[Manarius]

Originally Posted by NeedForSpeed

If the above statement is your only true objective, you should immediately delete your entire list. You can not be 'sure' of any of it. Items 1,3,5,6 are considered 'performance' mods, usually for those that drive accordingly. Items 2 and 4 are considered reliability/maintenance mods, but not everyone agrees on the cooler or on synthetic You clearly and correctly stated, the list is based on 'what people believe'.

To my knowledge, other than maintenance, none of the six items you listed has ever been proven to add reliability to a ’96 SVX transmission under normal road use. Most items on your final list have been tested sparely, and for relatively few miles, with mixed reviews.

You have taken the biggest step known and observed in increasing transmission reliability in an SVX, namely, driving a post-92 SVX. I believe that nearly everybody agrees on that. These later transmissions, when properly maintained according to Subaru, will easily approach 200,000 miles without failure. In fact, how many here have had a 96-97 transmission fail?

By 96, Subaru engineers had enough years and miles to correct early reliability concerns in the SVX. That is what you risk by making changes to a car you consider a 'daily driver'. I do not believe that any advice given here regarding reliability, other than periodic fluid change, is conclusive.

If you are looking to change the performance of your transmission, the 'safe' question is a different question entirely, with many opposing opinions.

I think with the mid-94 to 97 transmissions, not driving like a race car driver is the best way to keep the transmission from breaking.

Also, I remember Trevor saying that driving in 3 was a good way to help. That's kept me with my stock tranny and 190k miles.