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#1
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What's With This Tranny Business?
I'm looking to buy a 94 SVX and I don't get it. Every SVX site with a tech section describes the sheer crappiness of the 4EAT tranny. Looks like people have tried to stave off the inevitable with radiator aids, etc. I guess my question is, why would anyone buy a used SVX, or rather, why would *I* buy a used SVX if the tranny is doomed to fail early and expensively? In general I really like the SVX, especially for the price, but a(n inevitable) $4000 hit down the road is making me start to doubt the SVX. Someone tell me I'm overthinking this and that I should get the car inspected by a professional and just relax...please!
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#2
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I knew what I was in for going into this: this car is far from perfect, particularly the 4(H)EAT, but it has personality, and, to quote Pulp Fiction, personality goes a long way...
Still, not everyone has had problems; there are many on this board with well over 100,000 miles on the OEM transmission and no modifications. Others, have had to modify theirs with auxilliary filters and coolers to keep it alive, while others have replaced theirs 3 or more times. This car has a polarising effect; you either love it or you don't. You either want one bad enough to put up with (or work around) it's defects, or you walk away. I, myself, could not walk away... |
#3
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Thanks for the concise reply. Well, in your opinion, and I know we're hitting technical material here, if the tranny is inspected and is good to go, should I then immediately put some type of aftermarket gizmo on the radiator? I'm totally new to SVXs...thanx
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#4
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What part of Milwaukee are you in? I'm over in Brewers Hill. I'm going to go look at a teal 92 on Friday. Wish me luck on it being in good condition. Oh and welcome to the board! I think you'll like it here. Doug
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1992 LS Touring (6/91) - Currently undergoing a five speed swap Black over Claret with spoiler; 235,000 miles; Mods: 2002 Legacy 5 speed, ACT Pressure Plate, Excedy Clutch, Short Throw Shifter, Aussie Powerchip 1992 LS Touring (6/91) Black over Claret with 2.5" setback spoiler; 202,000 miles; Mods: B&M Cooler 1994 LSi (4/93) Bordeaux Pearl; 198,000 miles; Mods: Weight reduction. 1969 Mustang GT Convertible 1970 Mustang Convertible 2000 Ford Excursion Sola lingua bona est lingua mortua. My Locker |
#5
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the simple answer for me is that even with a 2 grand trannie bill down the road with what the cars are selling for they can be one hell of a bargain for what you get in the car.
as for the after market coolers, i have to wonder if they really help. in my case the trannie lasted about 125,000 miles, all but the last 10,000 without an external cooler. so, if one can expect another 100,000 after a rebuild how much is gained. yes, i know this will ignite a s bit of a reaction as everybody recommedds and installs the additional coolers. |
#6
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#7
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i guess what i'm suggesting is that perhaps the cooler would help if it were installed when the trannie was really new, but if the damage is significantly already done after 40,000 miles (just a supposition for arguments sake) and you can at that time expect to go 100,000 or more prior to failure just figure on the new trannie being an expense of the car. i admit if the cooler were to extend the life of a trannie an extra 40,000 miles which had 40,000 miles on it when installed it may be a differnt thing. i just wonder if that ever the case, that's all.
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#8
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There really isn't a way to fix the 4EAT... it's simply a matter of a transmission that doesn't really work that well in the car. Or at least... a transmission cooler in the stock radiator that just doesn't work!
The closest to a fix IS a tranny cooler and filter. That has seemed to work wonders for numerous members as far as getting their trannies to last a lot longer. I also like to take off the plastic shield under the engine during the warmer months... I really don't know for sure if it helps, but it does increase airflow around the tranny casing... I can only imagine it helps a little. Oh... and use a good synthetic like RedLine (tranny fluid)... and maintain it well (like a drain and fill every 30,000 miles or so would do the trick). Beyond that... there's a lot of discussion that's flown around for years about actually FLUSHING the tranny. I personally think that so long as you don't backflush it you'll be fine. Got mine flushed a few weeks ago when the fluid started to get a little "toasty"... tranny's been great ever since. Now all I got to do is get around to replacing that front main seal (grrrrrrr...) |
#9
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As a person who had to have his tranny rebuilt after owning the car only a month or two I'd like to render a few opinions:
First, the transmission isn't all that bad a box. But (and there always has to be one, right?) there were bad choices made initially with regard to clutch material and cooling capacity needed. Why do I say this? On the clutch material and other fixes implemented as production continued, well that speaks for itself. As to cooling, Subaru seems to have put a mesh in the cooler using an engineering analysis that correctly estimated that it would result in additional heat transfer and be sufficient to adequately cool the fluid. It just turned out to be a bad combination. It's my belief that an external cooler coupled with a filter (OEM recall filter or aftermarket) addresses the problems. With that I think the box will be no more troublesome than most any other auto box. Any automatic could use a cooler if subjected to heat inducing driving due to style, weather, or terrain - OEMs almost always budget to the middle ground - failing back on that "severe duty" section of the manual. BTW, does anyone know if the radiator-based cooler in the later models (after they scrapped the mesh filter) had any increased cooling capacity over the earlier models? |
#10
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Good Luck Doug. Hope it is a good one.
