WRX Tranny

Are the WRX trannys really as bad as people say? I realize that all the threads about them are going to be people with blown up/ broken ones not those with no problems, but there seem to be an awful lot of stories. Also, have the trannies been revised for the 2006+ wrxs? If not what is anyone thinking when they do even a conservative turbo swap (vf39) on the new 2.5 which obviously has a lot more power to begin with? is this not just asking your tranny to break a gear(s)? And with the price of ppg or an sti tranny, this is no small problem.
Mostly just looking for opinions/experiences. all ideas welcome
Thanks

 

I know my post will be considered pointless but...4EAT FTMFW!!! :banana:

 

no, 5eat ftmfw....my 5 mt has almost 200k on it, and its an L trans, and im pushing more wtq then 2.0 wrxs, it all depends on how you drive it, if you drive it like a retard you will break things, end of story.

 

no. :hsugh: but yeah.

 

I don't really understand what "driving it like a retard" is. I know launching is always a bad idea, but i thought the goal is to shift as fast/smooth as possible. This is inherently going to stress your tranny more than just slow/low power shifts, but then what is the point of a manual or even a high horsepower car for that matter if your not going to try to drive it fast? You arent necessarily a poor driver if you put stress on your tranny, are you?

 

They are not as weak as everyone says, its all in how they are driven. One reason a lot of people break them is, with a two wheel dive car, rev the engine and dump the clutch you get a whole lot tire smoke. With awd, all the load has just gone to the gears instead. Somethings gotta give...

 

"driving it like a retard" = basically driving like you stole it on a daily basis imo. Big fat launch on every other stop, slamming it into gear, etc. The way I drive and the way I've seen other people drive manual subes is almost night and day difference. I tend to use more clutch on shifts for smoother transitions, and notch the shifter in firmly but not forcibly so as to give the synchros time to match gear speeds to revs. And when I want some kick in the pants, I'll make sure it's in gear and the car is moving before gunning it.

I think a good gauge is to have someone sit in the passenger seat while you're behind the wheel. If you notice their head bob forward a lot during your gear transitions, you could probably stand to shift a little smoother.

This is not to say you can't have your fun with a 5mt, just pick your time and place to do it. Basically, any transition that keeps the car in smooth motion is generally better for the drivetrain than sudden jolts - if you can help it.

 

Thanks for the responses.
Really looking for the answer to this one...
Thanks

 

The newer transmission are suppose to be stronger.

 

not true, 90,000 miles on my 4eat with only a torque converter, and modified valvue body mine holds up strong 16psi launch after launch. AMSOIL is what i have to add to that equasion.

 

4eat tends to stand up to much more power than the 5mt, just the nature of an auto vs manual and how they transfer torque. 5mt is a direct, solid, physical connection between the motor and tranny once the clutch is engaged with no slip, auto is generally a liquid connection which naturally allows more give.

 

When i was thinking about getting a subbie that was one of my concerns, however like many people said here already its all about your driving style. Driving a subaru is very different from driving a fwd car. For example my 02 will not go into first if you are going even 5mph. I can get it into first if i clutch and rev a few times. Btw, you can do lunches on subarus without too much strain on the tranny. One of the very good drivers on this forum showed me how to do it, i am still not very good at it though. Its a very bad idea to drop a clutch at 5k from a dig. You need to easy into it. When you are at a dead stop you need to let the clutch out to a point where the car is almost starting to move and then back off just a bit. Then you rev the car to 4500 or so and quickly reliase the clutch. This way you dont a huge bang at all, pretty much all the strain is on the clutch, but clutches are way easier to replace than trannies. If you rev match on the down shifts and heel and toe form a third to second its makes a hell of a difference and is lots of fun. With some 02s you can get clutch shudder when its cold, but its goes away when the car warms up. And yes 06+ trannies are better and are should be stronger than bugeyes. The biggest difference that i know of is double synchros on 1 and second gears. Hope this helps,

Taras

 

04+ transmissions have the stronger gears in them; it's the '02 boxes that were causing all the ruckus.

However, there have been several reports of 06+ guys destroying 3rd gear. It's more than likely due to the switch to the taller 3.7 final drive.

 

welcome to the club bugeye386!

Tom (wall of Tv's) is correct, 04+ have stronger gears. I'm running a 16g set-up on my stock transmission and ran stage 2 for over two years and my 04 transmission is still holding up just fine. I replace my fluids every 15-20K miles and never drop the clutch. However, I do drive very hard and shift very fast...frequently:biggrin:

Just take care of it and they will hold a good amount of power. For the 04+ I believe once you produce greater than 280-300 foot pounds of torque at the wheel is when you need start thinking about better gears.

 

Heh, I've been running 300+ wtq for quite a while now.

*knocks on wood*

 

shifting with grace with good clutch pedal control goes a long way....

 

MY 02 5mt is starting to make some odd noises, but it has been to the strip a cople of times. It's also got bigger stickier tires, some more power, and an abusive owner, over all it's held up pretty well...so far. I am kind of looking for an 04/05 5mt to have on stand-by.

