Auto Trans Options? [Solved]

[heavymetaqueen]

2 weeks ago I purchased a 1989 Passenger Vanagon for $5600. I knew at this price a little work would be done, but it drives like a charm & everything on it was super clean. I took it into get inspected & the transmission will need to be rebuilt. I'm a 23 year old woman so I"m generally paranoid about getting ripped off. I've included some pictures of the trans & just want opinions about if I should take the van to another mechanic or if their pricing is fair.

I've also included a screenshot of the estimates given for the rest of the work that needs to be done. I plan on ordering wheel bearing kits from GoWesty & doing that + washing the engine bay myself.

I'm in Chicago, & would love to take it to a different shop (recommendations welcome) to see if the rebuild would be any cheaper but the mechanic scared me out of driving it any farther (I've driven it about 5 total hours since owning- 2.5 hours being the longest drive)

Edit: Van has about 130k miles. Trans rebuild is priced at $3700

[MarkWard]

Sorry, that differential section by the bell housing is done. You will need a replacement differential case. I would not use a local transmission shop for this task. I would find a VW specialty shop and pay them to remove it, install a complete reman, and ship your core back. There may be some useable parts.

If not, I have a used loaded differential I would be willing to sell, but the freight will be brutal from south Florida.

Shop around aske other vw owners, but what you posted is basically a boat anchor at this point. In the mean time, as long as it shifts ok, you have some time to save up.
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[kourt]

Welcome to The Samba--I see this is your first post! It's a doozy!

Just for some comparison, a GoWesty rebuilt transmission costs $3000 to $4500. That's just for the transaxle, and does not include the installation costs.

Your bellhousing, as Mark says, is broken. What we're talking about is the large bell shaped portion of the transaxle that mates with the engine. That bellhousing is part of the differential. That part in your van has cracked/missing pieces. The transmission itself is the smaller part on the forward end of the transaxle assembly.

These bellhousing castings are not easily repaired. I second Mark's advice--try to find a specialty VW shop that knows this transaxle. Let them handle the removal/rebuild/reinstall. They will have to source a new differential. I saw one on eBay today for $1200 but you can find them cheaper on The Samba classifieds.

I don't know what depth of assessment your mechanic did to come up with the costs listed for rebuild of the transaxle. Eyeballing the broken bellhousing alone does raise the stakes, but if the van is shifting fine and the mechanic did not drop the transmission oil pan and look at the fluid, or drop the whole thing and take it apart, the assessment that it needs rebuilding is, at best, a wild guess, and not based on careful analysis.

We don't know much about your willingness or ability to repair things. Without making any assumptions, I can say the automatic transmission is a fairly straightforward deal on the Vanagon. With a Bentley manual, a good work space, some ramps, and a lot of time, I know anyone can fix this. It will take courage. But there is nothing wrong with finding a good VW mechanic to solve this problem.

kourt

[MarkWard]

I'd let this one go for a 1/3rd of that. The broken case is not a normal failure. Because the differential case is not useable, you will likely not get a full core credit. Sorry about this, but it sounds like you got a good deal.

I fully sorted van is quite a bit more $$$ and you still can have expensive problems.

Edit: The shields that protect the pushrod tubes are also missing. There are better ones available aftermarket. Makes me wonder what else needs attention. There is a lot of money to be made flipping these. Do the minimum and find a buyer.

Welcome to the Samba. There is a good chance the fuel hoses may also have been overlooked. They can fail in a spectacular way. Hopefully someone from your neck of the woods will chime in.
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[mikemtnbike]

[heavymetaqueen]

[Wildthings]

Maybe find a used final drive section and have a bunch of people over to do the swap followed by a barbecue. Not a real big job. There is some shimming that needs to be done when you mate the final to the automatic section and some care needed when installing the torque converter, but mostly it isn't particularly technical. I don't think there is a great amount of urgency in doing this as the bellhousing has likely been busted for years already. I would want to fully reseal the replacement final drive before putting it in, this requires precise but not super technical work and could be done at your leisure ahead of the transmission swap.

At least the oil leaks help keep the rust at bay.

Look up on buying the adjustable style nuts for the front wheel bearings, they make the job that much easier and cost little. Having changed my first wheel bearing on the street in front of a Ford dealer on a Sunday morning somewhere in Kentucky in about a half hour, I am amazed at how much people get charged for having this simple job done. Check the lining thickness on your pads while you are in there and swap them out if they are at all questionable. Order and install a new wheel seal as well.

