Your vehicle has recently broken down and does not move. You take it to the nearest auto repair shop and they have determined that you have an internal transmission problem. Oh no! What should you do? There are three options:

• Buy a re-manufactured exchange transmission and replace your existing transmission.
• Buy a used transmission and replace your existing transmission.
• Rebuild your existing transmission.

But what are the advantages and disadvantages of each choice?

Remanufactured Exchange Transmission

Advantages

• You will know the exact cost of repair before the transmission is removed from your vehicle because the re-manufacturing procedure is complete.
• Re-manufacturers will replace all high wear parts which is a significant advantage over used transmissions.
• The warranties with re-manufactured exchange transmissions are longer than used transmissions.

Disadvantages

• Most transmission models have applications that span many years, all with different model codes that are specific to the year and model of the vehicle they were calibrated for. Re-manufactured exchange transmissions may "bolt up" to your vehicle, but wholesale transmission re-manufacturers try to group hundreds of model codes into just a few in order to reduce the amount of stock they must carry. Unfortunately, this practice virtually assures the re-manufactured transmission is not the exact right one for your car.
• Vehicle manufacturers recommend transmission updates because of design flaws. To keep costs down many transmission re-manufacturers do not apply updates.
• Unless you purchase the transmission directly from the re-manufacturer you are not dealing directly with the re-manufacturer.
• The cost of installing an exchange transmission is higher than rebuilding your existing transmission, because most re-manufactured exchange transmissions are purchased through a third party and prices must factor in the possibility of hard part damage which your transmission may not have.
• The total cost of repair will be greater than installing a used transmission.
• In many cases, the warranties with exchange transmissions do not cover the labor to remove and install the transmission from your vehicle.
• All quality control procedures are performed before the transmission is installed in your vehicle.

Used Transmission

Advantages

• You will know the exact cost of repair before the transmission is removed from your vehicle.
• The total cost of installing a used transmission will be less than the other two options.

Disadvantages

• The used transmission will already have a great deal of mileage on it with associated wear and tear.
• You do not know the transmission service record of the vehicle that contained the used transmission.
• Many vehicles are sent to the wrecking yard with transmission problems.
• The warranties on used transmissions are not very long.
• Even though the transmission came from the same model vehicle, the used transmission may not be the correct transmission for your vehicle.

Rebuilt Transmission

Advantages

• Most transmission rebuilds are performed at local transmission rebuild shops. Therefore, you deal directly with the people who rebuild your transmission.
• Transmission rebuild shops rebuild the transmission in your vehicle which assures that it will be calibrated correctly for your vehicle.
• Transmission rebuild shops on average offer longer warranties than re-manufacturers. The warranties cover the cost of removing and installing the transmission.
• Vehicle manufacturers recommend transmission updates because of design flaws. Transmission rebuild shops will recommend applying manufacturer recommended updates to protect the longer warranties.
• In most cases, the cost of rebuilding your existing transmission will be lower than installing a re-manufactured exchange transmission because you are dealing directly with the transmission rebuild shop and the cost does not need to factor in the possibility of replacing hard parts.
• Transmission rebuild shops will replace all high wear parts which is a significant advantage over used transmissions.
• Transmission specialists perform quality control procedures after the transmission is installed in your vehicle.

Disadvantages

• You will not know the exact cost of repair before the transmission is removed from your vehicle because the transmission rebuild shop is unable to determine the parts' cost until the transmission is disassembled and inspected.
• The total cost of repair will be greater than installing a used transmission.