4th gear issues 4EAT

Flywheel, Clutch, Transmission, Axles, etc...

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n2x4
Fourth Gear
Posts: 1522
Joined: Tue Oct 18, 2005 3:52 pm
Location: Massillon, Ohio

4th gear issues 4EAT

Post by n2x4 »

Ruhroh-

On my way to work today, 4th gear in my 94ss started acting up. It seems to really be slipping. If I put any decent load on the transmission when it's in 4th the revs will climb to just about 4k before it decides to downshift to 3rd. If I'm just cruzing on the interstate it's fine at about 2K rpms, but if I hit a hill, it starts to slip.
This just started to happen today. It feels like the torque
converter is really slipping.

I did some searching, and I figured I'd start with tranny fluid and brake band. I don't have any TCU codes. My tranny fluid looks ok (the car is warm now, I'm going to check it when it's cold). The brake band thing seems to be only associated with 1-2 or 2-3 shifts and my problem is only in 4th. The only other thing I noticed were two rubber hoses that looked like they went to breathers in the top of the transmission. Both lines didn't go anywhere back into the transmission, they just flopped around in the engine bay.
All the other posts I've read pretty much condem my tranny to death, which I don't want to believe because it's only got 110k on the clock.

Is there anything I'm missing? I could just drive it in 3rd, but the gas mileage would kill me.
EDIT: This is one of the threads I was reading back from '05. They never said if they found the problem, if it died, or if they fixed it: http://bbs.legacycentral.org/viewtopic.php?t=22546
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ciper
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Post by ciper »

My 95 legacy does this but only when cold. If I push it hard I can get the revs to climb 2k additional rpm without downshifting.

My first suggestion is to find a tennis court or similarly perfectly flat area and park the car while leaving it idle for 5 minutes then check the fluid level.
n2x4
Fourth Gear
Posts: 1522
Joined: Tue Oct 18, 2005 3:52 pm
Location: Massillon, Ohio

Post by n2x4 »

ciper wrote:My 95 legacy does this but only when cold. If I push it hard I can get the revs to climb 2k additional rpm without downshifting.

My first suggestion is to find a tennis court or similarly perfectly flat area and park the car while leaving it idle for 5 minutes then check the fluid level.
I got this car around the middle of the summer, and I haven't noticed any problems before it got cold out. I drive 80 miles round trip to work every day, and after an hour of driving, it still does it. I know the tranny has got to be warmed up.

I just checked the tranny level and from when I first posted to now (3 or so hours) the fluid level is still the same. I'm parked on a flat driveway and I did the whole cycle the gears trick. If I had to make a guess, I might even say the tranny is overfilled. It's still at the top warm fill mark. I'll let it sit for the night and check it before I go to work in the morning. Nothing like freezing temps and checking oil levels to get your day moving!
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