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I HATE car trouble!

 
"The Hood"
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So I am driving to work this morning, bright and early. I get about 20 miles down the road and the car starts acting REAL weird - like it is racing very fast. I get to the shoulder and the only way that I can keep going is to use overdrive (this is NOT good).
So I called my husband and he made arrangements for his favorite transmission shop to look at the mini-van right away. I limp into that place on back roads. You know how this is going to end up - don't you.
They say basically that I no longer HAVE a transmission, and if I like they will push it into the bay to work on it (sigh - How did I know?) Well, we got 250,000 miles out of the old one, so I suppose that it is time.
The GOOD part is that they have the trans that I need and they moved me to the front of the line (my husband knows just about EVERYBODY and always gets good deals ). Also, they estimate the job at $1,200 for a completely new transmission, but after Steven comes and chats them up for a while - somehow the bill ends up only $950 (still ouch - but . . . ).
So, they say that they will get my van fixed asap and I can be to work by just after lunch. (Work is still another 30 miles away - so they did not offer to run me over :roll: ) GREAT - this saves a car rental fee. So I call in to work and say that I will be late. At about noon they mention that they need a "mount" and someone went to go find one.
About 1:00 they say that they just have to take it for a test drive. At 1:15 they mention something about a valve not working right and they are going to pull it off again. (Do trans's HAVE valves??) At 2:30 I called my boss and basically said "forget it - I am not coming in today". At 3:30 I finally get back on the road. And this is GOOD - I mean it all got done in ONE day.
Did I mention how BORING it is sitting in a transmission shop for 6 hours? For a while it is amusing trying to figure out how they get anything done around the piles of parts and grease. But eventually I slipped back to the executive lounge - which was basically a backseat ripped out of someones vehicle balanced against the wall, and a 9" TV with rabbit ears and extra static :roll: (ugh - daytime TV, gives a person shudders).
So I just wanted to share with you all just how MUCH I detest car problems .
And NO JavaRanch to entertain me the whole while!!
 
Ranch Hand
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feels good to get it out huh. i had car trouble too but it only took 5 mins for me to fix. i have the same problem happens periodically and im getting fast at it. i sure hope i dont have any "real" problem or i'll be hurtin for certain living on financial aid. school is about an hours drive and no busses go from here to there.
 
Sheriff
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I don't know what transmission you have, but it's possible that the "valve" was related to an oil passageway within the transmission to allow oil (transmission fluid) to go where it's supposed to go. On other models of Chrysler (if that's what you've got) vehicles they sometimes changed the design of the oil regulation system within the transmission between models and it can be difficult for the mechanic to decide if a a particular model requires a particular passageway to be plugged or left open.
Hey, you asked.
[ April 18, 2002: Message edited by: Dirk Schreckmann ]
 
Sheriff
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it must be a bad time for transmissions.... my husband was actually LEAVING the VW dealership after checking on a job posting... and about a block away from the dealership he heard a big clunk as he shifted into 2nd gear and suddenly he had no more gears.... he pulled over and there was this long trail of transmission fluid, and under the car there was a gear that had fallen out of the transmission .
From what I understand from my husband... the diff is a weak point in the Mach 3 VW's (93-99 Golfs and Jettas) and when the diff blows (which is housed in the transmission casing) it blows a hole through the transmission casing, spraying transmission fluid everywhere. This is a post he made to a VW forum -- there's a picture there of someone elses transmission that did the same thing... sorta freaky.
Thank god it was all under warranty... we ended up getting a new transmission, new diff, new clutch, new fly wheel, and new starter.
 
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Sorry to hear about all that trouble, Cindy.
Nice ending though, everything is fixed by the end of the day.
- madhav
 
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*kisses his bus pass*
 
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Cindy, I feel your pain. On the way to work last Friday my timing belt broke on my 89 Dodge Colt. The mechanic said that my enging is an "interference engine", meaning that when the timing belt breaks, the heads collide. It was to cost me about $1000.00 to fix this car that I bought for $1500.00. I told him to back it out of the bay and I would call the wreckers to come for it. I'm carless as of this moment.
 
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