A rotten end to a great weekend...

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DJ Zac

DJ Zac

DJ
Dec 4, 2006
1,886
16
61
Upstate NY
www.djzacbarr.com
Labor Day weekend started out great for me this year. 2 shows booked with clients that I truly enjoy working for, and picture-perfect weather in the forecast.

My Saturday night went great, performing for about 200 - 250 people at a campground in the Adirondacks. I couldn't have asked for a better crowd, nor for a better response. :sqbiggrin:

Sunday night, I was at another campground, this one in the middle of absolutely nowhere about 60 miles from home. When I arrived, I noticed that my van was making a weird rattling noise when it was in gear. Being ever the optimist, I thought maybe a heat shield on the exhaust was rattling around... But,the show must go on, another 200 - 250 people, and even got a half hour of OT! :sqbiggrin:

So I loaded out and headed home. The noise got louder, and suddenly the truck didn't want to shift above 3rd gear. About a mile out of the camp, the tranny went altogether. No forward gears; no reverse gears; nothing. I was only able to pull halfway out of the road due to the fact there was no shoulder. Did I mention that in this area, I have NO cell phone coverage?? Yay...

Amazingly, the first car to come by actually stopped to ask if I needed any help, and they let me use their cell phone to call AAA. (It's great to know that there are still people out there who are willing to stop and help out a stranger on a dark road late at night!)

The tow truck showed up about an hour later, and loaded up the van for a long ride home. Finally got the truck dropped at my local mechanic's at about 1:15 am, and the tow truck driver was nice enough to drop me at my house about a mile from there... (Again, there are some really good, nice people out there!)

At this point I'm waiting for the garage to open tomorrow so that my mechanic can give me an estimate on the transmission repair. I'm figuring somewhere between $1500 and $2500... On the plus side, the engine was replaced on the van only 30,000 miles ago, so now EVERYTHING will be more or less "new..." I'm also working on borrowing a vehicle for the next week or so until the repair is done...

So how was YOUR weekend???
 
Man, that sucks that you had a breakdown. :sqfrown:

But very lucky that you had some good samaritans come to your rescue so quickly. :sqbiggrin:

Sounds like you have a good mechanic picked out that you can trust to do the job right, the first time.

Sorry to hear about the bad news about your vehicle. At least the gigs went great. (Trying to find that "silver lining" in that "dark cloud".

Keep us posted, and here's hoping that you'll get off easy at the mechanics.

Kirby
 
It's the Bose systems fault :D:D:D:D:D J/K
I don't know what the mileage is in your van but if you already replaced the engine the tat means that it had been used often. If you tow anything or carry heavy loads I would have them install a heavy duty transmission cooler and while driving in these conditions turn the OD off, the tranny will thank you ;).

I had an old Dodge Torqueflite transmission explode under one of my abnormal :D:D:D cars (well truck), the torque converter literally ate up the whole transmission leaving only the bell and top portion of the assembly the rest was scattered on the road.
 
Dude that sucks...

I remeber a long time ago while making a trip back home after training in rotten groten, CT for the Navy myself, my mom and my dad all driving different vehicles across the George Washington bridge in NY one of our vehicles died.... and I pulled up behind it to push it to the shoulder on the bridge and the traffic behind us simply stoped and allowed us to cross three lanes to get to the shoulder.... i was shocked :sqconfused: This was NY wasn't it? Aren't they suppose to be rude and always in a hurry? So thank you NY:sqbiggrin:
 
Geeze, Zac I'm saddened to hear. But it could've been much worse ~ the truck waited 'til the show was done before taking the night off, at least. :)

Tranny troubles are't always as bad as we tend to think. Let's hope it's something fairly simple like a bum torque converter.
 
I know its easy to say but its only money and inconvinence. It could have been an accident.

I dont know what kind of van you have Zac but I replaced transmissions in 2 Plymouths this year $1200 each (rebuilt). I actually replaced 3 but the third went 60 miles past warranty so the shop just charged me for parts on that one (around $400)
 
Thanks, everyone, for the kind words... I just talked to the mechanic, and it looks like $1800 to $2000 for a reman'd tranny (it's a full size Dodge van.) I asked if it could be rebuilt, and he sighed and said there wasn't a whole lot left in it to rebuild... Apparently, when I break something, I BREAK it!!!

So, with any luck, the truck will be back on the road by the weekend with a new transmission, and an engine with only 30,000 miles on it. It could have been much worse (it could have been an accident, or something that totaled the truck) and after all, it IS just money. I guess I just have to book a couple of extra weddings now... :sqrolleyes:
 
Zac now that the first two components of your drive train are going to be relatively new make certain the rear end and drive shaft bearings etc are checked out and greased to give you a solid complete train. One weak link can make life miserable for the rest of your money spent.
 
DJ Zac said:
Thanks, everyone, for the kind words... I just talked to the mechanic, and it looks like $1800 to $2000 for a reman'd tranny (it's a full size Dodge van.) I asked if it could be rebuilt, and he sighed and said there wasn't a whole lot left in it to rebuild... Apparently, when I break something, I BREAK it!!!
Click to expand...

One thing to consider...

When you have a tranny or engine repaired, you typically get a 12 month/12,000 mile warranty. With a reman unit, many times you get a 3 year/75,000 mile warranty on parts and labor.
 
Well, got the truck back Friday afternoon in time for 2 days of rainy, outdoor fun DJing for a couple of the local fire companies! It ended up getting a reman'd tranny at a cost of $2300.00... :sqerr:

Later this month I'll be taking it back in to have the rear-end serviced and make everything else is copacetic!

(Sad thing is, for what the tranny cost, I could have bought a second Bose L1!!!)
 
I'm thinking the same thing, Eddie, but I'll just let it go.
 
Zac,

Look to replace the radiator next, lol. :D

Seriously, I did much the same with an old Chevy S-10 pickup I had some years ago. The thing had over 200K on it. Engine went, I dropped in a short block. Clutch went, I replaced that. Radiator went, I replaced that. Axle seals, brake linings, caliper, brake hoses... it never seemed to end. Bear in mind I did all the work myself... bought the parts and laid on my back in the driveway.

When all was said and done I had more dough vested in that little S-10 than I could ever sell it for. It was still an old truck with over 200K on it. :(

I ended up trading it in for $200.00 off a '95 Astro cargo van. The S-10 went to the scrapyard.

All I'm sayin'... be mindful of what you pay to fix it versus what you could sell it for. :)
 
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