'Change-over' parts at wreckers.

EBTom · 23-07-2015, 08:59 PM

Forgive me if this sounds stupid, but what do wreckers do with parts that you give them on a 'change-over' basis?
Presumably anyone that goes to a wreckers for a changeover engine/transmission, is doing so because their one is stuffed.
Does this mean that its common practice for the exchanged part that you give them to be damaged?

I ask as the auto in my AU is cactus. It was disassembled by a transmission workshop who found that one of the clutch packs is fried.
I am looking to source a replacement auto from a wreckers but they all seem to work on this changeover basis.

I guess what Im wondering is, will a wreckers be likely to accept my auto on change-over considering that it is damaged and currently in about 20 pieces in cardboard boxes?

**cs123** · 23-07-2015, 09:15 PM

Wouldn't it be cheaper to just get new clutches and bands fitted. You've already paid for disassembly

**GasoLane** · 23-07-2015, 09:18 PM

I don't know about wreckers changeover parts, but most places that I've seen changeover stock is reconditioned stuff.

IE: You get a reco gearbox, they want your old one so they can reco it to re-sell.

EBTom · 23-07-2015, 09:27 PM

Technically i didnt pay for the disassembly (long story) so theres nothing lost there for me. The quote for rebuilding the transmission was $2500 and considering i plan to sell the car in the near future, Id rather just get a solid 2nd hand unit.

The changeover here from the wreckers I have in mind, is for a 2nd hand unit.
Would be pretty crazy for them to charge what they do for swapping one good 2nd hand auto for another......right?

11ford11 · 23-07-2015, 09:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by EBTom

Technically i didnt pay for the disassembly (long story) so theres nothing lost there for me. The quote for rebuilding the transmission was $2500 and considering i plan to sell the car in the near future, Id rather just get a solid 2nd hand unit.

The changeover here from the wreckers I have in mind, is for a 2nd hand unit.
Would be pretty crazy for them to charge what they do for swapping one good 2nd hand auto for another......right?

tell them you wish to buy one outright no exchange and see how much extra it costs you ..............................................or ask the wrecker if it changes the cost if the box is in a box.................

EBTom · 23-07-2015, 09:54 PM

Yeah i plan to give them a call tomorrow. I dont see any reason why it would be an issue, but thought id throw it out there in case theres another angle im missing and the guy thinks im mental or something for even asking haha.

BPXR6T · 23-07-2015, 10:03 PM

Did a change over with my XH engine. The wrecker forked the motor straight from my tray into a massive metal scrap hopper.

pcman · 23-07-2015, 10:36 PM

i used to work at a wreckers, say someone needs a extension housing or trans sump/pan, there not gonna rip one of a good trans so they keep your old one for parts, or they send your old one of to be recoed, same as diffs, there not gonna sell a axle from a good complete diff, so a changeover gets used for the axles, brake brackets, center cover
engines all the sensors will get sold, the inlet/ exhaust manifold, harmonic balancer, brackets, random odd bolts that every engine has that someone may need, used to have 100+ random engines lying around same with transmissions and diffs and everything in-between

EBTom · 24-07-2015, 09:54 AM

Excellent. Thanks for the clarification.
I imagined that would be the case (being stripped down or on-sold for reconditioning), in which case mine being disassembled and damaged, really shouldnt be an issue.
If anything it would be saving them the hassle of doing it themselves haha!

Trump · 24-07-2015, 10:04 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by EBTom

Technically i didnt pay for the disassembly (long story) so theres nothing lost there for me. The quote for rebuilding the transmission was $2500 and considering i plan to sell the car in the near future, Id rather just get a solid 2nd hand unit.

The changeover here from the wreckers I have in mind, is for a 2nd hand unit.
Would be pretty crazy for them to charge what they do for swapping one good 2nd hand auto for another......right?

Get another quote, $2500 is highway robbery.

EBTom · 24-07-2015, 10:15 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Loud_Noises

Get another quote, $2500 is highway robbery.

Yeah that was to rebuild my box.
Meanwhile, a place down the road supplies and fits reco'd units for $1500!

If, when selling the car, I thought I would be able to charge a premium to recoup the extra cash spent on a reco transmission, Id probably go down that route.
Unfortunately, I doubt that would be the case so a good 2nd-hand unit looks to be my best bet.

Full_Monty · 24-07-2015, 12:55 PM

$2500!!! what a rort!

My BA Turbo BTR 4 speed was overhauled with BF serrated clutch packs, High energy bands and cryo treated planetary gears for under a grand! was perfectly happy with 315rwkw and 800+NM for 7 years.

Bayswater Automatics - Tim and Phil, know their **** with Ford Auto's

If the box is out and disassembled, you'll save some labour, get it trailered there, they'll sort you out.

ratter · 24-07-2015, 01:05 PM

not all reco's are equal, many are just repaired

EBTom · 24-07-2015, 02:06 PM

Sorry guys, just double checked the quote and it was actually $2190 (still considerably higher than what you are suggesting is reasonable).
I thought that was actually about the going rate for a full rebuild, unless BTR's are cheaper to rebuild than other types of trans?

