I have a 2004 mercury sable with a little over 100k miles.Never had any problems with it, when all of a sudden the transmission made a loud whining sound and lost all the gears.What could be the problem with it?What would it take to repair it or do I need a new transmission?
I'm no mechanic but have had old cars and listen when mechanics talk. I know everything in a car needs to be cleaned and serviced regularly including the transmission. A whining sound to me sounds like something is either stuck or something has worn out or broken. It could be a matter of just cleaning out or could be a costly job. On one old car I had that needed a transmission rebuilt and no mechanic would touch it, I tried everywhere. I'm thinking they're thinking that if you own an old car (especially one with a lot of miles on it like yours) that you probably don't have the money to get it replaced so they would rather not be stuck after doing the job. I do know of mechanics that service them and AAMCO is one. I saw on tv where they look over a problem and give you a free estimate so at least touch base with them. Call first and see. If both the transmission and engine are going to go well it might be better to find $2500 or more and invest in another used car.
The only way to really find out what is wrong with your transaxle is to have it towed to a transmission shop for an inspection as worse case situation you could be looking at a new transaxle.
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Going only by your description and assuming it has fluid in it, it sounds like the transmission pump seized up and sheared the pump shaft. If the pump is not putting out any pressure,the transmission will not move into any gear. There is a test port to check the pressure with the engine running, and that is one of the first things a transmission shop will do It probably does not need a complete overhaul, but in order to replace the pump, the transmission and torque converter has to be removed from the engine. There is also the possibility the pump came apart and now there is loose metal inside the transmission
