Once your transmission starts to fail, it should be fixed post-haste. The symptoms of transmission failure includes your dashboard error lights lighting up, noisiness in neutral, grinding gears, leaking fluid, lack of responsiveness from your gear shift, and burning smell.
You should be able to detect that your transmission is failing early on so that your existing original transmission can be fixed and have its lifespan lengthened. Otherwise, you might end up having to replace the whole thing and increase the cost of repair. After all, fixing an existing part is a lot more expensive than repairing it up to a point.
What to Watch Out For
- Gradual Degradation: Your car transmission tends to gradually degrade rather than suddenly stop working, so pay attention for little hints and symptoms like the transmission slipping when you shift to third gear. Have your mechanic or technician take a look at your wave plate, which could be causing your issues. If your vehicle is still under warranty, have it fixed immediately at its dealership ASAP.
- Prevention Is Better Than the Cure: The earlier you get your transmission fixed, the better. That's because it's akin to cancer prevention. It's better to fix it while it's under warranty with the original dealership that sold it to you instead of having to do an organ transplant down the line when the transmission is already failing. This way, your dealership might shoulder the upwards of $4,000 in cost while giving you a new loaner car in the meantime.
- Dealing with a Faulty Transmission After Warranty Expiration: Maybe it's just a broken wave plate requiring fixing. Fix it ASAP or face the consequences of a damaged transmission system. It will only cost you about $1,500 or so if you get to fix the transmission early on. However, if your transmission fails after your warranty becomes null and void, you'll have to deal with the expenses yourself including labor costs. Lower the costs by buying a decent aftermarket transmission or wave plate online and installing it yourself (if you can).
To Sum Up
A faulty transmission with mileage isn't a pretty sight, especially if its failure is a design flaw from vehicles like the GMC Acadia. Complaints have in fact been filed to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA for short) for a recall of that particular model of vehicle.
After all, it's dangerous to have a failing transmission while on the road, particularly on the highway where you absolutely require speed control and a functioning gear shift. To lower your future repair costs if you own a GMC Acadia, get some car insurance and make sure they don't have a clause in regards to transmission failure in that model of crossover utility vehicle.