Before I see mechanic: shifter vibration/tranny

[Cynthia]

"1. Order the parts in my email above (except the $25 one, unless you're the kind of guy who likes new stuff even if the old part is basically sound)."

 

I'm a woooooman...and i like new stuff but not if old part is just fine.

 

And drat, that beer thing sounded ok until I remembered that I don't drink. Poop.

 

I wonder if I could do this? I'm learning about car repair from you folks and I'm brand new to this but boy, it's kinda fun. Odd that I'm saying that but ...well...t'aint life interesting where it takes you?

 

Owner of the vibrating subaru

[Cynthia]

Hey guys..here is the post from the mechanic...looks to me like he put it in my pm rather than board...he's learning his way around here. Or, stupid me didn't see his post on the board...well, getting to the point, what's the maine bearing quinton is talking about in the post below. it sounds ominous. that could cause the vibration, too??? i'm really inclined to go with the shifter thing. I like the sound of that!

 

---here's his post --

Vibrates Transmission Shifter With Engine RPM

trans shifter will vibrate at different engine RPM. I have checked trans Mount's,motor Mount's,for grounding out to the frame. Checked timing belts and there mechanical timing locations right on the money.The belt tension was very loose. Readjusted both belts checked timing hooking up green connector near fire wall on driver side found timing to be at 27 Degree's BTC 5 degree's off. Set To 20 + 2 Degree's.Test drive the GL had a magor power gain but no improvement on vibration. My Instinct tells me that the vibration is internal of the engine possible Maine bearings.

 

------

[GeneralDisorder]

Main bearings on a subaru don't vibrate when they are worn. In fact you most likely won't notice they are worn at all. I've heard of engines being torn down that ran ok, only to find very sloppy mains.

 

Rod bearings won't vibrate either - they will make a ticking noise then get pretty loud right before they blow.

 

When you rev it, can you see/feel the engine vibrating? Or is it just the shifter?

 

GD

[Bill90Loyale]

Cynthia-

Apologies for the "guy" thing. I was typing too fast and thinking too slow.

If it's the shifter buzz that I have referred to, the primary symptoms are a buzzing noise that's annoying in the cabin, along with a noticable high frequency vibration on the shifter knob. You might swear that the knob itself has somehow worked itself loose and just needs tightening. So I would suggest that if you hear an annoying buzzing sound, as well as feeling the shift knob vibrating, then the odds are good that it's the repair I've been talking about.

 

If none of the above, then see if you can find an old subie mechanic (or "japanese auto specialist") - someone whose seen a lot of old subies - and get his or HER opinion.

Hang in there, these cars are worth their weight in gold.

Bill

[Cynthia]

UPDATE!

 

For 18 bucks (labor and part), I had this bushing replaced. It fixed it. Even the mechanic was surprised.

 

GREAT JOB FELLOWS!!!!!!!!

[Hank Roberts]

I....

 

Another option - did your mechanic remove/change/adjust the clutch pressure plate at all? There are alignment marks on the pressure plate, and the flywheel for balanceing - they must be aligned at least 160 degrees apart if I recall correctly. This could cause a vibration in the engine that would transfer into the transmission and then your shifter any time you are in gear. It also matches your description of the vibration being more pronounced at the top of each gear.

 

GD

 

 

Hmmm. My '88 GL started doing this after the rebuilt transmission was put in; the mechanic said he'd replaced the clutch plate for me because it was worn. It could have been the bad Throttle Position Sensor that they did replace, I haven't gotten it back yet.

 

And I'm going to twist his arm to really test drive it this time, including up onto dirt to check the 4wd, because it was popping out of low a year ago when I started trying to get this car safe to take to the mountains. It ain't yet.

 

Just in case, I took a reprint of your quote above in to the mechanic last week.

 

He said, "Oh, yes, we know about that, a lot of shops don't but we do. ..... Can I keep that?"

 

Hmmmm ....