FIXED!! Trany delayed forward engagement

[Rooster2]

!:::::! Automatic Transmission drain plug has a crush gasket (one time use) as opposed to a rubber re-useable one, so get a new crush gasket when you are buying your new AT Filter !:::::!

 

Howdy folks, thanks to USMB! Got me a 99 with 181,000. Same problem, did what rooster said, worked great. A little info for the guys doing it now: Trans-X was at my local Autozone ($10.99/quart). Small town guys might have to order Amsoil off of the net, depending, I live in a fairly small town, only one mechanic shop had Amsoil products for sale at $12.95/quart (cheaper than a new tranny). O Reileys, Napa, and Autozone all do not carry it here (did not check Carquest, forgot they existed to be honest). There are a couple types of the Amsoil ATF, I went with the "Signature". So you can't drain all of the ATF out (which is stated in this forum many times, just saving some searching) I pulled the plug and got 3.5 quarts out (I measured), then when I took the filter off an additional 1.5 quarts came out and was still coming out a little when I put the new filter on. So I ended up with 5 quarts total being drained out. After putting new filter on and putting plug back in with new crush gasket, I put 4 quarts of Amsoil ATF Signature and one quart Trans-X in. (Trans X says 1:10 ratio, capacity according to manual is 9.8 Quarts, so putting the whole quart of Trans-X in is fine. I ended up putting another half a quart of Amsoil in (I was just a little low before starting the process). Don't overfill, check when hot.   No more delay! Boom!

 

ColoSubez

Regarding "FIXED,"

Trans-X continues to work well for me after many years now. No need to

seek out Amsoil ATF. Sure their ATF is very good, but using Wal-Mart

with Trans-X works just fine. I use the smaller pint size bottle of

Trans-X, don't recommend adding all the contents of a quart size

container. I have found that Trans-X works for about a year, then the

tranny delay slowly reappears. Just reapply Trans-X, and the problem is

fixed for another year.

 

 

 

Thanks for the tip on using the crush gasket. Good to know.

 

 

 

Larry (Rooster2)

[Myrtle2000]

So, just keeping this topic alive. I found this thread while searching for additional information on my 2000 Forester transmission issues. This pretty much detailed my issues to a "T". I have a 2000 Forester with 72K miles on it. I bought it 1.5 years ago and it only had 48K on it (little old lady owned it). In the past 6 months, it has become more symptomatic. Monday evening, she went to the dealer service center. Today, they called me to say that she needed a new transmission, to the tune of 4100.

 

Impressive as it sounds, I pointed the Service Manager to this thread. He read it and agreed that is was worth a shot. A couple of hundred dollars as opposed to 4100. I will get her back tonight and hopefully this will help her out.

 

Glad I found this thread, and even more so that the Service Manager didn't rule it out...... Hope to come back with good news like the rest of you folks.

 

Chris

[Rooster2]

Chris,

I originated this thread 6 years ago. If you try the Trans-X, it is important to fill and drain the transmission fluid three time, with short drives between drain and fills to mix the new and old tranny fluid. This is necessary because only about half of the tranny fluid can be drained at one time. The other half remains in the torque converter, and can't be drained.  All the draining and refilling does a pretty good job of cleaning out the old transmission fluid. Add the Trans-X upon the last transmission fill.

 

There is a drain plug on the bottom of the automatic transmission, so this is an easy do it yourself job. Cost of three large gallon jugs of tranny fluid at Wal Mart is about $50, so you can save yourself some money, as opposed to spending a couple of hundred bucks.

 

Yes, $4100 will get you a new tranny, if it comes to that. However, Subaru transmissions are well built, and generally don't break, so the repeated advise I have read on this forum, is to buy a used tranny from a wrecking yard for a few hundred bucks. It will come with a guarantee, and most likely come from a car that was involved in a wreck. Since the car was driven at the time of the accident, it is highly likely that the transmission was operating properly. Have a shop install the unit, and that will cost far less then $4100. IMO, it is not prudent to invest $4100 in a 15 year old car.

