Geoff D. Posted February 1, 2014 Share Posted February 1, 2014 So I'm really starting to hate this car I loved 2 months ago. Since buying it I have now replaced the turbo, had the timing belt done, and all four tires. I bought this car in september from the original owner with 99K miles on it, and it now has just over 104k. Per review of the service records and discussion with the owner, the car is still on the original clutch so I figured I would be replacing it within the next year or two. Due to this artic blast we have had here in Michigan, I have on several occasions tried to get my car out of deep snow in my driveway and ended up burning the clutch (lovely metallic smell). Today I woke up late for work and didn't have time to shovel, so once again I hopped in and tried to drive through deep snow. To my surprise, when I accellerated the car popped out of reverse! Put it back in first and pulled forward to adjust, shifted back to reverse and there it popped out again. Drove to a nearby gas station to grab a cup of joe, put it in reverse to get out of the parking spot and it popped out again! I have never ran into this issue before. Due to the damage I have done to the clutch in the last few weeks it is already nearly at the end of its life (grabs VERY high, to the point where I barely have to depress it to shift), but not yet slipping. So what do you guys think? If I put a new clutch in will it resolve the problem or should I take it to a specialist and have it diagnosed? I would hate to have the clutch replaced only to find out afterwards I need to have the transmission rebuilt. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geoff D. Posted February 1, 2014 Author Share Posted February 1, 2014 Update, there is definately something wrong with the transmission. It pops out almost every time now and I have a very strong cat piss like smell, something I have never smelled from a car before. Any ideas on what I am looking at for a rebuild? All the area shops are closed so I will start calling around Monday. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
heiche Posted February 4, 2014 Share Posted February 4, 2014 Sorry you didn't get any prior responses here. I saw your other thread - hope the shop is able to fix the issue(s) relatively easily. Please let us know what it turns out to be. BtSsm - Android app/Bluetooth adapter. LV, logging, gauges and more. For 05-14 Legacy (GT, 2.5, 3.0, 3.6), 02-14 WRX, 04-14 STi, 04-14 FXT, 05-09 OBXT Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geoff D. Posted February 7, 2014 Author Share Posted February 7, 2014 The shop tore the trans apart, didn't find anything wrong internally...They did say the throw out bearing had damaged the pressure plate (but luckily the input shaft was fine!), and the flywheel was badly burned. Cleaned the entire trans, put on a new exedy clutch kit/flywheel and a new t.o.b. and they are putting it back together this afternoon. Hopefully there are no further issues, I'll let everyone know when I get the car back. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geoff D. Posted February 7, 2014 Author Share Posted February 7, 2014 Well they put it all back together and...It still pops out of reverse!! The guys at the shop apologized and said they will make it right and provide all of the labor necessary free of charge, which brings me back to you guys. Is there not one person on this forum who is familiar with this reverse pop-out issue? After looking at the schematic for the transmission, reverse is clearly separate from all of the other gears being that it has the idler gear. The shop said all of the gears were in good shape, and none needed replacing. The way I see it right now I have two options: 1. Replace idler gear and associated parts hoping for the best 2. Replace entire transmission with the one from a 2008 with a 3.9 differential, which brings me to this question: Is it possible to change the front differential on the trans from a 3.9 to a 4.11? I would prefer this over replacing the rear diff. with a 3.9 simply because I am trying to keep the car as close to stock as possible, it is a daily driver. I already have the 4.11 differential out of my original trans. Let me know what you think. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
heiche Posted February 8, 2014 Share Posted February 8, 2014 It's surprising that they opened it up and didn't see anything wrong. Although the reverse gear is separate from the others, it is related to 5th gear, same selector rod. Another possibility is that it is something external of the trans, like the shifter itself isn't allowing reverse to be fully selected. Maybe some shifter bushings are shot? Just throwing out some guesses. I've only had one 5mt apart, so I'm no expert, but there are others here that are....... BtSsm - Android app/Bluetooth adapter. LV, logging, gauges and more. For 05-14 Legacy (GT, 2.5, 3.0, 3.6), 02-14 WRX, 04-14 STi, 04-14 FXT, 05-09 OBXT Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Juicy555 Posted February 10, 2014 Share Posted February 10, 2014 2001 Subaru Legacy gt Limited owner here Same problem - 193k on Subie with clutch replaced already 50k miles or so ago. Reverse gear pops out if I go to fast ( 5mph ) makes kind of a whining noise too. I have to go slow or hold the gear lever for it not to pop out...It does anyway when i was in some snow though, had to keep putting it back in. The reverse gear itself feels weird, almost like it doesnt go into the slot all the way even though i try.. Somewhere on this forum i believe someone said its something to do with the gearbox, specifically with an aftermarket short shifter being installed incorrectly, which I have! The person I bought it from installed it himself and must have done something wrong... Anyway, if they haven't checked that have them do it. Because I need to get mine fixed too.