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Tranaxle replacement issues

Discussion in 'Generation 1 Prius Discussion' started by renogal, Jan 13, 2010.

  1. renogal

    renogal New Member

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    2002 Prius
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    Help! My 2002 Prius has 115K miles on it. I was told by my Toyota Dealer (after warning lights and their exam) that it needs a new transaxle at a cost of almost 5K. I have checked with a couple of local transmission folks and the cost of the transaxle is $3410. Noone seems to be able to locate a cheaper one or want to rebuild one. I understand their are high voltage issues. I am caught between a rock and a hard place. I don't want to spend almost a third to half the value of the car replacing the transmission and I can't sell or give it away. My only choice seems to be to trade it in on a new car and I don't really want to. I looked for recalls but no luck. I don't think 115K miles is much. Did I get a bad one? Can anyone help me find someone to repair it at a more reasonable cost? Thanks.
     
    #1 renogal, Jan 13, 2010
  2. Patrick Wong

    Patrick Wong DIY Enthusiast

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    How about $695 plus shipping for a salvage part?
    TOYOTA PRIUS 2001-2003 TRANSAXLE TRANSMISSION AUTO XVIP:eBay Motors (item 390107196393 end time Jan-15-10 06:24:34 PST)

    I recommend that you inquire into the history of the donor car, especially model year and odometer reading, before you decide whether this is a good deal or not.

    You'll need to find an independent willing to install this. Also you are bearing the risk in case the salvage part doesn't work.

    The Classic transaxle has had its share of failures. This prompted a group of owners (including me) to advocate periodic transaxle ATF changes since oil viscosity declines quickly while Si/Fe particle content becomes quite high in used fluid. Sorry that you have become another winner of that negative "lottery".

    It's not really practical to expect the transaxle to be rebuilt, as a regular transmission shop will not have the necessary expertise.

    You are right that it doesn't make sense to spend ~$5K (including labor cost) to replace the transaxle with a new part. Further, your traction battery could give up, costing you $3K for a new part + labor, or your electric steering gear or inverter might die, each item costing ~$2K.

    Good luck.
     
    #2 Patrick Wong, Jan 14, 2010
  3. bwilson4web

    bwilson4web BMW i3 and Model 3

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    Where there any noises or other indications of a problem?

    Did you drive to the dealer or have it towed?

    What was going on when the lights first came on?

    Can you get the error codes from the dealer and share here?

    Bob Wilson
     
    #3 bwilson4web, Jan 14, 2010
  4. adric22

    adric22 Ev and Hybrid Enthusiast

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    Yes, please tell us the symptoms of the vehicle. Don't always trust what a dealer tells you. In many cases they are simply trying to make money by doing 2 things:

    1. selling you a NEW vehicle.
    2. Buying your old one on trade-in for nearly nothing with a minor problem they can easily fix and re-sale.

    So I'd get a second opinion (or let us help you diagnose it!)
     
    #4 adric22, Jan 14, 2010
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