PMXER Posted May 29, 2010 Share Posted May 29, 2010 Hi I am new to this board and have a problem that I hope someone can help me with. I have a 2000 Subaru Outback with a 2.5 engine and 4 speed automatic transmission that needs to be replaced. I have been able to find a number of used transmissions in different years with low miles, but don't know which years and transmission numbers will replace mine. The transmission number on my transmission housing is TZ1A4ZCABA-WL. One of the places asked me if I have 2 or 3 electrical connectors on the transmission. One person thought that 1999, 2000 and 2001 Impreza, Forrester or Legacy auto transmissions would work but I am hesitant to spend $500 to $1200 on a transmission that may not work in my Outback. Any help finding charts or cross reference guides for different transmissions that show me what transmission ID number would work would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance for helping out the new guy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idosubaru Posted May 29, 2010 Share Posted May 29, 2010 (edited) you might also want to discuss what's wrong since there are a few issues that are fixable with the 4EAT. in general if it plugs in i'm likely to think it'll work. not many changes to the 4EAT since the 80's. even without plugging in they are often interchangeable by splicing the right harness on. a major issue for you is the final drive ratio of the front diff, which is part of the transaxle assembly "transmission" - which is a slight pain to verify. first generation outbacks were 4.44 final drive ratio, not sure about yours but i would guess the same? Legacy GT, Impreza RS, OBW....should be the same final drive but I know that's not the affirmative info you're looking. final drive ratios available for your year 4EAT are 4.11 or 4.44, you probably need the 4.44. Impreza's (except probably RS and some STi's) often have the 4.11. Unless I heard otherwise I'd avoid those. another option is to just make sure you get the rear diff with whatever transmission you get that way you can swap it if needed to match. final drive ratio does't matter at all to the vehicle, just has to match the rear diff gearing. but likely you'll want to keep it the same. Edited May 29, 2010 by grossgary Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PMXER Posted May 29, 2010 Author Share Posted May 29, 2010 Sorry I didn't get back last night. Had to go out! Here is the situation on this 00 outback. The girl I bought it from said the dealership told her the trans needed to be replaced and she told me the awd was broken. It was acting funny going from first to second gear. The day after I bought it, I dropped the pan and changed the fluid and filter on the tranny. I found some fine dust on the magnet in the pan but didn't look that bad. I also drained the fluid from the tranny cooler and let the transmission drain all day. It took about 8 qts of Mobile One tranny fluid to bring it back to full when finished. Transmission works good now, but i think I still have AWD issues and don't know how long to trust the tranny. A guy who works on Subarus in my area said for $300 labor and $300-600 in parts he could repair the AWD. I think he is talking about the rear cone on the back of the tranny..is that something i could buy for $100 or so and replace myself and take a chance on the tranny holding together or should I be looking at a whole new tranny. How do you deal with the two or three sensor hookups if the tranny you get is not the same as the one you took out? Again any help is appreciated! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idosubaru Posted May 29, 2010 Share Posted May 29, 2010 i wouldn't give up on this trans yet. the AWD issues, typically that is torque bind, are easily fixed as far as transmissions go. can be done without removing the trans and parts aren't that expensive. go used if you want, post in the parts wanted section here. read up on torque bind here and see if that's your issues and determine what's causing it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PMXER Posted May 29, 2010 Author Share Posted May 29, 2010 Thanks for the help Gary. I dont think torque bind is my problem, when I had it up on jack stands and put it in gear I didn't have power to the rear wheels when I blocked them and the girl I bought it from said the awd was broken. are extension housings hard to replace after you drain the tranny fluid. Will any 4eat extension housing work or will I have to watch out for gear ratios? