litender Posted May 25, 2007 Share Posted May 25, 2007 I have a 98 Outback, & recently the a/t temp light has started to blink when I start the car. I went to a transmission place & the guy tried to read a code from the computer. When nothing showed he said he would make a call to his his service rep. The bottom line is that you don't need a computer you just count the # of blinks/flashes. The tranny guy says the # of blinks is 15 & that is what he asked his rep about. BUT I count 16 blinks, how do I find out what 16 means???????? THe tranny guy told me that it would be really expensive to repair transmission & since it was shifting fine to just ignore it unless it started to shift hard. Does any of this make sense to anyone? Thanks in advance, Lou litender@aol.com Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Legacy777 Posted May 25, 2007 Share Posted May 25, 2007 16 blinks means absolutely nothing. It's just a standard sequence that lets you know there is a code in the transmission computer. I guess what you need to find out is if the tranny guy actually got a code 15 or if he miscounted. On the older transmissions, code 15 indicated shift solenoid 1. However I couldn't tell you whether that code is still the same.....I sort of doubt it. If you can't get any answers...take it to a subaru dealership, and have them check the TCU for codes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jon38iowa Posted May 25, 2007 Share Posted May 25, 2007 I have a 98 Outback, & recently the a/t temp light has started to blink when I start the car. I went to a transmission place & the guy tried to read a code from the computer. When nothing showed he said he would make a call to his his service rep. The bottom line is that you don't need a computer you just count the # of blinks/flashes. The tranny guy says the # of blinks is 15 & that is what he asked his rep about. BUT I count 16 blinks, how do I find out what 16 means???????? THe tranny guy told me that it would be really expensive to repair transmission & since it was shifting fine to just ignore it unless it started to shift hard. Does any of this make sense to anyone? Thanks in advance, Lou litender@aol.com It might not make any difference, but I would change the fluid, and maybe a couple of times if its been awhile. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
porcupine73 Posted May 25, 2007 Share Posted May 25, 2007 Hi. Here's some info from this EndWrench article: 4EAT Phase 1 Diagnosis and Service 1995-98 Legacy, 1996-98 Impreza, 1996-97 SVX, 1998 Forester, Diagnostics (OBD -II Vehicles) The AT Oil Temperature light operates under the following conditions: Ignition switch ON/engine OFF is the bulb check mode, the light remains ON. Normal: Ignition switch ON/ Engine ON, light remains on for two seconds from engine start. Note: A failure is never reported via the AT oil temp light during current operation. The TCU waits until the next ignition cycle to display the following AT oil temp light condition. Therefore the driver may detect an abnormal driveability condition (fail safe operation) with no AT oil temp light indicating a failure. Abnormal - With the ignition switch ON and the engine running, the light remains ON for 2 seconds from engine start. OFF for 0.25 seconds, ON for 0.25 seconds 4 times, then OFF for 2 seconds. Cycle repeats 4 times for a total of 16 Blinks. Abnormal - ATF Temperature is too high The AT temp light comes ON and stays ON until the ATF temperature returns to normal. Trouble Codes Trouble code retrieval is similar to previous models, except for grounding terminal # 5 of connector B82 a 6 pole black, right side of steering column.Trouble codes will be displayed through AT Temp light with the following differences. There are 14 possible trouble codes communicated from the TCU. They are displayed in the same format as old fuel system trouble codes, long Flash = 10, short flash = 1. For example: 2 long and 4 short = code 24, Duty Solenoid C. The clear memory procedure is simple and quick, just remove fuse No. 14 for at least one minute. OBD-II Operation Overview The system monitors components and their operation, conducting continuity and performance checks. The check engine light or MIL illuminates when a code is set into ECU memory. Problems with the 4EAT are communicated from the TCU to the ECU. There are 2 trouble codes that are generated as soon as a problem occurs, turning on the MIL.With 22 others requiring a fault or error during two consecutive trips, before turning on the MIL. A trip is defined as a driving pattern in which test parameters are reached for a given time.A failed trip will be erased if the next trip is a good one. Transmission codes generated in OBD-II have freeze frame information available on the Select Monitor in the fuel system section of data display. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
