"Just a bunch of disgruntled Subaru owners."

[mzsubaru]

Hey guys and gals:

 

Talked to my local (lancaster county (pa) motors) subaru service writer today about my problems with my auto tranny. Told him i did some research on the internet and referenced the "ultimate subaru message board" as my source for many apparent problems that i noticed in threads (documented by yourselves) with their auto trans (my issue is with a hesitation to go forward when i go from reverse to drive and and also when I stop on the hill, say at a traffice light or a stop sign). He claimed that you all were just a bunch of disgruntled subaru owners (probably a corporate comeback line they're supposed to use). Does that sound familiar? Private industry whistle blowers are commonly referred to as "former disgruntled employees." Shades of Matt Damon in "Good Will Hunting." How do you like them apples? Needless to say, I did not get anywhere with him.

 

Anyway, I'm pursuing this to the end. I'm not paying 2 grand to fix a tranny that has only 76K on it! I'll go to corporate in Cherry Hill, NJ, if I have to. I'm going to call my local dealer's sales manager on monday. Hopefully he/she can make the "boys in the backroom" realize that their jobs depend on the sales staff selling subarus that they'll be fixing some day.

 

I'll keep you all informed as to my progress. Boy, is this bulletin board is therapeutic!

 

mzsubaru

[Legacy777]

Wow....that's pretty poor business practices.

[nipper]

hrmmm i bet subaru doesnt know about his attitude.

 

 

nipper

[Sydfloyd44]

That dealership has continued to travel down hill over the past several years. Apple over here in York is not much better. Did you ever talk to the Sube guy up on 441 near Marietta? Never stopped in but at least one person on the forum I know has spoken well of them.

If you get nowhere with them, I certainly would not give them my money. I would find a trusty independent to give my money to.

[OB99W]

[...]He claimed that you all were just a bunch of disgruntled subaru owners[...]

Yes, it's always a good business practice to malign owners of the product you sell, especially those who try to help other sometimes unhappy owners of that product.

 

Besides, being disgruntled doesn't make anyone wrong.

[nipper]

Yes, it's always a good business practice to malign owners of the product you sell, especially those who try to help other sometimes unhappy owners of that product.

 

Besides, being disgruntled doesn't make anyone wrong.

 

So if we are just "gruntled" it means we are happy?

 

 

nipper

[Suzam]

So if we are just "gruntled" it means we are happy?

 

 

nipper

 

I know I enjoy a good "gruntle" every now and then!!!

[Rooster2]

Well, with that attitude, the service writer is about as helpful as a headache. If I were you, I wouldn't waste my time talking with that guy again.

 

Here is a reprint of what I posted earlier to fix the hesitation problem of getting my car to engage into "D"rive from "R"everse. Perhaps this will help your trany, it can't hurt it. It was absolutely incredible how this fixed my trany about a week ago:

 

"My magical exixer was to pull the trany drain plug. This drained about 4 quarts and one pint of ATF that was changed last Summer. I replaced with Amsoil synthetic ATF, and a can of Trans-X AT slip-stop & leak fix. The Trans-X can label says that their product swells seals, so I thought that might help. Well whatever..........the Amsoil and Trans-X fixed the trany problem after about 10 minutes of driving. Now, when changing gears from Reverse to Drive, the annoying sometimes 5 to 10 second delay to actually complete the shift into Drive is completely gone. Now, the trany promptly shifts from R to D with no hesitation like it is a new transmission. I completed this work only about 24 hours ago, so it will be interesting in the days ahead to see if the fix is truly a fix".

[OB99W]

So if we are just "gruntled" it means we are happy?

 

 

nipper

In a way, it does. From http://encarta.msn.com/dictionary_1861615629/gruntled.html :

grun·tled

adjective Definition: contented: pleased or happy ( informal humorous )

[Early 20th century. Back-formation < disgruntled]

[nipper]

http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a2_264a.html

 

Dear Cecil:

 

"Dishonest" is the opposite of "honest," right? So does that mean the opposite of "disgruntled" is "gruntled"? --D.J., Atlanta

Cecil replies:

 

You must have been a great trial to your mother, D. Dis- isn't always used to negate; sometimes it's an intensifier. "Gruntle" is an old dialect word meaning "to grumble." So "disgruntled" means you're really grumbling. There are times when I can definitely relate.

 

--CECIL ADAMS

 

 

i found a few of these where gruntled means grumpy

[aircraft engineer]

I get dis'd at work sometimes.

 

Of course, that DEALER should be given the website address plus the thread identifier and told how to get into here so they can READ the "nice comments" about them. Might give them "pause" to see what OTHER CUSTOMERS ARE SAYING ABOUT THEM (and conversely what comments some have for OTHER dealers)

 

Dontchathink?

[idosubaru]

it's a ways from York, but the Hanover, PA Subaru dealer was always very nice to me. granted i do all my own work so i never had any work done there but the parts guys were super nice.

[Sydfloyd44]

Agreed. Bought an 88 Wagon from Lawrence Subaru in Hanover in the early 90's and had very good experiences with them. Also bought one from one of their head mechanics who buys their high mileage trade-ins, fixes them up and then has a used Sube lot at his home that his wife runs.

[BajaCA]

Well, I wouldn't blame Subaru for either the transmission or the dip************ of a service writer you came into contact with... Here's my suggestion for a better approach..

