98 LGT 4EAT 2nd to 3rd shift very slow?

[levis76]

Hello, I have a 98 LGT with the crappy 4EAT. I have noticed that the shift from 1st to 2nd is pretty hard at part throttle and the shift from 2nd to 3rd is very slow as in it takes about a full second for third to fully engage at any throttle position. It is not a slip because the rpm's do not suddenly rise, they actually drop. I can feel the trans shift out of second and then the car bogs down until third gear engages fully and by the time it does the rpms have dropped below the optimal shift speed. If I manually downshift from D to 3 it does the same thing, its like the clutch pack engages very slowly. If I stab the throttle during the shift it doesn't speed up the process, the engine sort of bogs like I'm going up a steep hill. Things I have done: Cleaned the connectors going to the trans, installed better ground connections throughout the engine bay and trans, drained the pan and refilled trans with Subaru OEM trans fluid twice 8 qts total and old fluid was pretty dark but no debris and minimal metal flakes. I ruled out anything to do with the center diff or rear end by installing the FWD fuse and drove around a bit and the shifts felt exactly the same. Anyone have any ideas or know anything about this?

[decke48]

does it happen all the time if the car is cold or hot? if you fluid is full. it could be a leaking seal, crack piston, soliniod, or bad valve body

[levis76]

does it happen all the time if the car is cold or hot? if you fluid is full. it could be a leaking seal, crack piston, soliniod, or bad valve body

It does do it hot or cold, just more pronounced when cold and its very bad when accelerating at part throttle. It can take up to two full seconds to shift when I'm light on the pedal (under 3K). If I'm WOT through 2nd gear into 3rd then it still has a slight delay, which is maddening. At WOT every gear should be damn near instantaneous. I am afraid to take it to any of the local (Sterling Hts, MI) trans shops. I called around when I wanted to do the flush, and my god they wanted to charge me an arm and a leg for just a simple flush, $150, more if I wanted to use OEM fluid because they would have to special order it!! I bought the fluid from my local dealership and did my own exchange. It was no flush I'll admit, just a simple drain, refill, drive, drain, refill. New fluid should have changed something if that was the problem and it did nothing but give me peace of mind. After calling around I also found that none of my local trans "specialists" had any experience with the Subaru AT. Not even the guys at the dealer, which by the way, my local Suby dealer has two techs and they have one bay in the Mazda service garage up the street from where the actual dealer is located. Nice. They explained that they don't touch the AT unless its a remove and replace to tune of around $5000 for the rebuilt trans and labor. That's more than I paid for the car and about double what a 5MT swap would cost. :cry: Wishing I had held out for LGT or RS25 with a MT. Dammit.

[levis76]

Ok, I'm not going to get too excited but I was reading thru the FSM and in section 3-2 Band Brake it lists the common problems with a maladjusted band brake and symptom #3 is a “Braking” symptom occurs while upshifting
from 2nd to 3rd gear. That exactly describes my problem, as I can not rev the engine during the delay in the upshift. It's as if there is a brake holding it back, and apparently there is. The solution is to back off the band brake a bit, about 3/4 turn. I'm going to try this as soon as my wife wakes up and takes over the baby. I really hope this kills the problem.

[levis76]

Done and done. Backed off the brake band screw a half turn and the 2nd to 3rd hesitation is gone. Now its nice and smooth. :grin: :grin: :grin:

[Huffer]

Nice one!

[xlur8ed]

I performed this on a 1998 LGT 4EAT tonight, and all the information I found is accurate, however a bit deceiving (well to me it was). The above link talk of 'securing the 10mm screw', I kept looking for a 10mm nut. This is not the case. You simply need to secure the 10mm sized threaded part (there is no 2nd nut). You can secure the threaded part by using a 8mm wrench and then loosen the 17mm nut.

Tools needed: 1 - 17mm end wrench, and 1 - 8mm end wrench. I removed the starter and throttle body plastic box to gain easier access. I have found other info regarding this procedure and cutting a board to a certain length and getting to this via the rear of the transmission, and although maybe applicable to older Legacys, this is not necessary for the 97-98 LGT.

Some of this may be common sense to most everyone else, but I bet I am not the only guy to read 'too much' into the FSM's procedure.

Take Care!

[xlur8ed]

Upon turning it nearly a full turn, it has not fixed my 2-3 slow shift :( Didn't improve it nor did it make it worse. I now have synthetic fluid, LubeGard, and no help to this awful feeling.

[LiCelsior]

hmm any pictures on how to do this? my car is doing the exact same problem.

[LiCelsior]

does anyone have a pic of where the band adjustment nut is?

[green97gt]

really dude? youve been waiting almost a month for an answer?

http://tinyurl.com/369r2ok

[LiCelsior]

kinda, been putting it off since its gettin nippy here.

http://www.main.experiencetherave.com:8080/subaru_manual_scans/FSM_Scans/transbrakeband.jpg

[prodriver1]

Hello, I have a 98 LGT with the crappy 4EAT. I have noticed that the shift from 1st to 2nd is pretty hard at part throttle and the shift from 2nd to 3rd is very slow as in it takes about a full second for third to fully engage at any throttle position. It is not a slip because the rpm's do not suddenly rise, they actually drop. I can feel the trans shift out of second and then the car bogs down until third gear engages fully and by the time it does the rpms have dropped below the optimal shift speed. If I manually downshift from D to 3 it does the same thing, its like the clutch pack engages very slowly. If I stab the throttle during the shift it doesn't speed up the process, the engine sort of bogs like I'm going up a steep hill. Things I have done: Cleaned the connectors going to the trans, installed better ground connections throughout the engine bay and trans, drained the pan and refilled trans with Subaru OEM trans fluid twice 8 qts total and old fluid was pretty dark but no debris and minimal metal flakes. I ruled out anything to do with the center diff or rear end by installing the FWD fuse and drove around a bit and the shifts felt exactly the same. Anyone have any ideas or know anything about this?
I have the same thing on mine. 1st to 2nd is so fast and hits so hard it feels like a sequential trans, then 2nd to 3rd bogs-doesnt shift fully-then hits 3rd finally a second or 2 latter. checked everything the fluid level was way to high, emptied some out and it felt better but then it went back to crap. seems like overfill damage and the damage is done.