i have a 1991 ltd crown victoria wagon that has 416,000 + miles on it and the transmission (aod not aode) is going out and a rebuild is going to cost about $1800. it burns very little oil with the original engine and is very reliable otherwise. i have people telling me to scrap it but the reliablity it still has is very hard to do that to it. what should i do? trans repair or scrap it?
scrap it. The car isn't worth very much.
Rebuilt transmissions are rarely worth it moneywise, not everybody knows how to rebuild them correctly. Try to see it like this: for 1800$, how many miles extra will you get out of the car? And that's assuming it is rebuilt properly, it can be a bit of a gamble. Also realise that you're not gonna get that 1800$ back when you scrap it or sell it.
If the car is in great shape, the guy knows what he's doing, you love the car and you're willing to pay the risk then yes sure who knows how long it can last. If not, drive it as is until it goes out.
The answers to this question really illustrate to me how much of a throw away society we are. People just look at the bottom line. One thing that people forget to look at it how much it will cost to replace it. While it might cost more than what it is worth to repair it it will probably cost him a lot more than $1,800.00 to replace it. Plus even if it were still cheaper to replace it, if you really like the car, why not fix it anyway. Goodness knows that they don't make them like they used to. I completely agree with Scotty on this one.
Very good point. I had my engine replaced on my car back in 2012 (engine parts + labor worth more than the car itself), but 9 years later (and adding another 140,000 miles to the car) I still have the vehicle and going strong, and was a good decision on my part back in 2012 to replace the engine. In hindsight was more cost effective than replacing the car entirely, so you make a valid point. I was fortunate because in the last 9 years nothing else really broke, but most cars it becomes a money pit (one repair after another).
I doubt $1800 includes the labour to install it.
Even still, if he really likes the car and it has been reliable then why not.
Because sinking thousands of dollars into that car is a bad fiscal decision. That money is gone if the engine gives out, or you get in a wreck. A 30 years old car with 400k is not reliable.
If you have a sentimental attachment then that's your choice, but it could be an expensive one.
For a couple thousand dollars more you can have a car with far less years and mileage on it.
Scotty said to rebuild it.
If you like the car and are fine with keeping an old car, sure go ahead $1800 isn't much and if you get a few years out of it you get your moneys worth. Like Scotty said, it could be worth it.
Or, you could just get rid of it now and use that 2 grand as a nice downpayment on a Toyota.
As far as rebuilt transmissions go $1800 is not really that bad. It's easy to say scrap it, but where will you get a replacement car for that $$, you can't. At least a reliable one that is.
A few questions: Do you like the car? Does it do what you need it to do? Will the work be warranteed? Is this likely to be the last major repair for a couple of years?
If the answer is yes, to all of these, I agree with Scotty.
A notion of "how much the car is worth" on the market isn't a good barometer, here. The question is about replacement cost. If you can get a few more years of life out of the vehicle for that dollar amount, it's a bargain, all other things being equal.
