IPT Valve Body Mod on '08 5EAT

[m sprank]

After less than 500 miles of stage 2 power on a car with 15k total miles the tranny feels "soft":(. Shifts under power seem to slip quite a bit compared to stock (or my stock '05 LGT I use for comparison). Might be just my imagination , but I don't feel very confident in its ability to hold full power under WOT shifts (especially downshifts) and last very long.

So, I called John at IPT today and made an appointment for Monday to have the valve body mod done and installed at his shop. He was very helpful and knowledgable. Offered to drop me off at the mall and pick me up when its done if I can't get a ride out. Best of all because they are installing it and will have the car all day he said they would be able to "fine tune" it for my car . Cost is $769 for the mod and $275 for the removal and install. I will be supplying the OEM fluid. Labor cost seems reasonable enough to discourage me from wanting to do this myself and have my car down for a day or two waiting to get the valve body back.

I havn't seen any postings of people who did this mod on an '08, or at so few miles. So, I will make sure to keep this thread updated once I get the car back and do some spirited driving. As well as be able to report about longevity with this mod.

[Wang Lung]

I haven't noticed any transmission slippage in my stage 2 '08. Still shifts as painfully slow as it did stock. I'll keep an eye on this thread.

[botbs]

May be he has custom tuned stage 2 and you have Cobb Stage 2?

[Wang Lung]

May be? May be not?

[m sprank]

Sorry, I guess I should have posted the current mods.

 

Map is Cobb OTS Stage 2 93 octane V1.03.

Stock intake, Cobb catted down pipe, SPT exhaust.

Planned upgrades include AVO/Perrin TMIC, el headers and a pro tune.

 

Maybe I'm being paranoid about the tranny. But my '05 shifts nice and firm in every gear with much better off the line performance than my '08. Currently on a WOT shift I see about a 300 rpm drop as the clutch packs slip during engagement. I dont like this at all. IPT tells me that the valve body mod will alleviate this and give me nice positive shifts. I am not expecting neck snapping engagement, but something more positive should at least make the clutches last longer and get the power down faster. I have read good results from other postings and figured the cost now was a better ROI over the life of the car. Most people are doing this mod later in the cars life. I am at 15,000 miles on the odometer and figured it would be a good test of if this mod does make any difference in the life of the tranny. I plan on keeping the car for a while and can keep the community updated on how everything is working over the long haul.

[jasone]

I wish I lived nearer to IPT, I'd have done this a long time ago. Or rather, had it done. I'm not scared to pull the VB out, but I don't want to have my car down for a couple of days.

[RIPjeep2002]

m sprank, let me know how it goes and how it feels. I have an 09 5EAT that is stage 1.5 now but I am wanting more, but want to get the IPT done. I live only hours away so I would drive down to get it done. Let me know how it feels and about the service cause if it is as good as ppl say it is, I'll be making a trip to IPT by summers end.

[m sprank]

m sprank, let me know how it goes and how it feels. I have an 09 5EAT that is stage 1.5 now but I am wanting more, but want to get the IPT done. I live only hours away so I would drive down to get it done. Let me know how it feels and about the service cause if it is as good as ppl say it is, I'll be making a trip to IPT by summers end.

 

 

Not a problem. That was the original point of the thread. To let everyone know what my experience is with the mod, service provided, and its short and long term effects on a (low mileage) '08 5EAT. I have gained a lot of useful info from the forum and would like to make a return contribution.

[captainhook]

+1 for post-install review, I'm most likely doing this over the summer. Some pre-purchase reviews would be awesome!

[RIPjeep2002]

depending on how this goes with m sprank, and depending on when you want it done captainhook id be willing to do a cruise to IPT with yah and get our trannies valve bodied if it's late summer when I have the grand to do it

[captainhook]

depending on how this goes with m sprank, and depending on when you want it done captainhook id be willing to do a cruise to IPT with yah and get our trannies valve bodied if it's late summer when I have the grand to do it

Hmm, sounds like a good plan!

[fishbone]

I, too, was registering 300-500 rpm "flare-ups" when shifting. It's because of the extra power, obviously. These things are tuned for comfort so the clamping power and shift delay is not doing any favors to the tranny. Some people thought somehow the newer 5EATs were more powerful than the previous years but I guess there you have it

The VB will definitely cure what you are seeing. I went from cringing to smiling.

Don't expect the shift points to be obvious. Matter of fact my shifts from 2nd to 3rd at redline I sometimes don't feel at all. When you look at the logs, you can't even tell when the gear engaged, just that it definitely did, going by the revs. You will only be able to tell by watching your rpms.

[m sprank]

Thanks fishbone. I read your previous threads before making the call to IPT myself. It actually sounded like we had a very similar issue. I am not expecting it to shift like I am dropping the clutch, I just dont want the clutch packs slipping so much during shifts. I am most worried about the trannys life ending prematurely due to the excessive slipping. It would also be nice to actually get all the power I paid for to the ground and not wasted. If it at least shifts at WOT with no slippage after the mod (even if I have to watch the tach to see it) I will be happy.

[fishbone]

It will definitely cure the slipping. Good luck and let us know what you think.

