Chicobiker Posted June 15, 2006 Share Posted June 15, 2006 Hello. Somebody on alt.autos.subaru suggested I post this message here: I'm wondering if anyone else has noticed the following behaviour out of their engines. I have a 2003 OBS with 110k kms. Lately I have noticed that the engine RPM seems to drop much faster between shifts than other times. It makes it difficult to shift smoothly since my normal wait time results in the RPMs being way too low. I had noticed this behaviour on hot days last summer, but I have been noticing it more recently. It seems to happen randomly, Sometimes only for one shift, sometimes for a whole drive. Any thoughts? Chicobker Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Legacy777 Posted June 15, 2006 Share Posted June 15, 2006 It is probably the result of the A/C compressor cycling on and off. I get this on my nissan truck too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nipper Posted June 15, 2006 Share Posted June 15, 2006 and i feel even with the automatic if the ac cycles at a shift point. nipper Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lawsonmh15 Posted June 16, 2006 Share Posted June 16, 2006 Hello. Somebody on alt.autos.subaru suggested I post this message here: I'm wondering if anyone else has noticed the following behaviour out of their engines. I have a 2003 OBS with 110k kms. Lately I have noticed that the engine RPM seems to drop much faster between shifts than other times. It makes it difficult to shift smoothly since my normal wait time results in the RPMs being way too low. I had noticed this behaviour on hot days last summer, but I have been noticing it more recently. It seems to happen randomly, Sometimes only for one shift, sometimes for a whole drive. Any thoughts? Chicobker Is this with an Automatic? If it is, and is actually happening in the process of shifting, odd as it sounds, it may be the brake bands in the tranny. What I am referring to is a dip WHILE shifting. If so, do an ATF flush (I like the Royal Purple) and if it is still apparent and REALLY bothering you, adjust the brake bands. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chicobiker Posted June 17, 2006 Author Share Posted June 17, 2006 Is this with an Automatic? Nope. 5spd. I'm not convinced of the a/c suggestion, although it is the right time of the year! Several times I've noticed this happening only between 2nd and 3rd gear. I find this strange. I find that most times when I push in the clutch, the RPMs go up ever so slightly, hang for a moment, then start to drop down. I got used to holding the clutch in for that brief moment and then letting it out and the shifting was reasonable. (I never found it to be easy to shift smoothly, but I took that as a "feature" of the Subaru!) I've been doing this for 3.5years now. What I'm experiencing now is an immediate drop in RPMs as soon as I push the clutch in. It plummets towards zero and by the time I realize what's going on and let the clutch out it's too late. Car lurches forward and attempts to throw me out through the windshield. Maybe it's trying to trade in its driver?! At first I figured that my brain had somehow forgotten how to drive and I was doing different things with the accelerator pedal, but I've been conscious about it and it is still happening. Anyway, I'm taking the car into the dealer on Monday to deal with occaisional sputtering during the first minute of driving on a cold wet morning, so I'm hoping they find something and that all will be better. Chicobiker Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nipper Posted June 17, 2006 Share Posted June 17, 2006 Could be your idle air control. This controls the engine rpms at idle or when the engine is unloaded. The technical term for it is that the engine rpm is flairing up when you depress the clutch. nipper Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lawsonmh15 Posted June 17, 2006 Share Posted June 17, 2006 Could be your idle air control. This controls the engine rpms at idle or when the engine is unloaded. The technical term for it is that the engine rpm is flairing up when you depress the clutch. nipper I second that. Here is a link to a PDF I uploaded that explains the procedure without having to disassemble much. http://home.comcast.net/%7Elawsonmh15/Idle_Air_Control_Solenoid_Valve_Service.pdf Should do the trick. Here is a link to my thread http://www.ultimatesubaru.org/forum/showthread.php?t=46484&highlight=IACV I'd also recommend you purchase a can of BG 44k and run that through on a HALF a tank. I know they say full, but better concentration = better results. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fnlyfnd Posted June 18, 2006 Share Posted June 18, 2006 Wow that looks super easy for a 2.2L. So now I need a new hatch handle and bracket, and a iac gasket when I go to the dealer monday (praying they have this stuff in stcok). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chicobiker Posted June 27, 2006 Author Share Posted June 27, 2006 Well, the car has been running great for a week now. The service guy greased the electrical connections between the coil and the spark plug wires. Car runs like it used to. RPMs behave like they used to. Maybe it was just a bad electrical connection? Or maybe it will come back to annoy me at a future time. Hesitation problem is also gone, so I suspect they were related. Chicobiker Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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