 

1) What is the service record for your transmission?

2) Low on fluid?

3) old fluid?

4) Ever CHANGE the fluid???

 

In my humble opinion and from what I have seen, Subaru Automatics are damn near bulletproof IF taken care of with regular fluid changes and filter changes

 

5) Ask the guy to explain why he feels Subaru owners are feeling postal. Maybe there are good reasons for his feeling like that. Last time I checked, Subaru owners were just like every other human on this earth..

[nipper]

Well, I wouldn't blame Subaru for either the transmission or the dip************ of a service writer you came into contact with... Here's my suggestion for a better approach..

 

1) What is the service record for your transmission?

2) Low on fluid?

3) old fluid?

4) Ever CHANGE the fluid???

 

In my humble opinion and from what I have seen, Subaru Automatics are damn near bulletproof IF taken care of with regular fluid changes and filter changes

 

5) Ask the guy to explain why he feels Subaru owners are feeling postal. Maybe there are good reasons for his feeling like that. Last time I checked, Subaru owners were just like every other human on this earth..

 

Except that there is a pattern developing in the 1999-2000 transmissions with this problem, all with the same common fault.

 

In this case subaru got screwed by a bad supplier.

 

nipper

[audio_file]

Except that there is a pattern developing in the 1999-2000 transmissions with this problem, all with the same common fault.

 

In this case subaru got screwed by a bad supplier.

 

nipper

 

exactly. not a rare occurrence in todays "outsource everything" marketplace either. when i was selling chrysler/dodge's a little over a year ago, chrysler discovered that their main torque converter supplier screwed up, but only after that torque converter had been used in ALL of their LX platform cars (the 300's, magnums, and chargers) as well as the pacifica X-over . . . hundreds of thousands of vehicles . . . of course they didn't send out a recall, they just wrote up a TSB in case somebody had exaclty the right complaints about how their car shifted gears . . .sound familiar?! unless someone came in the door with a copy of the tsb, there was no guarantee that any work would be covered by the manufacturer, and service writers were pretty much told to keep the issue hush hush unless somebody made a big enough stink.

 

i (being the grand stirrer of controversy, poker of bee's nest's and general PITA that i am) called all of my clients who owned these vehicles to see if they were having the symptomatic issues listed on the TSB, because i knew if they were to come in complaining about a general transmission issue on one of my days off, they wouldn't get "handled" the way they deserved.

 

i hope subaru doesn't follow chrysler's practices in this issue . . .:-\

 

chris

[mzsubaru]

If I can't get SOA to do the work within the warranty, I am planning to go your route.

 

I take it that your trans X fix ended up being a permanent fix for your hesitation problem. How's your soob running these days?

[Bmm001]

mzsubaru, I sent you a private message with several independent Subaru dealers/mechanics that my family, myself, and friends who have Subarus have had great success with.

 

Anyone elese in Central PA who wants their contact information, PM me.

 

Thanks,

Brian Montgomery

[Rooster2]

If I can't get SOA to do the work within the warranty, I am planning to go your route.

 

I take it that your trans X fix ended up being a permanent fix for your hesitation problem. How's your soob running these days?

 

 

So far so good. After the Trans X additive and Amsoil, the trany continues to shift like new, no hint of a hesitation. I am thinking that something "sticks" inside 99 and 00 ATs. Once freed up, the trany works great!

[nipper]

So far so good. After the Trans X additive and Amsoil, the trany continues to shift like new, no hint of a hesitation. I am thinking that something "sticks" inside 99 and 00 ATs. Once freed up, the trany works great!

 

It probably swells up the bad seal. There is nothing sticking, we know what causes it. The question is how long will the elixer last.

 

nipper

[subeman90]

there are other people to work on your car around here other then LCM. Go elsewhere if needed..I've had my fair share of issues with LCM over the years. :-\

[xdeadhead]

cumberland valley motors (CVM) in mechanicsburg is where i bought my car. never had any issues there with the service writers or the mechanics. they rock! YMMV

[Rooster2]

If I can't get SOA to do the work within the warranty, I am planning to go your route.

 

I take it that your trans X fix ended up being a permanent fix for your hesitation problem. How's your soob running these days?

 

 

I am the guy that used the Trans X product and Amsoil synthetic ATF. It has only been three weeks since I added the products and changed the spin on external AT filter. So far, so good. The trany has not acted up one time. It continues to shift from R into D with never a bit of hesitation. All other functions of the AT are very normal. I can't say that it is a permanent fix after three weeks, but time will tell.

[schlit]

cumberland valley motors (CVM) in mechanicsburg is where i bought my car. never had any issues there with the service writers or the mechanics. they rock!

 

I wouldnt recommend CVM based on my inlaws experience.

Strike 1: They replaced a cat converter with 80,000mi on it due to a P0420 code without even trying to see if it was just an 02 sensor.

Strike 2: On the 10 min ride home from the cat repair, the inner cv boot just above the cat spews out it's grease due to a big gash. CVM called it coincidence and charged full price.

Strike 3: They charged my inlaws to put the slime in the radiator...I made them go back and argue that one.

 

Yea, their service techs did all that with a smile, but I think at the same time are not being honest with people.

[xdeadhead]

id recommend them based on mine. individual situations vary, i wont badmouth a service department til i have need to. and at CVM, i havent ever needed to (yet)