Ok Guys & Gals

Rebuild parts for a A4LD….

I went to my local Transmission Shop (45min drive) and to get some parts to rebuild my trans.
They said they could supply the parts I need for less than any other parts house.
When I got there they said they would have to order half the parts.

Ok here are the prices that they quoted me:

1 - O/D Planet $174.45
1 - O/D Sprage $ 47.60
1 - O/D Servo Piston $ 15.00
1 – Intermediate Servo Piston $ 15.00
1 – O/D Band $ 36.10
1 – Master Kit $167.00
------------------
Total $455.16 + Tax

Now I when online and found a Transmission parts house in Texas at www.bulkparts.com
Now here are their prices:

1 - O/D Planet $ 49.25
1 - O/D Sprage $ 33.80
1 - O/D Servo Piston $ 5.78
1 – Intermediate Servo Piston $ 15.57
1 – O/D Band $ 17.20
1 – Intermediate Band $ 17.20
1 – Banner Kit $ 49.69
1 - Filter $ 6.99
1 – Modulator $ 11.90
------------------
Total $207.38 + $7.50 Shipping = $214.88

The parts will be here sometime next week.
Bands and Clutches are BorgWarner

 

Now I know how some places like Netgearhead can rebuild a tranny for $850 with shipping...long live the Internet and low prices!

Mark

 

I found this guy's page with some tips for the A4LD.

http://www.geocities.com/MotorCity/Flats/3349/a4ld.htm

He has some sources for parts. Maybe this will help as far as the rebuild goes. As far as where to get parts, it sounds like you already bought yours.

I wouldn't go by price alone when determining where to buy parts, except for identical brand parts with the same part number. In some cases, a manufacturer may have two or three versions of the same part with the differences being the quality (and, naturally, price - but you do get what you pay for).

 

>
>He has some sources for parts. Maybe this will help as far
>as the rebuild goes. As far as where to get parts, it
>sounds like you already bought yours.
>
>I wouldn't go by price alone when determining where to buy
>parts, except for identical brand parts with the same part
>number. In some cases, a manufacturer may have two or three
>versions of the same part with the differences being the
>quality (and, naturally, price - but you do get what you pay
>for).

Well I believe that paying a higher price does not mean a better product. Sometime all your buying is the brand name & that does not mean quality. Most of the time the brand name and the cheaper are made by the same manufacturer.

The manufacturer that made Sharp VCRs used to make the ones for Wards. The same parts, same VCR. Only differance the name on the front. Wards sold theirs cheaper than Sharp.

I buy 10.00 pairs of Rustlers at Walmart that last longer
than a 40.00 pair of Levis.............

 

[updated:LAST EDITED ON 21-Aug-02 AT 06:45 PM (EST)] Regarding the Sharp v Ward comparison. This is off the subject but I too, was perplexed for the longest time as to the reason for the price variation between seemingly identical electronic gadgets. Since so many people wonder the same thing, I thought it would be worth posting. It was explained to me as such:

All the hundreds of electronic components in, say a VCR, are mass produced by different manufacturers. For the sake of illustration, imagine after a day's production run you have a barrel full of one kind of transistor. Quality control sampling reveals this barrel has a 10% failure rate. (Every 10th one is bad) Since the entire 'barrel' is used during a VCR production run, the lower the failure rate, the more expensive that barrel of components becomes.

Name brand manufacturers such as Sony, for example, may set their standard acceptance level at 3% failure rate while Sharp may accept 5% and so on. Leftover barrels of components are sent down the same manufacturing lines but those products become the less expensive off-brands made for Wards and others. This same illustration applies to nearly all the components in the VCR, so in the end, the risk of equipment failure rises steeply.

Sony/JVC etc. seek name recognition for quality. Purveyors of the off-brands figure that even if 10% of the purchased VCRs have to be replaced, they will still be ahead financially.

So, in the end, just because it looks like a duck and sounds like a duck, it could still be a lemon.

 

aerocolorado:

What I was trying to get across is are you buying the Name or the Product.

The other is nice public relations garbage but unless the company manufactures each and every conponet that goes into their products themselves they have no control over the Quality of the products.

They just get on the phone call 2 or 3 manufacturers tell them what they want and get the best price.

Back on Subject.....Ford Transmissions. Now Ford is a brand name, A big one. Are their Tansmissions better?? It seems not with how many people are having problems with them. If you take it back to Ford it will cost you twice as much or more to get it fix.

Lets say it will cost you $2000.00 to get it fixed at Ford & $1000.00 at the local Transmission shop. Now where do you go? The name?
I'd go to the local Transmission shop because thats where Ford sends theirs to get rebuilt. I've called 3 ford dealers around my area and all they will do is sell New or Rebuild exchange. They don't rebuild them at their shop. All transmission rebuilds are contracted out.

That means that the Ford rebuilds have the same parts in them as the
quality parts in them as the cheaper rebuild.

So my question is: If I buy parts from a shop that buys the parts from the same manufacture as Ford, do you think I am getting the same or less quality parts?

