captainehh

I'd just like to add a quick note and say that I've been driving my 97 Outback in FWD mode for over 50,000 miles due to a torque bind issue and things have been flawless.

I'm not sure if they'll fit or not. However, i sure am interested in the possibility. I hope someone out there knows the answer!

Sweet man- How hard was it to set up the hood on your legacy? I like the look.

Referring back the the bulletproof nature of the 2.2L motor- Is the 2.2 still in the new Legacy wagons? If not, to what year did Subaru stop. For example- if i looked at a 99 Legacy wagon- will it have the 2.2 or 2.5?

Thanks for the feedback. I'm not planning on punting yet. Thought i'd get a consensus for what the options are out there though.

Interesting- So it sounds like there's not any variance in the 2.5's from 96-99?

Since nobody has really chimed in with a definitive answer, does this pretty much mean that no other engine besides the Phase I 2.5 were offered in 96-99 Outbacks?

Commuter- Please elaborate on your CCR engine comment. Are you implying that this is probably what my car has, or are you saying this is what I should look for? What's a CCR engine?

Hey all, I'm the current owner of a 97 OBW and thus far have been fairly happy with the car aside from a few repairs. However, I'm aware this car has the Phase I engine notorious for head gasket probs as well as sneaky leaks. I'ts also got the infamous 4EAT auto tranny. I must admit I'm a sucker for the Outback's looks. What I'm after is: If I were to sell my current rig due to a sneaking suspicion of expensive problems down the road; is there a more reliable Outback out there for under 10 grand? For example, were other engines besides the Phase I offered in these cars? I hope I'm not beating a dead horse with this one. Thanks!

If you do a search under "Head Gasket", you'll find a ton of responses and good literature on the subject.....and ultimately insight into your problem.

Thanks for the thought- I've done that actually. I recently re-measured with better equipment and they're all actually within a 1/4" of eachother. The saga continues.....

yep, swapped out the front diff fluid and it looked fine. All this is very intrigueing because the tranny was overhauled 15k ago and the normal culprits in the 4EAT were replaced.

Thanks for the replies guys- I've got a bit of an update on the situation. I'm a poor/extremely busy grad student that hasn't been able to get the time or money to address the torque bind issue until now. I drove my sube down from OR to the bay area just recently. I gambled and drove it in FWD most of the way. I did a little test and put it in AWD for a portion of the trip. The seat-of-your pants shudder is still there when making sharp turns at slow speeds. Also, after about fifty miles of 70mph driving, when I let off the gas to coast, a grrrphhwerrrrrggghhhh noise came from the tranny trunnel. This noise occurred only after driving for a while and only above 45 mph when coasting. Worrysome. The noise left when i reinstalled the FWD fuse. I'm not sure of accident's extent. The allignment couldn't be more perfect though. I'll re-check the tire circumfrence now that i'm in a place with better tools. Swapping out 4 quarts of syn ATF fluid for Mopar ATF + 4 helped somewhat. I was sorta thinking that too. The fact that i should get all the fluid flushed and replaced instead of just adding 4 quarts of the new stuff. Does this noise happening in a coast- -at-high speed situation give any more insight into the prob? I love the car and really hope to nail the bugs so i can sleep at night. Thanks and merry christmas!

Just wanted to throw this thread out there again. I'm a bit surprised I didn't get more feedback. Anybody have any final comments on driving for extended periods of time with the FWD fuse installed? Alias- you seemed to think that you shouldn't drive more than 30 mph with the fuse in. Whats the logic behind this?

Here's the attachment tranny text.txt

It'd be great if this is legible. This is the receipt i aquired that outlines the 4EAT rebuild. I had to scan the receipt and turn it into text format so i could attach it under the minimum file size. Sorry for its scattered nature-it's the best i could get it. Patcal- No, there aren't any flashes from the tranny light on the dash. Everything is normal.

