johnceggleston

i commend you for your attitude, it sound like you are in this for the long haul. but save the old plugs for the next time you need them, i don't think they go bad like milk.

sawzall zzz you can remove it anywhere you want.

i agree. but there is a chance that 96 OBS means 96 impresa OutBack Sport, not 96 legacy OutBack Sedan. i would think the legacy outback sedan would have the heated seat option, and therefore have the necessary wiring. but it's pretty easy to check, 2 screws for the console cover, (visable under the arm rest cover for the console.)

correct me if i'm wrong. you are installing a 98 OBW TZ102Z2DBA trans into a 96 OBW TZ102Z2CBA? it is a direct swap. nothing is different. everything on your old trans is in the EXACT same place on your new trans. no differences at all, all the same, perfect match. bolt it in plug up the connectors and put in the fluid. change fluid in 3k or 6K miles (cheap insurance.) good luck, and have fun.

the TZ102z2dba should work just fine in 97 -98 GT and 96 - 98 outback and 96 - 97 LSi, no TCU swap needed. you want the trans to operate the way the one in your car is supposed to, not the way the new trans operated in the other car. refresh my memory, you're pulling the trans out of a 98 outback and installing it in what??

with the flashinfAT TEMP light and torque bind you are sure to have a bad duty c solenoid in the rear extention housing of the trans which contains the transfer clutch for the sending power to the rear wheels. the EWD fuse probably will have no effect on the torque bind. the duty c (pluss 2 gaskets) can be bought at an online subaru parts dealer for less than 100$ the labor at a shop is about 250$ - 300$. or you can go to the dealer and they will do it for 900$. let us know what you learn when you put in the fuse.

from https://www.subarugenuineparts.com/oe_parts_cat.html Search by OEM Part Number: Part number 31711AC011 was superseded by part number 31711AC031. Part Number Search Results No Parts Found.

there are 2 apparent differences between the 95 sedan and the 96 wagon TCUs. 1. the mounts are different. 2. the lable on the main 'chip' is different. the circuit boards are identical except for the main chip label. i believe this refers to the programing. the 96 wagon TCU in the 95 sedan (with the 96 4eat) was slow to shift up, liked to stay in 3rd. i don't know the engineering, but my ill-logic tells me the weight difference may be at least part of the reason. obviously a 97 GT tcu will operate differently than a 97 OBW, both cars have the 2.5L w/ 4.44 final drive. the GT TCU in the OBW will try to drive it like a GT. this may not be drsireable. i haven't tried this yet, but i will this spring. and vice versa. i know you won't blow anything up by swapping, but how it drives may be a little off. my guess is that sedan to sedan or wagon to wagon will be ok. i think some of the early legacys had different final drives for different years which may make a slight difference in driving. check here : http://bbs.legacycentral.org/viewtopic.php?t=13500&sid=7add370daf15909c801cba58%20f69c2cbd and someone else has posted that they are all interchangeable.....so who knows. if you do try it, let us know. edit: i just re-read the original post, it could be LHD vs. RHD. go to www.car-part.com and search for ''computer box not engine'', then transmission and see what part numbers you come up with. there are 4 to choose from, FWD ( 93 & 94 same) = ...AC021 & ...AC600 LHD ( 93 & 94 same) = ...AC031 & ...AC610 LHD turbo ( 93 & 94 same) = ....AC051. RHD = ? you may have to look through several pages to find a listing with a part number, but eventually you will. look at other years until you find the TCU you're thinking of buying. this search process may dis prove my sedan to wagon being a bad swap since the interchage does not reference body style, just year, AWD vs FWD and LHD vs. RHD vs. TURBO.

check the letter near the middle of the vin. eithr opn the dash or on the firewall, pass. side. s=95 t=96 v=97 w=98 ? x=99 ? ?='00

these are the equivilant tire sizes for the stock legacy L tires. it is safer to 'cheat' wider than this than it is to 'cheat' taller, unless you put on outback struts. legacy L, GT (inches) tire size .........height % ..... circ....... radius...... dia............. rev/mi. 195/70/14 ......70 ..............77.7 .......12.37 ......24.75 .........815 205/60/15 ......60 ..............77.6 .......12.34 ......24.69 .........817 205/55/16 ......55 ..............78.2 .......12.44 ......24.88 .........811 http://www.miata.net/garage/tirecalc.html

there should be an aluminum id tag on the driver side front strut housing under the hood. it will have all sorts of information on including engine #, trans #, and trim, color, etc. your traans number is the TZ102ZACAA number , your car is a 97 2.2L legacy. the engine number will start with EJ22.... and have some alphabet soup after that.

i bookmarked this thread some time ago, but it's been a while since i read through it. hope it helps. http://www.ultimatesubaru.org/forum/showthread.php?t=59033

i want to know how rick johnson of ccr knew this? who did he learn it from? and what else can we learn from him / them?

now this is a reason for removing the indicator from the cluster. they don't have to stock 2 parts, one for manual, one for auto trans. plus, they were buying more of the one maybe lowering their cost per unit. that must have saved them millions. add that to the "design / style upgrade" every 5 years and presto, no more indicator lights.

looks like they left them in the center making them harder to get to, just like the DOHC.

when thay went back to the SOHC in the 2.5L engine did they keep the plug in the center of the head or did they move it back to the top and angled like the 2.2L engine are?? apologies for the hi jak.

since i'm a autozone / advanceauto kind of a guy, what brand or price level would you suggest. i've been buying the cheapest available for all my cars for years and i only have 2 complaints: 1. they seem to wear out fast, seems like i'm always doing them, but with 4 vehicles it may not be the actual pads as much as the number of cars. 2. lots of brake dust on my alloys. any suggestions.

can you put a washer under the head of the bolt so the bolt is shorter or are the springs in the way keeping you from pulling it together. iirc the bolts have a shoulder so you can only tighten it so much.

i agree with gary, 97 model year is interferrence. but you might check the engine number on the id tag and compare it to a 96 ej22. i thought they started manufacturing 97s around the middle of 96. i doubt they can inventory cars for 9 months waiting on the new model year. but making them 3 months in advance seems about right to my ill-logic. but the id tag should comfirm the engine model. someone will have a 96 you can compare to.

huh? i don't understand?

what did you pay for it?

any 2.5L auto trans 96 - 98 (some early 99s) will fit. the critical identifier is the 7th character '2' in the trans number, TZ102Z2xxx. (trans with a letter here will not work unless you swap in the matching rear differential.) this includes: outbacks LSi GT

i have had a similar experience in my 97obw. but it only happens after a downshift & running in 3rd for a while, usually asociated with climbing hills. it never does it on relatively flat highways when climbing up through the gears. i just assumed it was the TCU 'learning' a new driving pattern. in effect the TCU says "i was going at 3000 rpms in 3rd instead of 4th, there must be a reason, i'll keep it there until i'm sure it does not need it any more." and so it shifts a little later. this may be completely wrong, just my ill-logic, but my ford 350 pickup does a similar thing when i push the 'tow / haul' button. i know this is not the same. but the TCU is supposed to 'learn."

or, since they are both ej22s, swap intakes. but this would really only be necessary if putting the 95 w/o EGR into a 96.

quite right, you have to factor in how long you are going to keep the car. i used to remodel kitchens. homeowners were always asking me how much of the kitchen investment could they expect to get back when the sold their house. my response was always the same, if you sell in the next 3 years, you'll get some, maybe most, of your money back. if you sell in 10 years you'll get all of it back and then some.