2000 LC Trans Replacement Options (1 Viewer)

[BottleRocket]

New owner of a clean, dealer maintained 133k mile 2000 Land Cruiser and the transmission gave out this Monday. 2 weeks after purchase.

Needless to say it soured the taste in my mouth towards the vehicle but given the low miles and condition of the truck I feel as though its worth fixing right. Still undecided if long-term ownership is my goal or not. This was intended to be my daily driver but I do have another vehicle.

In talks with the dealer, they can't find a Toyota re manufactured trans so these are my options:

1) Get a reman from streetsmart transmissions and have a local (very trusted) shop do the install - $2,981 total parts and labor (3 year warranty)

2) Buy a local junkyard trans for $280 and have a local transmission rebuild specialist rebuild it and then the Toyota dealer install it. This option is what the dealer has recommended to me. - $3,480 total parts and labor (2 year warranty)

3) Buy a local junkyard trans for $280 and have my local, trusted shop install it and hope it works fine. - $1,280 total parts and labor (6 month warranty)

What option do you all think and what do you think my truck would be worth after having this issue addressed? I can upload pictures later, but its silver with minimal wear on the interior leather and only minor surface rust underneath. Timing belt and water pump done by the dealer at 118k. Full Toyota dealer service records since new. Bone stock.

 

[BottleRocket]

The junkyard trans I'm looking at is from a 1998 with 226k miles on it.

 

[Hulsty]

Whats wrong with your current trans ?

 

[MongooseGA]

Interesting.

I'm pulled to #1 for the extended warranty. I'm pulled to #2 for the known rebuild details. I'm pulled to #3 for the cost.

If I were going to put a junkyard tranny (that's a car part, not a person) into my truck, I'd probably try to find one with lower miles, especially considering the mileage on your vehicle. I think the 2000 model year trucks had some known tranny issues but they weren't super widespread.

$3k is about what I'd budget for a tranny rebuild in most cars. Just did the same in my W123. For me, I think I'd go with #1.

 

[94SRUNNER]

I would tend to agree with @MongooseGA

Do you have more information on you current transmission?

 

[chenbowen]

My 2000 LC has reman tranny inside. The original tranny gave out at 180K back in 2008.

Now my LC has 285K miles and the reman tranny still works fine.

 

[BottleRocket]

The truck starting making a rattling noise in top gear under load. It was faint at first and I was unaware of the 2000MY having trans specific issues so I ignored it as just being "normal 20 year old vehicle noises".

This Monday the truck slipped out of gear while in drive and the noise got much louder. Had to have AAA tow to the dealer where they diagnosed it as a failure of the transmission. As far as how bad the damage is, it hasn't been taken off or torn apart yet so i'd say still unknown.

 

[BottleRocket]

My initial thoughts seem to agree with everyone here which is to go with the reman trans as it does save a little bit vs the rebuild.
However this is a large investment for me into the vehicle. Do you guys think the receipts for having this done add any value to the truck?

I paid $11k (which I thought was a bit of a premium for a high quality example) but I don't see any way of getting my money back once the cost of all of this is added in. Best option is to keep long term I guess?

Also, The lowest mile junkyard trans anywhere close to me is from a 2000 with 186k miles and its about $150 more. (I'm reluctant to use another 2000 in fear of the issue reoccurring)

 

[MongooseGA]

$11k is probably a little steep for an '00 (from PA, too?) but not terrible if it's clean. I paid the same for my '05 but granted, it had 100k more on it. I'd paid $6k for an '00 with 240k on it the year prior.

If I were going to keep the truck long term, I'd do the safest and best option. If you're going to flip it not far down the road, just get it replaced for the cheaper option and be sure to advise any buyers of the work.

No, I don't think it would do much for your resale value. Every other truck on the market has a functional transmission and they're expected to. It might help you prevent some haggling, though.

 

[JunkCrzr89]

I'd source a low mileage 01-02 trans from a junkyard and swap it in without doing a full rebuild. Maybe replace torque converter, shift solenoids, filter, and reseal the pan, but that's it. I'm also a cheapskate.

However, the dealer warranty is a nice thing to have...The original A/T went out on my dad's 80 series, which he had Toyota replace with a rebuilt trans, but the rebuilt trans went out a couple of months later. Fortunately, he had the warranty so the cost for another trans and labor were covered by Toyota.

 

[JunkCrzr89]

Do you guys think the receipts for having this done add any value to the truck?

Absolutely not.

 

[BottleRocket]

The issue is that its not the dealer doing the rebuild in my case. It's a local shop that the dealer recommended me too. I've looked for a low mile 01 or 02 trans but they just don't seem to exist. Especially not below $1k.

 

[gatormark91]

I would not call a trans finished until the pan was pulled and I looked at the contents and saw what was stuck to the magnets inside the bottom of the pan. I trust dealership service departments to put the work into diagnosing an issue not one bit.

 

[bamabrock]

Your local dealer will install a trans rebuilt by another shop? I had to have a toyota dealer replace my trans last summer at 190k and it had to come through toyota.

 

[BottleRocket]

I would not call a trans finished until the pan was pulled and I looked at the contents and saw what was stuck to the magnets inside the bottom of the pan. I trust dealership service departments to put the work into diagnosing an issue like like not one bit.

It certainly sounded terrible but I’ll report back once the trans has actually been removed.

Your local dealer will install a trans rebuilt by another shop? I had to have a toyota dealer replace my trans last summer at 190k and it had to come through toyota.

Yeah I was pretty surprised also.They originally told me they could source a Toyota reman for $3k but then called back the next day saying they are no longer available.

 

[97 AZ LC]

It certainly sounded terrible but I’ll report back once the trans has actually been removed.

Gatormark was talking about removing just the pan, not the whole transmission.

 

[94SRUNNER]

The 2000 LC uses a A343 correct?

 

[gatormark91]

The 2000 LC uses a A343 correct?

Yes. But if you were suggesting sourcing one out of a different model Toyota, I'm pretty sure that there are parts that are different that require partial disassembly to swap over.

 

[94SRUNNER]

So an A343 from an 80 Series isn't compatible or it is but there is a lot of additional work to get it to work?

 

[97 AZ LC]

So an A343 from an 80 Series isn't compatible or it is but there is a lot of additional work to get it to work?

There is a rebuild kit for 1995 thru 1999 (LX and LC), and a completely different rebuild kit for 2000 to 2002 (LX and LC), which doesn't answer your question but I found it interesting. It suggests that at least internal parts were pretty consistent from the late 80 series to the early 100 series. It also suggests that they really did change some things in 2000, which apparently didn't pan out all that well.