Fix it or scrap it? The age old question!

[yorketransport]

I have an '04 Jetta 1.8T  that seems to have lost reverse in the tranny. The general consensus is that the tranny is shot and it's not just fluid or the shift solenoids. So now comes the decision, fix it or dump it. The car is in excellent condition and runs great but has 155K miles on it. I figure it's worth about $3500 in the local market (contrary to what KBB would say ). A tranny swap will cost about the same amount.

I was going to sell it a few months ago, before the problems started, just because I was bored and wanted something different. My wife (who doesn't drive!) has an unexplained fondness for the car though so it's still here. The only reason I can think of to fix it is that I'm having a heck of a time finding a car that's as much fun to drive. The only ones that come close are the Audi S4 and the new Volvo S60 Drive-E. Everything else just feels heavy and sluggish. If I want to drive a sloppy, sluggish, clumsy vehicle I'll just drive my Duramax Silverado!

So what is everyone's walk away point? Is it when the repair exceeds the value of the vehicle?

[Boss .300 winmag]

I put a used tyranny in my 1998 civic last year and it had 250. Miles on it, of course a friend of mine did the work for $35.00 an hour.

Payments suck, $3500 and the car is a know entity as you know what you have. Go buy a used car and it's a carp shoot. 

[Mark Brenckle]

I put a rebuilt tranny in my '00 Accent a few years ago at 112k, drove great until last month when it started slipping and finally gave out all together at 225k. Mine was only $1200, the car was worth a little more than that then. Pick-n-pull is giving us $250 for it now. I don't regret spending the money, but if the engine had smoked I'd have been kicking myself. So, I guess if you've got the cash and think you'll get another 150k out of it, its nice not having car payments! You should check out repair costs of the Audi and Volvo! 

[raydog]

I have an '04 Jetta 1.8T  that seems to have lost reverse in the tranny. The general consensus is that the tranny is shot and it's not just fluid or the shift solenoids. So now comes the decision, fix it or dump it. The car is in excellent condition and runs great but has 155K miles on it. I figure it's worth about $3500 in the local market (contrary to what KBB would say ). A tranny swap will cost about the same amount.

I was going to sell it a few months ago, before the problems started, just because I was bored and wanted something different. My wife (who doesn't drive!) has an unexplained fondness for the car though so it's still here. The only reason I can think of to fix it is that I'm having a heck of a time finding a car that's as much fun to drive. The only ones that come close are the Audi S4 and the new Volvo S60 Drive-E. Everything else just feels heavy and sluggish. If I want to drive a sloppy, sluggish, clumsy vehicle I'll just drive my Duramax Silverado!

So what is everyone's walk away point? Is it when the repair exceeds the value of the vehicle?

How often do you hear of Allison transmissions going out??

[coachcw]

With the 1.8t your most likely getting close to more major work. We have seen them loose the turbo and bearings . I would say time to send it down the road . maybe there's a vw buff that will give you a grand or so .

[Dhoey07]

Sell it as is for 1k and buy yourself the S4 

[brokenvet]

I would put the used tranny from Pick & pull as suggested. 

1.8 Engines are tough engines and easy to work on.   You may need a 12 point bit to remove the CV axles.

[Buzz2401]

VW and Audi's are expensive to work on and one of the reasons I don't buy them.  If you can't do the work yourself I would sell it the way it is and move on.

[baker5150]

DO NOT BUY AN AUDI

Unless you like paying really large amounts of money to fix annoying issues that will plague you for the life of the car.

They don't seam to hold their value anymore either.

I would get a newer Jetta TDI,  my wife loves hers and it's a blast to drive.

[Badhabit]

Have you looked here?

http://www.car-part.com/

[Woodchuck]

With the 1.8t your most likely getting close to more major work. We have seen them loose the turbo and bearings . I would say time to send it down the road . maybe there's a vw buff that will give you a grand or so .

Best advice on here. My customers that hang on to them past 150k get reserved parking spaces.

[elkoholic1]

id say scrap it before you start dumping money into and get to deep to stop especially if you don't really need it or use it every day!! 

[BULLBLASTER]

You know what vw stands for right? Virtually worthless   
 

[coachcw]

You know what vw stands for right? Virtually worthless   
 

I like them like a tooth ache

[yorketransport]

Everybody told me that it was a dumb idea to buy a VW, but I've had amazing luck with it. The only work I've had done to it is regular maintenance and recommended services. The cost of repairs doesn't seem that bad on the VW, but I'm used to paying $100 per hour for a diesel mechanic. You can't do anything to an International T444E for less than $1000, and I have 3 of them!

I considered trying to do the work myself but I've accepted the fact that I know just enough to know when I don't know enough to do a job right. Plus I just don't have the time or space to get into a job like that. I found a few used transmissions for about $1800 and the quotes I'm getting for the complete job including parts and labor are all around $3200. That's not terrible, but it's still a 10 year old car with over 150K on it. I typically get rid of vehicles when they hit about 100K, this one was just an exception because I actually enjoy driving it.

I probably won't actually buy another car; it'a more likely that I'd lease one. If the vehicle is under lease then repair costs really don't matter for the most part. Plus there are plenty of other financial benefits to leasing instead of buying. What I really wanted was a Tesla Model S, but I'm having a hard time rationalizing that one! I'm just stuck because I don't like any of the domestic cars out there right now. If Ford or Chevy could come out with something that can compete with the European cars I'd be all over that!