[Mondaveo]

Hey there Austenite,

Yes, I did go with the independent specialist for the repair - Auto Torque in Phillip ACT.

Their invoice (in 2016) was fully $1K cheaper than the Ford dealer quoted - $2,429.17 versus $3,427. Labour was the biggest component of the cost, as the transmission needs to be removed from the vehicle, partially disassembled, and then everything put back again. Auto Torque charged $1452 for 11 hours, vs $1740 quoted by the dealer (my quote doesn't say how long, but I was told they discounted 3 hours).

Parts and consumables cost about the same (speed sensor $580 vs $530, transmission fluid $290/7L vs $250/6L), but Auto Torque had fewer items on the list. Ford's quote contained over $600 worth of additional items including a second sensor, transmission cover kit, and for some reason, coolant. When I queried this, they simply told me that this was just what the supplied list specified for rectifying the P0715 fault.

Which brings me to the other reason I chose the independent, they actually knew what they were dealing with and had a record and testimonials for fixing several Mondeos before mine (including those of some members on this forum). So I had more confidence they would actually put it back together right. The dealer on the other hand seemed to be guessing, to the point where (as detailed in this thread) I basically had to diagnose the issue for them, and then they received (probably) one-size-fits-all instructions from the mothership. Then expected me to pay for (probably) the on-the-job learning for the technician doing it for the first time...