Alas, I have car trouble

[Shellhead]

Today, I was picking up a couple of friends who needed a ride (as grad students living near campus, they don't see a need to own a car yet). I've done this before, so I did my usual routine... parked illegally in front of a fire hydrant, then ran up to ring their doorbell. Parking spaces are sometimes hard to find in their area, and I was only going to be there for minutes.

We get in the car, and it starts up just fine. I put the car in reverse to back up a little so I can pull around the car parked in front of me. Nothing happens. I give it some gas, and still my car isn't moving. Getting worried, I put it in drive, thinking that I can slowly pull around the car in front of me. No movement. I give it some gas. Try different gears again (automatic transmission, not manual) and still my car won't move, though the engine sounds nice and strong. No, it wasn't the parking brake. I'm hopeful that it's just some electronic module thingie, in which case this repair won't be very expensive.

So we got out and pushed the car, in neutral, backwards and around the corner into the nearest legal space. Fortunately, we didn't have to parallel park, but it was still difficult going. Then another friend showed up to give all of us rides.

Sadly, I have spent some serious money in recent weeks. I took a short and inexpensive vacation in mid-September, spent some money getting a transmission leak fixed, and spent serious money helping out my girlfriend, who lost her main job in September. So I will be waiting until Friday to get my car towed to a repair shop. And if it turns out to be an expensive transmission job, I may be waiting a month until I can possibly afford the repair.

The good news is that I live on bus route, and my workplace is on an adjacent bus route. The weather will be strangely warm this week, and probably dry. My girlfriend even has a friend of a friend who *might* be willing to do the repair for free now and take payment later. The bad news is that my workplace is in a bad neighborhood, with a couple of fatal shootings in the last two years at the bar just down the street. And night arrives at about 5:30 PM at this time of year.

[Bear]

I...spent some money getting a transmission leak fixed. And if it turns out to be an expensive transmission job, I may be waiting a month until I can possibly afford the repair.

I'll bet anything whoever worked on your tranny last screwed something up, like: didn't put in the right fluid? Or maybe not enough.

I hate transmission problems. God knows I've suffered much over the damn transmission. Screw you GM!

Your right though: it could just be the computer. My Buick had its computer replaced three times.

[Night]

Well, usually bad transmission problems come with sounds... Then again I'm more used to manual... have an automatic now, but I usually don't if I have a choice. Sounds like not even trying to engage.... when you say "nothing" does it act like neutral or like it's stuck in park...(edit: stupid question if you can push it you can at least get to neutral... not a simple linkage) as always check simple things like fluid levels automatic tans needs to be checked with engine on.

Sorry for your woes...

[Expletive Deleted]

I'll bet anything whoever worked on your tranny last screwed something up, like: didn't put in the right fluid? Or maybe not enough.That'd be my bet, too.

Almost the exact same thing happened to me in September. It turned out to be the transmission pump dying. I'd had the fluid changed a few weeks before, and the breakdown's symptoms were almost exactly what you're describing. I ended up needing a new pump and some new gaskets.

On the bright side, at least this happened to you on a city street instead of on the highway.

[Shellhead]

I ended up needing a new pump and some new gaskets.


That sounds bad, but not horrible. Did that repair cost a few hundred?

I always thought that "worried sick" was more of a figure of speech than anything else, but now I know the truth. I am literally worried sick right now. I can't sleep at all, because my mind is just racing, with worries, doubts, regrets, and far-fetched scenarios. Not only am I exhausted but unable to sleep right now, but I actually feel a little like puking.

Trying to focus on the positive... I get paid on Friday, and that will free up about $400 in cash flow. I could probably also borrow some money from co-workers, though not from family and friends, as everybody close to me is struggling in one way or another. If this is a normal car problem, I can deal with this soon. But if it's a serious transmission problem, then I

But I keep worrying about all kinds of details. What if the weather turns cold soon? What if there is enough snow that they tow cars to the impound lot? What if I get mugged while waiting for the bus after dark... it gets dark shortly after five at this time of year, and I work in a rough area.

