If there have been issues with the gears not engaging or slipping, this can cause the vehicle to unexpectedly start shaking when driving. If you are operating your vehicle at a high speed, this can be quite dangerous.
Transmission Repairs
Often with a transmission repair, you are only fixing one specific part of the transmission. This repair can take place without having to rebuild the entire transmission. This option typically costs less than a rebuild or a replacement.
Rebuilding a transmission can save you a lot of money over the short-term, while keeping car payments out of your monthly budget. For many, rebuilding their transmission is worth the initial cost. Rebuilding a transmission may cost you twenty-five hundred dollars or more, which is a significant chunk of change.
It's good that you're asking this question, though, because driving with a bad transmission will cause damage to the engine if left unaddressed! If your transmission is failing, you may already be experiencing shifting issues like slipping and loud mechanical sounds that are difficult to discern.
To put it briefly, no you should never drive your vehicle if you believe there to be an issue with your transmission in any case. Once a transmission starts slipping it needs to immediately be repaired. Every time you drive it after you feel your transmission slip, it is a risk.
With proper care and maintenance, a new transmission can last for 300,000 miles or more. Since the average American drives 10,000 to 15,000 miles per year, a new transmission could last you up to 30 years under the right conditions.
Time and mileage vary between car drivers and how they use or abuse their transmissions. Still, typical automatic transmissions last around 150,00 to 200,000 miles or approximately 7 years.
If your transmission is in good condition, there are benefits to repairing it rather than scrapping it entirely. There's less environmental impact because it cuts down on the amount of metal thrown away. You'll also save on the cost of buying, registering, and insuring a new car.
The transmission of a modern vehicle is not one solid piece but a jumble of several moving parts. This is the primary reason fixing a vehicle's transmission is more expensive. Other factors that influence the overall costs of replacing a transmission include: The age of the vehicle.
Without service and maintenance, some transmissions can fail in as little as 100,000 miles. If you drive around 10-15,000 miles a year, your transmission could be down for the count in seven years! With care and service, transmissions can last 300,000 miles or more.
If you go faster, your engine will use more gas or diesel per mile driven and your transmission will wear out. Also, when you go so fast it means extra stress on all the small moving parts of your engine, and that can cause it to wear out more quickly.
It's labor intensive and cost prohibitive. Luckily, transmission failure doesn't usually happen without warning. There are several warning signs that your transmission's going out.
Typically, when your transmission begins to fail you may start to notice some form of difficulty when changing gears. Occasionally you may hear or feel a clunk noise when you shift gear. Another sign of a rough shifting is difficulty in accelerating to the speed for the gear that it is in.
Standard transmissions usually don't need to be replaced during their entire lifetime, whereas some automatic transmissions need replacing around the 200-250,000 km mark. Overall, it is important to maintain regular servicing and maintenance for your transmission.
Replacements can range from $1,800 to $3,400. Depending on the repair shop and technicians, labor charges can range from $500 to $1,200. Here's a quick overview of the average transmission replacement cost: Remanufactured transmission – $1,300 to $3,400.
“Most new transmissions are actually rebuilds. Only a few manufacturers sell fully new, like Audi and a few others, but none of the domestics. It might be a factory rebuilt transmission, but it's not new.”
"Transmission problems can lead to a range of issues such as overheating, slipping gears, and holding on to a gear for too long," says John Ibbotson, Consumer Reports' chief mechanic. "Ultimately, minor concerns can lead to catastrophic failure, leaving the car undrivable.
In general, service experts agree that it doesn't take more than one to two days to replace a standard transmission, with more finicky models taking closer three or four days.
Grinding, Jerking, or Shaking
Shaking and jerking are good indicators of transmission trouble. Gear grinding is a common symptom in manual transmission vehicles. Automatic transmission failure often begins with some hesitation during gears shifting. Some might describe this a “slipping,” as well.
Jerking, grinding of the gears, and shaking are common indicators of a bad transmission. Some manufacturers have even issued recalls for such issues. In manual transmission vehicles, the grinding of gears is typical.
Transmission failure can be caused by slipping, symptomatic noises, lack of fluid due to leaks, overheating, or outside factors that affect the transmission.