSIONS, ARE A JOKE!! THEY CHARGED ME FOR A TRANSMISSION REBUILD ONLY TO HAVE THE SAME PROBLEM 150 MILES AFTER BEING HOME!! TURNS OUT THAT THEY MISDIAGNOSED A BAD TRANSMISSION RANGE SENSOR!! NOW THEY ARE DOING THIS WORK AGAIN FOR FREE!! BEWARE THAT IF YOUR WINDSTAR DRIVES FINE FOR AWHILE THENS STARTS SHIFTING ERRATICALLY TAKE YOU'RE VAN TO A REPUTABLE TRANNY SHOP AND HAVE THEM ROAD TEST YOUR VEHICLE WITH THE COMPUTER SCANNER HOOKED UP. I HAD NO CEL, NO O/D LIGHT EITHER, BUT THAT DOESN'T MATTER I SUPPOSE!! VERY DISGUSTED WITH THIS SITUATION!!

[grog11]

Its not hard to see that your pants are twisted up tightly, and choking off the blood to your brain. Cottman transmissions are all individually purchased franchises around the country, have different owners but with a common support group of the national chain..

It may be safe to assume, in your opinion your shop has made a mistake.That may be true .But, as you mentioned they are fixing your problem for free, so what is the issue? Did you not agree to have the work performed to rebuild the transmission?

You don't mention the mileage on your windstar, or if you have ever maintained the transmission faithfully as is required.Did the Manager show you the defective , worn internal parts?

If I were you, I would think really hard before posting on a large internet forum of any slanderous remark, (warranted, or unwarranted, until settled) about a national chain Franchise, that has lots of high priced attorneys at their disposal. You may just end up paying Cottman a whole lot more.

Just my opinion, and I do hope they make everything right for you at that shop.

[SamNovice]

I find the comment by grog11 difficult to digest, rjhansen could have wasted $$ to rebuild his transmission, and grog11 is implying (with underlying threat) that rjhansen could be sued for sharing his experience. Thanks to rjhansen for sharing the information. You may want to report the shop to the the better business bureau.

[rjhansen]

THANKS TO ALL,
GROG11 MY PANTS ARE TWISTED TIGHTLY BUT, AGGRAVATED YES DISGUSTED YES, UNLESS SOMEONE SAYS OR READS THIS FROM COTTMAN I DON'T SEE ANY HARM. I WAS SCREWED BOTTOM LINE. THE TRANS HAS BEEN TAKEN CARE OF VERY WELL FROM PREVIOUS OWNER(MECHANIC THATS OWNS HIS OWN SHOP TO ME) 20+ PLUS YEARS OF DOING ALL MY OWN MAINTENENCE ON CARS, AND FINISHING UP MY SCHOOLING SO I CAN BECOME ASE CERTIFIED SO I NEVER GET SCREWED AGAIN!!

SamNovice THANK YOU FOR YOU'RE INPUT!!

THIS IS A PUBLIC FORUM Y'ALL

[12Ounce]

I don't read anything that libel-ous (is that even a word?) in what was written. To call a business a "joke" ... hmmnn .... I would take my chances with that one.

I would personally avoid the national tranny chains ... but their lots are always full of vehicles, so they must be meeting the needs of some people and staying in business. Better than Borders Bookstores!

I have had good experiences replacing trannies using the rebuilts from Ford. So far, I have about 100k miles on one replaced (by me) in my '99 Winny. Approx $1900. D has about 50k miles on one replaced (by me) in her Tracer. Approx $3200. (Knock on wood! Hope they last many more miles!)

Don't know why the Tracer tranny cost so much more than the Winny did. ?