I did some searching online tonight for diagnostic tips, and found that Aamco had a site. I copied some info that seems to match my before and after symptoms. In hindsight, I feel stupid thinking that the loud sound that my car was making was just a hole in the exhaust pipe, when it was probably a warning sign regarding my transmission. It's just that there weren't any other symptoms of trouble:

Before:

Buzzing or any other noise from the transmission
Description:
A buzzing (or grinding) noise when the car starts to move forward or in reverse, no buzzing when the vehicle is in neutral or park, the buzzing noise goes away after the car has been driven for a while or, it seems to disappear when you are driving at higher speeds. [NOTE: I only had the buzzing sound, and it never went away, just got louder the faster I went; no other performance issues]
Possible reasons:

* The transmission fluid level is low or incorrect
* The transmission fluid is dirty or contaminated
* The shift linkage for the transmission needs to be adjusted
* There is an internal problem in the transmission
* The torque converter is bad
* The transmission cooler lines are vibrating against the frame of the vehicle

After:

The transmission will not shift into gear
Description:
You start the car and move the selector into gear, but nothing happens. The transmission does not engage.
Possible reasons:

* The gear shift linkage is broken
* There is an internal problem in the transmission

Wish me tons of luck. I'm seriously freaking out over this. Thanks.

[Tish-the-Scorpion]

i *think* i have this problem with a 72 roadrunner im trying to restore.fixing cars gets expensive FAST.this car already ate up 10 grand from me when i was redoing the interior over the last year and a half.i asked my dad to give me a hand as i'm not too familer with this car yet.

[Expletive Deleted]

That sounds bad, but not horrible. Did that repair cost a few hundred?Yeah. It was still under warranty (thank God for the 7/70), but it wouldn't have been more than three hundred or so.

[Winslow]

. . . spent some money getting a transmission leak fixed, . . . .

I had a similar problem with my van in the 80s. The problem was a leak, and whenever fluid would get low it would stop shifting.

Check your trasmission fluid . . . maybe you can keep filling the thing until you can afford repairs.

[Winslow]

. . . The bad news is that my workplace is in a bad neighborhood, with a couple of fatal shootings in the last two years at the bar just down the street. And night arrives at about 5:30 PM at this time of year.

Not to dismiss your concerns, but this sounds more like drug-gang related violence over turf rather than random violence / muggings.

Bars are often used for drop off / pickup places for drugs.

How do I know this? We have a horrible bar within walking distance of my house that is used as a drop off point for drugs from Philadelphia into the 'burbs. It's prone to violence and police raids. But my neighborhood is fine.

Hoping you situation is similar (violence is specific to the bar - not the 'hood)

[Rik Levins]

I had a similar problem with my van in the 80s. The problem was a leak, and whenever fluid would get low it would stop shifting.

Check your trasmission fluid . . . maybe you can keep filling the thing until you can afford repairs.

Winslow is correct, I've had that problem too.

It only takes a minute to check the fluid level, if it's low then that's your problem.

(Well, that's your IMMEDIATE problem, the leak that MADE it low is the long-term hangup and will eventually need fixing.)

But at least, if it does turn out to be low, you can temporarily fix it by simply pouring in more fluid, as Winslow said, and that won't cost you more than a few bucks for the fluid.

[Shellhead]

After getting the transmission leak fixed weeks ago, I was still watching for drips. But there were no signs of fresh red drips under my car. All I can do at the moment is go by that, because my car is parked eight miles away from here. If it was still the transmission leak, it would need to be some kind of leak that only happened while I was driving, not while the car was parked. Also, there is no trouble moving to different gears, like I would expect if there wasn't enough transmission fluid. It's just that nothing happens when I'm in any gear except Park or Neutral.

The more I read up on transmissions, the more it sound like either the gear shift linkage is broken, or else some electronic component went bad. I'm still leaning towards the electronic answer, because I didn't hear anything break, and the change was so abrupt and happened while the car was parked with the engine off.