You might want to buy John Muir's VW Idiot Book and do some reading as many repairs will be the same or similar to what was done on the earlier air cooled VW's.

I bought my older daughter a fairly complete set of mechanic's tools at Lowes when they were having a sale. I only spend a few hundred dollars, but this was about a decade ago.

[dabaron]

i sure hope some local can come to your aid. if you were in my neck of the woods, i'd give you a hand. the transmission is super heavy and not easily removed from the engine.

Matt Steedle, a well respected VW transmission rebuilder charges about $2200.00 to do a full automatic rebuild with refurbed torque convertor - 12 month warranty. that does not include labor to remove and re-install the tranny, which should be in the 3 hour range. sadly the broken housing is a bummer and will add to the cost as others have pointed out.
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1991 Vanagon GL Camper
i had no idea i wanted to be a mechanic
"burnin oil and cookin coils" -- Destructo

BiWerks Design, LLC

[danfromsyr]

call and talk with (as well as send your pics to) for your VW service & restoration needs

Midwest Autosavers Inc.
155 Chicago St, Cary, IL 6001
224-357-8021
https://goo.gl/maps/EhXMdcixRHGYfAav8

[Zeitgeist 13]

If that were mine, I'd weld up a nice little cradle piece for that missing section, and then drill/tap the areas around there and bolt it on...but that's just me and my many mental flaws. Everyone here disagrees and they're mean to me...but I digress.

If the trans is shifting fine, then it might just need to be cleaned and re-sealed. Those prices for the bearing work seem kinda high, and not the good kind of high. Also, I prefer to replace wheel bearings as an axle set, so I recommend doing both sides at the same time.

btw: I like yer screen name.
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Casey--

'89 Bluestar ALH w/12mm Waldo pump, PP764 and GT2052
'01 Weekender --> full camper
y u rune klassik?

[dabaron]

[jlrftype7]

[?Waldo?]

If it were mine I would create a steel part to fit the missing piece and weld it in. I've had very good success welding similar cast parts. Proper prep and process and it would most likely work. If doing so for someone else, though, I would not guarantee it as welded cast parts are prone to cracking.

[Howesight]

There is a very cheap automatic transmission core here on the Samba:

https://www.thesamba.com/vw/classifieds/detail.php?id=2439982

You could dismount the transmission section from this core, replace the centre seal, and use your own transmission section and torque converter. If the transmission currently shifts and operates fine, then this would be a cheap fix for the broken cast iron casting.

The above will not be the only cheap core you could buy - - in rusty Illinois, there will be other dead automatic Vanagons from which to pry a trans.
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'86 Syncro Westy SVX

[jlrftype7]

[Steve M.]

There is also this advertisement for $1995.00, but it is in California and not sure what shipping would be.

https://www.thesamba.com/vw/classifieds/detail.php?id=2083796
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[DanHoug]

some thoughts... why does the auto trans need a rebuild? is it shifting poorly? leaking? that broken piece looks like it has been that way a very long time, not sure that is fatal. when oil drips on the floor, is it brown or red?

all the oil... in the estimate it says replace the oil filler cap. how much is it just from that? is it even present? go to a car wash in your grubbiest clothes and some sort of face shield. wash the heck out of the engine and get a base line on where leaks are originating. don't spray water on the distributor cap or it likely won't restart until you pop it off (2 spring clips) and dry out the inside. get on your knees and wash from the bottom side too.

130k miles and both rear wheel bearings loose? i'm suspicious of that diagnosis. be careful.

the cost for the water pump replacement is reasonable as that is fiddly. the cost for one side front wheel bearing seems really really high.

it would be good to get together with a classic car club or another Vanagon person with experience. might check out Volvo car clubs as a lot of those folks are passionate about keeping 35 vehicles running. people will help you sort these things out and will be glad to show you how to replace a front wheel bearing, etc.

if you have the stomach for sorting this all out, we can help you do some of it yourself and tell you what will be involved if you bring it somewhere. you've taken excellent photos, that'll go a long way to helping us help you.
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-dan
60% of what you find on the internet is wrong, including this post.

'87 Westy & '89 Westy both 2.1 4spd

Past projects can be found at--
www.thefixitworkshop.com

[kamzcab86]

[DanHoug]

Whups. Saw the date just now
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-dan
60% of what you find on the internet is wrong, including this post.

'87 Westy & '89 Westy both 2.1 4spd

Past projects can be found at--
www.thefixitworkshop.com