Transmission Replacement

96 Accord LX
156,000

Last week my transmission went out on me completely. Tranny was
slipping out of gear for a while (but was not sure what was happening)
then this past Monday tranny went out on me while driving (fortunately
was not to far from my mechanic’s shop) had to crawl over to my
mechanics shop in 2nd gear with check engine light on. He told me I
needed a new transmission. Prior to this happening did not have one
day of problems with this car and have owned the car for 7 years.

The car however was stolen this past July and not sure what the
thieves did to my car when they had it (don’t know if they were racing
the car or not). It was missing for less than 48 hours and recovered.
In tact from what I could see, outside of a busted ignition and my
stuff thrown around in the car.

Mechanic suggested a used transmission with 30 day warranty - $1,200.
Not sure what to do because I really can’t afford a car payment right
now and I can only "pray" that if I went that route -- that the used
tranny will hopefully hold up for at least 2 years (enough time to
save up a decent downpayment for a new car so my payments would not be
too high).

Any and all advice would be appreciate. Thanks in advance.

 

You need to get the error code(s) read from the Check Engine light.

If you have a 4-cylinder and an error code of P0740, there is a TSB that
may apply.

There may be more TSBs, but for that you'd need to visit (or call) your
local Honda dealer and ask, after giving them your VIN and your symptoms.

You may not need a new transmission at all, so don't spend anything until
you check the codes, and check with the dealer..

When was the fluid changed last, and was genuine Honda fluid used?

 

Is this mechanic a Honda specialist? Does he work on Hondas every day
and stay up to date on TSBs, etc? If so, perhaps he is correct that
you need a new tranny. It is also possible that something less drastic
is required.

In any case, I would not install a used automatic transmission into a
car I planned to keep for any length of time. You have absolutely no
idea how good or bad of a unit you would be getting, especially with a
10+ year old car. Do you think that the car which went to the wrecking
yard did so with a mint transmission ????? Maybe on a 1-3 year old car
you might find a lightly used transmission which is in the yard due to
an accident, but on a 10 year old car most of what you will find in the
wrecking yard are cars which were abused, worn out and trashed. Not a
good source of delicate parts.

John

 

Is this mechanic a Honda specialist? Does he work on Hondas every day
and stay up to date on TSBs, etc?

Yes, he is a Honda specialist, he only works on Honda and Acura and I
have been going to him for 10 years.


Maybe on a 1-3 year old car
you might find a lightly used transmission which is in the yard due to

an accident, but on a 10 year old car most of what you will find in
the
wrecking yard are cars which were abused, worn out and trashed. Not a
good source of delicate parts.

I understand exactly what you are saying? I thought about that too.
He said he might be able to find a ’97 transmission for me, but I’m
also concerned about that. I can’t afford a rebuilt transmission
($2,000) and have heard many say that after paying for a rebuilt
transmission many of them only lasted a year or two. I’m going to
the car lot tomorrow, and I plan to talk to my brother about it who
is a mechanic with over 20 years of experience, (he just does not live
in the same state as me) because I may have to put that $1200 on a new
car.