Hopefully I'm just over-reacting about the area where I work. Aside from the bar shootings, it is also the same neighborhood where some of my stolen property was found after the burglary. But since my ex-girlfriend was involved with that burglary, that was definitely drug-related, too.

Otherwise, the only real warning sign is that some of the panhandlers are fairly assertive, especially the teenagers. And this are used to be the local cruising strip in the 60's and even 70's (blame American Graffiti I guess), then gradually turned into the drive-thru drugs and prostitution are by the 80's and 90's. The area has recently been re-vitalized by new businesses and Somali and Hmong immigrants, so it seems to be getting safer.

No word back from my g/f yet, so I assume that the friend of a friend isn't going to help. One of my friends volunteered to abuse his AAA membership to get my car towed somewhere. Even so I will still be waiting until Friday to get this taken care of, when I have some money to spend. I'm still flinching about the possibility that they can fix it, but I can't quite afford the repair. I guess that will be the time when I break down my pride and ask for help from co-workers or more distant relatives.

[Mac Danny]

After getting the transmission leak fixed weeks ago, I was still watching for drips. But there were no signs of fresh red drips under my car. All I can do at the moment is go by that, because my car is parked eight miles away from here. If it was still the transmission leak, it would need to be some kind of leak that only happened while I was driving, not while the car was parked. Also, there is no trouble moving to different gears, like I would expect if there wasn't enough transmission fluid. It's just that nothing happens when I'm in any gear except Park or Neutral.

The more I read up on transmissions, the more it sound like either the gear shift linkage is broken, or else some electronic component went bad. I'm still leaning towards the electronic answer, because I didn't hear anything break, and the change was so abrupt and happened while the car was parked with the engine off.

Hopefully I'm just over-reacting about the area where I work. Aside from the bar shootings, it is also the same neighborhood where some of my stolen property was found after the burglary. But since my ex-girlfriend was involved with that burglary, that was definitely drug-related, too.

Otherwise, the only real warning sign is that some of the panhandlers are fairly assertive, especially the teenagers. And this are used to be the local cruising strip in the 60's and even 70's (blame American Graffiti I guess), then gradually turned into the drive-thru drugs and prostitution are by the 80's and 90's. The area has recently been re-vitalized by new businesses and Somali and Hmong immigrants, so it seems to be getting safer.

No word back from my g/f yet, so I assume that the friend of a friend isn't going to help. One of my friends volunteered to abuse his AAA membership to get my car towed somewhere. Even so I will still be waiting until Friday to get this taken care of, when I have some money to spend. I'm still flinching about the possibility that they can fix it, but I can't quite afford the repair. I guess that will be the time when I break down my pride and ask for help from co-workers or more distant relatives.


I had a transmission fluid leak in a car that would leak while driving. I was on the NJ Turnpike going about 70 when my RPM's went up and my MPH dropped.

I pulled over, put 2 bottles of tranny fluid in and I was right as rain. I had the same thing happen when parked on a hill. My car wouldn't go in reverse becasue there is not enough fluid in it. I put fluid in and was ale to move out.

Check the fluid level, seriously. you may not see a leak but check the stick if you can get to it.

[Shellhead]

I had a transmission fluid leak in a car that would leak while driving. I was on the NJ Turnpike going about 70 when my RPM's went up and my MPH dropped.

I pulled over, put 2 bottles of tranny fluid in and I was right as rain. I had the same thing happen when parked on a hill. My car wouldn't go in reverse becasue there is not enough fluid in it. I put fluid in and was ale to move out.

Check the fluid level, seriously. you may not see a leak but check the stick if you can get to it.

I wanted to give this a try last night, but I needed a ride because my car is 8 miles away from me. The friend that I called for a ride talked me out of it. He pointed out that my car is parked in a decent location and that it would be worse to have it break down elsewhere. He is going to abuse his AAA coverage to get me a free tow to a decent transmission place that is only 3.5 miles away from where my car is.

