Today I (rather impulsively) bought an automatic 1989 Corolla Wagon, 157XXX miles. Not my proudest or best-informed decision, I'll be honest! I drove it home 40 miles on the highway and noticed slight steering wheel vibration and an ominous squeak in the back... I definitely expect to put a chunk of money into such an old car to make it a reliable daily driver off the bat, so I wasn't too worried. Low miles for the age, super clean, no visible leaks, rides nice, engine sounds good.
However... I get home and start sorting through the stack of service records and there is one from Sept. 2009 where the mechanic recommends: "remove and replace drivetrain".
Huh. That seems fishy. I'm car illiterate BUT if a vehicle "needs" the entire drivetrain replaced... won't there be some telltale symptoms?! Since then, previous owner put about 4,000 miles on it. I'm taking it to my trusted mechanic Monday for a good going-over, but I'm sort of dumbstruck by this discovery. Any thoughts? Was this is an unscrupulous shop trying to screw over a previous owner? I want to love my Corolla! Help!
However... I get home and start sorting through the stack of service records and there is one from Sept. 2009 where the mechanic recommends: "remove and replace drivetrain".
Huh. That seems fishy. I'm car illiterate BUT if a vehicle "needs" the entire drivetrain replaced... won't there be some telltale symptoms?! Since then, previous owner put about 4,000 miles on it. I'm taking it to my trusted mechanic Monday for a good going-over, but I'm sort of dumbstruck by this discovery. Any thoughts? Was this is an unscrupulous shop trying to screw over a previous owner? I want to love my Corolla! Help!