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Max Capacity Posted February 10, 2014 Share Posted February 10, 2014 FWIW, did the shop check the shaft the gear slide on to make sure it wasn't cracked ? I had my main shaft with a small crack that took to a rebuild to not fix the 3rd gear issue I had, during the test drive the car finally lost 3rd, 4th and 5th gear, then we knew we had a really problem, found the main shaft was cracked about 3/4 of the way through before the first rebuild. But not enough to come out in two pieces. The second time it came out in two peices and you could see the crack and the small amount that was still attached. 305,600miles 5/2012 ej257 short block, 8/2011 installed VF52 turbo, @20.8psi, 280whp, 300ftlbs. (SOLD). CHECK your oil, these cars use it. Engine Build - Click Here Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geoff D. Posted February 11, 2014 Author Share Posted February 11, 2014 No short shifter has ever been on the car, got it from the original owner and it was still on the original clutch at 105k when they replaced it. Max, are you refering to the main shaft being cracked or the one the idler gear is on? I would imagine this was checked but will certainly follow up with them. Another thought, subaru addressed this issue on earlier imprezas with a revised idler gear, main shaft and the shaft the idler gear rotates on. According to the tsb the cars affected had the same issue mine is having. Since the impreza issue happened around the same time, is it possible subaru changed parts from the earlier cars (mine has an 04 build date)? I wonder if they changed the spec on those parts without putting out a tsb... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Max Capacity Posted February 11, 2014 Share Posted February 11, 2014 My tranny guy is pretty good, he missed the mainshaft being cracked. it was not obvious. Not sure what they could have done. BAC5.2 used to post on here a lot, he was great with tranny issues. May be try and PM him. Last I heard he was in Europe. 305,600miles 5/2012 ej257 short block, 8/2011 installed VF52 turbo, @20.8psi, 280whp, 300ftlbs. (SOLD). CHECK your oil, these cars use it. Engine Build - Click Here Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DonnyJagaru Posted February 11, 2014 Share Posted February 11, 2014 You can't blame the tires or the timing belt, that's just regular maintenance stuff. I can't believe they took the transmission apart and didn't find the problem. Awesome! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ice Wagon Posted February 26, 2014 Share Posted February 26, 2014 I have a '96 legoback 2.2 5mt wagon and it wont stay in reverse, the shifter either pops a little forward or a little back when I start to move in reverse,makes a little pop noise and sounds like it spins the input shaft and its really hard to get it back to neutral if the shifter slips back Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScottieBoy Posted March 1, 2014 Share Posted March 1, 2014 How do your trans and motor mounts look? If they're shot, maybe the engine and trans are moving just enough to pop it out of reverse. Just a thought tho because I'm no transmission pro Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
evangt Posted April 6, 2014 Share Posted April 6, 2014 I've got the same issue with mine. 05 LGT 5MT purchased about a year ago with around 115k. It did it on day 2 of ownership. Since then I've just kept my hand on the shifter and reversed carefully. Everything else seems fine though, except for some squealy clutch noises in 1st, but I don't think they're related. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robe30 Posted August 20, 2018 Share Posted August 20, 2018 Has there been any progress OP? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geoff D. Posted August 21, 2018 Author Share Posted August 21, 2018 My car now has 198k on it, and a new clutch (stage 3 clutch blew out the fork 40k in....will never buy another one of those). Still pops out of reverse but after 94k miles it doesn't bother me anymore. The rest of the gears work properly and it shifts smoothly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lockmedic Posted August 22, 2018 Share Posted August 22, 2018 I have a 07 WRX that does that. Haven't addressed the issue as it's not a huge bother. Only pops out under a load so as long as I don't park it where I have to reverse uphill it's no prob. Nice to know I'm not the only one with this issue. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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