Right now, it looks like I've got everything lined up. Payroll is happening a day early this week, because Friday is Veteran's Day and my boss took my advice to move up payroll by one day for the holiday. Sometimes it's very convenient to be the company accountant. So I will get my car towed tomorrow evening and drop off the keys at the shop, and hopefully they will get it fixed on Thursday. My boss promised to give me a ride to pick it up. I got my debt management plan to skip this month, so that gives me a lot of extra cash flow to deal with this.

[Jaye]

"and spent serious money helping out my girlfriend, who lost her main job in September"

That sounds so familiar, I scrolled back and checked the date of your post.
Be careful, man.

-13th

[Shellhead]

The transmission place has taken a preliminary look at my car. They didn't find anything easily accesible that was wrong, like a fluid leak or a broken cable. So they called to get a $395 deposit from me before they do an internal inspection, which involves removing the transmission from the car, a labor-intensive process.

We talked about possible scenarios, and here they are:

Best case: the internal inspection reveals a minor problem, like the transmission fluid pump is broken, or maybe an internal sensor needs to be replaced. That would cost at least $800 to fix, but I can afford that.

Worst case: the transmission needs to be rebuilt, which would cost $2,500. I can't afford that, and I can't justify it for a car that is nearly 9 years old. So I would get my car towed to the junkyard. The $395 internal inspection doesn't include putting the transmission back, so they would just leave it in the trunk or something.

Medium scenario: whatever problem(s) they find are fixable for roughly $1,500. I swallow my pride and borrow about $300 or so from co-workers if they let me. Otherwise, it's still the junkyard scenario.

It sucks, but I put myself in this position by helping my girlfriend more than I could afford to. If she can at least help me through the coming days (or weeks) with rides and being nice to me, that would mean a lot. If not, I learn from my mistakes, dump her and move on.

[Shellhead]

The outcome was tolerable. The problem turned out to be that the transmission fluid pump failed. Fixing it cost $990, which was mostly labor because they had to partially disassemble my transmission to get at it.

While they were working on my car, the transmission guys noticed two other things. My front brake pads are getting thin, which I already knew, but they should last me a few months, so that will wait.

The other problem is more disturbing... my right front wheel bearing needs to be replaced. I have been driving with that problem for about 600 miles now, judging by when the noise and vibration started, so I am probably pushing my luck. So I will be driving my car as little as possible until I get paid again on November 24, so I can get this fixed before the wheel falls off. Just to be safe, I will be riding the bus as much as possible and completely avoiding highway driving.

[tricksterpup]

Shell,
Sorry to hear about this.. if you need any help hollar, i didnt catch this until today.

[steelcable97]

THis is so crazy, I have the same exact problem. Mine started with a weird sound when I took off from a traffic light. I was able to get the car home. Today, I drove it around the block. I had no reverse, and would not switch to second.

It's pretty sad when I say that I hope to only spend $1000 to get it fixed like you did.

[Shellhead]

THis is so crazy, I have the same exact problem. Mine started with a weird sound when I took off from a traffic light. I was able to get the car home. Today, I drove it around the block. I had no reverse, and would not switch to second.

It's pretty sad when I say that I hope to only spend $1000 to get it fixed like you did.

It definitely sounds like a transmission problem, but it sounds like it is a mechanical problem because of that sound. Not that I am an expert, but a transmission pump failure would probably be a more uniform effect, and not just affect certain gears. I wish you good luck in getting this resolved.

[Shellhead]

Shell,
Sorry to hear about this.. if you need any help hollar, i didnt catch this until today.

I'm okay. My car still runs, I just plan on driving it as little as possible for the next 11 days. I live a few blocks from the bus stop, and my workplace is right on a major bus route, so I'm okay. Besides, I got pessimistic when I bought my bus pass, so I still have enough prepaid fare to cover me for another nine days of commuting. Counting weekends and Thanksgiving, that's more than enough.

[Nikita]

Today, I was picking up a couple of friends who needed a ride (as grad students living near campus, they don't see a need to own a car yet). I've done this before, so I did my usual routine... parked illegally in front of a fire hydrant, then ran up to ring their doorbell. Parking spaces are sometimes hard to find in their area, and I was only going to be there for minutes.

