I'm limping along with Chilton until FSM purchased on ebay arrives. It could be a week b/4 manuals arrive and I'm anxious to begin an evaluation.

What specifically should I be looking for?

Magnet if fairly clean, gears look good, bearings seem reasonably smooth, no chipped/broken parts of any kind... all-in-all it "looks" pretty good for 130K. But, this is the first FWD case I've opened and am pretty much in the dark on what the shift forks and rails s/b like.

At this time I'm not planning to weld diff pin but will add safety brackets. I live in the Cascade Mts. and wheel spin is a fact of life during winter.

BTW, I scored a new Sachs modular clutch for $66 on ebay - $91 too the door... dang, ebay can be great sometimes.

There isnt a good way to gauge the condition of the trans until you fully disassemble it. Most of what you need to look at is hidden when assembled.

Were there any problems before you opened it?

Terry

Originally posted by Star Turbo Talon
There isnt a good way to gauge the condition of the trans until you fully disassemble it. Most of what you need to look at is hidden when assembled. Were there any problems before you opened it? Terry

Having just purchased this car with blown clutch I moved it to house by creeping along in 1st gear only. Yep, I made the buy on assumption transaxel "may" need replacing. That's how I got rig for mere $300 bucks. Your question is a good one to which I cannot answer.

Welp, I guess I'll just replace rear engine seal and blown CV seals on transaxel, slap her back in and see what we got.

I would replace both axle seals as well. The rear main is always a good one to do, since it is right there.

why didnt you get the FSM's from a certain someone on here...? The engine and tranny ones are free.