AAMCO Transmission ripoff misleading unreliable Sacramento California

With all due respect, I understand the customer's angst over thier transmission, but hoping to get 4 years/40,000 miles out of the transmission isn't the same as honoring the standard 12 month 12,000 mile warranty. To be frank if a rebuilt transmission goes through the first 90 days without issues then you're likely to not have a problem, poor workmanship is most likely to reveal itself quickly. Now 2 years is a long time to wreck a transmission by way of towing or abuse of the transmission. I don't know the specifics like the vehicle involved or the conditions it was used under but if the customer wanted 6 years out of the vehicle (2 years until failure and an additional hoped for 4 years) then the lifetime warranty would have been worth it. Unless the vehicle is 4x4 or used commercially or other reasons for not offering any additional warranties, that is.

We work really hard to make sure we take care of our customers. I hope the following information gives you a better understanding of our perspective.

There are several items to comment on.

#1 We did rebuild the transmission and it comes standard with a 12 month / 12,000 mile warranty. The customer has the option of upgrading that warranty to a 36 month / 36,000 mile warranty at the time of the repair. The customer choose not to add the addtiional warranty coverage and if he had, this repair would have been fully covered under warranty. We are not the only ones that offer extended warranties; car dealerships, electronic stores, etc. all offer extended warranties for customer that want to protect their items longer. In this case, the customer should have extended his warranty to the 36 month / 36,000 mile warranty.

#2 Our Diagnostic rate for a transmission diagnostic is $79. When the customers car arrived, if it will not start for us to check the operation of the transmission then additional diagnostic time may be required to get the car to started so we can perform our dianostics.

#3 If a transmission has an internal failure, the next step is to perform an internal inspection to determine what failed. The cost for that inspection is in the $700 range for this type of vehicle. That inspection charge is part of the final repair cost once we know all the parts needed to complete the repair. The inspection cost is not in addition to the repair cost. If we did not find a problem within the transmission the cusotmer does not pay the internal diagnostic fee, he only pays the internal inspection fee if he decides not to repair the vehicle once we know the final price of the repair. These are not AAMCO rules, they are requirements set by the state of California.

AAMCO did exceed the terms of the warranty. I would strongly suggest considering extended warranties in the future, not only for automotive repairs, but for any warranty you need to extend to protect yourself in the future.

What was their warranty period for the original rebuilt transmission?