FYI  I can pick up or deliver to/from the SF Bay area or AA Transaxle if my
road trip timing works for either of you.
I leave the Seattle area Nov. 16th, arrive/leave SF Bay area Nov. 18, return
to Seattle area Nov. 20th.

No offence to GW or others but Daryl is THE MAN for rebuilt Vanagon
transmissions 'round he-ah.

Andrew
Bainbridge Island WA

-----Original Message-----
From: Vanagon Mailing List [mailto:vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com] On Behalf Of
aatransaxle
Sent: Friday, November 06, 2009 11:01 AM
To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
Subject: Re: Should I replace my transmission?

Daryl chiming in..Sounds like a pinion bearing failing. In the short run, it
usually is no big deal if its just a gentle whine on acceleration. If let
go, it will eat up the ring/pinion and start to damage other stuff. That in
addition to the likely cracked 3/4 hub issue they all develop tells me its
time to put your mind at ease and bite the bullit..Whoever does it will
guarantee it quiet after a rebuild I should hope..
Mine are $1095 exchange for the rebuild plus a $400 core deposit ( in case
the R&P is actually bad already.) Rougly $80 shipping each way..A week or a
tad less out typicaly this time of year.

Daryl of AA Transaxle
425-788-4070
----- Original Message -----
From: "pdooley" <psdooley@VERIZON.NET>
To: <vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM>
Sent: Friday, November 06, 2009 9:23 AM
Subject: Re: Should I replace my transmission?

> That whining is probably a bearing about to fail.
> If the bearing clearance opens up, the gear tooth mesh can become unstable
> and kill your gearset or ring and pinion, depending on the bearing.
>
> There may be other less destructive reasons for whine; Daryl will
> hopefully
> ring in and offer some better info.
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Vanagon Mailing List [mailto:vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com] On Behalf Of
> Steve Williams
> Sent: Friday, November 06, 2009 11:47 AM
> To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
> Subject: Should I replace my transmission?
>
> A few hundred miles after GoWesty installed the 2.3L engine in my '84
> Westy, its standard transmission started whining.  There was no
> apparent cause.  It just started one day and hasn't gotten better or
> worse.  That was in June.  I've driven about 13,000 miles since.  The
> van has 127K miles total.
>
> Now I'm struggling with the question of whether to install a rebuilt
> transmission.  I'd appreciate your thoughts.
>
> I'm told the whining transmission might last another zillion
> miles.  But I worry about it constantly!  It really kills my buzz
> whenever I'm driving, and that's a big deal for me right now.
>
> I can handle the cost, but of course the cost worries me.  I think
> it's a good investment, given how much I rely on my Westy.  But
> should I economize, and just live with the whine?  Other options?
>
> Here are the details:
>
> The whine goes up in pitch with wheel speed, whatever gear I'm
> in.  It's louder than the engine, so sometimes I forget I'm in third
> gear!  The whine is audible only when the engine is driving the
> wheels.  Coasting or going downhill, there's no whine at all, even
> when the wheels are driving the engine.
>
> When it started, I had the transmission oil checked: It was full, and
> there was no obvious metal floating around.
>
> A GoWesty drove it a few weeks ago and was confident the whine was
> coming from the "main bearing" (my words).
>
> The quote from GoWesty:
>
>  Overhauled transmission: $1,400
>  Gear Oil: $42
>  Labor R&R: $380
>  Tax: $119
>
>  Total: $1,941
>
> http://www.gowesty.com/ec_view_details.php?id=4283
>
> There's also a $750 core charge.
>
> http://www.gowesty.com/view_page.php?name=Tranny_Core_Sheet
>
> That seems pretty reasonable, and GoWesty has done a good job for me
> up to this point, even if they're not the least expensive.  Right
> now, I'm in the S.F. Bay Area, but I enjoy the drive down to Los Osos.
>
> They say they can do the swap in one day.  I've got an appointment
> for November 16.
>
> I don't expect other costs to crop up.  My clutch feels
> fine.  GoWesty inspected the clutch at the engine swap and reported
> it was fine.  (Their clutch kit is $180.)  They also replaced a bunch
> of shifter bits when the engine was done.
>
> Thanks for your advice!