subieman

Okay I'll say this... the washer was stuck on the magnet! I know what the magnet is for and I left it in there.

I think there is a way to adjust the bands from outside of the tranny. But I'm not positive on that. My 90 Legacy gave up 2nd and reverse also. I pulled the trannys oil pan and I found large chunks of metal and a weird washer looking thing in the bottom. Not good! Good luck on yours, I would start with a AFT flush to prevent any further damage.

Thanks for all the links! Very much appreciated. I'm thinking about a JDM tranny cuz they seem to have the longest warranty tacked on with them. And the low mileage is a plus. The search is just beginning. Thanks,

Where can I buy a JDM Auto tranny for a 90 Legacy? Web sites, phone numbers??? Anything would help. I did a google search with not to many results. Thanks,

Wow this post brought me back. As for hauling with a Gen 1 I got a full bed worth of sod in the back. I would not recommend this, anything over 35mph was suicide!

Thanks everyone. Thats what I figured. I found a tranny at a junk yard for $450 so I'll drop that one in and hope for the best.

I just bought a 1990 Legacy L+AWD sedan with the auto tranny yesterday. It's in beautiful condition inside and out, only problem is the tranny is broken. My original plan is to just replace or rebuild it but I would like to see if anyone has any advice for me. I'm pretty dumb about autos since all my previous subies have been manuals. Here is the deal: It has no reverse or second gear. It pours out ATF all over the ground from the bell housing as far as I can tell. When in park or neutral it makes a really loud grinding sound.. I mean it's loud. Sounds like the infamous 1990 bearing problem, but I'm not sure. Also the duty C solenoid is shot (code 24 and bad tourqe bind). The ATF on the dip stick is beautiful bright red. So I dunno.... If there is a easy fix let me know. If not I'm dropping the tranny next week. I see the rear diff is a 4.11, sounds like a easy 5-speed swap??? Right??? Thanks! Pic's to come soon!

Wow, I thought I was the only one with a gas odor problem on my 78 Brat. For the life of me I cant find where it's coming from. Thanks for the post, now I have some places to check.

Ok tha'ts what I was worried about. But maybe I'll try it and post the results. haha

Hey, Scott and Shawn will be here around 11 on Thursday. Brain, what time are you planning on being here?

Does anyone see a problem with this? I know the diameter is a bit larger on the FWD axles then the AWD. The car is a 90 FWD auto sedan. Funny thing is I have FWD axles on my AWD 5 speed legacy with no problem. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks,

Good luck with the repair! I was so very close to picking that car up for myself. Getting it towed to Reno just started to become a nightmare.

Bump!

Congratulations man. What an accomplishment!

Will the Gen 2 Brat decal for the targa stripe area fit on a Gen1?

OK, since I know it's unburned fuel that’s causing my problem… I need to know why that fuel is not being burned. A few things I noticed, 1. I smell a strong odor of gas while driving under heavy load. 2. I have a aftermarket ignition. It's just dangling by the wires on the steering column. Could that be causing the misfire? Everything else checks out on the car. Good compression, wires, cap, plugs, pcv and no vacuum leaks. HELP!!!!

Count me in! I'll bring my air compressor and tools. Pulling motors are fun!

I'm in the market for a aftermarket cat for my Brat. I'll let you know what I find out. Kragen or Napa seem to be about $200-250 for a universal cat. Remember your 84 has 2 cats so cutting one out might help a bit.

I have a 78 Brat and a EJ22 donor car laying around. And it's getting really tempting for me to try. I have all the blue prints for the wiring. Its a must to use a Legacy tranny, cuz for starters the gearing in gen1's are way to low. 4000 rpm at 65 is ridiculous If I knew how to weld I would be installing my EJ22 right now.

Mine has no cat. mmmmmm Maybe I'll have to put one on, but I would rather not. Looks like I'll do a complete tune up and go from there.

Uh oh, now you got me worried. It runs great, plenty of power and smooth idle. I was told it blows some blue smoke when climbing hills, not a smoke screen or anything just a little bit. I just changed the oil and air filter, it has a new carb on it with only a few thousand miles. Wonder if the previous owner screwed up the carb somehow I'll run a compression check tonight. Wonder if the smog machine is whack-o or something?

Yeah I found that out the hard way on my 91 Legacy. Soon after I changed over to orange my head gasket blew.. ah well. Green for life.

Well I just took my 78 Brat 1600 to get smogged today, but she failed. Where I failed at was HC ppm. I'm running 3710 at idle and the limit is only 500. I don't even know where to start. This is my first vintage Subaru and I couldn’t even find the PCV valve on it. Please help. I love this car and I need to get it legal! Thanks,

Wow! It's good that you finally joined the board. Welcome aboard old friend!

There is a toggle switch on top of the steering column. Hit that and it should solve your problem.