How much for a new transmission?

L

Lewis&Clark

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I have a sneaking suspicion my 2008 transmission might be starting to go. 180k miles so not an unreasonable time for it but years out of warranty. How much sticker shock should I expect assuming I do NOT go to a Toyota dealer?

Limited
4wd
V8
Has that stupid xreas thing

I live in the SF Bay Area but will gladly drive 300 miles or so if it saves me a bundle.
 
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Lewis&Clark said:
I have a sneaking suspicion my 2008 transmission might be starting to go. 180k miles so not an unreasonable time for it but years out of warranty. How much sticker shock should I expect assuming I do NOT go to a Toyota dealer?

Limited
4wd
V8
Has that stupid xreas thing

I live in the SF Bay Area but will gladly drive 300 miles or so if it saves me a bundle.
Click to expand...

What makes you think it's starting to go?
 
Lewis&Clark said:
I think I have time. But there was a slight but noticeable amount of slippage driving home last night. And there’s been a little burning smell after driving around some steep hills and passes.
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Do you have any leaks? Mine did something similar but I ended up replacing a leaking line and getting it topped off and everything was fine...I just did a full drain and replace of the fluid this weekend too. No hiccups or anything. Some people on here have used a product called shudderfix to remedy the "rumble strip" feeling. This is a link to the write-up I used and the link to the shudderfix. I didn't use any shudderfix though because mine wasn't doing anything weird.

ATF Exchange (using the cooling line)

Advance Auto Parts - Down for Maintenance
 
first thing I would do is check the ATF fluid and have it changed if you haven't in the last 50,000 miles. Don't let a dealer tell you about the "lifetime fluid" bullsh t.

Our transmissions are known to soldier onto 300-400K+ miles.

Good luck.
 
id assume 2-4k depending on condition. makes it a tough call, if around $4k thats just $3300 less than what i paid for entire vehicle with 130k miles...i just did dealer tranny drain/fill. $97 - $10 for black friday service and it does feel smoother.

curious: i once parked in garage and smelt some burning and expected it to be seizing brake calipers??? tranny wasnt rough before i drain and filled except when cold, just a little bit harder shifts then.
 
Depending on the dealer you shop with, it can range from $2400 to $4000, plus install. I would strongly recommend flushing fluid and making sure it's at full capacity as others have suggested. I didn't realize my fluid was 4 qts low when I did my flush, apparently there was enough friction material in the old fluid that everything just kept working until it was changed. Slipped like crazy afterward, and that's when I discovered the low fluid condition. After topping it off, it's been fine ever since. And for what it's worth, I just rolled over 194,459 miles. I really don't think your mileage alone is enough justification to spend that kind of money if it's being properly serviced. Just my $.02

This is where I buy OEM from Transmission - Toyota (35010-35A50-84) | Toyota Parts
 
The 03-05 transmissions more likely to go, the ones 06 and on are less likely to have cooling failure and other problems

In my 03 I paid 3k to have mine replaced with a used one
 
Last edited:
Lewis&Clark said:
I have a sneaking suspicion my 2008 transmission might be starting to go. 180k miles so not an unreasonable time for it but years out of warranty. How much sticker shock should I expect assuming I do NOT go to a Toyota dealer?

Limited
4wd
V8
Has that stupid xreas thing

I live in the SF Bay Area but will gladly drive 300 miles or so if it saves me a bundle.
Click to expand...

I picked up a transmission with 105000km (that's 65600 miles or so) for around $650CAD. It's rare these trucks need new transmissions so yards are often littered with them.

Calling around, I found a shop that would rebuild for $5k plus installation. Prices varied wildly for non-Toyota rebuilds.

I had the valve body (from the newer, younger trans) modified by IPT and the young transmission is now back in.

Anyway, I noticed a little slipping in the transmission about 5 years ago. It's gotten steadily worse and I have been dealing with that "forgets to go into 1st gear when slowing down quick to a crawl" problem for about 3 years or so (that's often caused by a failed selenoid, by the way). By the time I learned how to fix it, I figured it's probably pretty far gone and I should replace.

I bit the bullet to replace the transmission because it did some weird shit while I was driving to a work function... and I stopped trusting it.

The point though is these transmissions of tough as nails if they're kept full of fluid. You're pretty likely to see a long service life even if it does some funny things occasionally. Just change the fluid often-ish with Toyota WS and keep an eye out for funny-business.
 
v8 2005 4wd here with 205km. engine was cold and i was leaving the house in the summer. my street slopes gently downhill for a few blocks before a stop sign. the engine was revving against the transmission at 1500rpm and slipped out of gear completely. put it in neutral and back in drive and it was fine for the day. it had happened twice before but didn't slip completely out of gear. anyway i was terrified i ruined the transmission and was reading on here about it but not really feeling comforted haha.

a week later i went to a transmission shop with 4 litres of ws fluid and a filter and they did the dranin/fill and it's been great since. they said it was down a litre as well.

transmission has been perfect since.
 
hankd said:
v8 2005 4wd here with 205km. engine was cold and i was leaving the house in the summer. my street slopes gently downhill for a few blocks before a stop sign. the engine was revving against the transmission at 1500rpm and slipped out of gear completely. put it in neutral and back in drive and it was fine for the day. it had happened twice before but didn't slip completely out of gear. anyway i was terrified i ruined the transmission and was reading on here about it but not really feeling comforted haha.

a week later i went to a transmission shop with 4 litres of ws fluid and a filter and they did the dranin/fill and it's been great since. they said it was down a litre as well.

transmission has been perfect since.
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i have a slight downhill right from my driveway. cold starts, cold day like today, i think it hops up in gears because the downhill but i cant say it feels great when it does. i think second to third. it feels like a very minor thud and it shifts early from 2 to third...damn dowhill. i just had 4 quarts done on a drain and fill 2 weeks ago and it feels good for the most part but i figured id mention that cold start downhill upshift doesnt feel great. once the engine is warm i dont notice it ever.
 
hinmo24t said:
i have a slight downhill right from my driveway. cold starts, cold day like today, i think it hops up in gears because the downhill but i cant say it feels great when it does. i think second to third. it feels like a very minor thud and it shifts early from 2 to third...damn dowhill. i just had 4 quarts done on a drain and fill 2 weeks ago and it feels good for the most part but i figured id mention that cold start downhill upshift doesnt feel great. once the engine is warm i dont notice it ever.
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On super cold days (around 5 degrees or less) I get the exact same feeling. Everything feels great otherwise. Had about 16 quarts drained and filled when i first bought the truck at 191k and I'm about to pass 206k
 
TLChip said:
On super cold days (around 5 degrees or less) I get the exact same feeling. Everything feels great otherwise. Had about 16 quarts drained and filled when i first bought the truck at 191k and I'm about to pass 206k
Click to expand...

Thanks for assurance...140k on mine. Maybe on cold days I'll try to let her warm up in garage before I leave for work while
 
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