I was driving last night and felt a strange "stutter." Every so often (especially after I made a turn and straightened out), it would stutter more. I got very nervous so I decided to take it to the shop today. It stuttered some more, but here's the real catch...when I got to the shop and tried reversing into a spot, I COULDN'T REVERSE!!! I knew officially that the transmission was fried, and I'm so happy that it didn't crap out UNTIL I got to the shop. I totally thank the Lord for that.
But back on topic, unfortunately, this particular shop only services transmissions, but doesn't replace or rebuild them. They gave me some numbers to call on Monday. They estimate it will be at least a $1400 fix from their point of view.
Just to be safe, I'm leaving the truck there for a few days until I have a tow truck take it to the next spot. I don't want to chance driving it even home....which leaves me in my current situation:
It's 10 years old ('97) and has been reliable for the most part, with a few fixes here and there (alternator, EGR valve, new battery, water pump and other fixes I can't remember). Some stats:
-80,000 miles
-AC works, but has a few leaks. Recently put freon inside. It's probably going to die soon too.
-paint is quite scratched up
-Truck bed looks like hell and the tailgate is worse (I have to pull the inside metal tabs to open it, since the handle doesn't open automatically anymore, arrrggh)
-when it rains, the inside smells. I don't know where the leak is coming from and I haven't tried to fix it.
I don't really feel like fixing the transmission as I don't know if it will really help the overall value. But I feel I may NEED IT just to go around to various dealerships to see what the trade-in value is. I would hate to have to tow it to one dealership at a time.
I'm looking at various truck prices. I want something reliable, safe, but still somewhat appealing. I see great trucks from Ford, GMC, Dodge and Toyota. I've seen some '07 Dodge Ram 1500s for $15K and Dakota Quad Cabs at $16,888, but they don't mention the warranty.
I don't need a superpowerful, good-looking gas guzzler but something good-looking enough that is DEPENDABLE and SAFE for at least 5 years. I'll even take a V6 since I don't need to show off. Most likely, I will trade in my POS, but don't really know where to start.
I know it's an information overload, but I would appreciate any help.
Thanks,
-Joel