Trans jams after using reverse when hot.

[RM1SepEx]

I'm at the end of my rope. I've had Subaru techs open my transaxle 4 times including the original Quaife install. use reverse and almost all the time it will jam up and refuse to shift. Can't even find neutral.

I took the rear cover and first section off. I found that the reverse lockout has two arms at a 90 degree angle off the end of the main shaft. You can see in the parts diagram how they are supposed to look. In my transaxle those arms were bent so that the angle of the arms was less than 90 degrees so after talking to the Subaru tech I bent them so that they were 90 degrees as shown in the final photos

I need some ideas... HELP! Car is legal, fun as hell, no reverse or you get towed home. I was 4 miles away and found first, drove and coasted down hills very slowly to get home today.

[Bob_n_Cincy]

Dan
The back of my transmission doesn't have the right angle pieces yours have.
It sounds to me that the bars with the square notches are not snaping to the neutral position. Maybe some springs and balls got left out of your transmission.
Try moving the bars I show in this picture. They should each snap in (1,3,5) middle (N,N,N) and out (2,4,R)

They are shown in the picture with them all in neutral.

Bob

[RM1SepEx]

Bob, that all works fine, trans was reassembled and cases split 2 times, everything flushed out etc... rear section has been pulled and reset 2x by Subaru techs, last time by me as shown above. I'm thinking it could be something to do with this section on the side.

P1130121.JPG


I tried to remove it but it looks like it can only be done by pulling it apart again. When the local Subaru guys have no clue INCLUDING the service techs! UGH. I could just remove the reverse lockout...

it only happens after the car's been driven and it's hot, I backed her out of the garage and in the driveway before a short troadtrip w/no issues

drive 8-10 miles, use reverse, then nothing. I have to pop off the linkage and hunt around to find a gear. The first time, no chance only grinding. Towed her home, the last 2 times I was able to get first and drive slowly the 4 or 5 miles home.

[Bob_n_Cincy]

Bob, that all works fine, trans was reassembled and cases split 2 times, everything flushed out etc... rear section has been pulled and reset 2x by Subaru techs, last time by me as shown above. I'm thinking it could be something to do with this section on the side.

P1130121.JPG


I tried to remove it but it looks like it can only be done by pulling it apart again. When the local Subaru guys have no clue INCLUDING the service techs! UGH. I could just remove the reverse lockout...

it only happens after the car's been driven and it's hot, I backed her out of the garage and in the driveway before a short troadtrip w/no issues

drive 8-10 miles, use reverse, then nothing. I have to pop off the linkage and hunt around to find a gear. The first time, no chance only grinding. Towed her home, the last 2 times I was able to get first and drive slowly the 4 or 5 miles home.

I agree, if all is well after removing the lockout, that was the problem. Just be carful on the 5th to 4th shifts.
Bob.

[Loring]

Sounds like an interlock issue. It might be possible that whatever you bent back may be fatigued, and if it gives enough to allow the interlock to fall out of it's channel, it would cause this problem.

I'm about to open up my transmission, so I'll see if I find anything noteworthy that's specific to this trans.

[RM1SepEx]

the two fingers were bent in slightly allowing them to get stick in a groove of the shifting fork. They are supposed to stop the face of the fork and it was a slight tweak, they are not fatigued being simple steel after a couple very slight bends. I find it interesting that no one has any detail on the mechanism coming in from the side, even Subaru themselves

[Ironhydroxide]

This happens when the sleeve for 5th slides too far forwards. Or the reverse synchro ring is bent somehow.

If you don't care to have a reverse synchro, I would say easiest solution is to remove the ring. It's held in by a small snap ring and you can remove with a flat bladed screwdriver. The shift interlock should keep the fork from overextending and removing the ring while shifting into reverse.

[Ironhydroxide]

The Subaru Tech's I know almost never play in transmission internals.

The thing coming in from the side is the reverse interlock and neutral detent all in one. Reverse interlock can be disabled or adjusted, as well as neutral position, but any adjustment requires different parts installed, which are almost definitely a special order from Subaru.