litender Posted May 26, 2007 Author Share Posted May 26, 2007 Thanks for responding to my question. I really appreciacte it. BUT according to what I read the light SHOULD blink 4x & then have a pause & then blink some more. My light blinks 16x very rapidly with no pause. Any guess as to what this might mean?? Again thanks to all you folks that responded to my question. Lou Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnceggleston Posted May 28, 2007 Share Posted May 28, 2007 this warning light is most commonly associated with a bad duty c solenoid and torque bind. it could mean any number or trans problems, but duty c seems to come up more often than others. does the car jerk or shutter or bind when making tight turns at slow speeds, if so, insert the FWD fuse under the hood and see if it goes away. if yes to both of these, then you have a bad duty c solenoid, which controls the power split front and rear wheels. do a search here for 'torque bind' or 'duty c' and read untill you fall asleep. or go to the dealer and have check it out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unverviking Posted May 31, 2007 Share Posted May 31, 2007 Just after I bought my 96 IMP OBW I had the same thing. Was a bad Duty C as was mentioned earlier. Took to a tranny shop, they changed the TCU, to no avail. They didn't charge me for it, cuz it didn't fix the problem. (~$425) Took it to the dealer, they replaced the Duty C Solenoid and good to go. It was about $450 bucks. Not only did they do the Duty C, they added a posi additive to the trans fluid and all was ok. Also, I had torque bind on really tight turns (back tires dragging, not in sync with the front tires) and make sure you have all 4 tires are of the same size, brand and wear. I'm sure you know that AWD needs all 4 tires to be the same in order to work properly, and to ensure that the Duty C solenoid stays working. hope that this helps... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nipper Posted May 31, 2007 Share Posted May 31, 2007 The blinking is to catch your attention, dont ignore it or second guess it, as it can result in a expensive repair. It is NOT automatically a duty C problem, as it can be as simple as a bad temp sensor in the trany. There are 6-7 solenoids in the tranny, so it can be any one of those. How does the car behave on low speed tight turns. Ther tranny shop your dealing with isnt very good. There is a way to read the codes yourself without a computer. nipper Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idosubaru Posted May 31, 2007 Share Posted May 31, 2007 First - go check your fluid level, i would assume the trans shop did that, but if they don't know how to read a TCU code it also wouldn't surprise me if they skipped that simple check. The code can be read by anyone who knows the proper technique, i do not know it by memory but it is in the FSM (factory service manual). like nipper said, it's time to extract the code and avoid guessing. the 16 flashes is very typical to subaru, this is not a mystical device or complicated. 16 flashes is the equivalent to the "check engine light". just counting those 16 flashes tells you nothing, it always flashes 16 times when there's a TCU code. remember...the TCU has a stored code and you need to find out what it is. you can search on here for the way to flash the code (it will flash the code via the same light), have a shop do it, or have subaru do it. call around to some shops and ask them if they know how to get a subaru TCU code before you go. next time you post back, it should be to tell us the code. the sequence of extracting codes is always something nutty...turn key to "ON", some strange shifting pattern or other actions and the light will then flash the code. i got steering codes the other week..turn car "on", turn steering all the way to the left, turn all the way to the right, put in drive and travel 20 feet, turn steering wheel again....then the code(s) started flashing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nipper Posted May 31, 2007 Share Posted May 31, 2007 i got steering codes the other week..turn car "on", turn steering all the way to the left, turn all the way to the right, put in drive and travel 20 feet, turn steering wheel again....then the code(s) started flashing. Did you shake it all about ? hehehehe nipper Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OB99W Posted May 31, 2007 Share Posted May 31, 2007 Did you shake it all about ?Yeah, sounds "hokey" (although perhaps not "pokey") to me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idosubaru Posted May 31, 2007 Share Posted May 31, 2007 Did you shake it all about ?nice one! if you're talking about my head, then yes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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