[lstevens76]

I don't question the investment itself personally. Once you do a repair like that you know it's good and that's something you can't get by replacing the vehicle with another used one.

 

I do question that totalk price though. I believe that transmission could be rebuilt for a lot less with aa good warranty.

 

That being said LKQ is national and if there is one close you can get a goof used transmission with an extended warranty including labor

[AdventureSubaru]

No need to even look for replacement parts. Trans X fixes this issue. 72k is extremely unlikely that anything has gone "wrong" with the trans. It's the typical weakening of the seal that trans X seals up.

 

One of the rare times that a fix in a bottle is the actual solution.

[littleredhen77]

Hello! just thought id chime in here with my 'before' experiences. i bought a 2004 subaru outback sedan in the summer of '14 but after driving it about 6 months it developed some type of electrical? issue that i just cannot figure out. it stumped me all winter, left me without a vehicle for almost a month until i was able to get my truck back to driveable. i had paid $3500 for this car at the time so i was very frustrated that it was just about useless not long after i got it. before this happened the car was driving fine but there was quite a loud knock from the engine when it shifted into passing gear going up hills, so i tried to take it easy on her.

 

fast forward to june 2015, i found another subaru outback sedan, a 2000, on craigs list for $450! car ran and was a daily driver up until january, but had to be parked because it wouldnt take a sticker and the owner couldnt afford parts ((it needed a windshield and tires)) i had to have it! i planned on keeping both of my outbacks so i could have plenty of spare parts. this second one ((ill call it 'the purple one', the 2004 is 'the white one')) was purchased and i had AAA haul it to the garage i work at and the next day we put it up on the lift to look her over. thats when i discovered the ROT! sooo much rot that the rear K frame was very close to being snappd right in half, and it was giving the rear wheels this terrible gangster camber affect lol! she had apparently been driving it like this for awhile because the rear tires were worn down to steel, and one of them was the spare which was also showing wire. while this was discouraging, i did have a complete parts car at home in my driveway, so i had it hauled to my house where i proceeded to swap the rear k frame all as one section with the rear diff, brakes, and struts still attached. now that that part was over, i did a timing job on it, ((car was at 212,000 when i bought it, and there was white crayon on the timing cover that said 116k)) i took swapped wheels off my white one since those tires still had more than half life left on them, changed the spark plugs and wires, changed the oil, all the filters, got it all legal to drive on the road.

 

it drove fine for a week or so, though i was noticing a delay when putting it into drive, which like others have stated would go away with a little big of revving. i hated doing that for fear of breaking something, so i would put it in drive and just sit there for 5-8 seconds until i felt it go it. after that it seems to shift fine going down the road. it did leave me stranded at a stop light one time where it just wouldnt go anywhere until i shifted it back through the gears..very embarassing! that night after work i bought a new pan filter, spin on filter, and fluid, and changed it in the driveway. i hadnt even researched anything yet but i figured this car had obviously been neglected for however long the previous owner had it, and could prolly use the fresh fluid. it seemed to shift into drive nice and quick that night when the new fluid had just been added and i was running it through the gears to check the fluid level. but then the next morning it was back to having the delay again. very discouraging.

 

i was actually doing some reading on a transmission swap when i found this forum. i was very close to just swapping the valve body from my white one into the purple one if in fact they were the same, to see if that would cure it. but now im going to pick up some of that trans x and try that instead. i seem to be having the same issue all of you have had and im hoping this solves it for me too! its nice to know that i do already have another transmission at my house i can use if it doesnt, and where this car was so cheap i dont mind putting all these labor hours into it especially since it helps me justify having wasted so much money on the white car that crapped out on me so soon. at least im getting my moneys worth out of it in parts lol! so hopefully tomorrow after work i will have everything i need to do this. where the filters were just changed about a week ago, and 5 fresh quarts were added, i think ill be ready to drain the pan again and add more fresh fluid along with the treatment and that should leave me with mostly all new fluid. 

