Hey guys, after 349,850 kms, my transmission has finally started to give up the ghost :(

While most people would think that this car has probably performed above and beyond the call of duty, I can't afford to buy a new car right now, but still need transportation for work (I need to be able to migrate servers etc between sites).

Can anyone suggest where would be a good place to get a new (for me, not necessarily brand new) automatic transmission for a 1993 Toyota Camry? The problem with it at this stage is that it doesn't seem to want to find second gear. First and Third are fine, but second just doesn't really exist much anymore :(

Alternately, I claim to know precisely f***-all about car mechanics, so if I'm missing something fairly obvious (other than fluid levels etc), please feel free to call me an idiot and tell me what I've missed.

Cheers,
Ges.

hi ges
it is possible that all you need is a new solenoid or two in your transmission. it is also possible it is well and truly rooted. There are many automatic transmission places around. What part of town do you hang out? IIRC Camry transmissions are one of the more expensive, due to their strong nature. I would suspect that your camry is worth <$1k and a transmission would be >$1K

hey mate, you're probably right about the respective values of my car vs. its transmission, but compare $1.5k to $8-10k for a new car, and at this point in time, I just can't justify it financially :(

As for which part of town I'm in, I live in Tarragindi but work in Gordon Park.

Cheers,
Ges

makes sense mate

in this day and age of rapid car depreciation, it sometimes makes more sense to pay the maintenance on an old vehicle rather than piss more of your money up the wall with crazy fast depreciation (ie 50% of the value in 3 yrs is my usual rough guide)

get it diagnosed at a transmission joint
if it's rooted source a second hand one from a wreckers, should be able to get out of it for 500-700

Sounds like a plan! :) Thanks very much for your input guys.. it's been a good little car and much though I may like to trade up to something like a Liberty B4 or Honda Accord Euro, it's more important that I do stuff like pay rent, pay off credit cards, buy food etc :D

Cheers,
Ges.

93 camry is worth around 2k

Not even 350,000k's... take that s*** back to Toyota! I'd be pissed!

93 camry is worth around 2k

If the transmission is f***ed it won't be worth $2k.

If the transmission is f***ed it won't be worth $2k.

good point

thats rights tael, that's what i was just about to say

just about the wreckers tho, just remember that sometimes trans shops get their transmissions from the wreckers, and they know what to look for and you and I don't. So sometimes a wreckers trans isnt such a good deal. If you go to most trans shops you'll get some form of warranty, and that can be worth it in the long run. You might see one in the wreckers for $700 and one at the trans shop for $1500, but you've gotta remember who's gonna install it, ensure its good and warranty it.

buy a s***house magna or something for like $800 :)

I recently got my T350 Gearbox fully reco'd at Ace Automatics at Springwood on moss street for like $800.
Considering yours is a manual and less complicated I dare say it would be cheaper.
Alternatively you could just buy a box off either ebay or trading post but you really don't know what your getting.

Since I got mine reco'd the gear changes were so tight and it just seemed to have heaps more power than before.

Can't recommend them enough.

350,000k's wow

i would get a new car. your old camery is only going to have more issues in the very near future. you can pick up good cheep cars for around 3k. i think that would be a much wiser choice than fixing your gearbox.

if not the wreckers are your best bet to find a second hand gearbox. then find a nice local mechanic to put it in. its hard to find a legit good mechanic so you might want to ask your friends. i dont know any.

pffft, cars are only just getting started at 350,000kms!