[Zunige]

The options are very reasonable, but the prices are outrageously high... How many hours of labor is he estimating? Did you get a breakdown of hours and parts? I'm also wondering if your mechanic is experienced in doing this, and if he isn't, is he giving you a high estimate because he expects this will take him long due to his lack of experience?

In any event, I always think it is best to rebuild your own transmission, or send it in as a core when you purchase another one, from a reputable Alfa outfit. You could call Performatek, as they do this type of work. (Your transmission will be better than new. Andy really knows what he's doing.) Get an idea of the cost of a rebuild by them. Then ask your mechanic what he would charge you for removing the tranny, preparing it for shipping per Performatek's instructions, shipping it to them, and installing the refurbished one when it comes back from the reputable outfit. I just can't see the total bill being $3500, if you go with this approach. (I can't second guess your mechanic's rates, or his clientèle, but I would suspect that if I were doing this with my mechanics my total bill would not come close to $2000, and it could be as low as $1500. This is including all expenses, shipping & taxes. If any BB member feels that my $$ perception is off, please chime in.) I would not consider a used transmission.

Best regards,

 

[Zunige]

Has anyone else noticed that Dwhite14 dropped out after the first page when he found he could get it done for $1500. Hopefully he will give us an update afterwards. My guess is the bill will rise to over $2500 when the new clutch is added, extra problems inside are found and bad guibo, bad hoses etc are all discovered. I know my transmission rebuild sure took me in a lot of other directions. It is real easy to justify using the logic "since I already have this apart it is much easier to do it now" It is even easier when it is your own labor and time.

I'm sure he'll be back with an update, and will have learned a lot from this experience so he'll probably have some good advice for other BBers, when their time comes.

It is cheaper to do a bunch of stuff when the tranny is out, and while you are already "in there". It just hurts when you pay for it all at once, but the results are worth it, IMHO.

Best regards,