 

sorry for the long longggg post but..im a woman and i like to thoroughly explain myself

Edited September 27, 2015 by littleredhen77

[jay in oregon]

99 outback 187,000 delayed start in D and slight rev at shifting under heavy acceleration my autozone has 2 bottles of trans X one is high milage over 75000 miles small black bottle for $12 and a large blue bottle for $10 both say they do the same thing. Which one should i buy? Rooster is yours still going? Thank you.

[Rooster2]

99 outback 187,000 delayed start in D and slight rev at shifting under heavy acceleration my autozone has 2 bottles of trans X one is high milage over 75000 miles small black bottle for $12 and a large blue bottle for $10 both say they do the same thing. Which one should i buy? Rooster is yours still going? Thank you.

I have always purchased the blue bottle, not the high millage formula. My 99 Subie is still running strong on Trans X, since started using this product 6 or 7 years back. Using Trans X fixes the problem entirely for about a year, then the lazy shifting slowly starts to return. I then drain and fill the tranny 3 times, with short drives between drains, then add the Trans X on the last fill. 

 

I now have 241K miles on my 99, so am sure that Trans X has no negative impact on the longevity of the tranny. It may even help to make the tranny last longer. So far, I think everyone using this product has been satisfyed with the results. It should solve your problem.

[jay in oregon]

Yep it works my Daughter says no more trans issues at all. I did find you can drain 1&1/2 gallons of a atf by taking off the screw on filter and letting it drain for around 20 minutes she only drained hers 2x and used about 3 gallons with the blue bottle of trans X. Thanks Rooster2

Edited May 27, 2017 by jay in oregon

[Rooster2]

Yep it works my Daughter says no more trans issues at all. I did find you can drain 1&1/2 gallons of a atf by taking off the screw on filter and letting it drain for around 20 minutes she only drained hers 2x and used about 3 gallons with the blue bottle of trans X. Thanks Rooster2

The fix lasts about a year. Reapply Trans X, and you are good for another year. ...........Rooster2

[sirtokesalot]

trans x got me going for now i used it to try to fix a odd shift from 3rd to 4rth and it has worked for that.

[charleswa]

I just bought a 2000 Legacy wagon w/221,000 on it.

The guy said in thae ad that it had a delay betw. R and D, but he'd just done a complete head job since the timing belt broke.

The car is in beautiful shape in and out - Oh! he did the rear struts as well, and brakes.

I bought it for $2200.

 

I rooted around to find out about the tranny before I bought it and i had found this thread, so I took a chance and bought it.

 

Today checked the trans fluid and it was high by over 1/2" on the stick.

 

So, I drained out about 1-3/4 quarts and put in a quart of Trans-X (he said he'd already done a full tranny service, so I didn;t drain ti again.

 

It reversed fine and went into drive fine - I drove it around for 5 minutes all happy!

 

An hour later I wanted to test it again.  It reversed fine, then just spun and spun, then the Check Engine light came on.

S i g h . . . . 

 

I added almost a full quart of fluid and spun a bit more and then suddenly it grabbed and worked fine!

 

After 5 hours I just now tested it cold, and it had NO hesitation going in and out of drive and reverse over and over - it's all happy now!

 

Thanks to all who have contributed to this thread - you gave me the confidence to buy the car with trans problem and bet on it being fixable.

:-)

 

BTW: The Check Engine light was because it has spun so much with no torque converter brake release or somesuch - A quick check with the Harbor Freight OBDC and a reset of the code and - no mode CE light.

:-)

 

 

Cheers!

Edited February 3, 2018 by charleswa

[Rooster2]

I am the guy who wrote the original topic. I am still driving my 99 OBW 8 years later. Trans-X continues to work well. You will likely need to re-apply Trans-X on a yearly basis. Remember to drain and fill three time, adding Trans-X on the last fill. Cheers !!

 

Sounds like you found a nice car................enjoy!

[Gloyale]

the real fix is to replace the O-ring on the input shaft.

 

Trans-x has NOT fixed every issue for everyone whos tried it.

 

It DID NOT work in 2 99's I tried it in.  On;y replacing the o-ring did.

