What is involved with a rebuild?

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Jul 20, 2007
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Called a reputable shop here and got a quote (over the phone) of about $4500-$5k for the auto to be rebuilt. ive gotten quotes from other shops that ranged from $2k and up. the shop that gave the highest quote has the best reputation, claims to use Toyota parts for everything and includes a 3 year warranty with their work.

im just wondering what exactly is done when a transmission is rebuilt? motors im alright with but automatic transmissions have always frightened me so i dont want to "attempt" the rebuild myself. so what is done when a trans is rebuilt? and are there different levels of a rebuild that could cause the differences in prices (some more extensive than others?)


also, i was looking at the stuff that Rodney sells but im not sure what "3rd and 4th gear lockup" is? and what is the price on one of the valve bodies for a a440 trans?
 
I like autos, but for that kind of money I would go with a 5 speed and pocket the rest.

I seem to recall others saying that tranny is tricky to rebuild. But over $2K just to rebuild a tranny :eek: That's a lot of money to put into a 20 year old ride. I would definitely go with the 5 speed or go cheap and get a used one.

By the way, what is it doing that makes it appear to need a rebuild - could it be an easier fix?
 
It's complicated, and therefor, expensive. A 3 year warranty is very good-they must be pretty confident in the work they do.

You might check with Toyota. I asked Cruiserdan about a new transmission for the 80 and it was in the neighborhood of $3k. Not to bad for new from the factory. I have no idea if the FJ672s transmission is available or not.
 
NoCal...i was looking at that stuff the other night but wasnt sure if they were a good company or not. plus, they do offer a warranty but its a little hard to get warranty work from a different state.

with the price i was quoted i would seriously be interested in putting the h55 in, but i havent found anything on FJ62s with the 5 speed installed. ive come across a few that had the 4 speed, but i want to know what extra work will needed to get the h55 to fit. i know driveshaft lengths, clutch pedal and cylinder, and crossmember need to be altered. but what else? will i need to hack up my floorpan to make the shifter fit? what other parts need to be changed to do it?

as far as the price goes, i was told that half the total is labor. from what the guy said theres quite a bit of stuff that need to come out to work on the tranny.

i did call the dealership, with the core returned i got a quote of $5600 plus labor. and it would need to be ordered because there arent any on the island.
 
Take it in for seal and gasket replacement. While it is open have them check for wear on the bearings, gears, etc. Replace the damaged parts and put it back together with synthetic oil and you'll be back in business.
 
I like autos, but for that kind of money I would go with a 5 speed and pocket the rest.

Except there won't be any "rest" to pocket. If you are paying someone else to do an H55 swap, it will cost about $4500. The tranny alone is $2K, the t-case rebuild is $750, fabbing the new crossmember, finding the shifters, modifying the floor pan, obtaining and installing the pedal box, new clutch, new hydraulics, used flywheel and bellhousing will all add up fast. In fact, I'd be surprised if you could get someone to do it for $4500.

If Amber has the skill to do the swap personally, than that would alter the discussion. There is a ton of labor in thes swaps, and that is not cheap.
 
Except there won't be any "rest" to pocket. If you are paying someone else to do an H55 swap, it will cost about $4500. The tranny alone is $2K, the t-case rebuild is $750, fabbing the new crossmember, finding the shifters, modifying the floor pan, obtaining and installing the pedal box, new clutch, new hydraulics, used flywheel and bellhousing will all add up fast. In fact, I'd be surprised if you could get someone to do it for $4500.

If Amber has the skill to do the swap personally, than that would alter the discussion. There is a ton of labor in thes swaps, and that is not cheap.

thats what i was afraid of. as much as id like to have the 5 speed and make the most out of the 3F's power, id also like to keep the auto in there for nostalgic reasons. ive always wanted a FJ62 (yea yea, i like the square headlight....) im pretty confident i can put the 5 speed in myself but i just dont have the time anytime in the near future. my girl and i are going to be moving next month and i will be doing some home repair on the new place before us and the kiddies settle in.

im taking it to the shop friday so they can diagnose it. guess ill just take it from there and hope for the best....
 
So how would you spend the $4,500?

I would personally do the H55 five speed.
i know it aint gonna be $4500 for me to do the swap. for all the shipping, its gonna run me $2 a pound minimum.

so what does 3rd and 4th gear lockup mean exactly?

on a side note, the more ive been calling places and discussing my trans problem, the better it has been behaving. it drove alot better today than it did yesterday. i know my cruiser has character, but the mood swings are killing me....
 
If you are mechanically inclined, check out this thread;

https://forum.ih8mud.com/showthread.php?t=65907

My A440 went TU and after reading Jim's thread and swapping several emails with him (He is an excellent guy and a wealth of info) I felt that I'd at least give mine a try.

I'm a radio engineer and not much of a mechanic and I was able to do mine.

Keep a very clean work area, a lot of ziplock bags to put parts in, and a sharpie to label the bags and above all have the factory service manual. It lines it out step by step.

I'll be putting it back in this weekend and we'll see if I actually succeeded!

BTW, I figure I have about 2K in it. That includes $800 US for the Extreme Duty Valve Body from Rodney, $225 for the torque converter rebuild (I had them beef it up some). I also had to replace my output shaft ($435) and transfer case input gear ($230). I also rebuilt the transfer case since it was off.

I got the transmission rebuild kit and Transfer case rebuild kit from Transtar Industries; http://www.transtarindustries.com/locations.asp. The tranny kit was about $225 and the transfer case about $165.

Good luck.
 
I might be wrong, but someone stated that the best FJ62 auto trans is from Down Under?


Zack
 
in stock form they're better or are you referring to a shop in AU making the best ones(Rodney)?
 
I think he is referring to rodney, i havent heard of an aussie spec A440f.
 
k, just making sure

so what is "3rd and 4th gear lockup"?


Did you read this yet?

http://www.automatictransmission.com.au/release.asp?NewsId=11360

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Torque_converter


As described above, pumping losses within the torque converter reduce efficiency and generate waste heat. In modern automotive applications, this problem is commonly avoided by use of a lock-up clutch that physically links the pump and turbine, effectively changing the converter into a purely mechanical coupling. The result is no slippage, and therefore virtually no power loss.
 
Except there won't be any "rest" to pocket. If you are paying someone else to do an H55 swap, it will cost about $4500. The tranny alone is $2K, the t-case rebuild is $750, fabbing the new crossmember, finding the shifters, modifying the floor pan, obtaining and installing the pedal box, new clutch, new hydraulics, used flywheel and bellhousing will all add up fast. In fact, I'd be surprised if you could get someone to do it for $4500.

If Amber has the skill to do the swap personally, than that would alter the discussion. There is a ton of labor in thes swaps, and that is not cheap.

I have to say I was thinking more about a FJ60 swap. I totally brainfarted on the need to install a pedal and linkage. I thought the only difference was driveshaft length. It does sound like quite a bit of fabbing. That being said, I think I would still go that route for that kind of money.
 
For $5K, could you just about do a diesel conversion w/ matching trans????

Otherwise, I would just pop in a used auto.. Sometimes Cruiserparts offers free shipping on some of those big items,if I remember correctly. Plus a warranty
 

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