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Comments
-juice
For the tranny, I drove one front tire up onto the curb.
I'm not familiar with Amsoil but just make sure the tranny oil does NOT have friction modifiers. The synchros need a bit of friction to work.
Jim
MNSteve
I'm late getting it in for scheduled service but was planning to do that in the next couple of weeks anyway. Any idea what I'll be looking at in terms of a cause and cure?
On another note:
Going back and forth between my 98 and my wife's new 03 Forester the 03 feels alot looser so far as doors and other hinged stuff and it's way looser than her previous Outback. When you close the doors the whole window assembly rattles noticeably unless you keep one hand pressed on the window while shutting the doors, whereas with the '98 everything shuts with a more satisfyingly solid, if not weighty, clunk. Same for the rear hatch and hood. Things don't close completely unless they're slammed a bit which I hate to do for fear of worsening the problem.
I'd heard that the frame had been stiffened/reinforced with the 03 line so I thought it would be more not less solid feeling. But then the Forester is a couple of hundred pounds lighter now is it not so maybe that's the reason? With the doors it looks like the panel is also clipped differently to the outside metal shell on the '03. Is there aluminum anywhere significant other than the hood? Is slamming harder than usual not really going to hurt anything?
Just wondering what's different between the two that would be responsible. I doubt there is much that can be done other than make me check things out more carefully when I have to replace my '98.
J
The whine - if you heard it at idle, with the car standing still, I'd say your silencer snorkus was disconnected or cracked. It's part of the intake.
I also thought wheel bearings, but that would not be throttle dependent.
So you've got me stumped. Check those two things anyway.
-juice
I WISH I knew WHAT it was caused from though. The dealership could not tell me this however.
It is very irritating and is an "under acceleration" or "engine/transmission load" and peaks at ~65-75 mph.
This is one of the most irritating factors of which I have previously bitched about-
(yes, way to much ) on my 03 Outback.
After less than 200 miles, my wife complained to me about the whine as sounding as if the radio was mistuned on the AM dial. It is within the same frequency range. Only those with Superman hearing are annoyed :-)
After the local dealer tracked it down to the transmission they replaced it with a NEW factory tranny.. The noise did NOT go away. They then drove several of the NEW cars and each one of them did it just the same. They had never noticed it ( they said ). Their final decision and answer was - ( it appears to be just a "quirk" of the vehicle and does not pose any problem). The problem it poses is- it's IRRITATING. They said we will just have to live with it.
Long and short - The transmission is doing it and they dont know what to do to make them stop.
You know, I'd forgotten the earlier posts about the "am radio " sound and didn't make the connection but that is what it sounds like it's doing.
I'll let you know what the service people say about it. This dealer service was good about replacing the clutch assembly on our Outback when the dealer we bought it from wouldn't so hopefully they'll be straight with me about this.
Don't know if it'll do me any good though. The car is out of warranty now so replacing the tranny just to get rid of the noise isn't an option. It IS definitely annoying, and moreso to the passenger.
J
It didn't feel any different after the change...I still miss a shift now and then. 8~O
Jim
I'm currently in litigation with Subaru for what appears to be the exact same problem the two of you are experiencing.
Fortunately, I've complied with all the requirements of my states' Lemon Law.
Subaru initally replaced the pinion bearing/gear ring (at 3385) in hopes of repairing the 60-80mph whine that was gas pedal dependent. This did not stop the problem. The District Service Rep refused twice to attempt repairs.
My initial complaint Apr02, was not handled well by SOA. After the Letter of Notification of Defect to Manufacturer, SOA comes up with the Tech Tip date Dec02, that tries to explain away the High Frequency noise driving at 65-70mph.
My whine (HF noise) is from anywhere between 45-80mph. And it varies as much as the weather.
I've driven two 2002 obw same options that did not exhibit this problem and I drove a new 2003 obw with same options that did not make the whine.
I've driven with someone in my small town who has the same model as mine.... no whine..
Wish you both good luck with SOA.
I hope this board will be able to broadcast this problem to its members and make them aware that there is a possible defect in the Phase 2 4EAT Transmission. Lets see if this happens?
IdahoDoug
Mike
BTW, I've heard a whine on my 02 OBW from time to time, but it's nearly imperceptible, and not bothersome, at least in my case.
Jon
Steve
Steve
Keep in mind that in most states, to qualify as a lemon, they'd have to be nearly brand new:
http://autopedia.com/html/HotLinks_Lemon2.html
-juice
-juice
Would the whine be a consideration especially when it comes about in speeds that is way excess of the speed limit, at least ? My "whine" starts at 80 and above.
zeuslewis hangs out on some boards here on Edmunds.com, he testifies in a lot of lemon law cases. You could hire him to check it out and build a case, if it came to that.
-juice
Anyway.... They state it is "NOT a problem" just as the dealer states!
The problem is I now have 3 whines going on associated with the car.
1). The transmission
2). My wife ( of whom is ready to drive that @$#!*^ off a cliff )
3). AND ME!
I plan to again speak with the dealer and see WHAT can be done.
The car has barely over 20,000 miles on it. The last time I was told to basically quit bothering them since they tried to fix it and are unable.
My daughter listens to Sesame Street tapes. Someone suggested ear plugs, LOL.
-juice
http://www.endwrench.com/current/Current6/03/InsiderInfo.pdf
The article gives the reason: "noise is generated by the reduction gear teeth in the rear of the transmission", and it also states that there is no reason to worry. While I am going to mention this on my next service appointment (and bring a copy of this article) and witten in the vehicle's maintenance record, I would not lose sleep over it. Just my 2 cents...
