hi i have been lurking this site for about a year now and have been reading up on the WRX. i really like this car but one thing keeps coming up its transmission . i have read a lot on all the transmissions problems and as a maybe buyer of this car it doesnt sit to well with me. then i read that SOA is tring to pass the buck on to the owner as ( driver abuse) .



now i dont plan on racing or really modding the car. i want a nice fun daily driver.but i dont want to have the car for lets say a year and have this problem. then have the dealer say i broke it and i have to pay. i call B.S. on that.

SOA knows about this problem why are not recalling/fixing this problem ?

whats your thoughts on this? any help would be nice.

 

I also was scared about the transmission and since my wife had no plans to learn driving stick shift and most of my previous cars were an automatic we decided to get the 4eat transmission instead. I know most people will say get a stick shift and rightfully so but if you want a fun daily driver without the headache and stil has the awd, performance, and handling that is an option. I love mine. From what i read and heard the 4eat is a pretty good transmission. Also if you do plan on modding it, another post i read said 8 out of the 10 fastest wrx stateside are automatics. I dont know what mods they did to the tranny ie torque converters and tranny cooler or what but its an option.

Also some people are dropping STi trannys into the 5 speeds. But the price of a new wrx and tack on the price of a STi tranny your getting closer to the price of the STi. and will have brembo brakes more hp and torque etc.

I agree with the tranny warranty being BS from SOA. They gotta know about the problem and ignore it. If they claim abuse what do they plan us suby drivers do with the wrx nurse and baby it! Come on it is meant and built to drive fast. Its one thing if you get a stripped down non performance car and treat it like it is and beat it up but if the car is sold and advertised to be driven than they shouldnt blame the driver for a weak !@# tranny. I am upset in general the way subaru is with mods anyways. Look at the mini cooper and the dodge srt-4 they have power packages right from the dealer. You can have them installed prior to buying the car or come back at a later date. Sorry to ramble on but even though i dont own the 5 speed transmission, this problem doesnt sit well by me.

chris

 

siver_rex_4eat how do you like the auto trans? pros/cons?
after blowing out my left knee and not being able to walk for 3 weeks i was thinking about an auto.

so how is the auto?


also you should not have to think in the back of your mind if your transmission is going to go. you have a new car. i can see this problem with over 50,000 miles by then you might have the car for maybe 5 years. things get old and go it happens.

 

I luv mine b ut my suggestion would be to test drive one. The only con for me is it is a little laggy from a light if just mash the gas pedal. You gotta feed the turbo and then let it loose. With the 5 speed you can rev it and then drop the tranny but that is wear the problems come in the 5 speeds if you do a high rev tranny drop.

Since i do construction and putting long hours in during the nice months of the year and i drive a company truck home, my car has very low miles on it. Last i checked it had like 5800 miles on it for a MY02 wrx sedan. So I dont have alot of miles on her but i havent read any major problems with some of the higher mile 4eats either.

I have got a few minor mods on mine a turbo xs axle back, silencer removal, k &n panel filter, and a turbo xs bov so far. I cant say enought good things about my car. I am so happy with it.

The only negative i have with the car but this is for all wrxs is the poor quality of paint. You can buy the clear film that covers up the paint from rocks and stuff . Its like an invisible bra and installs like window tint to your paint but is clear. That is one way to correct that.

The last thing is I know with the MY02 when i was looking for a 4eat is that they made a lot fewer of them. I live in new england and i called and travel to many surrounding states to find one in the color i wanted. I believe something in the 2000 range for the sedan and the same for the wagon. All the people i have met and have seen very few of the automatics. I came across people at gas stations saying I didnt know they made them in an automatic or I or my parents would have bought one. Im not sure how many of the MY04 automatics they made.

If you have any more questions or after you test drive or buy one just let me know.

chris

 

I also have a 4EAT. My previous car was a 97 Dodge Intrepid automatic.

After driving it for several thousand miles, I decided I couldn't deal with the wait for the turbo to spool up and the lack of off boost power. The Intrepid kills the WRX before the rex hits boost, and in an auto, there is nothing you can do but wait for boost to come.

So I had an uppipe and deadbolt port/polish turbo installed (both were also ceramic coated). It is significantly improved. Off boost torque is up to drivable levels (probably not significantly more than stock, but still appreciated) and turbo spool is about 500 rpm sooner (2500rpm or so). No engine management yet.

The only downside is that now my powertrain warranty is probably pretty much toast. Oh well. If I had known in May that in Dec. I could get STIs near invoice, I probably would have waited and had a warrantyable car.

 

Oh, I forgot to mention that my complaints with turbo spool are at altitude (2-3k+), not sea level. The N/A engine just doesn't get enough air. If my driving was mostly at sea level, I probably wouldn't have modded my car.

That's not to say it's fast at sea level (the Intrepid still takes it), but at least I feel safer driving it knowing that it will go forward when I push the gas.

 

see thats my point why should i have to take them to court for something that we all know and Subaru also knows. they have a bad transmission (driver abuse) is a **** poor why of saying not our problem you eat the bill.

dont get me wrong i think the WRX is sweet and i aways wanted AWD . so i just feel like im stuck in the middle and i dont know what to put my cash down on.

 

I havea 4eat MY02 wrx sedan and as stated in my previous reply i do feel more lag than a 5 speed but my car defidently moves. The down low isnt bad and at high way speeds i find my self trying hard to keep the car below 80. When the turbo is fully spooled and i step on the gas she goes real good. So your saying with the increased altitude your 4eat didnt get out of its own way. I hope that isnt the case because i am pleased with the excelleration and response when needed for an automatic. Once the car is out of warranty i also plan on a up pipe and turbo back and some kind of reflashing. For now ill keep the mods to a minimum and do a little suspension work, tires, rims, brakes, and body kit.

The other thing i may add is try to find a dealer you like. DOHcammin stated having troubles for catastrophic problems and windows squeeking. Although i havent had any major problems with mine ill say this. I did have the window squeek and they lubed it, and i experienced a vibration on the highway when i was pushing the car hard. They took it out for a spin and did find a wheel out of balance and fixed it.

MY point is this. Some service departments can be and are a pain in the !@#. The dealership i deal with for service are friendly and courtious. I know a technician there and the parts department really go out of their way for me. The true test will be if i have a major problem and see how they handle it. I hope this will never happen.So not all dealerships are bad. I didnt like the sales department there so i went somewheres else to buy the car and then decided to try the service dept and i like them.

Your doing the right thing by researching ahead. I know i did. But as some of the previous post i would buy another one in a heart beat. HOpefully the next is a STi or another wrx if they come out with paddle shifting.


chris