Where is the transmission dipstick?

I just bought a 1997 Subaru Legacy Brighton Wagon yesterday. This is my first Subaru.

 

Here's a dumb question: Where is the transmission dipstick? I located the brake fluid reservoir, power steering, engine oil and pretty much everything else but not the tranny dipstick.

 

Unfortunately, the seller didn't have the owner's manual and neither does the Subaru website have pdf manuals for pre-1998 manuals.

 

I downloaded the 1998 Brighton manual and I couldn't find a diagram in that manual where it shows the location of the transmission dipstick.

 

Any help is appreciated.

Auto or Manual?

 

I know Auto is on the driver side you just got to look under the hoses.

auto or manual is a very important question. wrong info on this could cause a trans disaster.

 

the 5 speeds have a short dip stick on the passenger side down low. they only have one.

 

the autos have 2 dip sticks. the one for the front diff is in the same place as the 5 speed dip stick. the ATF dip stick is on the driver side, near the fire wall under the AC cooling lines the heater hoses. they both have yellow handles. it's there , keep looking.

Thanks folks. Mine is an auto. I found the one for the front diff on the driver's side. But I still couldn't find the one on the passenger's side. I kept looking for a long time but still no luck.

just wait, in a minute he will drain one and fill the other with the wrong fluid. and then either the trans will start slipping or the front diff will make a screaming noise.

 

no offense to the op, but it has happened to others. but to your credit, you are asking and learning before trying to do the work. this is a good thing.

just wait, in a minute he will drain one and fill the other with the wrong fluid. and then either the trans will start slipping or the front diff will make a screaming noise.

Thank God the ATF fluid was full anyway and I didn't try putting in anything.

 

What type of front diff oil do I buy? Never bought this before. What's 80W90? Why isn't there a front diff dipstick in non-Subaru FWD or RWD cars?

 

Also, can someone explain the AWD system on Subarus? How is it different from 4x4 or 4WD?

the AWD system on 90 - 99 auto trans subarus is a computer controlled transfer clutch which is powered by the ATF pressure.

 

there are 2 speed sensors, one on the rear output shaft of the trans and one on the front diff carrier. when the computer sees 2 different speeds, it changes the fluid pressure going to the transfer clutch in the rear extension housing on the trans and sends more power to the rear wheels.

 

in typical driving on dry roads the power split front / rear is about 90% / 10%. it can go up to, close to 50 /50. but even when the power split is maxed out at 50/50, it still allows for different speeds front and rear, so there will be no binding. (if you have ever driven a 4wd truck with the hubs locked, on dry pavement in a turn you know what binding is.) as long as the AWD system is in good working order and the computer is working, the system will allow for some ''slipping'' between the front and rear.

 

when the car is turned off the fluid pressure in the trans is zero and the transfer clutch disengages the rear wheels. this means you can jack up the rear wheels and spin them by hand because they are not ''connected'' to the trans.

 

a typical failure of the AWD system is a duty c solenoid failure in the ext housing. if the duty c fails, it allows ''full'' ATF pressure to get to the transfer clutch and it will ''lock'' the rear wheels to the front just like the 4wd truck w/ locked hubs. this causes binding. there is a fuse holder under the hood near the fire wall passenger side very close to the wiper motor marked FWD. this turns off the AWD by ''dumping'' all the ATF pressure and this dis-engages the rear wheels. this fuse holder, ANY size fuse will work, grounds out a pin on the TCU, trans computer, and turns off the AWD. or more correctly it turns ON the duty c ALL the time, which dumps the fluid pressure. (typically the duty c gets electric power on an cycle, a duty cycle, on-off-on-off several time a second?, which keeps a certain amount of pressure on the transfer clutch. this varying pressure determines how much power gores to the rear.)

 

the fuse holder is to be used if you have a flat tire and have to drive with the spare, or any odd sized tire. it is not designed to be used ALL the time, it WILL NOT save any gas money by increasing your MPG. and it does change how the car will handles on the road, FWD vs. AWD. try it and see.

 

the 90 - 99 5 speed trans AWD system is entirely different. it has a Viscous coupling center differential? set up. (i'm not sure it is a differential, but it often referred to as such.) when the front and rear wheels are turning the same speed the viscous coupling is relaxed and lets the car drive. when there is a speed difference, the viscous fluid heats up, thickens up and grabs more, thus sending more power to the rear wheels. (it approaches ''locking'' the rear wheels to the front just like a viscous limited slip differential locks the left and right wheels together.)

the single best improvement to the subaru AWD system is a limited slip rear diff. a front lsd would be just as good but requires WAY WAY more work.

 

our AWD cars can get stuck and be helpless if we have one front and one rear wheel spinning since both the diffs are open. a limited slip rear diff would engage the other wheel in the rear.

 

starting in 00 or 01, outbacks came with a viscous lsd option in the rear. by 03 it was standard on outbacks and GTs i think. these rear diffs will bolt in to our cars. you just have to match the final drive ratio. (you may have to change out the flange the drive shaft bolts to on the diff but that is all.)

 

so if you like off roading, or climbing snow drifts, look into a vlsd. i think you can get one for ~$150.00

Quite a bit of technical stuff. I will read more about this online and get back to this thread to ask questions if necessary. Thanks a lot. Your posts were really informative.

ok so I did the stupid and mixed up the tubes. Where is the drain plug for the front diff and what kind of fluid does the front diff take(or recconmend)??

 

BTW i have an auto

the drain plug for the front diff on an auto trans is located just behind the cross member.

 

the drain plug for the auto trans fluid is located in the transmission pan. about 18? inches behind the cross member.

 

but DO NOT drain either until you know EXACTLY where the dip stick / fill tube is for each.

 

the front diff uses standard gear oil, i think. but idon't know what that is off the top of my head.

thanks!

 

I know where the front diff dipstick is and i know where the drain plug for the tranny is now to find the missing pieces and im on my way!

the single best improvement to the subaru AWD system is a limited slip rear diff. a front lsd would be just as good but requires WAY WAY more work.

 

our AWD cars can get stuck and be helpless if we have one front and one rear wheel spinning since both the diffs are open. a limited slip rear diff would engage the other wheel in the rear.

 

Can you not use the brake trick to get past this?

 

Gradually put on the brakes while accelerating (while stuck, obviously). As your brake pressure increases, this ends up applying equal pressure to the fixed and spinning wheels so the diffs stop delivering power to just one side.

 

Start lightly and compensate for the brake drag with additional skinny pedal.

 

It does work, but is counter-intuitive