DMT Posted December 14, 2006 Share Posted December 14, 2006 So it looks like my 94 Pathy's automatic transmission is crapping out on me. It is the original transmission. Has given me no problems thus far. In fact this will be the first major repair I'm into with this vehicle (besides timing belt replacements). Recently, I've noticed the following problems: 1. Shifting from first to second is fine. But now it won't shift from second to third. Just stays in second. 2. While in second at about 2000 rpm the tranny slips and rpms increase up to 3000 or more. Clearly, something is slipping here. Yesterday I took it to a local shop here in Portland, OR. They said ran some diagnostics on it and said it is definitely a mechanical problem not electrical. They recommend a rebuild and quoted $2K give or take 20%. Is this a typical price for a rebuild? I thought I would ask, can anyone recommend a good transmission mechanic in the Portland area? And what issues should I be looking out for? I'm really connected to this Pathy and would like to get a lot more miles out of her. A lot. Which means I need to get this tranny issue done right. Thanks for any tips you can offer. Mark Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mws Posted December 15, 2006 Share Posted December 15, 2006 Your symptoms do sound classically serious. Very sorry to hear it. MY opinion: Automatic transmissions are arguably the most complex mechinical assembly in the entire truck. Rebuilding an automatic is the ONLY thing I feel I could not do with 90%+ confidence I could get it right. There are just so dammmed many little parts, actuators, valves, solenoids, passages, check valves, clutch surfaces, gears, pumps, etc etc etc that is very difficult to rebuild one and successfully find and repair every single part that was worn or damaged when it failed. When it comes to A/T repairs, I do not recommend rebuilds anymore. My personal database (30 years worth) says close to 50% are not successful and need significant additional work within 10K miles. If you do pursue, shop very carefully and get lots of referrals before turning the mechanic loose on yours. Instead, I recommend getting either: 1) a "known good and low mileage" transmission out of wreck, or 2) an assembly line full rebuild - where the transmission is stripped to bare case and every possible component is either replaced or meticulously tested and inspected. Unfortunately, I do not know of anyone doing this for Nissans. See www.bowtieoverdrives.com to see a company that does this for GM TH700R4's. 3) 5 speed swap. A manual transmission is about 1/50th as complicated as an automatic. A rebuild is relatively simple, with more like 95% success. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Boy Posted December 15, 2006 Share Posted December 15, 2006 Out of curiosity did you have a external tranny cooler on it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sammyb33 Posted December 15, 2006 Share Posted December 15, 2006 if you werent so far away i would sell you my auto... its perfectly fine....only has 80,000 miles on it, (out of my 95) and worked perfectly sorry i dont live closer to ya Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DMT Posted December 15, 2006 Author Share Posted December 15, 2006 No, it didn't have an external cooler. But next time it will. Lesson learned. And thanks for the offer on the 80K tranny. If only we lived closer to each other. Thanks for the suggestions, all. I'll keep looking around. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
88blk4x4 Posted December 15, 2006 Share Posted December 15, 2006 thats about the same price I was told to take mine out and rebuild it and put it back in....Advance Auto parts has a rebuilt tranny w/ a pretty good warranty, but I think it was between 2500 and 3000.00 and then you would have to replace it yourself or take everything to a shop....I bought a whole pathy with a recently rebuilt tranny for 400.00 b/c it has a bad motor....that might be another option for you, trying to find a whole car, you can usually buy the whole thing cheaper than just parts and then part the rest of it out..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
speedbuggy67 Posted December 19, 2006 Share Posted December 19, 2006 used trannies should only be a few hundred bucks. Lots of em have warrenty's good luck Scott Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
88blk4x4 Posted December 19, 2006 Share Posted December 19, 2006 used trannies should only be a few hundred bucks. Lots of em have warrenty's good luck Scott I wished I could find one for a couple of hundred...the cheapest jy tranny I could find around here was 700.00 w/o a warranty Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
88pathoffroad Posted December 20, 2006 Share Posted December 20, 2006 used trannies should only be a few hundred bucks. Lots of em have warrenty's good luck Scott Bull! Show me one you can find for a couple hundred, please. Prices around here start at $500 for high mileage junkyard transmissions. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now