Damage caused to transmission and differential by improper tow

LFRILEY2013

MEMBER
2003 JAGUAR S-TYPE
TURBO
RWD
AUTOMATIC
132,000 MILES

My car was towed by the city on a regular wrecker with front wheels up. Now my transmission is shifting pretty hard, ticking/knocking sounds from engine at start up and idle. Over all runs terrible now. I just had the transmission rebuilt 6 months ago and flashed!

I called the dealership and of course it's $150 for a formal diagnosis, but the service manager and lead mechanic said it's most likely damage to transmission and differential and priced the replacement for me.

My question is how does towing the car two wheels up cause this damage?

3 Replies

HMAC300

MECHANIC
48,601 POSTS

Because your car is rear wheel drive and if driveshaft wasn't disconnected or at least put in neutral then the transmission was made to do something it wasn't supposed to do. If the vehicle was left in park it probably left metal shaving inside trans and plugged valve body. Until it can be properly diagnosed however you can't say much to city or use courts.

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Saturday, June 28th, 2014 AT 8:53 AM

LFRILEY2013

MEMBER
2 POSTS

Thank you. Im sure they just hooked and booked. It's amazing that tow companies and drivets city workers or not would be so stupid. My guess is a lot of people don't hold them accountable.

So I'm assuming "things it shouldnt do" means grinding gears? Whats the worset and best case scenario im looking at here as far as specific damage? Any idea with more detail then just needing a new tranny and diff is helpful.
Thanks again!

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Saturday, June 28th, 2014 AT 8:29 PM

HMAC300