engine vibration

I have a 99 legacy GT wagon. it has 69K miles on it. It develops a vibration @ 2000 rpms, regardless of sitting still or driving. It is an automatic trans and the vibration is there no matter what gear it is in.

At first I thought it was a miss in the engine so I did a tune up, then the coil pack. that did not fix it so I took it to the subaru dealer, PERRY SUBARU in Virginia Beach Va. they thought it was the timing was out by about 1/2 a degree and thought by replacing the timing belt it would fix the problem, it did not. Since it did not fix the problem they did not charge me for the repair, not one dime. (its great to find an honest mechanic).

Now the dealership thinks the tourque converter is damaged and needs to be replaced. Since it happens moving or standing and in every gear I am lost, Any ideas please help...

Matt

A damaged motor mount could be letting the motor move enough to amplify normal vibrations. Otherwise, since the vibration is present with the car sitting still, it has to be an imbalance with some rotating part in / on the motor. My first guess would be that something on the accessory drive system is damaged or misaligned. A damaged torque converter, crank shaft, piston, etc could also be the problem. Even a problem with the valvetrain or fuel injectors could be causing the motor to run rough and produce a vibration.

I'd see if you have a bad motor mount bushing or if one of the mounts is broken or loose. After that, I'd check that everything on the accessory drive is aligned and see if you can find anything else wrong there. After that, I'd pull the oil pan, valve covers and tranny inspection plate to look for any obvious damage to the rotating assembly and torque converter.

What if the car starts shuddering ONLY when it's stopped... and in gear? Annoying as hell, I always have to knock it into neutral whenever l come to a stop.

Automatic transmission? What happens if you come to a stop, leave it in D, keep firm pressure on the brakes and give it enough gas to hold it around 750rpm?

If that solves the problem, I'd say there is something wrong with the motor causing it to shudder and want to stall under the normal load of the transmission when at rest. When's the last time you did a tune up? New plugs, wires, air filter and some fuel injector cleaner may solve your problem. Or, it may be running too rich, leaving unburned fuel in the cylinders. This is why guys with worked big blocks and such give it gas when stopped.

Or, the transmission is putting more load than normal on the motor when at rest. Possibly a problem with the torque converter, but I stay far far away from the inner workings of automatic transmissions so that's all the info I've got here, haha.

What if the car starts shuddering ONLY when it's stopped... and in gear? Annoying as hell, I always have to knock it into neutral whenever l come to a stop.

I've heard this is a common issue with the engines from our years, regardless of it being a 2.2 or a 2.5. Mine vibrates at stops when in drive, and I've got the 2.2, but I've been in a friends GT from 97 and his vibrates like my car does when stopped. I think it's just how the motor is; if it's really obnoxious (mine isn't bad, but u can notice it), there is the possibility of a motor mount or something else.

But with my car at an idle it is as smooth as silk, but as soon as the rpms get to @ 2000 rpms it starts to vibrate. This happens both in park and while driving. Its about to drive me nuts.

I have been getting alot of wind noise from the passenger side when I checked it out the gasket was messed up. I tried to build it up so it would seal better but I still get the wind noise. does anyone know a good place to get the rubber replaced? the dealer wants $96.00 for the one I need.

Thanks in advance,

Matt

Torque converter makes sense since Subaru diagnosed it two years ago as the reason why the car sputters/hesitates for a second when you first accelerate from a stop...

...wonder how expensive THAT will be to replace if I ever REALLY need to.

With over 222,222 miles, it probably wouldn't be worth replacing.

Why not? As far as I'm concerned, if you can put a little money and a few hours of work into a car and then get another few years of reliable service out of it its well worth the money and effort.

The tranny has got to be toward the end of it's life. May as well just wait till it dies to replace the TQ.

Maybe, but automatic transmissions can be rebuilt just like anything else. If its still shifting smooth and grabbing all the gears theres no reason to assume its on its way out.

I wouldn't call it a smooth shifter, but it works ok. I mean I took the car down a twisty back road the other day and it was holding gear nicely, and shifting well. There are some issues. Shift from 1st to second under light throttle results in a nasty jolt (seems synchros are bad there.) On occasions, coasting down a hill the car will slow down (not VIOLENTLY, but rather sharply) as the car upshifts. Lastly, sometimes when accelerating lightly, as the car changes gear it seems to shift into some intermediate...ness... for a few seconds and then complete the shift. Weird cause it accelerates the whole time, so don't really know what's going on.

But for never having been serviced or anything, I can't complain. It's running well!

that did not fix it so I took it to the subaru dealer, PERRY SUBARU in Virginia Beach Va.

Matt

just a tip.... any car out of warranty or more than 5 yrs old should not have to be taken back to the dealer... a dealer sees an older car pull in and all they see is dollar signs... *cha ching cha ching*

I wouldn't call it a smooth shifter, but it works ok. I mean I took the car down a twisty back road the other day and it was holding gear nicely, and shifting well. There are some issues. Shift from 1st to second under light throttle results in a nasty jolt (seems synchros are bad there.) On occasions, coasting down a hill the car will slow down (not VIOLENTLY, but rather sharply) as the car upshifts. Lastly, sometimes when accelerating lightly, as the car changes gear it seems to shift into some intermediate...ness... for a few seconds and then complete the shift. Weird cause it accelerates the whole time, so don't really know what's going on.

 

But for never having been serviced or anything, I can't complain. It's running well!

This is exactly what is happening to my legacy! Same kind of shifting, exactly the same kind. It's somewhat intermittent, and hardly noticeable under heavy acceleration, but still there. And I have reason to believe that my torque converter is going too (going to check this weekend), but mine makes a squeak at idle rather than vibration like what you're describing. We also replaced the timing belt/water pump/tensioner but didn't have the problem fixed

Are there any diagrams/good links for images (assembly diagrams) for the second gen. transmission? Something in the later years; mines a 98, and I'm thinking about rebuilding it unless persuaded otherwise.

Stang, do you think your transmission is getting on in life with those issues? I'm having the exact same problems with it + a torque converter issue; I don't know whether to find a rebuild transmission or to just go thru a rebuild myself, and if it'd be worth it.