Ryan Posted February 3, 2005 Share Posted February 3, 2005 Hi, this is my first post and it looks like there are a lot of knowledgable people here....thanks for any suggestions I might get from asking this question. I have a 2000 Outback Wagon with 66k miles. The warranty ran out at 60k and now my local Subaru dealers, who I bought the car from, is telling me I need a new transmission. I brought the car in to have it looked at because it shifts harshly, most of the time going up hill. So, I've called Subaru of America to see if they would cover the cost of a re-built or even pay half the cost, on advice from the service manager at my local dealer. Has anyone else worked with SoA on large problems like this that are out of warranty? It's just past warranty so I'm hoping they will honor their good name. It's not like a transmission problem happens overnight. Could it be possible that too much transmission fluid could cause problems with the transmission? I love the car and would hate to start looking for something different. I really thought I wuldn't have to put much money into a car until at least the 150k mark. Any suggestions?? Thanks! Ryan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brus brother Posted February 3, 2005 Share Posted February 3, 2005 I would tell them that it started "months" ago and certainly under warranty but that the problem was intermiitent and barely noticeable and you never thought that a car as fine as a Subaru could have problems at such a young age. Not wanting to seem like a complainer, you waited until it got real bad to trouble your kindly service department. Immediately, go and rinse your mouth out for talking such s#@t but hopefully, they'll treat you right. Bottom line, this didn't develop overnight and a trained mechanic might have been able to pick it up 6003 miles ago. G'luck Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unverviking Posted February 3, 2005 Share Posted February 3, 2005 I had the dealer's service manager call SOA when my alternator went bad @ 62K. They (SOA) covered half the bill. That was cheaper than me buying a reman alternator from Auto Zone (el cheapo) and doing it myself. They (SOA) were very helpful in that aspect. BTW... The alternator had bad bearings (growl, growl), not that it wasn't charging, etc. I think I even got a new belt out of them for free too... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mtsmiths Posted February 3, 2005 Share Posted February 3, 2005 A lot of posters have noted 'sudden' shifts in later model automatics. The 1st > 2nd shift in our 2000 Legacy is definately harsher than the same shift in our '95 Leg. When we had the tranny serviced at 140,000 there was a noticable improvement, we're at 160,000 now, and it's still fine. I would get a second opinion. The dealer may have a major boat payment coming up, and all you really may need is a transmission service. I'd sure as heck do THAT for the $75 or $80 and see how it does before I let anyone talk me into a new tranny. If it helps great, if not drive it til it breaks, then fix it, unless a stranding would be a serious issue. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
friendly_jacek Posted February 3, 2005 Share Posted February 3, 2005 If you have a great service history with the all required services performed by a Subaru dealer, that would help a lot with the negociations. My dealer tells me that he stretches the warranty coverage a bit for his regular custumers. On the other hand, if you have no documented service (ATF change every 30000 miles), your chances are next to none. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ryan Posted February 4, 2005 Author Share Posted February 4, 2005 You guys are great. Thank you for all the advice. After reading your posts, I'm feeling that SOA will help out in some fashion. So far, I called SOA this afternoon (Subaru dealer handed me their phone number) and sweet talked them, saying how much I love my car and that this has been going on for some time, but mouch more noticeable of late. I didn't have my vin # on me, which may have been a slight mistake because they said they could find it for be by calling my dealer, which is where the car was when I called SOA, then call me back, which they haven't yet done. So, I will call them tomorrow early am. The ATF has been changed at 30k and 60k. The 30k was done at my local dealer and the 60k out of town, but at a certified Subaru dealership. The last change they put a little too much in, and was drained two days ago to the proper level. After hearing your advice about getting a transmission service and a second opinion, I think I'll do that early next week. $3000 is a lot to spend, about 1/4 of what KBB values this car at! Thanks again, if anyone's interested I'll keep updating people this post on my progress. Ryan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brus brother Posted February 4, 2005 Share Posted February 4, 2005 Almost forgot, on my 2000 GT Legacy AT, SOA replaced the trany at about 31K for delayed engagement where it would hesitate going from R to D. There is a TSB about this known issue. They just gave me another reman tran at 66K (I have the 100K warranty due to initial customer satisfaction with issues the car evidenced, long story but they did the right thing). This time the trany was making a clicking sound in neutral. The dealerships don't do any trany repairs, just order up a remanufactured one from SOA and drop it in. I think you should be able to tweak them for a replacement since you have the service records and your dealer on your side as this is a "pre-existing" condition. Then you can make a nice contribution to the Board with all the money saved. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
friendly_jacek Posted February 4, 2005 Share Posted February 4, 2005 You guys are great. Thank you for all the advice. After reading your posts, I'm feeling that SOA will help out in some fashion. So far, I called SOA this afternoon (Subaru dealer handed me their phone number) and sweet talked them, saying how much I love my car and that this has been going on for some time, but mouch more noticeable of late. I didn't have my vin # on me, which may have been a slight mistake because they said they could find it for be by calling my dealer, which is where the car was when I called SOA, then call me back, which they haven't yet done. So, I will call them tomorrow early am. The ATF has been changed at 30k and 60k. The 30k was done at my local dealer and the 60k out of town, but at a certified Subaru dealership. The last change they put a little too much in, and was drained two days ago to the proper level. After hearing your advice about getting a transmission service and a second opinion, I think I'll do that early next week. $3000 is a lot to spend, about 1/4 of what KBB values this car at! Thanks again, if anyone's interested I'll keep updating people this post on my progress. Ryan Good luck and keep us posted! This story and several similar posted recently worries me a lot. My first 2 cars with AT (mazda and nissan) failed miserably with AT dying at 60000 miles or so (for various reasons ranging from neglect of previous owner to overheating). I wanted to buy a manual subaru but caved under pressure from my wife. I would hate for the AT to die prematurely on me again. I took all the precautions (synthetic ATF, cooler, temp gauge, changed the AT filter). We will see, 54000 on the odo so far. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1999legacy Posted September 9, 2005 Share Posted September 9, 2005 I have a 1999 Legacy and we ran into the same issue at just about 66K. Sounds like the same symtoms. We actually had the extended warranty and assumed it was covered. I actually had to provided documentation for them to cover the darn thing. They said the car had not been brought in for the 60K servive. Long story short, I had a lot of documentation for the car and a small threat of an attorney and then they were happy to fix the problem. Here is the REAL KICKER. While talking to the mechanic, he said they were going to replace the entire transmission. This really got my attention. I ask the him why. He said the new transmission has better parts and design than the old one. I asked him was there a defect in the design of the old one. He said with a grin, I am not a liberty to say but you do the math. Hope this helps, Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swc7916 Posted September 9, 2005 Share Posted September 9, 2005 The dealer replaced the head gaskets on my 2001 Outback at 47k miles at no cost to me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike_N_Austin Posted September 9, 2005 Share Posted September 9, 2005 I would question anything that a dealer told me. Especially if it involved my wallet. I would get a second opinion from a local shop. But even then I would question it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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