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idosubaru Posted May 30, 2010 Share Posted May 30, 2010 So you think the AWD doesn't work at all? Does the AT light blink 16 times at start up? A solid diagnosis might be in order if you want to fix. It might be possible for you to remove the rear tail of the trans and fix this. Might need a Duty C or the hub that engages the rear clutches, or both. If driven with torque bind too long that hub can shear off. Sold one of those hubs to a guy last year that had that happen. Hard to say without actually digging into it or seeing it. You could post on here to see if anyone has a trans lying around to pull the rear housing and clutch hub from. Sometimes plugging around on ebay or car-parts.com will help decipher what's interchangeable as far as transmissions go. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rooster2 Posted May 30, 2010 Share Posted May 30, 2010 Does your 2000 model have the fuse holder under the hood near the firewall on the passenger side? If so, check to see if there is a fuse installed in the fuse holder. If so, then the fuse is making the car front wheel drive only. Under normal conditions, the fuse holder does not contain a fuse to operate in all wheel drive. Let us know if there is a fuse there or not. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnceggleston Posted May 30, 2010 Share Posted May 30, 2010 Does your 2000 model have the fuse holder under the hood near the firewall on the passenger side? If so, check to see if there is a fuse installed in the fuse holder. If so, then the fuse is making the car front wheel drive only. Under normal conditions, the fuse holder does not contain a fuse to operate in all wheel drive. Let us know if there is a fuse there or not. i think they moved the FWD fuse holder into the fuse box around '99, look there. pmxer, do you have a FWD lite on the dash? this would indicate the fuse is in place and you have front wheel drive only. some 99s and maybe 00 auto trans have a problem 'catching' when shifting frome P or R to D. there is a fix in a bottle that some have good luck with. what is funny about your 1-2 shift?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PMXER Posted June 2, 2010 Author Share Posted June 2, 2010 There is no FWD lite on on the dash and no fuse in fwd slot in the fuse box. I stopped on an up hill grade on some loose gravel and stepped on the gas than got out and looked and it looked liked only the front wheels had turned. How else can I check to see if the back wheels are putting power to the road. We are short on icy roads right now here in the midwest. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idosubaru Posted June 2, 2010 Share Posted June 2, 2010 if the AWD isn't working the front tire should spin easily even the dinky 1.8 liters will spin out tires easily. it's not obvious for you? when i switch to driving my FWD subaru (i converted it to 1.8 liter and FWD trans), it peels out really easily compared to my AWD subarus - and it has a much smaller motor. my FWD has a 1.8 where my AWD's have 2.5, 2.7 6 cylinder, and 3.0 6 cylinders. the difference is huge, the FWD even with the much smaller motor peels out all the time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PMXER Posted June 2, 2010 Author Share Posted June 2, 2010 Yes the front wheels spun easily on gravel. I only did a short acceleration shouldn't the rears have spun to. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idosubaru Posted June 2, 2010 Share Posted June 2, 2010 yeah sounds like FWD only, rear 4WD stuff is hosed. swapping rear extension housing bits is much easier as the trans doesn't have to come out and the parts are far less expensive than a trans if you can find someone with a bad trans, but good 4WD stuff. swapping a trans is the for sure fix if you can find a suitable donor. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PMXER Posted June 2, 2010 Author Share Posted June 2, 2010 Thank a lot every one I have learned a lot on this web site it's great! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DEVO Posted July 1, 2010 Share Posted July 1, 2010 "What trannys will fit my 2000 outback?" I have found most trannys that are under 6' tall fit in my outback ok, if they sit in the front seat. A little tougher in the back if they are over 6' or so, especially if they are in really high heels. Sorry...I couldn't help myself. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pennswoodsed Posted July 1, 2017 Share Posted July 1, 2017 yeah sounds like FWD only, rear 4WD stuff is hosed. swapping rear extension housing bits is much easier as the trans doesn't have to come out and the parts are far less expensive than a trans if you can find someone with a bad trans, but good 4WD stuff. swapping a trans is the for sure fix if you can find a suitable donor. GG, I have torque bind in my newish to me, 97 Brighton Cpe, how would I determine good awd parts other than recent invoice ? Thanks,Ed should have kept xt6mt5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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