My knowledge of my 97 OBW has increased tenfold from everyones' collective info on this board! As the subject implies, i've got torque bind issues. The car has 68K. The tranny was rebuillt about 10K ago by the second owner. I recently bought the car for a steal ($3,500), knowing that repairs needed done. The car was in an accident and sat for three years (crunched from the front and rear). It was repaired and from there it ended up in the 2nd owners hands, and not too much later into mine. It's a great car and I'm excited to kill the demons that haunt it. I've ruled out tire circumfrence discrepancy-The tires are all within a 1 inch range. I rotated them too Wheel bearings are good CV axles are new Replaced front and rear diff fluid with 80w 90 synthetic I swapped the trans fluid and filter and replaced with synthetic fluid...... Here's where my question is and hopefully an answer- Took it down to a reputable tranny shop to give them the history and ask some questions. They see a ton of subes (lots here in OR) and said that they've never seen a sube with torque bind that changing the tranny fluid didn't fix. He recommended pulling the drain plug and letting 4 quarts run out. After this, replace the lost 4 quarts with Chrysler brand ATF+4 which apparently has a special friction modifying component. Is this compatible with the rest of the synthetic fluid thats in the 4EAT? Anybody heard of this trick working? And also, digging thru the archives, I've stumbled across mixed info on running around with the FWD fuse installed. I'd love to hear more opinions. I have no choice but to drive the car while i'm tracking down the problems. Am i doing harm be keeping it in FWD, which eliminates the torque bind shudder? Thanks

Here's the link to the picture. http://www.main.experiencetherave.com:8080/subaru/images/internal_trans_screen.jpg It highlights the two bolts that allow the bar to be removed. This bar otherwise prevents the filter from being removed on a 97 4EAT tranny.

Sounds like it'll be a sweet setup!

I'm just down the road in Eugene. I've had a very positive experience with a tranny shop here in town that i'd be happy to reccommend. But yeah, I second the fact that AAMCO sucks-they're like getting your car painted at MAACO (sp?)

To check the fluid make sure that you've driven the car for a good 10 or 15 miles to warm things up. Check the fluid with the engine running. It should read at the "Full-Hot" mark. Subies don't use special fluid. Dexron III is what you want. It should be red in color. Sounds to me like you need to top things off of are ready for a fluid/filter change.

Hi all, I was able to figure out my transmission filter change blues. After going back out with more light and patience, i figured out how to get the filter off my 97 Outback's auto trans. Its not even close to rocket science, but it is an extra step that i havent seen before and tripped me up on first attempt. It turns out the little crossbar can be removed that's pictured, which then allows for you to totally drop the filter. Otherwise, the bar prevents you from taking the filter off. Anybody know what this little bar is for?? Regardless, perhaps this info can help somebody else when they swap out the fluid and filter on a 4EAT. Happy trails. ....Still trying to figure out how to insert a picture into this post. For now, i'd be happy to e-mail it.

Hi guys- This seems like a stupid question for me to ask because i've done this many other times on other cars. I'm changing the transmission fluid on my 97 OBW to hopefully solve my torque bind issues. Cross your fingers.... Checking tires will be next. For the life of me i cant figure out how to get the darn filter out. I removed the 4 bolts that hold it in place. There's a mini-crossmember under the filter preventing me from being able to pull it out after it's loose. Does the little crossmember bar come out somehow? What's the trick to this one from somebody who's done this? My Haynes repair manual doesn't speak anything of filter removal/installation. Thanks!

Hi guys- Coming from driving a 4WD Chevy truck for several years, I never had to run chains on the HWY in winter. Does anybody know how the hwy department handles Subarus when there is a mandatory chain advisory for other vehicles? Basically I'm hoping I can get around buying a spare set of wheels and snow tires. I just want to make sure that when I get to the top of Willamette Pass, I wont be turned around because I don't have the right setup. I'm sure snow tires help, but albeit the AWD does a heck of a lot more!

Thank you all for the extremely thorough replies. Grad school keeps me way busier than i'd like so i'm not sure how soon i'll be able to attack the problem. I picked up the 97 OBW for a great price due to a wreck in its past. Does a wreck make any of these probs more likely than another? The tires are very new and have proper air. The tranny was rebuilt at 50K. This strikes me as strange. Something tells me the accident messed with the drivetrain. The car was smashed in the front and rear and sat for three years before being repaired.