Broken down. What do you do?
 

Ms Rocket’s Tahoe broke down this morning just passed Statesville in North Carolina on I-77. She was able to get it turned around and went to the Chevy dealership a few miles away. 250k on the clock. Bad transmission. Needs rebuild or replacement. Dealer quoted her $6k for a new trans and will have it done today. She’s got to get to Roanoke VA for work and with logistics, distance, etc we said go ahead and do it. OUCH!

What do you do when things like this happen?

The older I get the more I just say f##k and pull out my wallet.
They wore me down!

Tough call, but depending on the real market value of the car (and whether it had any value beyond that to me) I probably would've rented a car to get to Virginia and back, and assessed my options later.

_

I would probably get it fixed. I say it was a miracle that they could fix it in a day.

At 250k it would really depend on how much the Mrs really liked her car.
Is that $6k for a brand spanking new trans?

It’s probably worth $10k. But it looks brand new, even with all the miles.

From my earlier post, she was looking for a newer used Tahoe, but after this investment, I think will be holding onto it for a while.

Even if it was in town, it’s too big for me to tackle nowadays. We would save money by taking it somewhere else, but I’m not sure how much, may be $1 or 2K?

I talk to the service advisor and he said everything is new except the case…

With that info, I'd say I would be looking at keeping it at least 2-3 yrs more if I could get away with minimal investments into it after this. Just oil and gas, hopefully it wouldn't need tires in that time too.

I wonder what the going rate is to replace or repair vs. what you were quoted.

To have it done next or same day is definitely worth something.....but how much over the norm?

Is there going to be a Chevy backed warranty on the trans that will be good/honored at ANY Chevy dealer?

If she really still likes the Tahoe and it still looks good, I’d get it fixed. Way cheaper than buying a newer car because you know what this one has been through.

This would be my answer as well.

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Low compression Cheby V-8 will run for a VERY long time. A/C will keep blowing cold too

At 250k miles that Tahoe is a dinosaur looking for a tar pit. $6k is a big hit and with a week to ponder I would probably have a trusted shop install a trans from a dismantler for $2500 and then decide to keep or sell. The 5.3L motor is a workhorse but 250k is pushing the envelope.

https://allusedparts.com/chevrolet/tahoe/2008/used_transmissions/?option=ub5516074ac970a1aee338056734d6a67&product_ id=UPD319387252G&gclid=Cj0KCQiA3eGfBhCeARIsACpJNU8 sc9by3TKzkKMEC3jFoFJf1krY0lPN-V7kng-o02b_Ycti1dMSTYQaAkpwEALw_wcB

Yes there’s a three-year warranty on the transmission, good at any Chevy dealer.

The price is not for expedited service. According to the service advisor, that’s the going rate!

New tahoes are $52,000 or realistically 60k.

A factory tranny with the gm warranty is peace of mind.

Iirc the 4l60e are under 3 grand from gm. I bet they are replacing all the lines and cooler. 6k is a bit steep, but it's only money.

I was looking online and I saw them from $2700-$3500. But I would need to get it somewhere and arrange to have somebody to install it. With her on the road, it’s the easiest thing to do. Fortunately, she can put it on her debit card.

Same day? hmmm...

I would want pictures of the new one going in.

Well, she just called and it won’t be ready today. She went to enterprise to rent a car and all she has is her debit card. Enterprise says they need a credit card!

I was on the phone with her when she was talking to the enterprise representative and as she was starting to cry, the lady said, don’t worry we’ll work it out.

Edit. This is why I told her to always carry another form of payment/CC.

A 4l60e is not something a dealer usually keeps in stock...

OP must have gotten lucky. Or they said it to get the business and the tranny comes in tonight from the hub. I know in Phoenix. The dealers get middle of the night parts ordered from LA via their own semis.


OP. Ask the dealer for a loaner/courtesy vehicle. 6k should get you a dealer car for a couple days.

It's your fault, you know.

2010 should be a six speed, no? The dealer probably does have them on the shelf. Can't wait for mine to go poof. I'll probably be towing the race car.

Actually those trannies can be hard to find at times. You’d think not because there are so many vehicles out there using them but that just makes more that need them.

Most common failure is the sun shield which does require a complete rebuild.

Getting 250k out of one is spectacular really. Was just a matter of time.

Ha. She takes care of her car and has all of the maintenance done. I don’t even know what transmission she has in the Tahoe, but it’s coming from somewhere about four hours away and just got to the shop. It should be ready sometime Monday.

Arguably the most ($) efficient strategy is to get a gently used car known to be reliable, with a PPI, with a bit of warranty left in case there is something to address and then just keep repairing it for several hundred thousand miles. At least. My main driver is going to need a transmission sometime soon. Okay.

You wrote:
"I was looking online and I saw them from $2700-$3500. "

That's the info I was looking for - thanks!

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Also - I have a debit card but never use it. I do cash or credit card.

Maybe 2 checks per year - one for renewing vehicle registrations and the other to pay my property tax.

Never understood why people use debit cards.......:confused:

My SHO needed a transmission, found a favorable shop in the area, locally owned. They installed a remanufactured unit, took about 3 days. I think I paid 2300 bucks, but this was back in 2019, it came with a 3 year warranty which was the best I found.

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Nothing to add other than in about 2 weeks, I’m flying cross country to buy a 330i, sight unseen and driving it back.

I didn’t need to read this.


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This is a tough call... How much "used car" could you buy for $6k?

IMO A reliable car you've owned for a long time is always worth fixing because it's a know entity.
But it's always nice to get something "new".

Ummmm.... Because it is the convenient way to pay cash?

No CC fees, Baz.

For 6K, I would think she would get a loaner as well, but they said no.

We could probably find a something for 6K, but she travels long distances, really likes the Tahoe and feels safe in it. She also carries a lot of stuff in the back with the 3rd seat removed. I don’t think we can find a similar SUV for 6K.

The car is in excellent condition and the previous one owner took care of it.

When she pulled into the service area, she said quite a few workers came over to look at her car and complimented her on how well it looked. They were surprised it had 250K.

Finding a clean non abused suv for 6k is not going to happen anymore. Maybe closer to double/triple that.

That's just rude.

How is using cash or a credit card inconvenient? And I have never paid any CC fees......

For academic purposes, which rebuild kits are recommended, why and if all is equal, by how much do they extend the transmission's life?

Used swap, or local rebuild.

rjp

My rule of thumb is I should get another year for every thousand spent. If this would get me another 6 years (and I already planned to keep it that long), it might be worth it.

It should be a 460le which GM uses in almost everything from trucks to Camaros and Vettes.

Common rebuild uses the sun sheild from a Corvette.

Our sun gear went out and it just killed reverse and second. Still driveable. We got an aftermarket one with a bigger reinforced flange. It didnt look much different but there isnt alot of room there for reiforcement.

The Tahoe got the 6L80 in 2009. 250K out of a 6L80 is good. I just had mine rebuilt at 143k and the shop I used said they have been rebuilding 3-8 per week for the last two years (look for separate thread). Aftermarket suppliers like Sonnax have stepped up and have found the shortcomings of the trans design and are offering parts that improve durability.

Full rebuild was $4200, so $6k with dealer labor costs and dealer mark up is high, but probably not out of whack. Labor was 8.6hrs @ $108 for remove/replace flush cooler, update thermo coupler reset and relearn computer. Labor for the rebuild itself was 8.3hrs @$108. Parts were $2251. Keep in mind labor for remove/replace is on a 4WD.

Same, lost reverse and second.

Was still drivable but sounded like a troop of drunk monkeys with sledge hammers having a rave inside the tranny.

Obviously didn’t drive it.