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4EAT transmission question


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Hello all. I have a quick, and possibly stupid question concerning the 4EAT automatic transmission in my 95 Impreza WRX wagon. I am a noob with the automatic transmissions in Subarus so please, I beg of you to bear with me. I know where the transmission fluid dipstick is, but my question is this, what is the dipstick on the left-hand side of the transmission for? The reason that I ask is that it seems to be stuck and I cannot remove it. If anyone could please shed some light on this subject, I'd greatly appreciate it. Thank You all for your time.

 

Patrick

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Hello all. I have a quick, and possibly stupid question concerning the 4EAT automatic transmission in my 95 Impreza WRX wagon. I am a noob with the automatic transmissions in Subarus so please, I beg of you to bear with me. I know where the transmission fluid dipstick is, but my question is this, what is the dipstick on the left-hand side of the transmission for? The reason that I ask is that it seems to be stuck and I cannot remove it. If anyone could please shed some light on this subject, I'd greatly appreciate it. Thank You all for your time.

 

Patrick

 

One dipstick is for the ATF, one dipstick is for the gear oil for the front differential.

Nathan

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Hey guys, Thanks a Million for the replies. I couldn't figure out for the life of me what the heck it was for, and why it wouldn't come out. I'm one who likes to "get to know" my vehicles so that I know what everything does. If it would've been loose enough for me to remove, I probably wouldn't be here asking such a stupid question. So goes life, I guess. Anyway, I am kinda getting what feels like torque bind while turning sharply and was wondering if this could be a result of low gear oil in the front diff? Could that also be the reason that the dipstick won't come out(vacuum created from lack of fluid)? I guess I'll have to get underneath the car this evening and see if I can get the dipstick unstuck. I was wondering also, is there supposed to be a vent pipe for the front differential?

 

 

Patrick

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Hi Patrick. Well if your front diff gear oil is real low, that obviously is not optimal b/c it will result in excessive wear on the gears and stuff in there. I'm pretty sure it has a vent of some sort, almost anything like that does to keep the pressure inside equalized with the pressure outside.

 

I don't know if you've had this vehicle since new, but maybe it was loose or something or somebody RTV'd it glued it in there for some reason; would be kind of weird but hey sometimes people do odd things.

 

If you really have torque bind that's usually b/c of the center diff/clutches in the AT rather than the diff's, but changing the gear oils is easy to do and not that expensive. Are all your tires the same brand/circumference, ATF level good and not dark/burnt/etc?

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If you really have torque bind that's usually b/c of the center diff/clutches in the AT rather than the diff's, but changing the gear oils is easy to do and not that expensive. Are all your tires the same brand/circumference, ATF level good and not dark/burnt/etc?

 

I just bought the car in used condition on the 29th of last month with relatively low miles on it. The other day was the first time I tried pulling the dipstick. I have no earthly idea how the previous owner treated the car as it came from mainland Japan. I had just figured that maybe the dipstick is stuck from the vent pipe for the front diff being plugged or clogged, resulting in the dipstick, well, sticking!

 

As far as torque bind, yeah, I do get it, but only during sharp turns and low speed cornering(right or left). I added some transmission fluid to the tranny after not being able to get an accurate reading on the fluid level. The torque bind seemed to improve a little(the feeling and noise were not as intense) and the transmission also changed gears a whole lot smoother. The fluid looked good, but was just a bit on the pale pink side, with no noticeable burnt odor. The tires are the same diameter, but one is an odd man out as far as brand. The tread pattern is different on it(directional). These were the tires that the car came with. I'm just assuming that this could be a potential problem, eh?

 

Anyway, good news abounds today. I took the car back to the dealerships garage and the mechanics believe that they know what is wrong with it. Seems that just a week prior, they had a Forester(turbocharged) whose transmission was doing the exact same thing and they were able to fix it. So I'm keeping my fingers crossed on this one.

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i've seen some front diff dipsticks that are actually threaded, they need to be turned counter clockwise to remove. but i've seen both styles on the exact same style vehicle...some threaded, some not. haven't figured out that variation, but i'd assume it's threaded and see if it comes out.

 

the threaded ones are annoying to check the oil with as you have to remove, clean and thread it back down so it's fully seated for a good oil level reading.

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I have the same problem with mine. The dipstick appears to be frozen in place. I have the 98 OBW. I've tried everything to get it out except a torch. My biggest problem is I was able to pull it out but a metal sleeve came out with it. I'm looking for suggestions as well. Is it possible this thing is threaded? The one on my 92 legacy pulled right out.

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