Leaderboard

Update! Today I soldered in a used connector I got from the wreckers. I did a test of wiggling the wires near the connector when the car was running and sure enough it was near the connector - the engine shut off I soldered in new cable and connector, and my car runs like a dream now. The idle is no longer as rough and there is no stalling. More power and response from the engine which is great! Thanks so much for all your help and expertise. Project successful! (So far) I will post an image later Edit: Not sure if i didnt notice before, but now on a warm start the revs of the car go straight to 650-800/ the revs that the car usually has when running. its very smooth, but I'm used to the 1200 revs on startup that slows to 650-800 after 20-30 secs. Im guessing its something to do with a proper connection now? unsure as to why the crank angle sensor would change the idle speed but anywho... Feels great

As for the fluid left in the the torque converter you can either do a series of fluid changes in quick succession to rid the trans of old fluid. Or another method that might work is one commonly used by Pajero owners but requires two ppl. Firstly, work out which line on the oil cooler is the OUT line, disconnect this and hang in a collection bucket/pan. Have the second person start the engine and let it run, the pump in the trans will pump out most of the fluid. Once the flow reduces/splutters the first person yells out to the second person to shut off the engine. Drain the rest of the pan, replace filter and refill with the given amount of fluid that came out. Check the levels again after a short drive. Now with all of this, I am yet to do this with our Pajero, but it’s on the list since I don’t know the history of the fluid in the trans. Let me know if this method won’t work or will do detrimental damage to the trans (looks @GeneralDisorder and @FerGloyale) Cheers Bennie

Do a search about rebuilding. Common consensus is don’t split the block unless you really have to (or you’re dropping in a mid cam). No worries about the info, it can be confusing when new to the game. Cheers Bennie

"NOT TERRIBLE"?? Is that a comforting diagnosis? Very few of us do the machine method where you change it all out i.e. running a pump and replacing the total volume in a closed loop. Doing the simple drain, yes you will leave some of the old ATF fluid in there but if done correctly, you will not be overfilling it since you will be only replacing as much as you take out, roughly 4+ quarts. Think of it this way, when you exhale, you do not completely empty your lungs of the "old" air and on the next breath, you only inhale as much as you exhaled. You don't over-inhale and explode (if done properly). Get it? The remaining "old" air over successive breaths gradually mixes with the new air and you keep on living. I have 200K on my 2005 and 140K on my 2008 Outbacks and do the simple maintenance like oil and transmission fluid changes myself. I've heard too many horror stories of fast service shops mistakenly draining the transmission and then overfilling the oil! Good thing is that, as you report, it has been dealer serviced so they likely had more done than what was needed to be done and the car is likely in good shape for now. I cringe when I sit at the dealer and listen to the hard sell to unsuspecting customers. You probably can get a history of the maintenance if you know the dealer used and go from there. All that being said, there are many here who are pros, some with real shops, and others like myself that would rather do the simple things and know they were done right instead of sitting at a dealer for hours on end waiting for them to change the blinker fluid and charge me through the nose for the privilege. Depending on where you live in Bklyn, you may not have the luxury of being able to work on your car but if you do, it isn't that difficult to do the simple stuff. Capeesh?

Do you have any idea of the maintenance that was done prior to your ownership? Did you check the fluid level? It should be done with the engine running and after having been warmed up and driven through the gears. How does the at fluid look/smell? It should be pinkish in color (not brown) and not have a burnt smell. It isn't all that difficult to change. Really not any more difficult than changing the oil if you are comfortable with that. Routine changes are important as the fluid does degrade over time and is meant to lubricate moving parts.

Fuel pump.