4EAT Transmission Repair Manuals

[TSiHawaii]

Forgive me if I didn't see it in the FAQ section, but I am looking for a repair manual for the 4EAT automatic transmission.

I recently bought 2 1991 Legacy SS of which I hope to make one good one.

Anyone on the boards in Hawaii?

[tris91ricer]

I dunno who's in hawaii, but.. good luck repairing that shit. These are AWD trannys, which means there's more things in there than you'd care to dink with, unless you've got the time, money and patience. I'd try sourcing some lo-miles ATs first, and then try the rebuild route.. Rebuilds on the mainland here, (like in WA) run AT LEAST $2200, if not more. Lots of places won't even touch an awd tranny, certainly not an AT.

[TSiHawaii]

Has anyone found a maintenance manual for the 4EAT tranny? Since I'll have 2 tranny's to play with I'd like to see if it can be rebuilt.

[Legacy777]

I'd suggest looking on ebay for factory manuals. There is an auto factory book that goes into detail, but there's nothing online that I'm aware of.

[tris91ricer]

It's an AT with AWD and a planetary-gear system.. ..not to mention all the electronics inside, as well.. it's easier, and less migraine-filled if you just swap it for a 5sp, or get a new tranny. I'm sorry, bro, shakabra.

[TSiHawaii]

Thanks. I'll look for a manual on ebay.

$2200 for a rebuild! I'm in the wrong business.

[Legacy777]

A swap is more involved then rebuilding...trust me.

Look at a lower mileage used one, or getting yours rebuilt. I would shop around for a lower price. $2200 is pretty steep.

[tris91ricer]

$2200 is a rebuilt price, from what I understand. Stealership ones are just rebuilt, and those go for $3k+ I got my used tranny for $350, with three time's the warranty other places were offering, and this one only had 97k on it. w00t.
Yeah, I'd check around..

[TSiHawaii]

I got a quote form one of the more reputable shops here in Hawaii. $2200-$2800! Pretty steep huh. They gave me a pretty good description of what needed to be done as far as cleaning things out and replacing parts. Sounds like the torque convertor is going out. Anyone heard of paper in the torque convertor? His description made it sound like the paper in the torque convertor is deteriorating and getting caught in the filter which prevents pickup of fluid which in turn doesn't allow the car to move, etc...

[magicmike]

um never heard of paper in the TC myself but if thats the case it sounds like you could just throw in a different TC from a junk yard or whatever and do a filter change with a fluid flush and that would fix it. I however could be wrong

[tris91ricer]

If there's paper in the TC, I'll shit a brick. Shit, I'll shit ten bricks! ..but your guy's gotta be wrong, at least for ours.
Paper breaks down in fluids, for obvious reasons. It also would break down faster in fluid environments which have a tendency to clean things with detergent, such as tranny fluid. So unless ya'll build your trannys ala gilligan-style on the island, then your tc's got metal, yo.

[TSiHawaii]

I thought it sounded kinda funny. Is there some other kind of material that could be breaking down?

[TSiHawaii]

I went down to the transmision shop yesterday and talked with one of the mechanics there. He showed me where he thought the paper material was located. It looked like it was glued to the back side of the torque convertor and he said that when it was in the engaged position it was like putting the engine in a 1:1 mode with the torque convertor. He said this was found on overdrive transmissions. It looked and felt like fine sandpaper. When I explained how I had bought the car and what I did to get it to run (although poorly) he said that maybe the solenoids were causing the car to start in second gear and not first. That makes sense as that is how it feels. I'll have the car towed there and let them look at it with their diags to see if it is fact starting out in second gear. Hopefully that is all it is. If so it should cost only a few hundred and not the $2200-$2800.

[tris91ricer]

Cool!
..just make sure you flatbed it there.. can't dolly-tow AWD cars. (Well, you CAN, but it's not recommended.)

[TSiHawaii]

I got it to the trans shop by driving it. It feels like it does run through the gears but it has to be in the manual mode. In the automatic mode it feels like it starts in 3rd and is real sluggish. Hopefully it is just a few solenoids or at least something simple. Had the car up to 45 mph and it feels like it will do freeway speeds so I'm hoping for the best.

[TSiHawaii]

Just got a call from the transmission shop. They said that everything with the trans is ok. According to their diags it shifts properly through every gear as it should. To them it appears like there is an engine problem where the motor isn't making the power. He said it's as if someone put a cork up the exhaust. I checked that out before and I have a very free flowing exhaust. Any ideas?

[tris91ricer]

Any problems near the bellhousing? I would check in there, as that's where moto-trans problems would eminate. Set aside a weekend, or afternoon, depending on your mechanical skills, tools, and friends you have available, and pull your engine and tranny, and have a look-see.. it's quite the adventure, and it gives you a fairly intimate knowledge of what goes out outside the motor, where things have a tendancy to get less predictable, as opposed to below the heads, where you know how things should operate.