transmission issues

There are many men who are very capable and would be able to purchase a rebuilt transmission and intall it themselves. All things are not fixed by shops as many of you do it your selfers should know. See what documentation he has, and then decide based on that if you are still interested, wish to have a transmission shop check it, or walk away.

Ask him for the build sheet. If he can't produce this from the people that rebuilt it then it didn't happen. Move on.

Mandalay Parr wrote:
Tell him you will consider After He gets the tranny repaired.

He most likely won't do that unless he's sure of the sale, so it might be best to use it as a tool to negotiate further, using a little more than the price of a rebuild. Then install a good used one instead and after all, the rest of the rig is used.

"Recently rebuilt" could mean he attempted some kind of repair on the trans to get the thing out of his hands. A recently rebuilt trans, if rebuilt by a reputable shop will look brand new.

The diagnosis of "a seal" is suspect. What you describe sounds like a loss in pressure so it won't hold 3rd gear. While this could be one of a variety of "seals", you'd need to remove the transmission to properly diagnose and repair it. I think you're looking at trouble unless he can produce a receipt for the repair or the rebuild.

BUT, if you're handy I wouldn't be afraid of swapping out a transmission in these old things. Everything is easy to get at, but I'd knock $1k off the asking price for the risk. I'd guess that you can find a good, used trans on CL for that much. Or, $1k would get you half way to a proper rebuild.

Tell him you will consider After He gets the tranny repaired.

If the seller is motivated, I'm sure he would not mind paying for a second opinion from a transmission shop that YOU chose. That is the only way to determine if the transmission is faulty.
I assume that he has documentation from the shop that did the work. If he does NOT have receipts for a compete transmission rebuild, I would walk away.
He might have just had a transmission SERVICE, instead of a complete rebuild.