Anyway just for the record, the wrecker I had in mind is happy to take my transmission as is (fried clutch pack and currently in pieces).

mik · 24-07-2015, 02:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by EBTom

Yeah that was to rebuild my box.
Meanwhile, a place down the road supplies and fits reco'd units for $1500!

If, when selling the car, I thought I would be able to charge a premium to recoup the extra cash spent on a reco transmission, Id probably go down that route.
Unfortunately, I doubt that would be the case so a good 2nd-hand unit looks to be my best bet.

last year i happened to be a ford spares getting bits and thought i would take a wander around to the transmission section and asked how much for a c/o reco trans for my au , i think it was about 2 k and 2300 fitted, this is a properly recoed auto with torque convertor with a warranty from ford.

in the past (younger years)dealing with wreckers i did on occasion buy alternators from wreckers , and im pretty sure the guys i bought them off there reco alternators where done by the ............give the rotor a spin and if the bearings still have some life in them throw in some brushes and sell them as reco with a splash of silver paint , sometimes they did not even see 6 months before carking it again .

not saying they are all like that , but if your going to spend your hard earned on a costly item , do your home work first.

a cheaper option might be to peruse the classifieds and buy a good going example(car) that is being retired for 2 or 3 hundred with a good going auto , take the good bits off it you want , sell the rest of the donor vehicle to scrap metal, win win except for a bit of extra labor.
if your dilligent you might even find a car thats been smashed or with a blown engine that may have had a recent reco auto , but the owner has decided to not spend any more on the car and wants to cut his losses, i have done this over the years, and it worked out good.

EBTom · 24-07-2015, 02:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mik

last year i happened to be a ford spares getting bits and thought i would take a wander around to the transmission section and asked how much for a c/o reco trans for my au , i think it was about 2 k and 2300 fitted, this is a properly recoed auto with torque convertor with a warranty from ford.

This does surprise me.

Quote:

Originally Posted by mik

in the past (younger years)dealing with wreckers i did on occasion buy alternators from wreckers , and im pretty sure the guys i bought them off there reco alternators where done by the ............give the rotor a spin and if the bearings still have some life in them throw in some brushes and sell them as reco with a splash of silver paint , sometimes they did not even see 6 months before carking it again .

not saying they are all like that , but if your going to spend your hard earned on a costly item , do your home work first.

This doesnt surprise me.

Quote:

Originally Posted by mik

a cheaper option might be to peruse the classifieds and buy a good going example(car) that is being retired for 2 or 3 hundred with a good going auto , take the good bits off it you want , sell the rest of the donor vehicle to scrap metal, win win except for a bit of extra labor.
if your dilligent you might even find a car thats been smashed or with a blown engine that may have had a recent reco auto , but the owner has decided to not spend any more on the car and wants to cut his losses, i have done this over the years, and it worked out good.

If I had the time and if I was planning to hang onto the car, I would definitely consider going down this route. However my car is almost in that same situation; everythings great except for the transmission.
Theres also no guarantee that the auto in the donor you buy is going to be any better than what you already have unless there's receipts and such for the reco work.
I guess there's always risk in buying used car parts but I think getting a decent looking one from the wreckers will most likely give the most value in terms of return on investment when I go to sell the car (but at the same time, doing it semi-'right' and not leaving the new owner with a dud).

mike_nofx · 25-07-2015, 12:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by EBTom

Yeah that was to rebuild my box.
Meanwhile, a place down the road supplies and fits reco'd units for $1500!

If, when selling the car, I thought I would be able to charge a premium to recoup the extra cash spent on a reco transmission, Id probably go down that route.
Unfortunately, I doubt that would be the case so a good 2nd-hand unit looks to be my best bet.

How much are the quotes you're getting for a second hand (non reco) box at the wreckers?

It's true that almost no extra money spent on reconditioning parts will be recouped at resale. So yeah, if you're planning to sell in the near future paying for a full reco seems like a waste. How many Km did you have on the box when it packed it in?

EBTom · 27-07-2015, 11:50 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mike_nofx

How much are the quotes you're getting for a second hand (non reco) box at the wreckers?

It's true that almost no extra money spent on reconditioning parts will be recouped at resale. So yeah, if you're planning to sell in the near future paying for a full reco seems like a waste. How many Km did you have on the box when it packed it in?

Over the weekend I went and purchased a 2nd hand auto from the wreckers I had in mind.
Cost $550 all up (bear in mind this for a V8, not the 6 which are a dime a dozen), it 'looked' pretty tidy and the old bloke that worked there was friendly and seemed like a genuine guy. It comes with 3 month warranty but I know thats probably not worth the paper its written on.
I'm happy with the deal.

The old box had about 240xxx kms when it just suddenly lost reverse gear. Drove like gold right up until that moment too......

msman · 27-07-2015, 07:20 PM

make sure they fully change fluid and flush the cooler/lines.

have seen second hand units fitted and only topped up the level.
warranty is on the wrecker so shop gets you in and out quick.

EBTom · 28-07-2015, 09:42 AM

Definitely will be doing that. Ill give it a new filter, fluid, pan gasket and such so its tip-top for the new owner.

Ideally as Im selling the car, Id like to do it for as little cost as possible, but it would be pretty dumb not to do the rear-main and extension housing seals and all of that too while the box is out.