Oh, and make sure the ATF you get from the dealer is the 5EAT fluid in silver quarts, not the 4EAT stuff in white quarts. Some parts counters apparently don't know the difference, and it does matter.

[m sprank]

Yeah, I know. I bought all the fluid when I put in my tranny cooler a few months back. Got it from Bill Kolb (I know that BK is the antichrist, but its only 5 minutes from my house). I specifically requested the 5EAT fluid from the parts guy (after waiting at an empty counter for over 5 minutes) and he brings me the 4EAT fluid. What a bunch of douchebags! Took the guy an extra 5 minutes to locate the right fluid. I bought 4 quarts then and needed none of it when I installed the cooler. So I have the proper fluid waiting on my shelf. I dont trust any dealerships anymore. I've got some horror stories about dealing with Nissan over my supercharded Frontier and the bad knosk sensor they refused to acknowledge existed. Thats a whole nother forum thread.

Thanks for the heads up though!

Only 3 more days until tranny shifting Nirvana!

[fishbone]

My dealership's parts dept doesn't know the difference either. Matter of fact when I had my VB done, they had sent my shop the wrong stuff and my shop didn't know any better so I ended up with 3.5 quarts of 4EAT ATF >_<

It wasn't a slip-up either, because that incident marks the 3rd time they screwed up.

[m sprank]

My dealership's parts dept doesn't know the difference either. Matter of fact when I had my VB done, they had sent my shop the wrong stuff and my shop didn't know any better so I ended up with 3.5 quarts of 4EAT ATF >_<

It wasn't a slip-up either, because that incident marks the 3rd time they screwed up.

 

 

AAAARRRRGGGGHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!! That blows. I was told you can use the 5EAT fluid in a 4EAT but not the other way around. Sucks that you can barely trust the "professionals" when you have to leave you car with someone. I was a little hesitant to let IPT do the work on my tranny, but after talking with them I felt reassured.

 

-Update_

IPT called me today to confirm my appointment for Monday morning at 8am. Nice to know they remeber I'm coming.

[captainhook]

Sweet, eagerly awaiting results on a modded 08!

[m sprank]

Leaving for IPT in about an hour.

 

Got my money and 5 quarts of fluid (just in case, they said they would need as little as 1 quart). I'm like a kid at Christmas, can't wait to open my new toys.

 

Will report back this afternoon/evening when I get home.

[captainhook]

Best of luck dude, I hope it works out well!

[AKLGT]

good luck! I know I'd never have another 5EAT without the VB mod done at a minimum! I miss my crazy awesome launches! my modded VB with stood well over the same amount of hard launches and 22K miles, now in HLS's and surviving as well. My stock 08 STI clutch just died at 14,400 miles.... let's see, it's going to cost me about the same amount to fix the clutch in my 08 as it did for the VB mod, but the VB mod lasted much much longer and still going strong.

[jim1969]

Leaving for IPT in about an hour.

 

Got my money and 5 quarts of fluid (just in case, they said they would need as little as 1 quart). I'm like a kid at Christmas, can't wait to open my new toys.

 

Will report back this afternoon/evening when I get home.

 

How'd it go?

[m sprank]

Ok just got home (traffic sucked).

 

Whole "operation" took 5 hours. They had one of the guys take me to the Willowbrook mall, call me on my cell when it was done and pick me back up at the mall. No, I didn't spend 5 hours at the mall, I walked to the AMC across the street and watched X-men Wolverine.

 

I was given instructions to drive the car 50/50 for 200 miles to let the TCU relearn (no resetting at the dealership required). If I have any major issues call right away, otherwise let the tranny "figure things out" for 200 miles and then call if there's issues. After 200 miles that's the way it should shift for good.

 

They said my tranny mount looked good, but that if I were to replace it they have no issues with the Rallitek model. So, I ordered one (street version). I will install it after driving around for a bit to get the feel of things first.

 

I was also told that the valve bodies and solonoids on the '08s are more like the 4EAT's (their inhouse Forester/WRX) than the previous 05-07 5EAT. They said it is getting harder and harder to push the limits with the transmissions and not trip the TCU into "limp" mode. They said this is about as good as it gets without the full upgrade. Longevity of the tranny will be increased and they wish they saw more customers come in with low mileage cars rather than waiting until later.

 

My first impressions (after taking the scenic route out of traffic and driving 50 miles) it no longer slips period. Engagement does not snap your neck, heck under normal driving you cant even feel it shift. Its like butter, but when you watch the tach the needle is steady as a surgoens hand on engagement. When you pin it the tranny engages firmly with no slip. WOT shifts are smoooooth with zero slip.

 

Its not cheap, but if you can afford to go stage 2 you can save the cash and make your tranny very happy. I am very pleased so far. I was treated well by the staff at IPT. Both John and Ty seem extremely kowledgeable about transmissions in general and Subarus. I will post back with some more impressions after 200 miles. So far I think I just fell in love with my Subie all over again.

[jim1969]

where in NY are you?

[underscore]

My 08 started slipping after 7k (after Stage 2). I definitely would've gotten the IPT mod early if I could afford it.