Hgspine

Hello,

Here are some of my transmission experiences within the past two weeks. On Sunday morning about two weeks ago, my transmission suffered an immediate failure at 175,047 miles. Drive became neutral. I had some function in 2 and barely made it home and into my driveway. By then, every gear was neutral.

I looked into some options. I could purchase a remanufactured by Lexus unit (Lexus part number 30510-48021-84) for about $2300 online plus shipping plus $1000 core charge. The core refund policy seemed very stringent to the point of requiring the unit to be returned in the undamaged and unmarked shipping box with no added labels. The Lexus remanufactured transmission carries a 12 month/12,000 mile warranty. I also looked at local used transmission options and used and remanufactured transmission options on eBay and from various transmission remanufacturers.

If I purchased the transmission myself, I would have had to have it shipped to the installer I chose to do the job. The installer would have had to preapprove me having a transmission shipped to them. Most that I spoke with were ok with that.

I contacted some local shops and also some local mechanics who advertise online about the transmission replacement services they offer. I decided to go the local shop route for warranty peace of mind and other reasons.

The largest transmission shop in my state seemed to have the best overall (from my standpoint) offer including free flatbed towing. For $4695 including $1662 labor/materials and $3032 for a Certified remanufactured transmission including fluids, I now have a remanufactured transmission in this vehicle. The transmission was remanufactured by a company called Certified Transmission. I was impressed by a video I found of one of their transmission remanufacturing facilities. The parts and labor warranty is 3 years/100,000 miles. Out the door and back on the road cost was $4695 plus tax.

I was told that Certified Transmission ships the remanufactured transmission to the installer with 10 quarts of Peak synthetic ATF.

The remanufactured transmission included a transfer case.

The installer reset the adaptive shift logic.

Late last year I had the two front axles and the front section of the driveshaft to the rear axle and the seals for those replaced, the transmission cooler lines replaced and the fluid in the rear differential replaced.

I decided to make this remanufactured transmission investment because I like the vehicle and it seems to be in good shape otherwise, having had a lot of work done to it before I owned it based on the service records I have from the Lexus owners website and CarFax.

Now, it drives fine again.

I feel that I didn’t just get a working transmission with this purchase. I also feel that I got three years worth of transmission peace of mind, which is something that I did not have before this purchase.

Also, my oil change routine for this vehicle is Mobil 1 EP 5W-30 with Mobil 1 EP filter every 5000 miles.

ISFPOWER

iTrader: (20)

thats way too much IMO unless you are thinking about keeping it for another 15 years.

ToledoRX

$4695 is an insanely high amount to spend on a transmission replacement for a 15+ year old Lexus with 175k miles. I know that we on this board prefer keeping our Lexus running and take extra pride in owning a high mileage example as a DD. But at that price point, it doesn't make financial sense to have a transmission rebuilt when for $5000-7000 you can probably buy an ES330 or a RX330 and probably drive it for 3 or more years without any major maintenance.

joetifosi

My local auto wrecker has more than one around $1500 to $2000 with a short warranty 100k to 150k on them. and thats NY prices.

bltkmt

Isn't that what he is getting in theory, for less money than $5-7k?