Jlacck

I recently had my car looked at to confirm a check engine light error. Apparently my 98 has a code 0763 shift solenoid C error. The Lexus dealer wants to replace my entire transmission assembly (almost $1000)!

I thought this was very unnecessary considering I am not experiencing any noticeable issues with the car running or shifting. In fact most of the time I barely notice when the car is shifting gears (although the car feels slightly sluggish at start up only in the mornings when its a cold)

After doing some research, I learned that this code is usually related to an electrical issue surrounding the solenoid but generally not the solenoid itself. In any case, a very trusted mechanic says he can get to the solenoid to repair it. However, he recommends that I just replace the solenoid because to get it is the same amount of work whether he fixes a wiring issue or replaces the thing.

The price he is quoting me to replace the solenoid is half of what the dealer is charging do rebuild the transmission assembly. Anyone else have this error message occur on their LS? If so, what remedies did you resort to for repairing the code error?

dicer

$1000 for a transmission replacement at the dealer? I'd go for it if it is a reman unit, that is a steal they are doing it for free. Its a no brainer if your price is correct. Why pay 500 for one stinking solenoid when you get the whole transmission and a loaner car and a warranty. You just get a 500 bill and a thank you with the mechanic. How many miles on the car?

Jlacck

I honestly don't think they are fully "rebuilding the transmission" for $1000. I suspect most likely they are going to replace the same part(s) the mechanic will replace and charge me $1000 for it saying they "replaced the assembly". Now I can certainly confirm with them to be sure that indeed is the price they are offering to actually rebuild the transmission assembly. But we all know nobody in their right mind would charge less than a $1000 to rebuild a transmission let alone one on a Lexus. I think it's just a ploy to make a problem seem bigger than it really is by giving me a broad description of the issue and what they are actually fixing. This probably opens the door to give a possibly inflated price to fix something on the assembly but not actually replace the assembly itself.

All of that said, I'd be more than happy to have a new transmission for a grand. That's practically a brand new car. But my question pertains more to the solenoid itself. Is it a complex job to access and get to. Is $450 a reasonable price to replace it....?

Jlacck

Also to answer your question the car had almost 260k miles

sha4000

iTrader: (1)

I have to agree with dicer. $1000 is a still from the dealer but like you said I doubt that they are rebuilding the tranny for that price.

Jlacck

LOL yea I'm pretty darn sure I'm not getting a new tranny for that price. But hey if they want to do it for less than $1000 I'm not going to stop them :-D

Regardless, as I said, the car actually runs fine. Sometimes when its cold in the mornings (when I'm first starting it up), it can feel a lil sluggish when I first take off. But I think that's most likely related to the cold (and lack of warm up) than the transmission itself. Nothing about the transmission feels "off" any other time that I drive it.

So to get back on topic..., anybody else with any info on replacing the shift solenoid?

Jlacck

So I spoke with the Lexus dealer to get clarification on their price quote for the transmission assembly. It turns out (as I suspected), that it was a misquote. The service clerk believes I was quoted for only the labor. He said he wasn't sure why I was given that quote.

The actual cost is $4,600 for the job! That's obviously a lot of money for something that's throwing a solenoid code. He said:

He said they used to replace just the solenoid (for about $800). But people kept coming back into the shop after a few months (or other varying lengths of time) saying it didn't resolve their issue. As a result, they could no longer guarantee the work.

So they stopped replacing just the solenoids and started replacing the transmissions instead. This makes me wonder if there is something else that generates the code instead. All that said, I'm just trying to get this check engine light off my car so I can pass emissions.

Has anyone in here repaired or replaced their Shift Solenoid C before? If so, what was the issue, and what were the results of the fix?

LsG86

Honestly, if it was my car I would just have the solenoid replaced. I know it's a different code but I had p0770 for solenoid e, I bought the solenoid used and replaced it myself so far the car been driven just fine.

Should be the same transmission as yours https://www.clublexus.com/forums/gs-second-generation/399802-p0763-shift-solenoid-fixed.html

Jlacck

Thanks LSG86. I took a look at that thread. Very informative. The issue I'm having is I can't seem to find anyone (a mechanic) that wants to touch the transmission let alone replace a solenoid. Every seems to push rebuilding the transmission ... in effect pretty much telling me that replacing just the solenoid is NOT going to really do anything for me.

This information seems to contradict everything I've read on this forum. Literally I've heard flushing/refilling/replacing etc the transmission fluid will actually make the problem worse. And replacing one solenoid will be a waste of money.

I'm not experienced enough to do this myself. Can anyone offer any suggestions or recommend a decent mechanic in the Atlanta metro area?

sha4000

iTrader: (1)

99% of tranny shops will push a rebuild no matter what.

Jlacck

Any suggestions for how I might be able to get a mechanic to install just one piece instead of rebuilding an entire transmission?

LsG86

If they won't replace the solenoid find someone else, call around or visit some shops in town for a mechanic to just replace the solenoid. Buy the solenoid brand new online and have a reputable shop you trust to put it on. The shop I use did NOT want to just replace the solenoid, they wanted to replace the whole transmission so I did it myself.

A master mechanic once told me when trying to solve an issue on a vehicle, start with the cheapest fix(s) first cause sometimes that will resolve the issue. In this case the cheapest fix would be to replace the solenoid. Then if that don't work then you consider replacing/rebuilding the transmission.

Jlacck

Any ideas as to where I can find the part online? I tried Sewell Auto Parts but it looks like they stopped their online sales.

sha4000

iTrader: (1)

I use these guys bot there are others.

http://www.lexussouthatlantaparts.co...81&searchTerm=

Jlacck

Thanks Sha4000. I took a look at the site to locate the part. Is this the correct item regarding the shift solenoid C (code: 0763)

http://www.lexussouthatlantaparts.co...525050030.html