Another milkshake dilemma

[Mooretoyx4]

I know these threads can be a bit annoying but I'm tore on a decision about my t4r. I had a trans cooler failure which resulted in my trans and radiator mixing fluids and creating the dreaded "strawberry milkshake". I know the trans is done for because it was slipping and shifting hard as soon as it happened. So the situation I am in right now and what I need help on is deciding if it would be worth it to fix or just buy a new truck. I have needed a full size truck for a while for tow rig duties for my crawler and general hauling. So my choices are swap in a 5 spd into the runner(which has 240k, but runs great) or go out and buy a new to me tundra (07 or newer). I love my runner and hate the idea of not driving it anymore, but I definatley don't want to spend money on it and later down the road have to replace the motor or head gaskets. So anyway what would you guys think the smartest move would be? As of right now I don't have any debt besides the house and I'm able to pay cash for the majority of the new truck if I decide to go that route.

 

[KidVermicious]

You're thinking about this all wrong. Whether the motor might let go down the road is completely irrelevant - either you like your 4Runner and will fix it now and if the motor kicks the bucket down the road you'll fix it again, or you don't like your 4runner enough to fix it, in which case part it out or whatever and be done.

I can tell you from experience, it's no fun DDing a 1/2 ton truck, and a Tundra wouldn't make an awesome tow rig anyway. Do the manual swap on your 4Runner so you have a nice daily driver (or pitch it and get something else to commute in), and then get a sweet older F250 or 2500 or something for the occasional towing or hauling job.

 

[MStudt]

I know the trans is done for because it was slipping and shifting hard as soon as it happened.

How do YOU know this? Did a transmission shop tell you, or are you just making a guess here? Your transmission fluid if a lot thicker, and when watered down it'll cause the transmission to slip due to the viscosity of the fluid.

The reason I'm asking is due to the fact this is not always to case. I had the same thing happen to me about 4 months ago. Depending on how quick you caught it determines to outcome. I caught mine within a couple miles of it happening. I had it towed to a shop the next morning, flushed it, changing the filter, and new gasket. I'm still driving this 60+ miles a day to and from work. Not to mention I've also taking it from St. Louis to Grand Lake Colorado and back. I do have a hard shift into 2nd, but everything else is going good. I know it's not going to last forever, but it's still going even when others said it wouldn't.

 

[Mooretoyx4]

How do YOU know this? Did a transmission shop tell you, or are you just making a guess here? Your transmission fluid if a lot thicker, and when watered down it'll cause the transmission to slip due to the viscosity of the fluid.

it may not be totally gone but I was quoted $1100 to flush the trans and coolant and replace the radiator. It would be more cost efficient to swap in a manual and do the work myself. Not to mention it would be a lot Funner to drive.

 

[Mooretoyx4]

You're thinking about this all wrong. Whether the motor might let go down the road is completely irrelevant - either you like your 4Runner and will fix it now and if the motor kicks the bucket down the road you'll fix it again, or you don't like your 4runner enough to fix it, in which case part it out or whatever and be done.

I can tell you from experience, it's no fun DDing a 1/2 ton truck, and a Tundra wouldn't make an awesome tow rig anyway. Do the manual swap on your 4Runner so you have a nice daily driver (or pitch it and get something else to commute in), and then get a sweet older F250 or 2500 or something for the occasional towing or hauling job.

I agree, my first thought is to do the swap because I love my runner. I just needed a second opinion. There does happen to be a nice 97 Powerstroke down the road I could buy for 5k and I could have the best of both worlds.

 

[Andywear]

buying something older for the occasional hauling is good idea.

 

[MStudt]

it may not be totally gone but I was quoted $1100 to flush the trans and coolant and replace the radiator. It would be more cost efficient to swap in a manual and do the work myself. Not to mention it would be a lot Funner to drive.

Find a new shop to quote you. I paid $600 for a transmission flush, new radiator, engine flush, and labor.

 

[Mooretoyx4]

So I bought a new Denso radiator from rockauto for $98, I stalled it in about 30 minutes, took the runner to toyota and had the coolant and trans flushed. $365 and 20 quarts of trans fluid later and the runner is running perfectly. I Was skeptical about the trans shifting right after this happened but I'm glad I took the chance and had it done.