SailorKane
Member
2003 Expedition 2WD 5.4L. 130K miles and I want to keep the vehicle for a long time--motor and all else are fine. I take long trips and often tow a 6000 pound RV. I'm headed out to Vegas in two months (from Florida) and don't want any problems.
My Torque Converter is failing. Big clunk when it locks up and sometimes a shudder. Tranny tho seems to shift OK. Fluid hasn't been changed and is slightly burned. Took it to a neighbor who is a certified GM transmission mechanic and another mechanic I trust and they advised that the transmission is likely the next thing to go; replacing just the TC would probably waste $450 of labor and be back in the shop in a few months to do the tranny.
My question is this: How to get the work done?
1. My favorite all-around mechanic could put a tranny/TC in. I doubt I could talk him into letting me buy a tranny, but if I could, its really less than $1500 for the parts and probably $600 for labor for total of $2K.
2. Don't think I'm equipped to do it myself--no lift. And I can do brakes and front wheel bearings, but a tranny is probably beyond me. And neighbor doesn't want to touch Ford--he is a "GM only" guy.
3. Got a quote from Aamco of $1800-2600. One Aamco shop doesn't look good, but another one within reach has "Robert", who is very passionate about transmissions and seems to rebuild a lot of them. He would rebuild the tranny in his shop and install a reman TC for that price. I have two concerns--one guy in a local shop rebuilding a very complicated tranny and he could make a mistake. Second is the wide range for the price. It was "depending on what I find", but that doesn't make sense, since I said he should replace all replacable parts, since I want to keep the truck for another 200,000 miles. So I have to assume the price will be the top end $2600. Robert also says something about installing parts "made for towing", and "increasing the flow in the tranny". And maybe looking at the tranny radiator any perhaps putting in a larger one for cooling in the desert. Does this make any sense? Are there special rebuild parts out there for heavy duty towing? Isn't the stock tranny cooler good enough?
4. Ford will put a reman tranny and TC in for about $3200 turnkey. The local dealer only installs the unit--a reman company somewhere does the rebuild. Warrantee is 3 years and service would be at any Ford dealer. This dealer is where I bought the truck in 2003 and is reasonably competent. A friend went this route with his F150 recently and has been happy.
Price is always important, but quality of work is probably more important. I want to get another 11 years out of this truck!!! Any thoughts? Any other options? Any experiences with Aamco?
My Torque Converter is failing. Big clunk when it locks up and sometimes a shudder. Tranny tho seems to shift OK. Fluid hasn't been changed and is slightly burned. Took it to a neighbor who is a certified GM transmission mechanic and another mechanic I trust and they advised that the transmission is likely the next thing to go; replacing just the TC would probably waste $450 of labor and be back in the shop in a few months to do the tranny.
My question is this: How to get the work done?
1. My favorite all-around mechanic could put a tranny/TC in. I doubt I could talk him into letting me buy a tranny, but if I could, its really less than $1500 for the parts and probably $600 for labor for total of $2K.
2. Don't think I'm equipped to do it myself--no lift. And I can do brakes and front wheel bearings, but a tranny is probably beyond me. And neighbor doesn't want to touch Ford--he is a "GM only" guy.
3. Got a quote from Aamco of $1800-2600. One Aamco shop doesn't look good, but another one within reach has "Robert", who is very passionate about transmissions and seems to rebuild a lot of them. He would rebuild the tranny in his shop and install a reman TC for that price. I have two concerns--one guy in a local shop rebuilding a very complicated tranny and he could make a mistake. Second is the wide range for the price. It was "depending on what I find", but that doesn't make sense, since I said he should replace all replacable parts, since I want to keep the truck for another 200,000 miles. So I have to assume the price will be the top end $2600. Robert also says something about installing parts "made for towing", and "increasing the flow in the tranny". And maybe looking at the tranny radiator any perhaps putting in a larger one for cooling in the desert. Does this make any sense? Are there special rebuild parts out there for heavy duty towing? Isn't the stock tranny cooler good enough?
4. Ford will put a reman tranny and TC in for about $3200 turnkey. The local dealer only installs the unit--a reman company somewhere does the rebuild. Warrantee is 3 years and service would be at any Ford dealer. This dealer is where I bought the truck in 2003 and is reasonably competent. A friend went this route with his F150 recently and has been happy.
Price is always important, but quality of work is probably more important. I want to get another 11 years out of this truck!!! Any thoughts? Any other options? Any experiences with Aamco?
