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What happened to my transmission? Subaru 2004 Outback UJ Failure


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Well, I think my 2004 Subaru Outback has bit the dust...

 

So I'm driving along, and there's kind of a thumping noise that starts up.

Drive about a mile, and all of a sudden, it goes Blam! and there's no power to the wheels...

 

So I pull over, and there's gear oil pouring out under the car.  There's what looks like  the

end of the driveshaft lying on the road.  So I have it towed home, and

it sat around for a couple of months until I have time to look at it.

 

So, it looks like the front Universal Joint blew apart, and snapped the nose off the transmission!

I guess it's not repairable, being that it is pretty rusty around the rear wheel wells.  

It kind of looks like the shifter mechanism is bent up as well.

 

Supposedly there is a relay somewhere in the car that if you pull it out, 

it will drive in two wheel drive mode instead of all wheel drive mode?

Can I use this to drive the car to the junkyard?

Just for giggles, here's some pictures...

 

IMG_3305 (1).jpg

IMG_0248 (1).jpg

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AT or MT?  That appears to be MT but something about the angle or left over/missing parts is confusing me.  

If it's an AT you can potentially swap in a new rear extension housing without dropping or replacing the trans.  And a new driveshaft of course. 

You can't put an MT in FWD.

If it's an AT, If the back is busticated then it's going to puke ATF and not be able to run without fluid.  If somehow you put tourniquet on your AT then yes you can force it into FWD mode.  Either by installing a FWD fuse (if equipped) or forcing it into "locked" 4WD (disconnect power to the rear solenoid or give it full voltage, and driving it like that with the driveshaft missing it'll only drive the front wheels (assuming the garbage rear can handle it. 

 

If it's not too far away just pull it with a tow strap/chain/rope late/early when there's no  traffic. 

Edited by idosubaru
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Looks like a manual. So no, can't drive it without the shaft.

 

Completely fixable. extension housing can be replaced in the car. Buy a donor transmission (can even be blown up) for $100 or less and a "new" driveshaft, spend a few hours crawling around in gear oil, and it'll be fixed. I definitely would, but I just put a brand-new rear subframe in a rusty '00 Outback with 325k miles on it, so I might not be the best person to ask.

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It is a manual transmission.  When it happened (or I think actually, when they pulled it up onto a flatbed truck) it puked a lot of gear oil.

So...  I can't switch it to Front Wheel Drive Mode, but I can replace the rear of the Transmission in the car?  Can you tell me a bit more about the details of that?  What years would have a rear transmission housing?  How much force is usually on the rear housing?  Not Much?  Should I try some JB Weld?  :-)  some people say you can fix anything with it!

The U-Joint blew, but do I need to replace the whole drive shaft?  The U-Joint mount is a bit busted, but can a new U-Joint be welded on or some other form of attachment?  I had a CRV U-Joint that I replace by grinding it out and pressing it in.

Thanks a lot for the Advice!  Jim.

Edited by JimInMaine
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Holy crap , this sounds very familiar. Like you I have a 2003 manual and had a very similar if not the same issue. Like you I have  had no time to review , but I did smell gear oil. 

 

Thanks for the advice. I was already looking at used trannies and considering rebuilding since they all seem to have issues. 

 

Keep posting please , especially with your repair. Thanks

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I've had two 00-04 Mt trannys in the shop this month. Both with blown u joint that took out the rear snout on the tranny.  Easy fix , just drop the rear crossmember .

Driveline must be replaced. Used or new.  Driveline shops in Missoula will not attempt replacement joints anymore, to many balance problems.

The shifter assembly will be bent beyond use. Wrecking yard item.  Be sure to get the small bracket with rubber bushing that the shifter attaches to.

One was a good fix , tranny was fine after replacing the rear snout.

The other did damage inside. Loud whine in lower gears and jumping out of 2nd gear.  Simply replaced the whole tranny rather than go in for a rebuild. 

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On 1/18/2020 at 11:36 AM, JimInMaine said:

It is a manual transmission.  When it happened (or I think actually, when they pulled it up onto a flatbed truck) it puked a lot of gear oil.

So...  I can't switch it to Front Wheel Drive Mode, but I can replace the rear of the Transmission in the car?  Can you tell me a bit more about the details of that?  What years would have a rear transmission housing?  How much force is usually on the rear housing?  Not Much?  Should I try some JB Weld?  :-)  some people say you can fix anything with it!

The U-Joint blew, but do I need to replace the whole drive shaft?  The U-Joint mount is a bit busted, but can a new U-Joint be welded on or some other form of attachment?  I had a CRV U-Joint that I replace by grinding it out and pressing it in.

Thanks a lot for the Advice!  Jim.

Any 5-speed manual from 2000 or newer will have the housing you need. A WRX has different transfer gears, so it might be best to avoid those in case you need those.

Here's the parts diagram of the rear cover. You definitely broke the cover, callout number 32130, might have damaged the bearings or shafts inside there.

B12_12101212.png

Disconnect the shift linkage, remove 9(?) bolts, remove housing. Transfer bearings and shafts from old to new, apply sealant, reinstall bolts, reinstall shift linkage.