 

I am wondering why Rooster is so promotive of it.

 

Does he work for them?  IDK

 

But at any rate take this "Fix" with a grain of salt. 

 

Trans-x swells the rubber seals and "etches" the driven plates.  I do not think that is long term good for the trans.

 

My personal opinion would be to avoid this product.

[Rooster2]

the real fix is to replace the O-ring on the input shaft.

 

Trans-x has NOT fixed every issue for everyone whos tried it.

 

It DID NOT work in 2 99's I tried it in.  On;y replacing the o-ring did.

 

I am wondering why Rooster is so promotive of it.

 

Does he work for them?  IDK

 

But at any rate take this "Fix" with a grain of salt. 

 

Trans-x swells the rubber seals and "etches" the driven plates.  I do not think that is long term good for the trans.

 

My personal opinion would be to avoid this product.

No, don't work for Trans-X. Only my personal experience of using the product, has kept my 99 OBW on the road for the past 10 years. Obviously, no product is a miracle product. Trannys can have problems for many reasons. Trans-X can't fix them all.

[Subie_2000]

Hi there, first time posting in this thread.  I have a 2000 Subaru Outback Wagon, 4eat, 2.5L, 203,000 miles.  I've had the delayed forward engagement problem for about a year, gradually getting worse.  I just tried the recommended drain, replace filter, added the trans X and 3ish quarts of maxlife synthetic ATF.  I thought things were great as I drove around a couple hours in town after this change and the delayed shift was much much better, not completely gone but like 90 percent gone.  But here is the problem.  I let the car sit overnight, today started it up and it would not shift into reverse, like AT ALL, after 10 seconds.  Reved alot, finally got it to shudder badly, loud clanks, and it would go into reverse like a second then stop, then a second into reverse, then stop.  Loud clanks and shudders.  Terrible.  I had no reverse problems before, this is all new.  I finally got it out of my low slope driveway and drove it around the block a couple times.  Now the delayed shift was back and much worse than ever before, and in chunks like reverse.  Shuddering badly.  I got home, and checked the fluid level.  It did seem a little high, a little higher than the Hot high band.  So I thought maybe a little too much ATF.  Drained off some at the trans pan, rechecked levels.  I targeted the lower side this time.  Reverse again, still very bad, but it did stay in reverse this time after a loud delayed thunk to get there.  Drove around the block, came back.  Other shifting also not good still.  Only slightly different than the last time, very bad delay and shudders shifting.  I'm going to check fluid level again tomorrow and see if it changed.  I need some good advice here.  I did not reset the battery, I can try that if it matters.  What is bizarre to me is how the fix worked and then overnight it completely failed and worse with reverse problems now.  Help!  Also, I did not drain all trans fluid, just what I could get from the pan, but it was all changed about 30k miles ago and wasn't bad looking or smelling and was synthetic.  It had no delayed shift issues then.  Oh I did use the full 1 qt size of trans x if that matters.  Thx - Paul

Edited May 28, 2019 by Subie_2000

[FerGloyale]

3 hours ago, Subie_2000 said:

Hi there, first time posting in this thread.  I have a 2000 Subaru Outback Wagon, 4eat, 2.5L, 203,000 miles.  I've had the delayed forward engagement problem for about a year, gradually getting worse.  I just tried the recommended drain, replace filter, added the trans X and 3ish quarts of maxlife synthetic ATF.  I thought things were great as I drove around a couple hours in town after this change and the delayed shift was much much better, not completely gone but like 90 percent gone.  But here is the problem.  I let the car sit overnight, today started it up and it would not shift into reverse, like AT ALL, after 10 seconds.  Reved alot, finally got it to shudder badly, loud clanks, and it would go into reverse like a second then stop, then a second into reverse, then stop.  Loud clanks and shudders.  Terrible.  I had no reverse problems before, this is all new.  I finally got it out of my low slope driveway and drove it around the block a couple times.  Now the delayed shift was back and much worse than ever before, and in chunks like reverse.  Shuddering badly.  I got home, and checked the fluid level.  It did seem a little high, a little higher than the Hot high band.  So I thought maybe a little too much ATF.  Drained off some at the trans pan, rechecked levels.  I targeted the lower side this time.  Reverse again, still very bad, but it did stay in reverse this time after a loud delayed thunk to get there.  Drove around the block, came back.  Other shifting also not good still.  Only slightly different than the last time, very bad delay and shudders shifting.  I'm going to check fluid level again tomorrow and see if it changed.  I need some good advice here.  I did not reset the battery, I can try that if it matters.  What is bizarre to me is how the fix worked and then overnight it completely failed and worse with reverse problems now.  Help!  Also, I did not drain all trans fluid, just what I could get from the pan, but it was all changed about 30k miles ago and wasn't bad looking or smelling and was synthetic.  It had no delayed shift issues then.  Oh I did use the full 1 qt size of trans x if that matters.  Thx - Paul