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. Earl .... ... .... ><SVX(*> Subaru Ambassador [COLOR=”silver”]1992 Tri Color L[/COLOR] ~45K (06/91) #2430 1992 Dark Teal LS-L ~184K (05/91) #0739 1992 Claret LS-L ~196K (05/91) #0831 1992 Pearl LS-L ~103K (06/91) #1680 1992 Pearl LS-L ~151K (06/91) #2229 1992 Dark Teal LS ~150K (07/91) #3098 (parts car) 1992 White LS-L ~139K (08/92) #6913 1993 25th AE ~98K (02/93) #164 1993 25th AE ~58K (02/93) #176 1993 25th AE ~107K (02/93) #215 1993 25th AE ~162K (02/93) #223 1994 Laguna Blue Pearl LSi ~124K (1/94) #2408 1994 Laguna Blue Pearl LSi ~144K (10/93) #1484 1994 Laguna Blue Pearl LSi ~68K (10/93) #1525 1994 Barcelona Red LSi ~46K (02/94) #2624 1994 Pearl LSi ~41K (12/93) #1961 1995 Bordeaux Pearl LSi ~70K (02/95) #855 1996 Polo Green LSi ~95K (03/96) #872 1997 Bordeaux Pearl LSi ~55K (08/96) #097 2003 Brilliant Red LS1 Convertible ~29K (04/03) #8951 1999 Magnetic Red LS1 Coupe ~33K (04/99) #6420 My Email | Old Locker | New Locker | Picture of 15 of the 19 |
#11
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Hell look at Immortal_Suby... His car has over 200,000 miles and is only on one tranny rebuild... Only thing he has done is a tranny cooler with a fan... And he drives the living piss outta that car... Look at Jason Porter's car... I don't thing I can speak of a car that represents Subaru's relialibility more than his car... He bangs that engine off the redline EVERY morning he goes to work... And does the same EVERY afternoon coming home from work... He runs away from highly modded WRX's on the Dragon and various other subaru events.... That car is still on the origional tranny and he has about 103,000 miles on it... So there are good cars out there, but eventually everything will fail, just get a tranny cooler or get a 5 speed... I personally would take the auto and change the final drive out to 4.44 and that should help alot... Then get a rebuild from Level 10... That Tranny would be awesome!!! It would probably be the fastest SVX around... It'd be faster than a 5 speed for sure!!!!!
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2020 Subaru Outback Touring - Wife's first Subaru 2005 Volvo V70R - 5-cylinder love! :Heart: ** SOLD **1998 Subaru Legacy 2.5GT Wagon - MOST RELIABLE car I've ever owned ** SOLD **2006Subaru WRXSTi (Former "Boxer4Racing.com / Continential Tire" STi) - Built EJ22t block / EJ207 JDM STi "big port heads" - 9,000rpm MONEY PIT!!! ** SOLD ** 1995 "Tree-Hugger Green" SVX L AWD(5 MT) --- "Gumby" 130K miles #399 in MY95, my original love... |
#12
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phoenix96 2006 Legacy GT Limited · 2006 Outback 3.0R VDC · 1992 SVX LS-L
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#13
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i don't know if later models offered any increased cooling, but i didn't feel lucky - i bypassed that sucker. there is a general rule of thumb that if you decrease your transmission temperature by 20 degrees, you double the life of your transmission. you're mostly going to hear horror stories on here, more than 'good reports'. remember, there were a hell of a lot more '92's made than model years, and those are the ones with the problems. even some '92's have gone well over 100,000 miles stock with no problems. take the usual precautionary measures (fluid/filter/cooler/gauge = less than $200) if you find a car with a transmission that feels good, and you'll be fine. as someone said before, these cars are such a bargain, even the cost of a failed tranny still makes them a good buy, but no one really wants to deal with that. find a nice one, and enjoy!
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Alan 1987 928 S4 (Black) SOLD! 1997 SVX LSi (Ebony) SOLD! 2005 Legacy GT (Silver) [Cobb Stg 2+] SOLD! 1987 928 S4 (Black) SOLD! 2005 Forester XT Premium (Crystal Gray Metallic) SOLD! 2008 Lancer Evolution X MR (Apex Silver) [Cobb Stg 1+] 2015 Outlander Sport 2.4GT AWD (Mercury Gray) 2013 G37xS (Obsidian Black) |
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