I've traced the awful clunk up the CV axles all the way to the "differential" or output section of the trans. There's a LOT of play in this area as I rotate the wheels back and forth and look for the opposite rotation on the other side of the van.
Changing the trans fluid showed a LOT of metallic ferrous dust adhering to the magnet on the plug. It was shaped like a Christmas tree instead of a cylinder.
My Van has 200k miles on it. A reputable reman is $3200 or so. The rest of the van is reasonably sound still, I'd expect it to go 3-5 more years.
The options are:
1) Replace with a reman, to a cost of about $5k all in
2) Buy a different 5K vehicle with that same money
3) Apply the 5k towards a different used vehicle likely to cost much more.
I don't option 2 makes any sense. Nothing you can get for $5k will be nicer than my existing van, plus it will have no history AND it will likely need a ton of work to boot.
Option 3 likewise seems a lot more expensive because the used market is just not going to offer up good deals on quality used vehicles like our van. 10K even and you'll likely get something sketchy, and if it's an Odyssey, it might need a transmission anyway in just a year or two.
So I'm thinking to go ahead and replace the trans even though it costs more than the book value of my van. The value of my van TO ME is much higher than book because nobody will sell me anything is nice or as trustworthy for anything like the same money.
Thoughts?
Changing the trans fluid showed a LOT of metallic ferrous dust adhering to the magnet on the plug. It was shaped like a Christmas tree instead of a cylinder.
My Van has 200k miles on it. A reputable reman is $3200 or so. The rest of the van is reasonably sound still, I'd expect it to go 3-5 more years.
The options are:
1) Replace with a reman, to a cost of about $5k all in
2) Buy a different 5K vehicle with that same money
3) Apply the 5k towards a different used vehicle likely to cost much more.
I don't option 2 makes any sense. Nothing you can get for $5k will be nicer than my existing van, plus it will have no history AND it will likely need a ton of work to boot.
Option 3 likewise seems a lot more expensive because the used market is just not going to offer up good deals on quality used vehicles like our van. 10K even and you'll likely get something sketchy, and if it's an Odyssey, it might need a transmission anyway in just a year or two.
So I'm thinking to go ahead and replace the trans even though it costs more than the book value of my van. The value of my van TO ME is much higher than book because nobody will sell me anything is nice or as trustworthy for anything like the same money.
Thoughts?
