Nashville Folks - Any experience w/ Ewing Bass Garage & Transmission

[Trekbike]

Does anybody in the Nashville area have any experience with Ewing Bass Garage & Transmission?   My son's '99 Explorer transmission isn't shifting into the higher gear range and OD.   Some searching indicates it might be one of the electronic solenoids.   I did check the fuses along with the OD switch it mentioned and those checked good.  I'm hoping it's something minor.    

 

Anyway, I came across Ewing Bass is my search and was wondering if anyone had used them before.   Says they have been in business since 1955, family owned, A+ BBB rating.  

 

I was hoping to stay out of the major chain transmission shops since I don't trust them and find something in the west part of Nashville if possible.   

 

http://www.ewingbassgarage.com/

[RED333]

BBB ratings are paid for to keep their record clean.

I use a shop in Mt Juliet, I used to work for the owner.

I know wrong side of town.

If you can find a NAPA shop you would be OK.

I have nothing against Ewing, never heard of them, give them a shot, just do not tell a shop how to fix the problem.

Just tell them what it is not doing and let them tell you what is wrong, be ready to pay for their time to find out what is wrong.

If you let the shop fix the problem some will wave the "looking" fee.

[Wiljo05]

Likely a long shot, but I had a truck do similar, and there was a sensor on the side of the transmission that the leads coming to it broke when I'm assuming a limb hit them crossing the farm. Had no idea till I crawled under and saw it while looking for leaks/obvious damage.

Good luck

[MacGyver]

Bartlett's Automotive over on Atlas Drive does good transmission work. I'd at least give them a call.

[Sam1]

Fairview Transmissions if you're out this far.  Met the owner a few times outside of the garage (genuinely nice guy) and had them do some work on the truck, no BS of trying to sell you a bunch of garbage or upgrades you don't need and they know their stuff.

[Guest]

I know you're not in Murfreesboro but for anyone that is, I'd highly recommend Performance Transmissions near the airport. They've done great work at fair prices, great guys, and have voluntarily sent me to a general mechanic when they identified that the issue didn't require their expertise to resolve.

[theTastyCat]

I've used Ewing Bass!  Used to work nearby and they were the shop my boss had been taking his cars to for 30 years.  They were honest and affordable, so if they haven't changed in the last ten years, I'd say you are good to go.

 

Another great garage nearby is Don Sadler Car Care, which operates out of the Shell station across from the gold dome Regions bank on Charlotte.  Good, fast, and cheap - they did it.

[K191145]

Dickson is probably a little futher than you would want to drive but my recomendation is Carl's Transmission. Back in the summer they replaced my clutch and also did a front brake job/wheel bearings, I provided rotors and bearings, and replaced all 4 shocks in my Nissan truck for right around $900. They did a great job (no problems), and were alot less expensive than some others. They have been in business since I can remember. They are on HWY 70 on the east side of Dickson.

[Trekbike]

Thanks for all the replies guys. I ended up dropping his car off last night at Ewing Bass to give them a chance.

In the OP I described the perceived problem based on my son's description. After driving it myself last night, to me it appears that it is "stuck" in 4x4 low based on the way it drives.

[K191145]

Thanks for all the replies guys. I ended up dropping his car off last night at Ewing Bass to give them a chance.

In the OP I described the perceived problem based on my son's description. After driving it myself last night, to me it appears that it is "stuck" in 4x4 low based on the way it drives.

 

I hope it's just a simple fix, not like having to rebuild the transmission.

[Trekbike]

I hope it's just a simple fix, not like having to rebuild the transmission.

 

My son hopes so too!    We'll see how the rest of the experience goes but so far I've been impressed.    The two times I've called the shop the owner answered and he was very nice over the phone.  

 

As I mentioned I dropped the car last night after hours.    They open at 7:30 and I called at 7:50 just to give them some more feedback on how it was driving so they would have a better idea when they got to it.   To my surprise the mechanic had already driven the car and told the owner he had a pretty good idea what was wrong,  

Hopefully it's just stuck in 4x4 low.  :)   

[Guest Broomhead]

My wife worked for ABC Mobile Brakes, one of Nashville's largest brake parts suppliers. Ewing Bass was their top customer and the one they recommended to ANYONE who asked. I've never needed nor used their services as I'm on the other side of town, but I wouldn't hesitate to take my car there. Now that was probably 3-4 years ago, but being in service since 1955, I can't see things changing that much. Edited February 20, 2015 by Broomhead

[gregintenn]

My grandfather and Ewing Bass were friends. My grandfather used to drive a racecar for Mr. Bass.

 

They've both long since past, but the garage has been there forever, and always had a good reputation.

[Trekbike]

 

Hopefully it's just stuck in 4x4 low.   :)   

 

Yep.   It was stuck in 4x4 low.   They said the transfer motor that switches into/out of the low range is getting weak, plus due to the cold weather it was stuck.   We chose not to replace the motor since there's not much reason to need to go into the low range.   (4x4 high is fine to use.)  Another reason for the decision was the high number of miles on the vehicle (225K).   

 

The charge for work was $86 so we are happy about that!    As I mentioned, they did very quick work.  

 

So in summary, I started the post asking for any feedback on Ewing Bass and I'm glad to say that I had a very pleasant and hassle free experience.   I will definitely consider them in the future for other repairs.  

[hipower]

Glad to hear you got it resolved!

 

I had a similar issue on my 98 Blazer years back. It would stick in 4x4low range occasionally. After it stuck permanently, I got a off road guy I worked with to check it out.

 

Turned out to be a solenoid in the selector. He repaired it for parts and a case of beer. The dealer wanted 500+.