traveling from Maine to New York my AT oil temp light started to flash and even though I checked the transmission fluid it looked OK ... it might have smelled burned but it was still red. hasn't happened since and i've had to drive it. what do i do? any help????????????????? PLEASE ... i need to be back in Maine on Monday afternoon or i'm in trouble!

 

thanks.

And I would change the tranny oil and filter as soon as I had a chance. If possible I would do it there, and if I could not I would try to cruise a bit easier on the trip back.

THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU ... i was able to get transmission oil BUT of course i was unable (on a holiday weekend) to obtain the replacement filter. but again, THANK YOU.

 

from maine!

yeah it flashed for a reason. Your ATF was burning. Change it ASAP!!! The longer you leave it in there the quicker your tranny will die.

traveling from Maine to New York my AT oil temp light started to flash and even though I checked the transmission fluid it looked OK ... it might have smelled burned but it was still red. hasn't happened since and i've had to drive it. what do i do? any help????????????????? PLEASE ... i need to be back in Maine on Monday afternoon or i'm in trouble!

 

thanks.

i'm not to sure but a flashing light indicates you have some a/t

codes stored. need to have someone check for codes.

george

The light blinking on startup is like a check engine light, but for the transmission. My sole experience was 16 blinks every start, and indicated a failure of the AWD FWD (duty-c) solenoid. I suspect that is the most common problem with the automatics from reading posts on this board. I have heard the problem may go away and come back in some instances, but it will need attention from a dealer or other expert in time.

Hi,

The latest poster here is indeed right - the flashing light indicates that the Transmission Control Module (a little computer similar to the one that monitors the way the engine works) has detected a fault somewhere. The fact that it blinks 16 times doesn't tell you anything other than a fault has been detected. You need to do some electrical troubleshooting to figure out just which error it has seen. There is another thread on this board that describes in detail (with some pictures), just what you need to do to read the exact trouble code. I can't remember which one it is now, but I'll poke around a bit and I'll post another message here when I find it. It is also true that one of the more common failures is the "Duty Solenoid C" which controls the All Wheel Drive transfer clutch on the back of your automatic transmission. Driving with this failure won't necessarily wreck your transmission, but it will excessively wear your tires, you will feel the car jerk around corners when you're turning a corner slowly (that's called "torque bind") and eventually you will wear out parts of the drive train, so something else will break sooner than it otherwise would.

 

Your best option right now is to have the transmission fluid changed, and drive the car with care for a while to see if the blinking AT Temp light goes away. You should also get the trouble code that is stored on your TCM, and decide what to do next based on that code. Sounds like you've already changed the fluid, so all you need to do is retrieve the old code and watch that AT Temp light carefully for a while.

Here's the thread that you want: 4EAT TCU Questions (96 Legacy Outback)

 

You may notice that I'm the one who initiated it, so I'm pretty familiar with this transmission troubleshooting thing!

It is funny how many wrong answers you got before the correct one showed up.

Do google search for "subaru tcm secret handshake" (not a joke) for TCM error code retrieval procedure. It works without any diagnostic hardware.

but back before there was such a thing as codes we still had tranny problems.

The most common automatic transmission problem on a trip is overheating, which is why transmission coolers are so popular. If you continue to run it with burnt fluid you can suffer furthur damage. As soon as she smelled the burnt fluid it had to come out of there code or no code. She did what she could on the trip,although we all know it should have a fluid and filter change, maybe a flush, and the codes read to find out why she is overheating her fluid. It can be as simple as running hard with a heavy load on the car.I hope it is simple overheating and just needs a cooler for her sake.

no no, thats the power light you're all thinking of. This is the AT OIL TEMP light. This was flashing while he was driving not at startup.

but back before there was such a thing as codes we still had tranny problems.

The most common automatic transmission problem on a trip is overheating, which is why transmission coolers are so popular. If you continue to run it with burnt fluid you can suffer furthur damage. As soon as she smelled the burnt fluid it had to come out of there code or no code. She did what she could on the trip,although we all know it should have a fluid and filter change, maybe a flush, and the codes read to find out why she is overheating her fluid. It can be as simple as running hard with a heavy load on the car.I hope it is simple overheating and just needs a cooler for her sake.

My point was that flashing AT temp light=AT errors. Only solid AT temp light signifies overheating. I thought it was explained clearly in the car manual. The description of the problem did not sound like overheating. AT overheating is is not subtle (smoke, dark fluid, dipstic too hot to touch, etc; I know it first hand). Besides, if AT sensor senses overheating, the Subaru tranny goes in overheat mode with no overdrive; again, not subtle to recognize.

 

And for THAWA, newer Subarus have no "POWER" light, AT utilizes the only signal light it has to communicate. Blinking on start up=stored error code. Blinking while driving=active error detected.

I hope it helps.

overheating. I know this is from the stone age but it still means time to change it.

And for THAWA, newer Subarus have no "POWER" light, AT utilizes the only signal light it has to communicate. Blinking on start up=stored error code. Blinking while driving=active error detected.

I hope it helps.

yes, it does

quit driving it so hard, they don't like mudding

 

mw2 survovor, clutch bake

my AT OIL TEMP light starting flashing a few weeks ago. I took it to a car place, they looked it over, said they couldn't find any problems, all is well, I was reading too much into the dash lights because they couldn't get the light to flash on start up. (this flashes 16x at start up, which I have learned from here means nothing other than an error)

 

Tried the infamous secret handshake EVERY time the light flashes. I get nothing.

 

Got new tires 2 weeks ago. Got a new filter and transmission fluid flush as well. Nothing for almost a week, then this week the AT OIL TEMP light is doing its thing again.

 

Where can I go or how can I find out the code meaning without laying out $90 at the dealer?

 

It seems, for the most part, to drive and shift fine except when it's been sitting for awhile. Shifting into 2nd is a little slippy to me and reverse sometimes gives a slightly harsher jolt than normal. Again, I'm told that I am being overly sensitive because, conveniently, this doesn't happen when anyone else is looking at the car or riding in it. Maybe I am, but that flashing light is getting to me and I can't afford a major repair nor can I afford a new car any time soon, so I need to resolve this.

 

thanks

Well if the 1-2 shift is a slipy there is an answer. I would go to a GOOD transmission shop or mechanic. There also is the old addage that it will only get more obvious with time. If it is a duty solenoid failure, do you have any symptons of torque bind. If you do and the solenoid has failed, put a fuse in the FWD holder. The torque bind will not change (since the solenoid failed) and there is your answer. You shouldnt drive with the solenoid failed, as you will have driveline damage with time.

 

 

Joe