one of your front CV axles may be broken

[1 Lucky Texan]

11 hours ago, Subie_2000 said:

Hi there, first time posting in this thread.  I have a 2000 Subaru Outback Wagon, 4eat, 2.5L, 203,000 miles.  I've had the delayed forward engagement problem for about a year, gradually getting worse.  I just tried the recommended drain, replace filter, added the trans X and 3ish quarts of maxlife synthetic ATF.  I thought things were great as I drove around a couple hours in town after this change and the delayed shift was much much better, not completely gone but like 90 percent gone.  But here is the problem.  I let the car sit overnight, today started it up and it would not shift into reverse, like AT ALL, after 10 seconds.  Reved alot, finally got it to shudder badly, loud clanks, and it would go into reverse like a second then stop, then a second into reverse, then stop.  Loud clanks and shudders.  Terrible.  I had no reverse problems before, this is all new.  I finally got it out of my low slope driveway and drove it around the block a couple times.  Now the delayed shift was back and much worse than ever before, and in chunks like reverse.  Shuddering badly.  I got home, and checked the fluid level.  It did seem a little high, a little higher than the Hot high band.  So I thought maybe a little too much ATF.  Drained off some at the trans pan, rechecked levels.  I targeted the lower side this time.  Reverse again, still very bad, but it did stay in reverse this time after a loud delayed thunk to get there.  Drove around the block, came back.  Other shifting also not good still.  Only slightly different than the last time, very bad delay and shudders shifting.  I'm going to check fluid level again tomorrow and see if it changed.  I need some good advice here.  I did not reset the battery, I can try that if it matters.  What is bizarre to me is how the fix worked and then overnight it completely failed and worse with reverse problems now.  Help!  Also, I did not drain all trans fluid, just what I could get from the pan, but it was all changed about 30k miles ago and wasn't bad looking or smelling and was synthetic.  It had no delayed shift issues then.  Oh I did use the full 1 qt size of trans x if that matters.  Thx - Paul

 

just a reminder but, you must check trans fluid level while idling. It will read very high when the engine is stopped.

best after a fill to shift into every gear, leave it idling in Parl, pull the stick, wait a minute for the level to drain back down, then check. Also, the volume difference between H and L is only a few ounces, NOT a qt/liter like engine oil stick marks. So, you have to sneak-up on the level.

 

[Subie_2000]

Thanks for help so far.  So today I got it fully level, idled, ran through gears, checked level, it was low.  I added about 1/2 qt and got it up to full cold level or 2nd hole.  ran through gears again.  Put in reverse, same severe bucking/jerking, moving a few feet each time in reverse then it stops.  High rpm needed to get it to budge at all.  Put in drive, same thing but moving forward.  It's not so much hesitation now as resistance to move at all within a gear, bucking/jerking/staggering either forward or back.  I also reset battery just in case that could matter.

front cv axle could be broken but how could that happen parked in the driveway overnight and not touched after running great that night a few hours?  I've had both half shafts replaced years back, but no issues for a long time there.  Its also had a main drive shaft replacement a few years back too, and differential fluid replacements.

