Recently I began to notice an ever so slight growling sound when my '87
Syncro (58k) sits at idle in neutral. Additionally, the growling sound goes
away when I depress the clutch.

Being the over-concerned citizen that I am, I took it into my mechanic and
after listening to it he says (and here's the good part), transmission main
bearing, $1000 parts and (mostly) labor.

He also said that my gearbox fluids were a bit low and topped them off.
After doing so, he said the tranny quieted down a bit (I just got off the
phone with him, so I haven't had a chance to listen myself).

While I trust my mechanic, when it comes to $1000 diagnoses I get a little
nervous no matter who's the doc. Therefore, I come to you - oh wise ones -
to ask a few questions.

1. Could this be anything else?
2. If it is the tranny main, does the repair price sound right?
3. Given my current state - slight growling - how long can I safely run
before I must have this work done, and am I risking other damage by doing
so?
4. While we never reached a consensus on using synthetic tranny lube in the
rear unit of Syncros, given my specific problem, might switching to
synthetic help postpone the inevitable?
5. If they're going to tear into the tranny, is there other work I should
have done while they're in there?
6. Have I arrived at the point where it starts being cost effective for me
to go buy another Syncro, JUST FOR PARTS?

Thanks as always!

Paul
puusital@adobe.com