Subaru Forester transmission problems

THIS IS A REPEATABLE EVENT THAT COULD LEAD TO AN INJURY: PURCHASED A NEW 2006 SUBARU FORESTER 2.5X END OF OCTOBER 2005. AFTER APPROX. TWO WEEKS CAR BEGAN TO EXPERIENCE UNEXPECTED ENGINE RPM INCREASES IMMEDIATELY AFTER A "COLD START." WHEN CAR IS FIRST STARTED, ENGINE RPMS ARE AT AROUND 1500. PUT CAR INTO REVERSE AND BACK OUT OF PARKING SPACE. WHEN THE CLUTCH IS DEPRESSED, ENGINE RPMS SHOOT UP TO 3000+. THEN, AFTER PUTTING CAR IN 1ST GEAR, AND RELEASING CLUTCH, ENGINE RPMS DROP TO ABOUT 1500 BUT SLOWLY INCREASE TO AROUND 2500-3000 RPM AND VEHICLE SPEED INCREASES WITHOUT FOOT EVEN BEING ON THE ACCELERATOR. PROBLEM USUALLY CLEARS UP AFTER DRIVING A FEW MINUTES EXCEPT ON ONE OCCASION WHEN CAR HAD BEEN OPERATING FOR AROUND 15 MINUTES... WHEN I CAME HOME FOR LUNCH AND PULLED INTO OUR DRIVE AND PUT IN THE CLUTCH, THE RPMS SHOT UP TO AROUND 3000. TURNING THE VEHICLE OFF AND RESTARTING WILL "RESET" THE RPMS TO AROUND 1500 UNTIL IT IS PUT IN GEAR ONCE AGAIN AND THE CLUTCH DEPRESSED. A COUPLE OF TIMES THIS HAPPENED: AFTER THE RPMS SHOT UP TO 3000+, I KEPT THE CLUTCH PRESSED TO SEE HOW LONG THE RPMS WOULD STAY AROUND 3000. THE RPMS DID A DECAYING SINUSOIDAL OSCILLATION OF ABOUT 6 CYCLES OVER A PERIOD OF ABOUT 30-45 SECONDS, FINALLY LEVELING OUT AROUNT 1500 RPM. *NM

AROUND 100K MILES MY 2001 SUBARU FORESTER (MANUAL TRANSMISSION) EXPERIENCED SEVERE HESITATION AND MISSING (BUCKING) IN ALL GEARS, RESULTING IN A LOSS OF POWER. THE TIMING BELT WAS REPLACED AND MECHANIC ASSURED ME EVERYTHING WITH THE TIMING BELT AND CLUTCH WAS OK. WITHIN A FEW DAYS THE CAR EXPERIENCED THE SAME SEVERE JOLTING AS BEFORE. IN LOWER GEARS CAR ACCELERATES EXTREMELY SLOWLY, AND OFTEN STALLS AFTER THE SEVERE SHAKING. THIS IS A POTENTIALLY VERY DANGEROUS PROBLEM; WHILE TAKING A LEFT OUT OF MY NEIGHBORHOOD, MY CAR BEGAN TO SHAKE VIOLENTLY AND STALLED, AND I WAS ALMOST STRUCK BY ONCOMING TRAFFIC. *NM

THE 2000 SUBARU FORESTER, WHEN SHIFTED TO "D", "3", "2, OR "1" WILL NOT GO FORWARD. IT WILL ALWAYS GO WHEN IN REVERSE! WE HAVE BEEN TOLD BY SEVERAL DEALERS THAT THE TRANSMISSION MUST BE REPLACED (AT THE TIME THE CAR HAD 70K MILES AND WAS 5+ YEARS OLD - JUST OUT OF WARRANTY). THIS PROBLEM APPEARS TO BE WELL KNOWN TO SUBARU DEALERS. TO MITIGATE THIS PROBLEM, I MUST TAP THE ACCELERATOR, AND WAIT AND WAIT 1 SECOND TO 30 SECONDS BEFORE THE TRANSMISSION WILL ENGAGE. A YEAR AGO, THE TRANSMISSION WAS DRAINED, FLUSHED AND THE FILTER REPLACED, THAT HELPED A LITTLE. THE SERVICE WRITER SAID THE TRANSMISSION WAS OUT OF WARRANTY A SHOULD BE REPLACED, HE ALSO SAID THE WARRANTY SPECIFIED THAT BEFORE 40K MILES THE TRANSMISSION SHOULD BE DRAINED, FLUSHED, AND THE FILTER REPLACED. AFTER READING THE 2000 WARRANTY AND MAINTENANCE BOOKLET (MSA5M0001W, ISSUED JUNE 1999), PAGE 42 (2000 MY FEDERAL SPECIFICATION VEHICLES) AND PAGE 43 (NOTES) I FOUND OUT THAT HE WAS IN ERROR. ITEM 10 AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION FLUID IS AN "INSPECTION (I)" ITEM ONLY AT 30K, 60K, 90K, AND 120K MILES. PAGE 43 "NOTES 4 AND 9" ARE SPECIFIC, REPEAT SPECIFIC, TO THE AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION FLUID (ITEM 10). NOTE 4 DESCRIBES "SEVERE DRIVING CONDITIONS", BUT ONLY TWO OF THEM "APPEAR (NOT SPECIFIC TO ITEM 10)" TO PERTAIN TO AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION FLUID, "C. DRIVING IN DUSTY CONDITIONS" AND "G. TOWING A TRAILER" - I AND MOST OTHER OWNERS DO NEITHER. AND AS FOR NOTE 9, THE NOTES STOP AT 8, - 9 IS MISSING -, THE CALIFORNIA SCHEDULE OF INSPECTION AND MAINTENANCE SERVICES AND NOTES (PAGES 44 AND 45) ALSO HAVE NOTE 9 MISSING! INTERNET CITATIONS ATTRIBUTE THIS HESITATION PROBLEM TO A SOFTWARE PROBLEM (THIS YEAR WAS AMONG THE FIRST YEARS TO HAVE ELECTRONIC TRANSMISSION CONTROL - THEY MENTION) A PERVASIVE AND CONTINUING PROBLEM THAT SUBARU IS ATTEMPTING TO AVOID. THE APRIL 2005 CONSUMER REPORTS (PAGE 92 RELIABILITY SCORES) ALSO DOCUMENTS THE HIGHER INCIDENCE OF TRANSMISSION PROBLEMS WITH THE 1999 AND 2000 FORESTER.

