ssrfoz Posted September 8, 2011 Share Posted September 8, 2011 Hi All, Newbie on this site but a Subaru veteran of sorts: Legacy BF3 for ten years followed by recent acquisition of a used JDM 2003 SG5 Forester CrossSports Turbo with 'sportshift' gearbox. The foz is a great car, but unfortunately somewhere between Japan and here it was clocked and the indicated 30K mileage is probably 130K. In any case I replaced the obvious high mileage failure items such as the MAF sensor, rear O2 (following a CEL) and now it runs pretty well. No CELs and reasonable fuel economy for a turbo :-) This brings me to the one issue I still have with the car: so-called ‘shift shock’ when moving down from 3rd to 2nd and sometimes a smaller ‘thunk’ from 2nd to 1st. My trust sub mechs are examining the obvious items like solenoids, ATF etc, but there’s one specific aspect to this jerking that I need opinions on. Why is it that when I do the old ECU/TCU reset trick of disconnecting the battery –ve and standing on the brake pedal for 10 seconds that the jerking goes away and only comes back somewhere between 60 and 200 miles? I understand that the TCU is ‘re-learning’ after the reset but surely the jerking is a mechanical phenomenon that theoretically can’t be eliminated?? But I’m doing just that – earning a short-medium term respite before it come back. Can a faulty solenoid engage easily on a freshly reset TCU then go bad after the TCU settles down? :-\ All opinions welcome! SSRfoz Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idosubaru Posted September 8, 2011 Share Posted September 8, 2011 Can a faulty solenoid engage easily on a freshly reset TCU then go bad after the TCU settles down? :-\doubtful, but not sure what else to say either. the trans light isn't flashing 16 times at start up? and the trans light is working? instrument cluster was removed/replaced so make sure the light is working. over here i'd say grab another TCU and swap it out, it wouldn't be *terribly* surprising for that to fix it. but, it's still just a guess and not worth a whim unless you can easily get a TCU. TPS causes shifting issues in other vehicles - might want to test that. my hunch is on the TCU or TPS but it's nothing more than a guess. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ssrfoz Posted September 9, 2011 Author Share Posted September 9, 2011 No trans light flashing because... er.. there.. isn't a trans light. What I do have is the 'Eco' light which comes on when the three way switch by the gear level is set to economy mode (the other two modes being hold and normal A/T for ice/mud and normal gear shifts, respectively). I have it on reasonably good authority that a flashing eco light translates to a trans issue but it has never flashed on me. Just to recap, my car has the 'SportShift' with +/- on the gear lever and steering wheel for 'manual' changes when I choose to use that mode.... which is hardly ever! If I do go looking for a test TCU, what's the probability that the TCU on a normal auto 4EAT will be the same as one on the SportShift? I'm thinking of a particular engine-less car in my mech's back lot that may be a donor candidate :-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
subaruplatt Posted September 9, 2011 Share Posted September 9, 2011 I have o6 impreza without sport shift. I can down shift/ upshift very smoothly. The 4-eat in my opinion isn't for power shifting, however. In the city I generally prefer third. Down steep hills from a stop sign i use second. Did you try a tany drain and fill with genuine subaru fluid.? Also one thing to consider is that the torque converter lock is only after full transmission warm-up. Gets a bit bounced around until then. Sometimes I don't go past 3rd if I feel it's warming up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
themoneypit Posted September 11, 2011 Share Posted September 11, 2011 (edited) on my 05 baja turbo, i have the sport shift automatic. when i start it, the A/T trans temp light comes on briefly, and i believe thats what gary is talking about. if that light flashes then it indicates trouble. maybe they are set up different here in the states, but im thinking u should have that A/T trans temp light no matter what country?? i dont have an econo button either thou, not sure if thats again something different from the states or not. but in previous experience with toyotas that had the econo mode, all that does is change the shift points of the trans to try and save fuel. in econo mode it would shift at say 3k rpm instead of 3.5k my trans also has a small spin on filter that should be changed when doing a tranny service. its actually nice, when u remove it it drains for awhile getting all the fluid out of (im guessing) the tranny cooler. when i did mine it took between 5-6 quarts of the 9quarts the book said it holds, to fill it back up. the other 3 were locked away in the torque converter. Edited September 11, 2011 by themoneypit Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
