Would you put a new transmission in an 8 year old car with just over 100,000 miles?

[Anonymous]

It's a 2006 Honda Odyssey. We are having transmission issues that warrant getting a new transmission soon. Our mechanic (who we trust and have been going to for about 10 years) told us a new transmission would get us at least another 100,000 miles. It took 8 years to get to 100,000 miles. That would mean keeping the car at least another 8 years (barring anything else happening). This puts us with a 16 year old car. What would you do?

I will say that the idea of putting a large amount of money into the car and getting rid of it in 3ish years is something DH and I talked, but that just means spending more money.

Does anyone know someone who kept an Odyssey for a LONG time (over 10 years)? How do they fare? We are also at the point in maintenance to have the timing belt replaced (which I understand is also somewhat expensive (although not nearly as much as a transmission).

[Anonymous]

I drive a 1998 Honda CR-V. It has 180,000 miles on it. I plan to keep it at least 2 more years. I drive my cars until they are undriveable.

If you put a new or rebuilt transmission in the van, it should be around $2500. How is it not worth it to drive your van for another 8 years on $2500? Even if it only makes it another two years before you need another big repair, you got two years worth of driving out of it for $2500. That is a deal.

[Anonymous]

Just curious, who is your mechanic? Cannot for the life of me find a trustworthy mechanic in the DMV.

[Anonymous]

I was in the same exact position as you with a 2006 Honda Odyssey. Mine failed with no warning on the Jersey turnpike. I had it fixed, also in the $2500 range, but then immediately traded it in and bought a Nissan Rogue. My threshold for car troubles is extremely low though--we are a one car family. I don't like spending money on cars but I hate having the car in the shop etc.

Good luck!

[Anonymous]

If the $$ is a couple thousand I would do it however would be prepared to trade it in if I continued to have major problems with it. Otherwise yeah, if you get a good mechanic and the transmission is properly installed and is a good transmission, yes it should last years.

[Anonymous]

Lee's Auto in Brookland is a very very reputable trustworthy shop. 202-526-4443. Tony Lee is the owner and he is onsite. Julio is the shop manager. Martha is the shop receptionist. Great quality and fair prices. Using them since 2008. Wouldn't go ANYWHERE else. Located 2 blocks from the metro. Tell them Michelle who used to have the BMW sent you.

[Anonymous]

The resale value of comparable vans is about 11K. Also - checking historical reports on the kbb.com website - it appears that this year was prone to transmission and timing belt issues. So basically, when you get these replaced, you should be good to go for many many years. Next thing to think about - were you planning on keeping the car or were you already planning on getting soemthing else in the near future?

If you like the car and want to keep it, I would definitely make the repairs since you can get that money back if you sell it down the road. This is definitely the most economical and practical route. If you were thinking of something new in the next year or so, I would then sell it for 11K minus 1/3 of what it would cost you to fix it. Since the new owner will get many years of use once they fix itsignificant repairs, you don't want to back out the entire value of the repair. You will need to disclose any problems though.

[Anonymous]

How much is the car worth?

How much is the repair?

Is it a "total loss"?

Do you like the car that much?

[Anonymous]

Hondas have poor transmissions.

I have a 1996 Aura that had 140k miles on it when I rebuilt the transmission in 2007. It is still running at 260k miles.

I purchased the car in 2000 for 18k. I've replaced the transmission, starter, and timing belt...everything else standard like tires and shocks. Repairs have cost no more than 5k.

However, I have zero shame being a high earner in a nice neighborhood with an old car. I've saved twns of thousands.

[Anonymous]

I had to rebuild the transmission in my 2003 Infiniti FX35 in 2011 (which is about the same timeframe).

It cost me $4000.

After it was done, I did end up selling it for a more reliable car...as this one continued to have problems afterwhich.

[Anonymous]

I had this issue with a 2003 Odyssey. I opted not to put the $3500 into a car only worth $6000k (had 115k miles on it.) I thought about replacing it, but i put a lot of miles on my car (22k/year) wasn't convinced I wanted to drop that kind of money to have the car another 4y or so.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I had this issue with a 2003 Odyssey. I opted not to put the $3500 into a car only worth $6000k (had 115k miles on it.) I thought about replacing it, but i put a lot of miles on my car (22k/year) wasn't convinced I wanted to drop that kind of money to have the car another 4y or so.

I'm the above poster who put 2500 (rebuilt transmission) into my Acura. My car was worth about 4500 at the time. However, I did not look at it like you. My alternative was a new car would have cost me 35K...so my decision was 35K or 2,500. That transmission has gotten me another 120K miles and 6 years, with only a timing belt change and a tire change....so that transmission "saved" me $32,500 and I essentially squeezed another full life out of my car.

Now, it's time for the car to go because frankly I'm sick of it.

There is more "value" in a car than the KBB value, the value is how long will the car last and prevent you from dripping 35K in cash or coughing up a car payment for the next few years of a few hundred dollars a month?

IN that time we've fully gutted our kitchen and basement, which would have been used on a car otherwise. I love my new Wolf range better than a new car.

[Anonymous]

In Feb 2011, we had a timing belt break and destroy he engine in our 2004 Explorer. We wanted to keep the car at least 4 more years so we opted for a refurb engine. We did the math and it worked out to $122/mth over the 4 years to do the new engine vs. $300+ for new car payment. It is still going and we are debating if we replace it this year or can we push it until 2015.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I had this issue with a 2003 Odyssey. I opted not to put the $3500 into a car only worth $6000k (had 115k miles on it.) I thought about replacing it, but i put a lot of miles on my car (22k/year) wasn't convinced I wanted to drop that kind of money to have the car another 4y or so.

I'm the above poster who put 2500 (rebuilt transmission) into my Acura. My car was worth about 4500 at the time. However, I did not look at it like you. My alternative was a new car would have cost me 35K...so my decision was 35K or 2,500. That transmission has gotten me another 120K miles and 6 years, with only a timing belt change and a tire change....so that transmission "saved" me $32,500 and I essentially squeezed another full life out of my car.

Now, it's time for the car to go because frankly I'm sick of it.

There is more "value" in a car than the KBB value, the value is how long will the car last and prevent you from dripping 35K in cash or coughing up a car payment for the next few years of a few hundred dollars a month?

IN that time we've fully gutted our kitchen and basement, which would have been used on a car otherwise. I love my new Wolf range better than a new car.

I agree. You also have to take into account how much you will spend to replace a vehicle.

[Anonymous]

I'm not a Honda fan. Get rid of it.