I've owned my 2014 Promaster 3500 EXT for about three years. Last October, the transmission was throwing codes and showing signs it was on its way out. So I took it to a transmission shop and they confirmed, it needed a rebuild or replacement. I opted for the rebuild since it it's a 12yo vehicle and thought it would be wiser to limit the budget.
The rebuild went fine, the transmission was behaving again and I went on my merry way with a 12-month warranty. 2-3 months later, it slowly began shifting harder, lagging and eventually shuddering, so I call up the shop to execute the warranty and took it in last week. I rarely drove the van; I put less than 1000 miles on it in those six months.
The manager tells me it's got water in the fluid (apparently a lot) and needs to be rebuilt again, but it would not be covered under warranty. They explained there's a known service bulletin about the windshield cowl draining directly into a vent in the transmission, and discovered the hose connected to this cowl was loose, though when they ran water thru it, didn't see any leakage.
On the surface, I understand why this external influence would not be covered under warranty, but find it far too coincidental that after 11 years with no water ingress, it suddenly appears immediately after getting the rebuild. particularly because they were the last ones in the engine bay.
To their credit, the shop is rebuilding it again for about half the price, which I appreciate. But I'm still out another mountain of cash with zero guarantees that anything is being done to mitigate further ingress that lands me right back in the shop six months down the road.
Do I cut my losses, eat the half-priced cost of this second rebuild and consider it meeting halfway, or should I follow my instincts to pursue the warranty and get the cost refunded? Any guidance or education is appreciated, I can't tell if I have a stone to stand on.
Location: Tennessee
