Should I replace my Transmission or buy a new car?

Should I replace my transmission or buy a new car? Welcome to Mercie J, where compassion and craftsmanship come together! I'm Rick Smith, master certified technician.

That's a very difficult decision to make, because any time we do a major repair on our car it is unpleasant on the pocket book .And then the most recent numbers I've seen for 2024 are that the average new car payment works out to be a little under $9,000 a year, and the average used car payment ends up to be a little over 6,000. So either way it's definitely financially challenging.

So the first thing that I think we want to do is take a look at the rest of the vehicle, because the one thing we don't want to do is do a major repair only to have another major repair coming up. So good thorough inspection will help us decide if this is going to just be what we need to do.

The next thing we want to remember is that when we do repairs we're actually just buying time. We're not buying a transmission, we're buying vehicle usage. So if I do this repair, do I like the car? Does it perform the way I want it to? So am I going to be able to use it for a period of time? And however long I'm going to be able to use that vehicle for, then I can divide whatever I'm going to spend over that period of time and kind of see what it's going to cost me per year or per month for those repairs as opposed to vehicle replacement.

So with all that said, once you've made your decision, if you decide to do a major repair, I'm going to give you one little more piece of advice. Spend a little bit more money and have the car detailed, because if the car is fresh and clean, you will feel much better about the money you put into it. Then you will just feel like you've got a fresher, newer car and you'll be happy with it for a longer period of time. I hope this has been informational to you, and until next time, safe travels and blessings to you.