One of the problems of being handy with a wrench is becoming the family auto mechanic. Last night my mother showed up with her Acura Legend (my former fault-free ride for 50k miles) with yet another problem. This time a balky automatic transmission. I hate automatics. Not just because they rob power and lower the bar for driving, but because they combine plumbing, mechanics, and electronics in one difficult to fathom unit. Some searching on the internet revealed the likely culprit: sticking shift solenoids. Being of recent design, this transmission uses electronic solenoids to control the shifting of the transmission. With age and abuse they get sticky, and the transmission stops shifting properly. The remedy is removing the solenoids for a thorough cleaning and testing and re-installing. The problem was that the lower shift solenoid refused to respond to treatment. I got the upper one clicking nicely. I crossed my fingers and hoped for the best... in vain. The transmission was still slipping. So mom gets to stay the night, while I hopefully track down a replacement so I can send her on her way. The local dealer Baierl Acura helpfully quoted me a price of $227 + tax and a lead time of 3-4 days. A price that I would learn was a whopping 26% greater than *list* price. Thanks alot! (a reminder of why none of my cars have ever been to a dealership for service.) Google revealed some possibilities, but their Ad Words were right on target. had seemingly every part on the car availible in their online catalog for ordering. Excellent! Their price was good too... $150 + shipping. Should be here in a few days. Oh yeah, the meat: My mother did not come empty handed. She brought a beautiful 4-bone standing rib roast, a few pounds each of kilebasa, sausage, ground beef, italian sausage... from Froelich's in Johnstown. (They did the catering/cooking for our wedding too.) Mmmmm....