themoneypit Posted September 11, 2011 Share Posted September 11, 2011 one more thing that just crossed my mind is the timing belt. if you believe it has 130k on it, i would change that immediately! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idosubaru Posted September 11, 2011 Share Posted September 11, 2011 my trans also has a small spin on filter that should be changed when doing a tranny service. its actually nice, when u remove it it drains for awhile getting all the fluid out of (im guessing) the tranny cooler. when i did mine it took between 5-6 quarts of the 9quarts the book said it holds, to fill it back up. the other 3 were locked away in the torque converter. ah! yeah, has the fluid ever been changed in this thing? that might be the first step if it's the original 10 year old 130,000 mile transmission fluid. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ssrfoz Posted September 12, 2011 Author Share Posted September 12, 2011 Hi All, Yup, changed tranny fluid, spin-on filter and, yes, also timing belt because of the mileage. I've tried something new after reading multiple references of it in various threads: disconnected the TPS, started the car, let it complain with a CEL then turned off the car and reconnected. I can almost swear the shift is smoother now, but I'll post again in a couple hundred Ks and provide further updates SSRFoz Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ericmushidi Posted April 24, 2013 Share Posted April 24, 2013 Hi all, I am new to this forum. I recently bought a subaru forester from Japan with 57000 kilometers on it.It was running great but now it has developed problem. The ECO light is flashing and when it does it goes into third gear, it stops changing gears , the perfomance becomes very poor on stop/takeoff, fuel consumption goes high but on the highway it is very good.Some times ECO does not flash and the perfomance will be superb. I have done TCM and ECU reset, I have done the scan but it showed no faults, I have flashed the tranny but this ECO keeps on blinking its driving me crazy.Has any body solved this problem out there please, please ,please help.I will greately appreciate. ericmushidi Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ivans imports Posted April 24, 2013 Share Posted April 24, 2013 The jdm boys like doing rockfords tends to damage the trans might be damaged internaly how long dose it take to go into gear the first time cold in morning ? A clutch pack is probly worn and trans ecu is trying to compensate for to mutch clearance tcu is smart and determined will try and try and try. Also check all trany grounds and engine grounds Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
presslab Posted April 24, 2013 Share Posted April 24, 2013 What's a "rockford"? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnceggleston Posted April 24, 2013 Share Posted April 24, 2013 (edited) when the eco light flashes and you only have third gear the trans is in ''limp'' mode. (that's what t is called in the US) limp mode means the TCU is not operating correctly and the trans defaults into third gear mechanically, not electronics, so you can ''limp'' home. i do not know all the things that will cause this, but a bad connection to the TMU is one. check the connectors on the rear of the engine near the fire wall on the right side (passenger side in US) where the trans meets the engine. the largest connector goes to the trans. open it up and look at the pins. make sure they are not bent. i might also remove the TMU and open the case to examine the circuit board. the TMUs do not fail very often but they do on occasion. look for evidence of overheating. Edited April 24, 2013 by johnceggleston Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ericmushidi Posted April 25, 2013 Share Posted April 25, 2013 Thanks guys , i will try to check all the connections including ground and i will update you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ivans imports Posted April 25, 2013 Share Posted April 25, 2013 rockford high speed in reverse into drive and crank the wheel oppeset way and punch it looks cool but killer on awds Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ivans imports Posted April 25, 2013 Share Posted April 25, 2013 How long to go into gear cold in morning ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ericmushidi Posted May 3, 2013 Share Posted May 3, 2013 Hi guys, I checked all the cable connections and grounds, they all seem okey, so i tried something else. I did the manual fault code scan using the black connectors and it gave me code # 24 which has to do with one of the solenoids. Then i manualy cleared the error code and the ECO light has now stopped flashing and the gears are now shifting. But i have to drive gently because when i suddenly ecelerate the transmission will kind of stumble and you could feel impact from the front deferential as it will kind off jerk and then the ECO light will again start to flash and the transmission will jam in third gear. When i stop and turn off/on the engine it stops flashing and the trans behaves again. Could any body help me understand what is happening to my 2002 subaru forester XT. ericmushidi Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ivans imports Posted May 3, 2013 Share Posted May 3, 2013 needs clutches Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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