1999 2.2 Subaru Legacy Wagon L, 1999 2.5 Subaru Legacy Outback Wagon - both auto
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26 Posts
I bought this car (99' 2.5 4EAT, 90k miles at the time ~98k now) in March last year and noticed a couple issues with the transmission. There are no codes/warning lights showing on the dash. When the car is cold the 1-2 shift is very hard and clunks into 2nd very abruptly. If I am babying the car this problem is way more noticeable. If I start off aggressively (not typical, just trying to troubleshoot) the shift is much smoother. From what I have read this is fairly typical of this age/year 4EAT though I don't experience the same issue with my 2.2 with almost 240k miles. The problem goes away once the car is warmed up ~5-10 minutes depending how cold it is outside and I honestly don't mind it that much.
The second problem is the 2-3 shift. It seems to hold in second for a very long time (I have also read longer shifts are normal to warm the transmission up, though haven't ever noticed it on the 2.2) then when it shifts to 3rd the engine revs up to 3-3,500k before shifting, this happens pretty quickly but it definitely revs up and makes me uncomfortable to be doing damage to the transmission or engine. This problem is most noticeable when accelerating hard or uphill, the opposite of the 1-2 problem. Starting out on a downhill or flat grade and/or letting the car warm up for 5 minutes seem to make the engine race much less during that shift and this problem does mostly go away after ~10-15 minutes of driving but sometimes pops up unexpectedly.
Last year I changed the transmission fluid (3x through, driving shortly in between), used Valvoline maxlife, have read newer Subaru fluid can work very well. I also read that using trans-x can really help with these 4EATs and added a bottle of that as well. I also reset the ECU by unplugging the battery and pumping the brakes. I also checked the dropping resistor and do not remember the exact reading, but it was right about in the middle.
Sorry for the essay wanted to get as much information for you as possible...Now here's where some advice would be greatly appreciated. Should I....
keep driving the car and not worry about it since it is getting warmer and the problem will be less noticeable until the fall?
change the fluid again with subaru fluid and oem filter?
have my mechanic look at it now because I'm damaging parts of the transmission/engine?
wait till fall to have my mechanic look at it?
be checking/changing some solenoid/tps/etc?
just save up to replace the transmission and don't worry about it?
I am saving up to replace my roof which is in bad shape so I'd prefer to NOT have a ~$1k-?? repair bill, but I'd rather prevent further damage and a more expensive repair later. The car is in good shape otherwise and I plan on keeping it even if it ends up needing a new/used transmission. Thanks in advance, brian
The second problem is the 2-3 shift. It seems to hold in second for a very long time (I have also read longer shifts are normal to warm the transmission up, though haven't ever noticed it on the 2.2) then when it shifts to 3rd the engine revs up to 3-3,500k before shifting, this happens pretty quickly but it definitely revs up and makes me uncomfortable to be doing damage to the transmission or engine. This problem is most noticeable when accelerating hard or uphill, the opposite of the 1-2 problem. Starting out on a downhill or flat grade and/or letting the car warm up for 5 minutes seem to make the engine race much less during that shift and this problem does mostly go away after ~10-15 minutes of driving but sometimes pops up unexpectedly.
Last year I changed the transmission fluid (3x through, driving shortly in between), used Valvoline maxlife, have read newer Subaru fluid can work very well. I also read that using trans-x can really help with these 4EATs and added a bottle of that as well. I also reset the ECU by unplugging the battery and pumping the brakes. I also checked the dropping resistor and do not remember the exact reading, but it was right about in the middle.
Sorry for the essay wanted to get as much information for you as possible...Now here's where some advice would be greatly appreciated. Should I....
keep driving the car and not worry about it since it is getting warmer and the problem will be less noticeable until the fall?
change the fluid again with subaru fluid and oem filter?
have my mechanic look at it now because I'm damaging parts of the transmission/engine?
wait till fall to have my mechanic look at it?
be checking/changing some solenoid/tps/etc?
just save up to replace the transmission and don't worry about it?
I am saving up to replace my roof which is in bad shape so I'd prefer to NOT have a ~$1k-?? repair bill, but I'd rather prevent further damage and a more expensive repair later. The car is in good shape otherwise and I plan on keeping it even if it ends up needing a new/used transmission. Thanks in advance, brian