Marthanna Posted June 1, 2006 Share Posted June 1, 2006 Just bought a lovely '93 Loyale about a week ago...A/T...2WD...nothing wrong with it except A/C leak..138,000 miles... Had oil change yesterday, with nothing done to transmission fluid. Had recharge done on A/C today with UV dye added to check location of leak. This done by certified Subaru mechanic (he's great!). So I ran the A/C while driving today (nice cool air!). While riding around later this afternoon, the car just froze up and started hesitating...would drive only in 1st and 2nd gear, not in 3rd ("D" on shifter). I know this is a "noobie" question, but does this sound like possibly a VERY expensive problem to fix (new tranny?) or possibly something else going on. The previous owners had provided me with all servicing receipts and had always had it serviced by the above mentioned Subaru mechanic and had no apparent probs except the A/C leak. I bought the Haynes repair manual, not much help with tranmission probs.. I have some car repair experience, but not much as far as transmission stuff. Thanks in advance! Martha Clark Austin, TX Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Special Fred Posted June 1, 2006 Share Posted June 1, 2006 First try a transmission fluid & filter change; that might help. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marthanna Posted June 1, 2006 Author Share Posted June 1, 2006 First try a transmission fluid & filter change; that might help. Thanks! I need all the help I can get...and I REALLY love this car. Martha Clark Austin, Texas Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikeshoup Posted June 1, 2006 Share Posted June 1, 2006 Sounds like something called the governor gear. The 3ATs appear to be notorious for this. More info: http://www.ultimatesubaru.org/USRM2/Transmission/Governor/ATgovenorclean.htm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
no-coast-punk Posted June 1, 2006 Share Posted June 1, 2006 DO NOT flush the transmission with that kind of mileage on it unless you have documentation that the fluid has been flushed every ~60,000 miles. The reason for this is that when transmissions do not have the fluid flushed regularly, the clutch packs begin to break down and glaze over. The fluid becomes very gritty as a result. This gritty fluid is hell on all the other moving parts in the transmission, but the only thing that is allowing the clutch packs to get enough friction. You could find that after you flush the transmission with new fluid the car will not go into ANY gear. It could very well be that governor gear. If there is an internal leak in that valve assembly, the transmission shift hydraulics won't be "seeing" the real vehicle speed. The transmission might only see 20 miles per hour with no need to shift to 3'rd when in reality you're doing 60. Be warned, that the valve body coming out = dumping all the fluid. You could very well fix one problem and cause another. Check for obvious things like loose vacuum lines and what not (if there is a line popped off the modulator valve, it could cause this as well). If there is nothing wrong externally, and the transmission has sufficient fluid in it... well... time for a re-build. Re-builds aren't cheap, but not as expensive you'd think. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
john in KY Posted June 1, 2006 Share Posted June 1, 2006 What about that vacuum line from the manifold that runs to the modulator? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marthanna Posted June 1, 2006 Author Share Posted June 1, 2006 Thanks for the help everyone! I'm checking with my mechanic this morning to see when he can take a look, and in the meantime, I'm under the hood/under the car, checking for loose vacuum lines, etc. BTW, the fluid level is fine, but the fluid is dark. Martha clark Austin, Texas Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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