I bought a trans for $425 SHIPPED to my door, no core, 40K miles.

 

Many people forget to save money annually for tranny replacements. Then act shocked when they wear out.

When you add up tires, brakes, rubber components, battery, prorated tranny replacement, you will eventually find $2,000-2500 per year is just about right. Labor is about half this annual cost so opportunities abound.

 

$2,000-2,500 annually for a G? Are you sure you're not talking about a German car Now granted I do most of all the work on my 03 G, in past 5.5 years of ownership and 63K miles, I've only had to replace the following:

Two sets of OEM rotors $500
Two sets of OEM front pads $110
One set of rear pads $55
Transmission fluid $150
Rear diff fluid $30
Oil/filter changes $600
Tires for my 17" rims (two sets) $900
Clock bulbs $3

Total = $2348 or $480/yr.

I don't think my story is much different from others than own G35s. Now if the tranny dies, then it could change things quite significantly, but I'd just buy a low mileage used tranny because I don't trust shops to rebuild autos. Heard way to many horror stories. I'd rather take a risk with a low mileage ~$700 used tranny than spending $2500 on a rebuilt one (unless it's OEM factory rebuilt).

I do fully agree that you should have money available to pay for a major mechanical problem with your car.