95 Legacy Manual swap? hood swap?

[xoomer]

Ok,

 

So I have a 95 Lego with an automatic trans And I hate it. can I convert it to a manual with relative ease? or is it gonna be wiring and computer swaps? I'm willing to put in the work.. What is a basic list of stuff that I'm gonna need besides

 

Trans, clutch, flyweel, pedal assembly.. cables? or hydraulics? shifter assembly, (do I need driveshaft or diff?)

 

also Can I swap an outback hood (the hood scooped one) onto my lego?

 

Thanks

[idosubaru]

yes to both. trans swaps are done frequently, i'd search for a thread about it. there is some wiring, for reverse lights, indentifier pin for ECU, etc.

 

if you scroll down to the similar threads links in the lower left hand of this page there's already 3 threads exactly like yours there, read through those.

 

you need to swap cruise control units if you want to keep that as they vary from AT to MT.

 

the hoods swap as you say, i did the exact same swap to mine.

[xoomer]

Thanks GG, Your both a gentleman and a scholar.. I was pretty sure I had read about both, but my local Suby shop told me neither was good :-\ I will do some more research!

[cj7135]

Ok,

 

So I have a 95 Lego with an automatic trans And I hate it. can I convert it to a manual with relative ease? or is it gonna be wiring and computer swaps? I'm willing to put in the work.. What is a basic list of stuff that I'm gonna need besides

 

Trans, clutch, flyweel, pedal assembly.. cables? or hydraulics? shifter assembly, (do I need driveshaft or diff?)

 

also Can I swap an outback hood (the hood scooped one) onto my lego?

 

Thanks

 

Lots of info on here about trans swaps but i can confirm that you will certainly need the driveshaft and diff from the donor car. I'm pretty sure you need the crossmember to mount the trans as well.

[Suba9792]

Are you sure you want to do this? it seems like a waste on such and old car. The 5MT is not as great as you may think, I have 145k on my 97 and I just had to replace it, granted it was from damage the previous shop did, but the are still not that great. They have a small input shaft bearing that has been known to fail. The 4EAT is by far the better of the two, I wish I had the 4EAT in mine.

[cj7135]

Are you sure you want to do this? it seems like a waste on such and old car. The 5MT is not as great as you may think, I have 145k on my 97 and I just had to replace it, granted it was from damage the previous shop did, but the are still not that great. They have a small input shaft bearing that has been known to fail. The 4EAT is by far the better of the two, I wish I had the 4EAT in mine.

 

Everybody has their own preference, but I completely disagree that the 5mt is a bad transmission. IMHO I think it's the best transmission. You only get full 50/50 with the 5MT, and my last 5MT went 440,000 before it needed to be replaced. 99% of the time transmission failure is due to misuse or bad maintenance (as in your case).

 

Your best bet is to go with your swap, unless you're an old man like Suba9792 and like to go for sunday drives. I have an OBW with auto tranny and I do really like it, but if you want the full AWD control experience, and the best reliability, go with the MT, and get some really good conventional gear oil (don't use synthetic). The autos are also very reliable, but if you don't want to wait 25 minutes between gear changes then go with the MT, and like i said, the AT is 90/10 until it slips, it doesn't help you much when your doing drifts.

[xoomer]

I'm doing this because my Gas mileage sucks... and because I want the power and control over my car.

[Suba9792]

400+k miles from one trans?? you sure about that. The 4EAT is far more superior, and if you happen to look up a thread about locking it up then, you will have a much better trans than the 5MT. Its a decent tranny but as I have said they have significant bearing failure. Look it up maybe you'll figure it out. drop in the trans and rear diff from a Legacy GT, and yes its an auto, you be surprised at the power. But if that's what your looking for quit wasting time and money on a car that is nearing the 20 year mark. Find a WRX for that.

[Suba9792]

Everybody has their own preference, but I completely disagree that the 5mt is a bad transmission. IMHO I think it's the best transmission. You only get full 50/50 with the 5MT, and my last 5MT went 440,000 before it needed to be replaced. 99% of the time transmission failure is due to misuse or bad maintenance (as in your case).

 

You are talking about drifting in the next part of this, I don't believe you had 440,000 on that tranny:rolleyes:. My maintenance is perfect, it was a shop who left out the alignment pin. when I had a clutch job.

 

Your best bet is to go with your swap, unless you're an old man like Suba9792 and like to go for sunday drives. I have an OBW with auto tranny and I do really like it, but if you want the full AWD control experience, and the best reliability, go with the MT, and get some really good conventional gear oil (don't use synthetic). The autos are also very reliable, but if you don't want to wait 25 minutes between gear changes then go with the MT, and like i said, the AT is 90/10 until it slips, it doesn't help you much when your doing drifts.

 

What is your reasoning for not using synthetic? I'm running Redline with no problem.

 

There is a few tricks to do to the trans to basically give it the ratio that you want. Look it up!

[johnceggleston]

if you have a 95 legacy auto trans and swap in an outback96 - 99 manual trans you don't have to change the rear diff.

 

i agree about the auto being more reliable. how many times did you have to pull the trans in your 440k miles? more than once?

 

but every one has an opinion. and that's fine.

 

but to the original poster, what don't you like about you car / engine / trans?

 

have you read the thread about the ''power mode'' switch?

 

is your engine tuned up?