It is like something inside the trans is now not freely allowing car motion in any gear after the fluid change sat awhile.  Could low or high fluid do that?  It is set right now.  I think it wasn't really high before but I was fooled by it.  I think it never was much low or high.  Paul

 

Edited May 28, 2019 by Subie_2000

[1 Lucky Texan]

hmmm.... you could try the FWD fuse. use any size spare fuse. It's in the box under the hood....

is it still 'clanking' ? have someone walk beside the car and try to determine which end/side of the car is loudest.

has the car ever had a trans or rear diff swap? all 4 tires identical brand and model and size?

 

[Subie_2000]

On 5/28/2019 at 2:07 PM, 1 Lucky Texan said:

hmmm.... you could try the FWD fuse. use any size spare fuse. It's in the box under the hood....

is it still 'clanking' ? have someone walk beside the car and try to determine which end/side of the car is loudest.

has the car ever had a trans or rear diff swap? all 4 tires identical brand and model and size?

 

Thanks, one thing your helpful post brought to my attention I didn't think about.  I did have a low rear tire after driving that night with a small screw in it.  Found it the next day.  So the reverse finding was with one tire a bit low.  It has a donut spare on it now till I get the other patched.  I did not have the 2wd fuse in and did drive just around the block with it that way but just once.  It definitely was doing some hopping of the wheels yesterday when moving.  Today I put the fuse in and drove a block around the house again.  Today it was slightly better, with less hopping except reverse on a low slope, but all gears still "choppy" with rat tat tat tat tat tat tat moving through the gears, reverse the worst by far, with a SLAM..bang bang bang rat at tat tat tat tat tat.  The car never had a trans or diff swap.  Had the main drive from front to rear replaced, both half shafts replaced.  Head gasket and major maintenance back at 175k miles, trans fluid, diff fluid changed then.

It has driven some time with one tire a bit low on pressure due to a slow leak I had (all same type and size though).  I didn't know that would cause problems with an AWD car.  I've read up on it now.  I'm wondering now if this trans x stuff caused problems in the awd clutch or parts in the transmission, which already had some wear from the above, creating these new problems.  The actual hesitation though the gears is better than before, so that seems better, just the horrible problems above with noise, rat tat tat tat surging/stalling into the gears.  This noise was never present before now.  It isn't driveable far this way.  Reverse is a disaster, worse on any slope than flat but still bad flat. Needs 1750-2000 rpm to budge into reverse then SLAM and some movement.  So anyone who can, comment on some of this for me.  Would draining everything 4 times and starting fresh help?  Or is this permanent damage now?  Total driving time with the donut spare tire in AWD mode is about 6 minutes up to 30mph briefly.  Not much. I'll have a helper check on the noise when I can get one...  - Paul

[1 Lucky Texan]

I think a second set of eyes ,safely, looking at what each front axle is doing could be helpful. Maybe one is broken in the inner 'tripod' joint and spinning some, catching a little, then spinning. Might need to put a piece of tape as a 'flag' on the axle or paint a little dot of liquid paper w'ever to make it easier to spot. If it isn't that, probably the front diff is bad in the trans. There is a magnet on the frt diff drain plug - if it has anything other than 1/8 to maybe 1/4 teaspoon of sludge on it, or worse, 'pieces' of metal, that points to its failure.

[el_freddo]

I’m thinking the pinion shaft bearing is dead. This was a common issue on the L series auto. 

What does you front diff oil look like in colour and texture/thickness? Is there more in there than what it should be? 

Is the trans fluid still a good red colour or Ian it discoloured? 

If you have either of these signs I’d say the seal between the front diff and the transmission died, allowing cross contamination of one or both components (diff/transmission). Pinion bearing then dies due to a lack of lubrications. This allows the pinion shaft to start walking as it tries to rotate the front diff. Forward/reverse action will give different noises/movements in the pinion shaft due to the shape of the hypoid diff ring gear (I hope I got that correct from memory!). 

