Stefan E. Posted April 29, 2005 Share Posted April 29, 2005 Hi guys, I'm brand new to this site (just found it) and I hope you can help me out with my latest project! Hope I posted this at the right place... I have a 1990 Subaru 1800 mpfi wagon, DL which is an okay car but it wouldn't hurt if it was a bit more, well let's say "luxurious"...:-\ So, a while back I found this '88 wagon, well equiped, with 1800 turbo and 4 speed electronic auto tranny and full time 4wd. It was parked because of serious rust, and I got it almost for free. My plan (which I have already started) is to put the engine, tranny, interior, dashbord, instruments, power windows and door locks in my car. What I have done so far is to strip the "donor" car from all interior stuff, seats, dashbord and most of the electric wiring. And today I removed the engine and transmisson. It looks okay so far, but initially I have one question: Do I have to take ALL of the wiring from the donor car, or is there something similar which even the basic editions have in common with the more expensive ones? As far as I can tell, it seems the wiring for the tranny and 4WD system is just "added" on top of the basics, but I haven't studied the wires and counted them to see if they are all the same. A LOT of wires... Second question: The one thing I will not use from the donor car is the air suspension. I'll stick with the good old one. But do I have to do anything special to avoid getting warning lights? I don't know but I suspect that the wiring to the shocks and the air susp control device is integrated with some other stuff so that I will have to put it in the car, but not connect any of the connectors to the shocks, if you know what I mean. Is there any other special thing I have to be aware of? I have already put on the rear disc brakes, and I also know that the rear diff will have to be changed. This is quite a bit of work, so I hope it all works out! Thanks for any help guys! Stefan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
erik litchy Posted April 29, 2005 Share Posted April 29, 2005 if your car has 4x4 and a standard transmission id leave that alone. the auto has many shortcomings that shoule be avoided. like the fact it has no overdrive. its not a 4 speed but a 3 speed Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
85Sub4WD Posted April 29, 2005 Share Posted April 29, 2005 actually the 4-speed (only came with turbo) is a good tranny - it is very complicated electronically, but it is basically the same as the early Legacy's - that said, I think manuals are generally better anyway, if nothing else they are more reliable/predictable/efficent It looks okay so far, but initially I have one question: Do I have to take ALL of the wiring from the donor car, or is there something similar which even the basic editions have in common with the more expensive ones? As far as I can tell, it seems the wiring for the tranny and 4WD system is just "added" on top of the basics, but I haven't studied the wires and counted them to see if they are all the same. A LOT of wires... yes - the electronic 4-speed auto is computer controlled - it only came with turbo cars, so if the donor isn't a turbo, then the tranny was added - other problems you may run into are that the tranny is geared very high (engine will be at very low rpm doing work); also the front axles will have to be swapped as your current ones are 23-spline and the 4-speed's are 25 spline Second question: The one thing I will not use from the donor car is the air suspension. I'll stick with the good old one. But do I have to do anything special to avoid getting warning lights? you should not have any problems with that, as I think the systems are seperate - the computer control box for the air suspension system is (I think) under the driver's seat Is there any other special thing I have to be aware of? I have already put on the rear disc brakes, and I also know that the rear diff will have to be changed. This is quite a bit of work, so I hope it all works out! if the donor has a rear sway bar, I would grab that as well - that requires swapping rear trailing arms, so it is a big job, but it will improve handeling (most people who own RX's really like them, and I plan to add one this summer) Good Luck!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
erik litchy Posted April 29, 2005 Share Posted April 29, 2005 actually the 4-speed (only came with turbo) is a good tranny - it is very complicated electronically, but it is basically the same as the early Legacy's - that said, I think manuals are generally better anyway, if nothing else they are more reliable/predictable/efficent yes - the electronic 4-speed auto is computer controlled - it only came with turbo cars, so if the donor isn't a turbo, then the tranny was added - other problems you may run into are that the tranny is geared very high (engine will be at very low rpm doing work); also the front axles will have to be swapped as your current ones are 23-spline and the 4-speed's are 25 spline ok i must have misinterperted my repair manual or it doesnt cover that transmission Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
