mtnhrdgr2

The tranny on my 1987 4Runner is going out, so I am in the market for a used/rebuilt one. I keep going back and forth on whether or not I will buy a used one from a private party, used one from a local shop, have mine rebuilt, or buy a rebuilt one from a local shop or Marlin. From many threads here on YT and Pirate, the best seems to be Marlin, but it is also the most expensive ($1269).

I asked for help on what to look for when it comes to used transmissions, and a YT member here (Philbert) was kind enough to answer me. His thread is https://www.yotatech.com/forums/f116/please-help-diagnose-87-4runner-tranny-sounds-violent-now-241763/index3.html

"Kinda a crap shoot. See how many miles on on the tranny, lower is better. Is it rebuilt? You can tell if the cases have been pulled apart if it has RTV on the seal surfaces. Check that the bearings are ok when you rotate by hand, and shift into each gear, and reverse as you rotate. Everything should be smooth. no grinding or weird vibes. Of course, all may pass that test but you may have bad bearings and gears that only show up after you install it."

I finally went to see a used tranny and t-case (top-shift) from a private party today. He was asking $250 for it. As soon as I saw it, I told him there was no way that it was worth $250.

The bad:
The tranny/t-case has been sitting outside on a pallet for a while. The entire housing is oxidized. All the housing bolts have surface rust. The two t-case flanges have surface rust. The shifters have surface rust. The salve cylinder has surface rust. The shift fork has surface rust. I opened the fill-bolt, and oil leaked out. The oil was old, but at least it was full. I rolled the tranny on its side and took out the drain bolt. The drain bolt had oil sludge caked on. I felt the sludge between my fingers and it felt gritty. However, I could not tell if it was metal shavings or not.

The good:
Per the seller, this came out of a wrecked donor truck that had 80K miles. There were no noticeable cracks or holes anywhere in the entire housing. The housing does not appear to have ever been opened. I spun the input shaft and the t-case flanges and it was smooth through all the gears both high and low. There were no whining, grinding, vibrations or any other types of noise. Shifting through all the gears both high and low was also smooth and had no slop.

Even with the good, I could not get past the bad I listed above even though he dropped the price to $200. This is dfinitely not the used ones that are in the local shops. Those are all shiny!

My questions are: are there anything else that I can look at or do to test a used transmission? Is the ‘ugly’ look just superficial or is this thing a ticking time bomb?

WeenieHutJr.

I'd be worried about rust getting into the places inside the trans where the oil film has gone away and rusting things like detents, bearings and shift rods. Also, that grit in the oil is not sand. That trans may have 80k on it, but those were 80k hard miles with oil that was degraded and some idiot at at the stick. Just from sitting, that crusty thing accumulated a lot of wear and the grit on the plug may be pieces of the dog teeth that have circulated through gear teeth, creating fine abrasive particles that wear everything in the trans out way faster. I have 220k on my trans and am putting money away for a Marlin R151F or an L52. I would drop the dough on a Marlin cuz you know its going to last at least as long as an OEM unit if you take care of it and longer if you double clutch the downshifts and run MTL or equivalent. I would walk away from that trans, you will never be confident in it and that grit is an alarm bell. Good luck!

dropzone

iTrader: (6)

explain this approach? The R151 and L52 are at opposite ends of the extreme and the L52 is 4" shorter...

wyoming9

iTrader: (1)

I had a W 56 rebuilt for $750.00 I am happy. Only because I really don`t have time to do every thing myself.

I bought a used Transmission for $100.00 it got me by while mine was being rebuilt till I got them swapped around.

For $200.00 I would have bought that one.

tj884Rdlx

i have the exact same choice to make in my future, as my input shaft bearings are humming in 3rd and 5th.

i will NOT buy a tranny that's already removed from a vehicle, unless the owner is another 22re "nut" and had it stored in a garage because he planned to use it himself.

it's got to at least be sealed up in a vehicle that's been driven in the last month, before the engine failed or was wrecked/flipped.

there's plenty of trannys out there that are still in a functioning truck with a bad HG or something, to be had for $400 or so.

otherwise, find a shop with good recommendations and get yours rebuilt....unless you're already experiencing GRINDING in your own, and you know the gears are shot.

i'd love a Marlin tranny too, but that price is too steep.

Moonfish

Maybe the rusty one the guy kept because it seemed good is the best deal you will find. Whatever you get, make sure the seals don't leak.