My 85 Maxima automatic transmission w/ overdrive is ready to completely fail. It slips, it stutters, it shifts spontaneously (sometimes downshifting on the freeway when "decelerating" from 67 to 65!). Twice it has even slipped into Reverse as I was starting the engine; that was adventurous (luckily, no innocent bystanders were behind my vehicle).

Now, to be honest, I know very little about this transmission other than some statements made by a couple of guys I know who said that, because of the overdrive, these trannies can be very expensive to rebuild or replace.

So, my question is this: how much should I expect to pay to have my transmission rebuilt? Or would it be cheaper to buy a rebuilt transmission and have it installed? What other options for fixing this problem should I be considering?

I don't make a Bill Gates type of salary, so I am looking to find the cheapest alternative. Any insight will be greatly appreciated.

 

to get it rebuilt it will probably cost anywhere from $1500-$2000. You could probably find a used one for a few hundred and just pay a shop the labor to put it in but you gotta remember there will be no warranty on it.

 

Sounds like the tranny is gone! Probably the planetary carrier let go. If you have the tranny replaced, have the trans cooler flushed out! I dont know where you live, but you can try this company, TRC transmission replacement company. in the state of Washington. They will ship it anywhere. You will need to know the production date,trans type, mileage. Pro date is on the drivers side door post.example 1/87. Trans type is located on a metal tag on the firewall in the engine compartment. Ask for byron or maryalice Cost is aprox a grand Good luck Superwrench77

 

If you want it done right and you want it to last, you'll have to shell out the money. Here's the link to my old transmission rebuild thread:

http://forums.maxima.org/showthread.php?threadid=83074

I paid $1342 to have my auto tranny rebuilt and I did all of the work myself. I also installed a new radiator, cleaned out the tranny cooler lines, and used Mobil 1 synthetic ATF. So far, it's been shifting great and I drive with a very heavy foot. You can get a used one from a junkyard for about $500 but that's risky and not advised.