THE PROBLEM ORIGINALLY STARTED AS A DELAY WHEN SHIFTING THE CAR INTO DRIVE. THIS WAS ABOUT A 1 SECOND DELAY, AFTER WHICH THE CAR WOULD ENGAGE INTO DRIVE, AND THEN RUN AND SHIFT FINE. BUT THEN, THE DELAY GOT WORSE. ALL OF THE SUDDEN IT WAS 2 SECONDS, THEN THE CAR WOULD NO LONGER GO INTO DRIVE AT ALL. AFTER EVALUATION, I WAS TOLD THAT I NEEDED TO HAVE 5 OF THE 7 SOLENOIDS REPLACED IN THE SUBARU. THIS WAS ON A TRANSMISSION THAT WAS 5 YEARS OLD, WITH ONLY 80000 MILES ON IT. I CONTACTED SUBARU ABOUT THE INCIDENT, AND THEY SAID THAT MY TRANSMISSION WAS OUT OF WARRANTY, AND THAT ME THINKING THAT 80K ON A TRANSMISSION BEFORE REPLACEMENT WAS ODD, IT WAS JUST MY OPINION. I INFORMED THE LADY ON THE PHONE THAT I WAS NOT THE ONLY ONE WITH THESE COMPLAINTS, THEY WERE ALL OVER THE PLACE ONLINE. SAME THING, OVER AND OVER, ONE PERSON HAD TO REPLACE THE TRANSMISSION AROUND 70K! I GOT NO RESPONSE FROM SUBARU ABOUT THE ISSUE, I WAS TREATED RUDELY, AND THEY BASICALLY HUNG UP ON ME. I DID INFORM THE ATTENDANT THAT FOR MY RECORDS I WAS RECORDING THE PHONE CALL, AND SHE THREATENED ME, SAYING THAT TO DO SO WAS ILLEGAL. I LOOKED UP THE LAW IN NEW JERSEY ABOUT RECORDING PHONE CALLS, AND AS LONG AS ONE PARTY CONSENTS TO THE CALL (ME BEING THE PARTY), THE PHONE CALL COULD BE RECORDED. HERE'S THE STATUTE: "IN ADDITION, AN INTERCEPTION IS LEGAL IF THE INTERCEPTOR IS A PARTY TO THE COMMUNICATION, OR ONE OF THE PARTIES HAS GIVEN PRIOR CONSENT, SO LONG AS NO CRIMINAL OR TORTIOUS INTENT IS PRESENT." I STILL HAVE THE ORIGINAL SOLENOIDS FOR THE TRANSMISSION. I ALSO HAVE A WRITTEN REPORT ON THE FINDINGS BY THE MECHANIC ON WHAT THEY FOUND. THE REPAIR COST AROUND $2200. HOPEFULLY, SOMEONE OTHER THAN SUBARU WILL LOOK INTO THIS PROBLEM.

1999 SUBARU FORRESTER. VEHICLE TRANSMISSION BEGAN HAVING DIFFICULTY SHIFTING INTO DRIVE. AFTER APPROXIMATELY 7-10 DAYS, VEHICLE SLIPPED INTO NEUTRAL UPON BRAKING. TOOK SEVERAL MINUTES TO GET VEHICLE BACK INTO DRIVE. 2ND INSTANCE ALMOST CAUSED A MAJOR ACCIDENT. I BRAKED TO TURN LEFT AND BEGAN MY TURN. WHEN I DEPRESSED THE ACCELERATOR, I FOUND THE VEHICLE HAD AGAIN SLIPPED INTO NEUTRAL AND I WAS HELPLESSLY COASTING WITH TRAFFIC HEADING TOWARD ME. LUCKILY, THE ONCOMING TRAFFIC WAS ABLE TO STOP IN TIME TO AVOID AN ACCIDENT. TRANSMISSION WAS INSPECTED FOR A POSSIBLE LINKAGE PROBLEM, BUT NONE WAS FOUND. A COMPLETE TRANSMISSION FLUSH AND FILL DID NOT REMEDY THE SITUATION. VEHICLE HAS SINCE SLIPPED OUT OF DRIVE 3 ADDITIONAL TIMES (LUCKILY NO ACCIDENTS).*AK