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has anyone replaced a trans from automotix, a-1 parts depot, or any other salvage/re-manufacture company? I don't want to order an AWD trans just to find out its neutered to fwd but runs and drives fine.... I asked a b.a.r rep and he said NONE of those companies test..... I tried calling some today but did not get through, hold for 5 calls over 2 hours and they closed before I got to speak with anyone.

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I was thinking of one with a 5 year warranty I'm nearly homeless after going through this whole ordeal of buying this car... so If I do it once I likely wont have the opportunity to do it again assuming I would be paying for labor to swap the trans in and out each time.... do you know of any who offer installation packages that include a labor warranty in case its a bad trans?

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I'm only really interested in a rebuilt trans.... I tried to go the full course with buying a new clutch pack, solenoid..... but that rendered me still no awd, no flashing at temp light anymore but that's no condolence having spent a little less than $700 and still not having awd... if the final drive is all stripped out will the drive hub spin freely? is there any way to know if parts are blown out while replacing the clutch packs?

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Why not wait until next Winter to see how your finances are then? Its not like it doesn't drive in front wheel drive mode right?

 

+1,

 

it sounds like you got a bad deal on both the purchase and the repairs. sorry. but throwing more money at the car when you are in financial trouble doesn't make much sense when it still runs and drives.

 

i don't know anything about ''extended warranties'' for older cars, i have never bought one, but you might look into one of those for a little piece of mind.

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Why not wait until next Winter to see how your finances are then? Its not like it doesn't drive in front wheel drive mode right?

 

+10 - if you are concerned about doing more damage - put a fuse in the FWD fuse holder and just go with it until finances allow you more room to work on it.

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Is everyone afraid to work on awd clutches i fix them all the time takes two hours or less and fixed evry time thiss is not a diffacult repair test soiliniod check resistance of wire harness setup clutch pack check tail shaft output sealing rings and set clutches less clearance it has the sooner it comes on.Have only ever seen one sheard basket was from neutral droping. I bett you have a damaged output sealing rings or faulty soiliniod. Thiss all can be repaired in car

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You can shop around and get good warrenties on transmissions. Don't go toa chain, due a lot of research on the net and ask around. There are great shops out there. Some rebuild them on premises, some get them from rebuilders. Also it is not so much the warrenty but where else besides the original shop can also cover it.

 

A place that installs rebuilt transmissions will cover everything.

 

Extended warrenties on older cars are basically a ripoff. They were sued here in NYS by the atty general. They are not worth the money.

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set clutches less clearance it has the sooner it comes on.Have only ever seen one sheard basket was from neutral droping. I bett you have a damaged output sealing rings or faulty soiliniod. Thiss all can be repaired in car

 

how do you adjust the clearance of the clutches? is this done with a different size pressure ring or some procedure of tightening/turning the clutches inside the hubs?

 

is the output seal your speaking of behind the drive basket closer to the center of the trans or is it the output from the rear or the tail housing to the drive shaft?

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I was told that driving in FWD mode WILL damage the trans. in its current state I'm only getting about 24mpg freeway.... so bad fuel economy does not help me save money.... I will be moving into a place I might not be able to work on my car to the extent I can now ie apt complex.... I have some limited resources available to me now that likely wont be in the future so I'm trying to get it fixed asap.

 

I would drive around on the fwd if I knew it would not kill my trans if I started saving money for a new trans and it went out before I was ready to replace it I would be in a much worse situation....

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Ive done it to vehicles for customers before here twice, both have around 11-15,000 miles with no side effects. One just the fuse, one I put a switch in. In the past I did it at other jobs too but I didn't track whether those are having any issues. I don't see how it would cause any problems. I rebuild them here, about 6-10 per year. Its a pretty quick series of electrical tests to verify the solenoids in the trans are good for this and most of the other problems you can encounter with a 4eat.

 

And frankly, who cares if it did "ruin" the trans by putting the fuse in. Its already in need of repairs anyway right?

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you are getting 24 mpg, i think the car was only factory rated for 25, 26 tops. so you are not doing too bad.

 

if you have NO power to the rear and NO binding, what possible damage could be caused by driving it as is. what ever is broken has disconnected the rear wheels. if it starts binding while driving like this, THEN you can put in the fuse. think of it as a FWD car with AWD potential.

 

and as good as these cars can be, this thing could blow a head gasket right after you work on the trans. i would drive it for a while and see how it goes. i know you want this wonderful car that you had your heart set on but it may be a good time to slow down and reassess.

 

remind me, what car, year, model miles?

Edited by johnceggleston
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I was told that driving in FWD mode WILL damage the trans. in its current state I'm only getting about 24mpg freeway.... so bad fuel economy does not help me save money....

 

Fuel economy is not related to the loss of AWD.

 

The worst that can happen in FWD mode is that you eventually burn out the duty-c solenoid from applying constant 12v to it. But frankly that could take years based on the experience of members on this forum and it's only a $100 part brand new from the dealer that is easily replaced.

 

Run it. Figure out the problem later. It's silly to dump the time and resources you have into this problem - try another TCU from a board member (post in the wanted section) and wait for a deal to come around on a good used transmission.

 

I have bought 50 or more used engines and transmissions - I have returned exactly ONE engine for excessive crank end play which I inspected once I got it home and got the timing components off. They swapped it out for another engine that was just fine. Auto recyclers are not happy when parts come back. Get a warrantee if you like.

 

GD

Edited by GeneralDisorder
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24 MPG freeway depends upon how fast you are driving. it seems 68 is the magical point where it starts dropping.

 

PSA - as long as you have all the rear drive equipment on the car, doing FWD won't reduce fuel consumption.

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Leave the FWD fuse out.

 

Your issue is that the rear drive doesn't get engaged, so putting the FWD fuse in will do absolutely nothing.

 

Either just drive the car and fix it when you have money, or have a competent mechanic take apart the rear transfer housing and figure out why it isn't getting or holding hydraulic pressure.

 

Go back to your discount parts swappers and have them take another look at it. They had it apart once to put the solenoid and clutch pack in, they can have it apart again to look for hydraulic leaks.

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I set the clutches by useing different thikness steels to set clearance have done thiss job over 50 times have boxes of awd clutch packs of varying thickness . some have thicker steels than others so i pick and choose with ones i will use to get the clearance i whant. The output seals are where the tailshaft go's through the trans tail houseing two nylon sealing rings that seal the output shaft theese like to wear into alumiunium and cant seal properly and bypass awd

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