Axle
Roughly a week ago today my wife and I were driving my 1988 Toyota Camry to work when we heard the following sound:Thwa-thwa-thwa-thwa-THUNK!!!
Luckily, we still had enough momentum to pull into a nearby driveway.
At first I was scared to death, thinking I'd blown my transmission, which would cost about $1600 to rebuild. My car cost $600. (My car has a "passing" gear, which makes it more complicated.) Luckily, the transmission guy (after I acted out the scene) gave a different diagnosis.
Turns out I dropped my right side drive axle- basically, the thing that connects to the transmission and makes the tire turn. That's a picture of it above, for the less than mechanically inclined. (If you're really bored, it appears that clicking on it will enlarge the image.) Since the axle nut cover had been removed, it had apparently broken before.
And although an axle sounds bad, it's great compared to the cost of a new transmission. Autozone had one in stock for $64.99, and I was able to pay a friend to slap it in. He was worried about it at first, but it wasn't too complicated. Along the way, I also replaced the brake pads. They were about worn down to nothing.
Apparently, the old axle simply fell out. The six bolts holding it in had somehow managed to work themselves out, probably over the course of a few years.
Now she's up and running again, and we have (semi) reliable transportation.