While we're on the subject of transmissions I noticed something while on a recent road trip in the new '03 that has to do with the cruise control.
First instance-
In one instance with the car in cruise I tapped the accelerate control to increase the speed setting and the rpm's shot from 2 to 4.5k and stayed there. When I turned off the cruise while maintaining speed the rpm's backed down to 2 or so. Increasing by foot to the same speed even with harder pedaling didn't result in such a steep climb in rpms.
What is it about the hand control that throws the transmission into such a low gear? And is there an advantage to this that I'd want to use in some circumstance ? (One note I haven't experienced this in any other cars I've had or in our prior Outback . There's always been a little bump in rpms but not to this degree). If this is normall behavior I think I'd increase cruise speed only by pedal and then reset.
Second instance-
While in cruise the car began to accelerate when beginning an incline and continued to accelerate even after reaching the set speed. I let it go on a little to see where it might be going but had to turn if off once I was close to approaching the cars in front of me. It had gotten to 78mph, 10+ mph over the speed I had set. In this instance I had NOT tapped the accelerate switch and this ws not a speed I would have mistakenly set it for,
I didn't start to use cruise until the car had 1,500 miles on it but perhaps this is too soon? I'm a little leery of using it for now as it seems to over-accelerate. Anybody else notice similar behavior?
J
It's very frustrating trying to open the car when the rain is pouring down and you have a 4-year-old child in your arm.
With my Infinity G20, I can actually operate the remote control from inside a building, two floors up!
I did have an interesting experience with our keyless remote. on the '03-
I activated my remote leaving a restaurant and my guest said "hey you just unlocked the car in front of you!". Sure enough we tried it a couple of times and my remote activated the other cars locks (a big Cadillac, I forget what model exactly, we left it locked back up).
I used to get into interesting situations years ago gettting into the wrong white Toyota Corolla wagon beause there were 3 on my street and my hand key seemed to open them all. Once I got locked out and I just borrowed someone elses Toyota key. So ar a remotes my guess is that there are a limited number of frequencies that result in the remote opening more than one car( ?) but I wouldn't have guessed it would work between models.
J
-juice
Jon
Mike
-juice
Leaving out some intermediate steps, the current situation is that the hesitation remains after a transmission flush. The dealer and the subaru rep claim not to notice the problem and say that there is no warranty claim to make (they inspected the car at 59.000mi.). They are clearly wrong; it is not a subtle characteristic, like (say) a complaint about "soft" shifting.
I don't think this is right. Moreover, my mechanic and others tell me that the hesitation is a sign of bad things to come. I am going to take my case to Subaru, but was interested if you know of other situations like mine. Thanks.
Joe
I have not experienced these problems in my 03 Forester and I have used the cruise control from day one. The only time the RPMs jump up is when I tap the control when going up a hill and the tranny needed to downshift just about the same time. I use the accelerate function and it usually stays within 2 to 3 MPH depending on the incline (I live in the mountains).
Just don't use the Series 2000 in the front (too slippery) and you'll be fine.
For the rear diff, I used a trick that I read on nasioc. Put the ratchet in the drain plug and use your jack. :-) Piece of cake!
-Dennis
Larry
AT transmission. Is it possible that some of the AT fluid drains back and when you start the car cold, it takes a second or two for the fluid to recharge the line, thus the time delay? Perhaps there is a drain back valve in the tranny filter that is failing. Maybe changing the filter (very easy) would help. Just a thought.
Cruise - mine works great. Keeps the set speed up and down hills.
Greg
Cruise control: I have a manual transmission, so I can't comment directly on the problem described. However my cruise control has worked 99% reliably, the 1% being rare occasions when it does not respond to initial attempts to engage.
rgds,
-wdb
gregmisc- Do you notice how far your rpms shoot up and if they stay in the upper range for very long?
My surge is indeed more noticeable if accelerate is tapped on an incline but also goes into the 4k range on the straightaway. I would expect an initial surge due to a downshift especially on a hill but my concern is that the rpms don't drop back after what I would think would be a sufficient period. I'm going to make an appt to take it in.
Speaking of cruise and manuals, we had that on our Mazda PU and Outback and I've always been curious how you can have cruise and manual together. It feels like up/down shifting but maybe it's just a speed change. Do manuals have some leeway range to shift within a gear ?
J
Regards,
-wdb
-juice
MNSteve
Now I have a similar problem that has just started, but with some different symptoms. The problem with the power locks not working has returned (I have to use the key to get in, even though the alarm is beeping twice that it is disarmed.) However, now I am experiencing concurrent to this my key getting stuck in the ignition when I try to turn the car off. I can turn the engine off, but I cannot turn the key past the Accessory position to remove the key. I had to fiddle for several minutes turning the car on and off and opening and closing the doors before the power locks started working again and my key would come out. As soon as the power locks started working, the key came out too, which made me think that there must be some kind of electronic interlock that allows you to turn off the car and remove the key, so I don't think it's a mechanical problem.
I hope this makes sense. My question is, does anyone have any idea what is causing this, or even why an electrical problem would prohibit me from removing my key?
Thanks!
Elliot
Ken
Take the puppy to the dealer and have them inspect the brakes.......I'll bet they will sent you on your merry way with a caution to NOT do this on a regular basis.
Hope this helps..........
I would ask the dealer to inspect them, maybe scuff the pads to re-establish a surface with some friction.
-juice
bit
Greg
-juice