If you drain the diff oil you *might* be able to get one of those little camera units in to view the pinion gear, have two people rotate the front wheels (car secured and on jack stands, transmission in neutral) while you watch the pinion gear rotate. It should be a smooth rotation with absolutely zero lateral or vertical movement. If it feels crunchy to the two turning the wheels in the same direction this will be a clear indicator things with the front diff are not healthy. 

If that’s the case, new transmission will be required. 

Cheers 

Bennie

[1 Lucky Texan]

^^^ awesome post

[Subie_2000]

Thanks guys you are a great helpful resource.  So I have some more news to share, but not able to do everything suggested easily as I'm not a mechanic really and don't have any help.  So first thing I did is got the real tire back on the car after screw patch.  And with the fluid levels now right at max 4th hole when trans hot after 10 min driving, or 2nd hole max cold when cold, there are some notable changes in behavior.  First off, in 2wd mode with fuse in,  all the forward gears now engage without delay and the rat a tat tat tat is diminished in level to the point its just a slight vibration = not bad at all.  Going around a corner slow in 1st or 2nd gear, there is a bit of tat tat tat tat but not bad (which I've noticed for about a year driving the car and sometimes a bit of engine surge through that corner), driving straight just that slight vibration when first in the next gear, no real noise.  Now reverse works again in 2WD mode, sort of, no more SLAM, but some initial resistance to go backwards, needing 1250 rpm to budge, but then not really rat a tat tat tat, but several vibrational surges fore and aft for the first 10 feet backwards, then smooth.  The noises are coming from under the car at the transmission.  So transfer case, differential stuff likely.

Now, in 4WD mode, with the fuse out, this all gets worse.  Forward gears and reverse are worse.  Forward gears have more magnitude of the vibrational chatter when just getting into each gear, then smooth.  There is no delay though.  That is gone.  Reverse still works just badly, no SLAM or RAT A TAT TAT TAT but the initial resistance to move is slightly more and the vibrations moving the first 10 feet are stronger, almost feels like slight wheel hopping but not severe any more.  Now all 4 tires are same wear and same pressure so that is covered.   So knowing 4WD mode makes both forward and reverse gears worse should tell us something useful I hope.  And that 2WD mode still has reverse problems and slight forward gear vibrations after shifting as well.  What can this tell us?

So I have a few more questions.  First off again, never had any reverse noise or vibrations before doing these trans x fluid changes.  So whatever effect the one occasional lower tire pressure had due to slow leak, it wasn't noticeable in any way like it is now (except had some slight tat tat tat noise in lower gears turning a corner for some time).  So very likely there is some damage to the gearing, but the fluid change made it much much much worse.  So the more slippery fluid from the trans X seems to have had a big effect.  Could this effect on the clutch there matter?  What could this slippery fluid do to cause this?  I'd like to avoid a transmission swap if I can or as long as I can, as I don't have much money right now.  I do plan to keep this car another 100k miles one way or the other as I need to.  I'm thinking I can drive the car some time in 2WD mode without much issue and just pull the fuse in the winter when its a bad snowy icy day and put it back.  Should I try draining all the fluid 3 times, putting in all new (tell me which trans fluid may be best if not MaxLife synthetic)?  Getting some of the transX OUT seems to me worth trying.  If the vibrations all got better, especially in reverse, then that tells me something.  Perhaps I could add back just a few ounces of the transX again then but not the whole quart like I did.  Or i'd be taking about about a third of what I put in each new pan fluid change and could test it each time.  Please give me your thoughts on the above. 

When I drained the fluid, the first 5 seconds WAS darker brown color, then it went back to the normal pinkish.  So there was something in there.  I had the diff fluid and all trans fluid changed about 30k miles ago and no noticeable issues or the mechanic would have told me (he was really good).  So any problems there are since that time.  I could change the diff fluid if we think that would maybe help things and check that magnet then if i did. 

I did maybe locate a swap trans for $400 with 130k miles on it from a junk yard, but it is a 2002 4EAT and mine is a 2000.  I don't know if that would be compatible or not.  How to check and verify that?  I don't know what labor would be to swap it in if I did get it.  What is reasonable for that for labor?  thx - Paul