85Sub4WD Posted April 29, 2005 Share Posted April 29, 2005 ok i must have misinterperted my repair manual or it doesnt cover that transmission that tranny was only offered on turbos 1988-1990 (yours is a 92' so your FSM would not cover it) - I have never heard any complaints about it - in fact I had a soob JY guru tell me that if I had an auto, and wanted to keep the auto to conver to it - it is harder to T-shoot, b/c of the electronic control system - the regular 3-speed has bigger issues tho A good, solid stickshift is still better! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stefan E. Posted April 30, 2005 Author Share Posted April 30, 2005 The tranny is a electronic 4 speed auto, I'm sure of it. The local Subaru dealer told me to stay away from the older 3-speed, but this one was good, and the same as the Legacy trannys. I shouldn't have any issues with it, I have driven the rusted donor car a little bit and it works fine, smooth shifts and no other things going wrong. Exept for the air suspension, but I won't need that anyway. The reason (s) I want to change the tranny is that the 5 speed manual I have is in bad condition. Some noises and it doesen't shift well into third. In addition I want to have the better looking interior, whis is blue, with better seats and with a tach in the instrument cluster. Mine is grey, but the cheapest version, with bad seats and no tach. So I'll take the whole package! Well I guess I just have to take all the wiring then... I don't look foreward to it, but hopefully it'll be ok. Luckily it seems all the connectors are colour-matched, and only fit with the one they are ment to fit, so with a few pictures it should be possible to do it. About the front driveshafts: Do I have to change them as whole units, or can I just take the inner ball joint and switch those to make less work of it? The reason for asking is that the outer ball joints on the donor car is in "unknown" condition. yes - the electronic 4-speed auto is computer controlled - it only came with turbo cars, so if the donor isn't a turbo, then the tranny was added - other problems you may run into are that the tranny is geared very high (engine will be at very low rpm doing work); also the front axles will have to be swapped as your current ones are 23-spline and the 4-speed's are 25 spline Well the donor car is a turbo;) , and the 4 speed tranny is the one that it came with from the factory so I think it would work out okay, as long as I take all the parts and put them into my car. I found the control box for the air suspension (I think) under the drivers seat and I found what I belive is the control box for the tranny inside the trim over the left rear wheel. Thanks for the help guys, I'll be back soon because it seems new questions are popping up all the time! Stefan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MilesFox Posted April 30, 2005 Share Posted April 30, 2005 you will have to swap the engine harness, you will have to take off the bumpers to get to the fenders to get to the wiring, all the wiring will pull thru the same hole, the one by the fuse panel. the wiring off the other side disconnects from the rest, that will be the side of the harness for the tranny also by swapping the dash you will have the instrument cluster, and the dash contains the control unit for the transmission you may want to consider swapping the body harness. i did a manual tranny conversion to an 89 4spd auto, and we swapped in a dash from an 87 turbo 5spd, the car started and the gauges worked, but there were different styled plugs on one end and our power lock didnt work, i think its the same wires but just different clips but i think this may have been a difference in year. as in the 85-86 have the same wiring, the 87 would be a cross between 85-86 and the 88 and up i believe 88 and up are all the same wiring. same is true for loyales, that have no options, the connections are on the harness if you added options 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stefan E. Posted April 30, 2005 Author Share Posted April 30, 2005 Well, did some more work today, and here's what I found. It seems the wiring is not exactly the same. The "basic" harness on the donor car has a few extra wires compared to mine, so I'll change the whole thing. It's just a few minutes work, as all the inside trim and panels are gone. Just changing the harnes is only a matter of a few connectors and a couple of screws. The real work when it comes to harness is in the dashboard area and foreward. It might be possible that there may be differences on cars on different markets as well. I live in norway, so who knows, might be minor details that are different. Stefan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stefan E. Posted May 7, 2005 Author Share Posted May 7, 2005 Things are moving ahead with my project, and today the moment came to try to start it up. But there is a problem, or maybe several problems... When I turn on the ignition, everything lights up on the dash. Fuel pump starts and runs a couple of seconds but there is something wrong with the gear indicator lamps on the dash. The "N" is lit all always, the "POWER" lights is also on. And it won't start. I'm pretty sure the reason for that is because of the funny behaviour of the gear indicator lights. Well I run around and checks the connectors on the tranny. The harnes from the gear selector switch is warm. I pull the connector and find that one green wire is warm, the others seem okay. Now, what do I do? Any quick suggestions on what I do now? I don't have a manual or electric wiring diagram for this car so I'm a bit lost. Could it be that the switch itself has gone bad, and just don't work? Strange anyway that the green wire got so hot! Can anyone help me out with a wiring diagram? Thanks Stefan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Firstbornlast2dieb4u Posted March 14, 2017 Share Posted March 14, 2017 So my 87 gl transmission won't shift into 3rd gear at all . It will automatically shift from 1st to 2nd but nothing higher. The rooms just ride but it didn't gain speed. I can shift from first to second with no problems then when shifted into drive the Rpms just rise.. so Park reverse neutral 1st and 2nd Work just fine.... What could be the problem. ? Can anyone help ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaveT Posted March 14, 2017 Share Posted March 14, 2017 Welcome, First. Better to start a new thread than post on one from 2005, just FYI. You probably have a 3AT transmission. first things to check: fluid level vacuum modulator Governor 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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