We get in the car, and it starts up just fine. I put the car in reverse to back up a little so I can pull around the car parked in front of me. Nothing happens. I give it some gas, and still my car isn't moving. Getting worried, I put it in drive, thinking that I can slowly pull around the car in front of me. No movement. I give it some gas. Try different gears again (automatic transmission, not manual) and still my car won't move, though the engine sounds nice and strong. No, it wasn't the parking brake. I'm hopeful that it's just some electronic module thingie, in which case this repair won't be very expensive.

So we got out and pushed the car, in neutral, backwards and around the corner into the nearest legal space. Fortunately, we didn't have to parallel park, but it was still difficult going. Then another friend showed up to give all of us rides.

Sadly, I have spent some serious money in recent weeks. I took a short and inexpensive vacation in mid-September, spent some money getting a transmission leak fixed, and spent serious money helping out my girlfriend, who lost her main job in September. So I will be waiting until Friday to get my car towed to a repair shop. And if it turns out to be an expensive transmission job, I may be waiting a month until I can possibly afford the repair.

The good news is that I live on bus route, and my workplace is on an adjacent bus route. The weather will be strangely warm this week, and probably dry. My girlfriend even has a friend of a friend who *might* be willing to do the repair for free now and take payment later. The bad news is that my workplace is in a bad neighborhood, with a couple of fatal shootings in the last two years at the bar just down the street. And night arrives at about 5:30 PM at this time of year.



More car trouble? Man, that sucks Shell. Sorry to hear that. We always had old cars for years and it could be a headache. But new cars seem to develop lots of problems these days too. Especially very expensive problems.

Sounds like the transmission is still having problems. When we first moved to Illinois, I got an old Mustang and it eventually developed the problems you described above. I took it to my mechanic at the time and he told me I just needed an entire new transmission because all the different gears were burning out.

Hope you can get it fixed Shell, and on the cheap. Car problems suck.

*sending good vibes to your car*

[Nikita]

The outcome was tolerable. The problem turned out to be that the transmission fluid pump failed. Fixing it cost $990, which was mostly labor because they had to partially disassemble my transmission to get at it.

While they were working on my car, the transmission guys noticed two other things. My front brake pads are getting thin, which I already knew, but they should last me a few months, so that will wait.

The other problem is more disturbing... my right front wheel bearing needs to be replaced. I have been driving with that problem for about 600 miles now, judging by when the noise and vibration started, so I am probably pushing my luck. So I will be driving my car as little as possible until I get paid again on November 24, so I can get this fixed before the wheel falls off. Just to be safe, I will be riding the bus as much as possible and completely avoiding highway driving.


Sorry, I posted before reading this update. So it was the transmission? A fluid pump costs almost $1000? Yikes. You could get a used engine for that. All I can say is if you get a different car in the future, stick with the Japanese models. Those suckers last forever.

[Alex L]

All I can say is if you get a different car in the future, stick with the Japanese models. Those suckers last forever.

Depends on the car.

Some Toyota engines (I think it's their Camry) are known to have this weird sludge buildup in the engine.

Honda's V6 automatic transmissions tend to crap out pretty easily.

Nissan's taken a bit of a quality hit recently, I think when Renault took over and tried to restore the company to profitability (read: cutting corners?)

[Shellhead]

Sorry, I posted before reading this update. So it was the transmission? A fluid pump costs almost $1000? Yikes. You could get a used engine for that. All I can say is if you get a different car in the future, stick with the Japanese models. Those suckers last forever.

The transmission fluid pump was only about $100 something. The rest of the cost was the labor to get at it and also to verify that there wasn't anything else wrong with the transmission.

[Nikita]

The transmission fluid pump was only about $100 something. The rest of the cost was the labor to get at it and also to verify that there wasn't anything else wrong with the transmission.


Are you kidding? $100 for the part and $800 for labor. Sounds like gouging to me. That's ridiculous. I can't believe how expensive car repair is these days. We need health insurance for our cars.