The Auto went on the the trusty old Magna last night. :(
Going around a corner she just lost all drive and the engine revved out.
Car was going all right otherwise and is on LPG. (has nearly a full tank of gas)
Engine OK - Normal oil leaks runs rough on petrol unless you reset computer.
Spent $500 on new Michelin tyres a few months ago.

At about 290,000 K I am having troubles deciding if to pension the old girl off or source a second hand tranny.:hmm:

Are the earlier trannies with filter any more reliable?
Are there any differences between the 3.0 and 3.5 trannies.

If I pension her off which is the best way to extract the last/best value out of her.
Wreckers or remove sought after parts and then send to Scrap metal.
What would be the key parts to remove?

Your thoughts appreciated

Your ultimate decision is going to depend on the condition of the rest of the car also. Realistically, at 290k it's best years are behind it, but having said that, if you can source a decent second hand tranny and get it fitted for a good price there's no reason you couldn't get a lot more life, cheaply from your Magna. And make good use of your new tyres.

A lot of wrecking yards will fit and guarantee engines, gearboxes etc for up to 3 months. This maybe a cheaper option than a mechanics shop if you can't do the work yourself.

Unless you have a fairly highly specced vrx or verada, second hand parts aren't worth a lot.

A lot will come down to whether you want to keep the magna or upgrade.

Personally, if the only problem is the box, I'd be looking at getting a second hand item fitted and keep using it.

Good luck with it.

The 3.0L gearboxes have a lower final drive so you would be reving higher. I think Mal (Mitsfix) can supply and fit a second hand box for $1000-$1500.

We are a 3 car family at the moment and keeping the Magna has been a bit of a luxury in that we have been using it as the workhorse to minimise wear and tear on our other two newer cars. The gas runs cheaper than my diesel Triton. I'm not shy to have a crack at changing the tranny over myself but add the timing belt change in the next 6 months rego etc etc and a few other ongoing maintenance needs I'm finding it really hard to justify keeping it going and concerned there will be another wammy around the corner. I'll get a price on another tranny locally and see where that calculation end up.

imo your concerns are valid.
The way I get around it is to have two 'wrecks' and two cars going (same model) and only buy new for bits like belts, plugs et.c. . One wreck I got as a good runner which had thrown the timing belt for 100 bucks + 50 towing, the other for 200 + petrol and temp permit. atm I've got three going gearboxes. The good thing about this setup for me is when I need to take one off the road I can be pre-prepared for the job with bits from the wrecks and when working on one drive the other. Just the saving on alternate transport covers rego et.c. and I don't have to bother anyone else nor pad the pockets of machanics with jobs I'm perfectly capable of doing myself just because I need it done yesterday. Good seconds can be had >very< cheaply from the auctions. As long as it starts easily and runs through the gears you've got a very good chance in picking a good one. The saving on parts, panels, bumpers, bits and pieces much more than covers the outlay. Just suggesting as option that works for someone who can do the job and I suppose has the time to do it (which, btw works fine for me because it seldom matters how long I take to do it. In fact sloooow for me is usually better. Also I don't have anyone telling me not to.) Consider 'garaging' that one and get another runabout and make one good out of those.

If you can change the transmission over you should be alright doing the timing belt yourself.

If interested we have a 3.5 trans here that has done a genuine 35k since new, we had a TH (trans will bolt straight in) which had 35k on the clock, car was immaculate and was serviced sometime having only done 850k between services (was serviced based on time, not mileage). Asking $750 for that one