 

Could have replaced just the ujoint probably 6 months ago. But it likely chewed threw the end caps and into the yoke since then, not to mention the damage done when it broke. 

This one just had a vibration. This one is too far gone for a good repair

24734525827_2fdb596773_c.jpg

20180105_185438 by Numbchux, on Flickr

 

Here's a yoke after a joint failure....

47993871252_763b124779_c.jpg

20190602_191605 by Numbchux, on Flickr

 

It maybe could be botched together. But for the $50-100 for a used shaft, I wouldn't mess with it.

 

www.car-part.com is a great resource for used parts. Frequently they will list transmission cores on there, which might be a cheap way to get your housing.

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The Junkyards in my area say they cannot get a used driveshaft for my 2004 Manual Transmission Subaru Outback.

How hard will it be to line up the shafts and bearings to put in the Rear Housing?

This would be easier to work on if it weren't Winter ... In Maine... without a garage!

What years would the driveshaft interchange from?

Thanks for all your Help!

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I see 2 listed on car-part in NH for $150ea, about 150 miles from you. I bet those yards would be happy to ship one to you if the local ones don't want to bother. Jim's Used Cars in Ellsworth shows one from an '01 that needs joints for $100 (they also have a good transmission for $350, but I'd call around and see if anyone has a core that may not be listed online).

00-04 Outback and any year Baja with a Manual transmission is the best fit, but any Legacy/Outback manual 2004 or older would be acceptable. I used a shaft from an '07 in my '04, and it was a touch longer and felt like it was bottomed out in the transmission. I used it for a couple weeks and didn't have a problem, but I wouldn't recommend it as a long term fix.

 

Lining up the parts are relatively easy. The hardest part will probably be the shift linkage. There's a double roll pin that has to be pounded out and then the 2 halves separated, here they have a tendency to rust together and require heat and/or pounding to get apart and back together.

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4 hours ago, JimInMaine said:

I'll try Jim's.  The other ME listing in car-parts did not have the car anymore.

So it's looking like $500 plus labor...  I'm not sure it's worth it.

I can't see being under a car now struggling with stuff that won't come apart.

Thanks, Jim.

Yeah rust starts to make things a loosing battle, choose carefully.  There's not too much that's problematic for what you need, the exhaust but those typically have rusty/seized fasteners. 

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16 hours ago, JimInMaine said:

So it's looking like $500 plus labor...  I'm not sure it's worth it.

If you use that good used transmission. I bet you can get a core for $50-100. So more like $200-250....

 

7 hours ago, turboguzzi said:

Casually reading this.... GF's 99' MT has developed a light rumble while driving... could it be that UJ on it's way out? Can the freeplay be felt by hand?

I wouldn't describe a ujoint symptom as a rumble, more of a vibration, and usually only while under load.

It's not generally play in the joint, but they seize. It can be felt by hand, but only after removing the shaft from the car.

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Here's the factory service manual: http://jdmfsm.info/Auto/Japan/Subaru/Legacy_Outback/2004/2004 USDM/. Go into the Transmission section. On page 37 of the Control systems file is a picture of the roll pin (this section is about removing the entire shift linkage, so most of the rest is not terribly helpful). Then in the Manual transmission file, page 43 is for the Transfer case and extension case removal. You only need to remove the extension case, so there's a lot more there than you need, but it's kind of useful. It talks about correctly shimming those bearings, but I wouldn't worry about that, I'd just transfer the shims from the old case into the new. The next section about the transfer drive gear is useful, as you'll have to transfer that from your old housing to new (just 4 bolts...).

 

Here's the parts breakdown for the shift linkage:

B12_35001196.png

You'll have to remove the springpin marked 35083, and then slide that ujoint (35046) off the shaft on the transmission. You'll also have to separate the support rod from the transmission, probably easiest by removing the 3 bolts that hold 35033 bracket to the housing.

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4 hours ago, JimInMaine said:

Any chance there's a picture of the roll pin or rear transmission removal procedure out there on the internet?

Is it in the parts diagram above?

The center diffs fail regularly enough there has to be a write up and video for that.  That requires removal of the rear extension housing. 
 

search for manual trans VLSD replacement or center diff replacement. 

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23 hours ago, turboguzzi said:

Casually reading this.... GF's 99' MT has developed a light rumble while driving... could it be that UJ on it's way out? Can the freeplay be felt by hand?

I wouldn't describe a ujoint symptom as a rumble, more of a vibration, and usually only while under load.

It's not generally play in the joint, but they seize. It can be felt by hand, but only after removing the shaft from the car.

Tnxs Numb. Will crawl under car this weekend,

in my 16 years of soobing, 1st time i read about this UJ issues, my 2 Legs and 2 Foresters never had UJ issues untill now, only experience with a failed UJ was in my only a motorcycle with a drive shaft, a Moto Guzzi Le Mans 850.

Rumble is also present in idle/neutral, goes away when pressing the clutch, so was thinking it was clutch plate springs or something, but then again, it could be two separate problems/rumbles.  Just like the OP, not the best season here to be doing this outdoors...

sorry for the hijack but if its any help, heres the best trans removal guide ive seen,

https://www.rs25.com/threads/diy-clutch-replacement-pictorial.128163/

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