Would you buy a FiST that is outside Ford's powertrain warranty?

[Fizzer600]

I've been looking all over for the right Fiesta and I think I found it.
Its a stock 2015 with 33k miles. Molten Orange with matching recaros, owned by an enthsuist who has documented everything about the car / upkeep.
around $14k which in my area seems like a fair deal after constantly watching the market for a year.
The only thing scaring me is that it is going to be outside the Powertrain warranty. I have read that the engine is very reliable, but have read some so-so things about the transmission (not as bad as the horrible auto trannies).
Read on a forum of one guys tranny going and dealer quoting him at $4.9k and another guy with the dealer quoting $7k.
I understand that every car single car - Hondas and Toyotas - can have some bad luck, but this has me a little worried.
Two questions:

1. Would you buy a seemingly babied 2015 Fiesta ST without Fords Powertrain Warranty?
2. Would a new tranny really cost $5k-$7k to replace? I could stomach a $3k repair bill, but would probably throw up if it was $5k. I always thought manuals were cheaper to replace than auto trannies.

Thoughts are appreciated.

 

[TyphoonFiST]

Absolutely * another Trans could be had used for 1k -1500k that would also give you the opportunity while its out to install a LSD to the tune of 1500k to 2k depending on The LSD BRAND you would like. If your into that stuff. Used Engines are abundant as they were used in a plethora of ferd vehicles for ive seen low mileage ones for $750-1500k. Labor is usually about $1500 at a reputable shop. Id buy that FiST. Check all door/hatch/hood seams for bubbling of paint and the antenna base too for paint issues. Chances are it will have it! Good luck and keep us up to date!

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[JDG]

I've been looking all over for the right Fiesta and I think I found it.
Its a stock 2015 with 33k miles. Molten Orange with matching recaros, owned by an enthsuist who has documented everything about the car / upkeep.
around $14k which in my area seems like a fair deal after constantly watching the market for a year.
The only thing scaring me is that it is going to be outside the Powertrain warranty. I have read that the engine is very reliable, but have read some so-so things about the transmission (not as bad as the horrible auto trannies).
Read on a forum of one guys tranny going and dealer quoting him at $4.9k and another guy with the dealer quoting $7k.
I understand that every car single car - Hondas and Toyotas - can have some bad luck, but this has me a little worried.
Two questions:

1. Would you buy a seemingly babied 2015 Fiesta ST without Fords Powertrain Warranty?
2. Would a new tranny really cost $5k-$7k to replace? I could stomach a $3k repair bill, but would probably throw up if it was $5k. I always thought manuals were cheaper to replace than auto trannies.

Thoughts are appreciated.

Are you mechanically inclined? I bought a sub-13k mile transmission for $800 from a scrapyard. And engines can be had for $1-1.5k. Even if something catastrophic were to happen (which based on my own experience, is very unlikely to happen for a long time with a 33k mile car), it isn't going to cost you much to fix (or be relatively challenging to fix). I would verify the manufacturing date of the car you are looking at and make sure it has the revised head design. That is most important, the rest of the things you have seen are unlucky folks who are few and far between or people who didn't do the required preventative maintenance.

When you test drive the car, listen closely for any gear whine. Make sure the transmission shifts smoothly (excluding the 1-2 shift as that is pretty clunky from brand new). It would also be worth grilling the previous owner about what modifications were done if was returned to stock. I would also check underneath as well as in all the door seems for corrosion (read forum, common problem that can be remedied).

I do think you could probably negotiate down to $13k given that the car is a 2015 though. But to answer your question simply, if you are remotely mechanically inclined, you won't be seeing any repair bills in excess of a few thousand dollars with the fiesta unless you crash it.

After you buy the car, do an oil change and tramission fluid change. Use Ravenol 75W-80 (read forum) for the transmission and Amsoil 5W-20 or 5W-30 (or similarly excellent engine oil). I'd also flush the coolant if it were me and replace the spark plugs. My car has been incredibly reliable over my 4 years of ownership and 85k miles. I am pretty meticulous with maintenance and haven't had a failure that wasn't self induced, even at high power levels.

Edit: I bought the transmission as a spare so I could install the LSD off the car in my free time rather than not have the car operational. Still haven't gotten around to it... LOL

 

[DoomsdayMelody]

I do think you could probably negotiate down to $13k given that the car is a 2015 though. But to answer your question simply, if you are remotely mechanically inclined, you won't be seeing any repair bills in excess of a few thousand dollars with the fiesta unless you crash it.

Definitely room to negotiate I bought a 2015 a little over 2 years ago (molten orange w/nav and base seats) that carried a CPO warranty for $12.8k plus tax, title, and license. Then again they say the user market is a little crazy right now.


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[Intuit]

1. Would you buy a seemingly babied 2015 Fiesta ST without Fords Powertrain Warranty?
2. Would a new tranny really cost $5k-$7k to replace? I could stomach a $3k repair bill, but would probably throw up if it was $5k. I always thought manuals were cheaper to replace than auto trannies.

1) I do my own work for the most part so aren't too concerned about warranties. But I have no concerns about reliability on a properly maintained and unabused vehicle.
2) Doubt it. But it's easy to look up the part number on the Ford parts website, and find out how many hours it would take to do the job. Multiply that by the shop's labor rate, plus another couple of hundred for parts and supplies. That said, there's no reason to believe you'd need to replace the transmission. Clutch life just depends on the driver. They can last a few hundred thousand miles, or a few hundred miles. It just depends on who's driving it.

One word of warning, look for evidence that it's been modified, then restored to stock. This line of vehicle is often altered. Then they restore it to stock for resale.

 

[Intuit]

Check for recall work on that 2015.

 

[fiiiesta]

.Read on a forum of one guys tranny going and dealer quoting him at $4.9k and another guy with the dealer quoting $7k.

That's why you NEVER go to a dealership to get work done lol.

 

[TyphoonFiST]

That's why you NEVER go to a dealership to get work done lol.

C'mon man its not a dealership...Its a Stealership*

 

[XR650R]

If the tranny isn't making any scary noises, it's fine. You got a good one. Do all the stuff JDG recommended, and enjoy the ride.