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My car finally gave out. Will fight to shift up to 3rd gear but will NOT go into D. I changed the knock sensor... It was def toast.. But didn't fix the issue. Checked fluid.. Was low but is not anymore... Is red but dark red.. Don't see nothing sparkly in it. I checked codes again this time getting the "duty solenoid C". Does that code mean that the sensor is for sure out or could it be something else? Also what would that be listed under for the part because ive have searched and searched and can't find the part at o'riellys. I do live in alaska so my options are limited. I went ahead and put in the "lucas" oil in the tranny. Took it for a drive.. Still nothing.. Not sure what to do here... Have to report to work tomorrow night and I am carless. Trying to get this figured out before then. PLEASE HELP :-( 

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Seems to me you have 2 problems. The 1st is not shifting into 4th. The 2nd is the duty C solenoid. As far as I know, the duty C failure has nothing to do with no upshift into 4th gear. Inserting the FWD fuse will mitigate the duty C problem. 

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Thanks... Yes its a 1990 Subaru Legacy L.... 

 

Seems to me you have 2 problems. The 1st is not shifting into 4th. The 2nd is the duty C solenoid. As far as I know, the duty C failure has nothing to do with no upshift into 4th gear. Inserting the FWD fuse will mitigate the duty C problem. 

 

Thanks I been reading this too... AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH then what is it. This is driving me crazy... Everything I read says the added on "twist on" atf filter but I can't find a part number or anything so I can see if my parts stores even have it. All I can find is the internal pan filter.

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Read your other posting. This model only has a screen filter inside the pan. Don't even bother replacing it. No spin on ATF filter. That is only on much newer models and the ATF cooler in the radiator is internal to the radiator. Located at the very bottom of the radiator or along  the side and is part of the radiator. Find 2 hoses by the battery. They connect to the internal cooler. Dark red ATF is a very bad sign. Indicates the fluid has been overheated. 

 

 

"I checked codes again this time getting the "duty solenoid C". Does that code mean that the sensor is for sure out or could it be something else? Also what would that be listed under for the part because ive have searched and searched and can't find the part at o'riellys."

 

All the transmission solenoids are dealer only items. Insert the FWD fuse under the hood and this will "solve" the duty C problem for the time being. 

Edited by john in KY
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there is a chance that this car has an external filter for the tranny - my 90 Lego does - but it is NOT a spin on type, and is not easily obtained...even from a dealer.

 

Open the hood and look down between the motor and windshield washer bottle - if your car has the filter it will be mounted to the chassis in that area. it is about the same size as an engine oil filter & there are 2 hoses attached to it - one runs from tranny to filter, one from filter to radiator - transmission cooler is integrated into/part of the radiator.

If your car does have the external filter, it may be best (and easiest) to just eliminate it.

 

as john in KY mentioned, dark red fluid is not a good sign. You may be able to save it with a fluid flush and fill using a tranny fluid conditioner like Trans-X or something, but odds are not the best.

 

For the duty C - under the hood, on the back side of the passenger side strut tower there is a small black box that will accept a fuse, may/may not have a cover on it marked "FWD" - doesnt really matter what size fuse you put in, you just need to complete the circuit to force the tranny into FWD mode.

 

there are plenty of online resources for ordering dealer specific parts, but be aware that shipping to Alaska is not gonna be cheap.

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2nd and 4th gears are both selected by the brake band. Sounds like yours is toast, so you'll need another transmission.

 

You could try adjusting it, worth a shot I guess. If it was just slightly slipping I'd say this would work but I think it's too late for you, sorry. Here is the adjustment procedure: http://www.northursalia.com/techdocs/pdf/transmission/band.pdf

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Just to update... Tranny fluid now mixing with diff fluid. Tranny is toast :-( thanks for the help guys

 

Sorry to hear this. :(

 

if the car is still in decent shape otherwise, it would be worth putting a used tranny in it if you can find one local to you - just be sure that the tranny and rear diff have matching ratios - should be 4:11 for yours, i think.

 

use http://car-part.com/ to do a search, see what turns up.

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