 

+1. The gear ratios where revised for MY07, although the FD is still 3.7. I'm unsure as to if that has made a difference to the grenaded 3rd gear, though. If you rev match and don't clutch dump, you'll be fine.

Honestly, it's a classic case of a few people making a lot of noise. People who don't blow up their tranny don't complain. Plain and simple.

 

Proof?

And awdl if you pushed that much tq through your tranny from mile 1 I bet your tranny would be toasted. If you plan to push more then stock power levels with your WRX MT is going to break, just a matter of time. If you ***** foot it you should be fine, but who likes to do that?

 

proof is in the pudding

But really, if you are scared of breaking ****, don't modify your car. Plain and simple.

 

I disagree. Sure, you drove your car for many miles with more then stock power level, but you dont drive your car hard at all. The WRX tranny is not designed for its own power level. Now the STi tranny is built VERY well. They can take the most abuse from the best and the worst drivers at any power level, and dont break. That goes to show Subaru did well with this tranny. Plain and simple, the WRX tranny is garbage imo, its going to break sooner or later.

And I still want to see proof if any of the WRX years having stronger gears.

 

50% correct...the sti tranny part. like i said, my car with 200K and a weaker trans and more tqs then most 2.0 rexxes holds up just fine, its all in how you drive, look at fuji, he has been through a million trannys, even when he was n/a.

 

so conclusion...don't let Fuji drive your car...

 

The '04+ WRX gears are physically wider than the '02 and most of the '03 gears. I don't know of any evidence that would be more conclusive than that.

 

LINK? PROOF! By you saiying this its not PROOF.

And where did you quote that from Jason?

Either way, the RA gears suck too. They advertise a street legal RALLY car and put a tranny in that cant withstand abuse. Smart move Subaru :roll:

 

They even have different part numbers (3-4th gears) 02-03 32214AA720 04-05 32214AA720, they DID change.

 

^^hater?

The impreza is a rally inspired car. it is not a true rally car or else it would have a semi-automatic fully sequential 6spd that would not break if hit w/ a WMD, and this would not be an issue.

The 02/03 WRX transmissions are essentially slightly tougher versions of the 93-01 Impreza transmissions. you add ~75-100 hp to a car where the transmission was designed for for 135-160hp, you are pressing the durability of that trans. it has been called the weak point in the wrx for along time. How you drive it makes a big difference. people have blown up trannies w/ only stock power, and some people (ask on RS25) are running 3-4x the amount of stock power into the same gear box w/ no problems (yrs and miles to prove it).

end note: drive nice, if it breaks (gotta pay to play) get some RA gears and be done w/ it.

 

I still want solid proof of the gears being changed in the different years. Quoting people on nasioc is silly. Lets see a side by side comparisson. And we ALL know just because they change part #'s does NOT mean they made it any better. Come on now.

I know its not a freekin rally car, you dont have to tell me that. They ADVERTISE it as a street legal rally car, if you have ever seen the commercials. Why is it so hard for you to understand the WRX tranny's are garbage? You upgraded to PPG's for a reason and I kept my stock gears in my STi when I added double the WHP. Im done pissing back and forth with you because your never wrong. WRX = trash tanny. DONE.

 

Can u stop using me as your example...

 

WRX tranny is weak when pushing 300+ whp& wtq...YES, we all agree to that. I believe that WTV is just stating that the 04+ is slightly better (wider) than the 02-03 models...which can take a bit more abuse, but again there is a certain point (wtq) before it breaks. I don't think Tom is saying that the 04+ wrx isn't trash, but he isn't saying either that they are bulletproof

 

Rev. A B C are all garbage. My point. Thanks.

 

This just goes back to what I always tell people: If you want to drag race, you should've bought a Firebird.

 

The problem is that the dealerships require you to have a mullet as a prerequisite to purchasing one :biggrin:

 

It only takes a couple months to grow it out.

 

Can you do a mullet with a comb-over? Hmmm....

 

i agree with everything you say...accept for the RA gear setup, its a waste of money, PPG is the only way to go.

 

Alright, thanks to those who have provided valuable information in this thread.

here's what i've gathered

a- stock gears don't suck for stock power levels. Key component to durability? Frequent changing of lube and good driving habits.

b- ra gears are a good option for a person with a budget and doesn't want over 350-375 at the wheel. (Which is still very quick (not fast) compared to stock power!) how many wrx owners on MNSubaru actually have more power than that?

c- sti conversion- great option if you have the money to spend and good at surfing the internet for the right parts at the right price.

d- ppg gears are very popular, but a bit expensive for the average person that modifys a wrx. However, they have the ability to hold massive power compared to stock or ra gears. If you want 350+ at the wheel this is the way to go....unless you go with the sti swap

I've been investigating options as well. best price i've seen was about 3680 for straight cut or helical 1-4 through PPG:yumyum:. total build? i don't know, maybe 4200 with new syncros, etc...??

 

RA gears are a waste of money if you are "upgrading" to them for durability reasons. They are the same width as '04+ gears and therefore offer no increase in strength.

The only reason to switch to RA gears is if you want to change your gear ratios.