 

the trans has a memory. it learns how you drive and repeats that. disconnect the battery over night and then go out and punch it. hand shift into 3 and wind it out. then see if it drives differently. after you put it back in D.

 

everything about these cars is programmed towards economy and emissions. and unless you figure out how to get around that you are going to get economy results.

[goof_ball]

I'm doing this because my Gas mileage sucks... and because I want the power and control over my car.

 

The EPA says the mpg is the same for a manual vs auto transmission for a 95 Legacy. I understand preferring one type over another, but it doesn't seem like gas mileage is any different all things being equal. I've found my 15 year old Outbback gets pretty much what the EPA says it should. Good luck with your project.

[xoomer]

I've learned that the epa doesn't mean anything when it comes to mileage... The manual I had got high twenties.. I'm getting high teens and the highest I've gotten is 20.5 mpg in my auto.. it doesn't like the way I drive it.. lol!

[cj7135]

You are talking about drifting in the next part of this, I don't believe you had 440,000 on that tranny. My maintenance is perfect, it was a shop who left out the alignment pin. when I had a clutch job.

 

First of all, I drift in the snow up here, you can't drift on pavement with an N/A Forester.

 

Second, I got the tranny (99 Forester) up to 475,000 before I had to put a Smurfs Blood concoction to stop a synchro grind (and change the OEM clutch). I don't care if you believe me or not, some people know how to allow the synchros to do their job completely before they smash it into gear. Also, the highway provides hundreds of thousands of un-shifted miles. The 5MT can handle 500,000 no problem.

 

Third, you don't have to shift the trans to do a drift, you synchronize it into second and because it's a manual it goes as soon as you hit the gas.

 

Finally, the manual provides a million times better control over power delivery, AND the 50/50 is available immediately. Again, i LOVE my auto it's great for driving to work, and on the highway, and bringing my mother out to lunch, but when I wanna go drifting on the back roads, my Forester with 475,000 on the original 5MT and LSD doesn't even compare to an auto. I even love ripping my 96 Lego wagon 5MT AWD. Also, the reason for not using synthetic gear oil is the synchros slip too much and you wear the edges of the gear down. I've had a couple cars that would grind with synthetic and work like new with conventional. The Redline Shockproof is the best, but that's because it's designed to flow like a heavier oil than it is. This is right from redline's shockproof webpage:

 

- Appropriate coefficient of friction for most manual transmission synchronizers (other's synthetic gear oils are often too slippery for proper synchro engagement)

 

It all comes down to preference (control over power distribution or comfort). One thing is for darn sure, the Subaru 5MT is NOT by any means a bad transmission. If you said it's a bad transmission for people that don't know how to drive them, then MAYBE.

[cj7135]

i agree about the auto being more reliable. how many times did you have to pull the trans in your 440k miles? more than once?

 

Sorry, its not miles its kilometers, im in Canada up here. That's 300,000 miles. And the trans never came out in that time. It needs its first clutch right now, and like I said, its first bottle of synchro additive.

[johnceggleston]

Sorry, its not miles its kilometers, im in Canada up here. That's 300,000 miles. And the trans never came out in that time. It needs its first clutch right now, and like I said, its first bottle of synchro additive.

 

congratulation and my apologies. i have a 90 nissan pickup 5 speed with 185k miles on the original clutch. so you are right, the lifespan of any machine depnds in part on the operator. good truck good trans.

 

on the other hand, i bought a used 95 lego auto trans with 75 k miles. it was a repo. i drove it 90k miles and NEVER changed the trans fluid. so at 165k miles, the trans started to go. i swapped it and my son still has it at 220k. that one is on me.

 

so both are good trans. it's one of the things subaru got right. and with proper care and maintenance they CAN last the life of the car. but when buying used, the odds are the other guy missed something.

 

i just don't like replacing clutches.

 

and it is hard to steer, shift and hold the phone to your ear at the same time. thankfully i have broken my habit of dialing and driving. the only down side to that is it is that i do it so rarely now it is very foreign to me to talk while driving the car. but less talk and more driving is safer. just my opinion.

Edited March 6, 2011 by johnceggleston

[cj7135]

and it is hard to steer, shift and hold the phone to your ear at the same time

 

Haha agreed there. Our 2010 Impreza 2.5i is Auto trans. My 96 Legacy and 99 Forester (winter beater and bush buggy) are quite fun manual tho. I like the older MT's, I don't have any experience with the new ones other than a test drive. I liked it, but we decided on the auto for comfort, and like you said, lack of clutch changes since its primarily an in-town car.

[idosubaru]

manual auto, go with what you like. the power/reliability/mileage concerns are pretty much equally weighted now and are not one-size-fits-all variables.

 

manual trans aren't "notably" more reliable as they once were. newer ones have issues (relatively speaking) that can make manuals more work than auto's. input shaft bearings, failed front differentials, failed center VLSD's, etc. they aren't terrible trans but they dont' hold massive sway over auto's any more either.

 

your 300k experience is great, but anecdotal. the trends everyone mentions here can be easily seen all over the internet. considering we're buying used cars and trans it's relevant regardless of how we personally drive.

 

as for traction controls the AT's are my preference as i can hack the wiring and control it myself and lock it up manually when i want to in the snow or the old gen trans with the diff lock buttons. that's just me, i like the control.