 

[updated:LAST EDITED ON 25-Aug-02 AT 11:19 AM (EST)]Haven't you guys ever heard of profit? This is what's happening here fellas. Guy A buys a part for $2, reboxes it and puts his label on it. Then sells it for $5. This is the American way! Gotta love it! The guys at the tranny shop probably buys their trans parts at wholesale costs and they mark them up. Same concept, but also THEY provide a WARRANTY. This is where they get the "money" for that.
Now lets add to this scenario.. Guy F has a huge building, lotsa well-trained employees,inventory, and so on. He charges $25.00 to repair his item he sold. Parts cost $5, parts guy gets $5, tech gets $5, cashier gets $3, utilities & building cost $3(pro-rated) so Guy F gets to keep $4 for master-minding all this. Guy G over here has 1 employee, a garage behind his house, and picks up all his parts at the local discount store. He charges $20.00 for same repair. He pays bubba $5, parts cost $5, building and utilities $1 so he gets to keep $9 for this while the guy that had the repair done grumbles and complains that Guy F wanted to charge him 5 more dollars for the same job! Now this is just my opinion on this subject but beware, sometimes you get what you pay for!!And also, have you ever heard the old axiom, "BUY CHEAP, BUY TWICE!!!!!!" BTW, does a 59 cent Krystal burger taste the same as a $7 burger from HOOTER'S???????

As for the Ford dealers all taking their trans to the local shops to get fixed. Not ALL dealers do this. Sounds as if your local dealer doesn't have any qualified techs.

 

Well I guess if you keep saying it enough you can convince yourself that your getting better quality parts by paying a higher price.

Just remember a Fool and His Money are Soon Parted......

I bought a ATSG A4LD upgrade manual that showed all the parts updates.
When I received the parts I checked them and they where the upgraded parts. When I can pay $49.25 for an upgraded O/D Planetary that the Trans Shop wanted $175.00 for the same thing. I may of did some stupid things in my 46 years But I am No fool

Well all I tried to do was to let people with Trans problems know where thay could get parts to fix theirs for reasonal prices. I guess I must of riled up the repairmen and Parts guys who
over-charge. Because I see alot of putting down about buying the parts cheaper.

Besides if paying more means better parts how come so many people are having so many problems with their transmissions so soon after paying the high prices to have them rebuild???

 

I think the point of all this discussion was to make sure you know what you're getting. Nobody wants to pay more for the same part, but there are a lot of people who will pay more for a better part, especially if it's hard to change. Don't assume that the dealer is the most expensive. For example, I just replaced the front axle seals on my 4WD Aerostar. Prices: $4 at the dealer, $6 NAPA, $10 Schuck's. Some dealer parts are superior in quality. Example: When I replaced the fuel pressure regualator on my Aerostar, I tried 3 regulators from two stores that didn't fit. So, I went to the dealer and gladly paid $20 more for a part that was clearly superior. The threads were machined cleanly so it fit and the surface finish on the seat of the dealer part was about 16 rms where on the Borg Warner part it was about 250 rms. Had I known this, I would have gone to the dealer first and saved myself a lot of time and frustration.

 

Well said, Mikeman!!!!!!! My point exactly. Don't assume that ALL people are tryin gto rip you off just because you pay more for a "name-brand" part. Just my .02 worth Later, Rick

 

FORD goes to companies A,B,C,D,& E and says it needs 100,000 gizmos,
we need them built to these specs, & we need them in 2 months.
So the companies submits their bids.....Company C wins with a bid with $10.00 each. Company C now has the license to produce gizmos so it builds 250,000. It costs them $7.00 each to make. They ship FORD their 100,000. FORD puts their name on the box and resells them for $29.95 each.

Company C now sells the other 150,000 to various parts houses..... Kragen, Napa, Autozone, etc. for $10.00 each in plain boxes.
The part houses resell them for $17.50 each.

Same parts, Same Specs, only differance is the FORD name on the box.
But I guess to some the Name is worth the extra $12.45

 

There is sometimes a different strategy involved. Have you ever heard of "seconds"? Sometimes the parts that don't meet QA standards of Ford ( and Many other companies, not just car parts!) get sold to companies that are willing to take the risk. The regulators above are a good example. If you look at some parts out there, they look identical until disected, and then the differences become apparent. Don't believe me, go to Sears and look at the Craftsman power tools and then go to Home Depot and look at the Ridgid tools. Same tool, but Ridgid is the "company name" of Emerson, who makes them, and guess what, a lot of them have different motors, molded plastic parts instead of aluminum or cast, etc.,etc. Maybe I'm the only one that looks at the fine details so in depth but then again, I do read Consumer Reports a lot. Just my .02 worth. Later, Rick

 

 

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man, kind of sucks that geocity's is no longer available. lots of GOOD information about pretty much everything was hosted up (like lots of DIY's for cars!) and now it's all gone.

kernal - Good lookin out for all of us with the a4ld!