Valve body mod bangs

So my car has had a valve body modification for about 400 miles. It still seems to get hard slam shifts every now and again making a loud bang. I got my car retuned today and it did it on the dyno. I was speaking to my tuner and he said that you shouldn’t have a valve body mod without a high stall torque converter and that’s why it slams. I was telling him about how after the install I reset mem2 and just drove it just like everyone else does. I told him maybe that wasn’t the right thing to do and I should go to Subaru to have a proper relearn done on the lift considering they have the correct monitor to do it. He said that every valve body he’s ever had in a Subaru was a drop in and it was good. No learning. He said the shift points are pre programmed into the tcm. So I’m confused now. These are all things that contradict what I had previously heard about valve bodies.

He pretty much told me if I don’t do the torque converter it will continue to bang and I will eventually blow my transmission. I was under the impression that’s why I did the valve body mod to begin with. To avoid killing my transmission.

He’s not even trying to sell the work either. He told me to just do it myself. So that isn’t the reasoning.

I’d hate to do the torque converter and my car still has slam shifts. $685 is too much to waste if it doesn’t fix my issue.

What do you guys thinks I should do?

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Can't help but following out of curiosity....

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I’ve found that resetting memory 2 then following this procedure works well.

First warm up the trans by taking a 10 min drive then while shifting in manual mode gears 1-4 @ 10-12% throttle then 4th to 5th @12-15% as displayed on the AP. I think I make the shifts around 2500-3000 rpm but it might be lower. I do this about 3-4 times in a row then drive like normal after that.

I only get a hard shift if accelerating moderately then easing off just before a shift point. Probably loading up line pressure just before what should be a gentle shift. John at IPT told me that often when the car is tuned the tcu gets kind of confused by the changes to the ecu and a reset/relearn can help.

These transmissions are so damn quirky I’m not sure they can ever be made to work perfectly in all situations and you need to train yourself to drive the car how it likes to be driven. (If that makes sense)

I’m using the trans-go vb kit

Going to the dealer today to address TSB 11-90-08. Hopefully this should clear up any bangs I have in second to third. Hopefully it was never done and this solves my last issue. Having a proper relearn done in the lift after that. I’ll let you all know if it made a difference.

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Pardon my ignorance but what is the TSB for?

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Pardon my ignorance but what is the TSB for?

 

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It’s for the 2-3 3-2 slam shift. New software supposedly corrects it

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Hmmm. The 2-3 shift is what affects my car. 69k and a few dump/fills with Idemitsu fluid. I do the reset every so often when it gets real stubborn. I should call the stealership. Thanks.

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Okay so I have come to the conclusion that doing your own tcm reset doesn’t do squat. The dealership does a sequence of things when resetting the tcm. It has you put it in all the gears, press brake and handbrake at certain times. Without the select monitor handheld. You cannot do this correctly. Just resetting and driving doesn’t correct problems. It is still using old data in the tcm. This is all according to Subaru.

If you are going to do this. Just go the dealer. I also brought a tsb with me and had them check the tcm for updates. If you do not ask. The likely won’t check. I was ready to leave today and asked him if he had done an update. Which I had specifically asked for and they hadn’t. He took it back in and sure enough there was an update for 2-3 shock shift correction.

The first picture I am posting is the tsb that I found on the internet. Since then there has been another update. The .pak file is different and was updated a year later.

The second picture is the update I received today

Sorry about the the second one being cutoff but that is what they printed for me

So when driving home. He instructed me to stay in intelligent mode and do not give it more than 10-15% throttle. This was kind of impossible for me because you really can’t get up to speed with that throttle. He said as long as I stayed under 30% and eased into it. It would be fine. Said to drive about 10 miles this way. Obviously stopping every so often and starting back at first gear and working your way up.

DO NOT USE MANUAL MODE!!! LET THE TCM DO ITS JOB DURING THIS

Drove all the way home (28 miles) and it shifted as smooth as butter. Not one bang shift. Not one bang downshift. I stayed in 10-30% throttle the entire time

It seems that my issue is corrected. The bangs only really happened at very low throttle so today’s scenario was when it would happen. Obviously I’ll know more as I drive it more and am able to go into sport and sport sharp and give it some sauce. As of right now it seems okay.

I urge you to just go to the dealer if you haven’t already for this issue and inquire about the update. If you look at my first pic it shows you which 08 vins were affected. They charged me 1 hour labor. Totally worth if this solves everything.

Hope this helps anyone with the same issue and I will update this as I learn more.

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I should add if I haven’t already.

THIS IS FOR 08 ONLY

There may be updates out there for other years but this is specifically regarding the 08 5eat tcm

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Interesting, looks like that tsb is relevant to other cars with the 5eat, for example:

https://www.sb9t.com/threads/hard-downshift-when-slowing-down.1806/

I have the 3-2 downshift bang on my 5th gen 5eat.

I was under the impression it was due to a failing turbine speed hall effect sensor.

Might have to ask about that tsb and the TCU update when I go in for next.

Interesting, looks like that tsb is relevant to other cars with the 5eat, for example:

https://www.sb9t.com/threads/hard-downshift-when-slowing-down.1806/

 

I have the 3-2 downshift bang on my 5th gen 5eat.

 

I was under the impression it was due to a failing turbine speed hall effect sensor.

 

Might have to ask about that tsb and the TCU update when I go in for next.

Could be This one specifically mentions the legacy/outback and tribeca but it could be the same issue with other years. The actual update that was done though was a completely different file than the ones mentioned in that tsb. So it’s been updated since.

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Update

Transmission still shifting smooth. Not one bang since the update. Only downside is my valve body doesn’t seem as firm but honestly that’s probably how it was supposed to be from the get go. If anything changes I will update again but all is good for now.

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I will update as well....

I contacted my local dealer where the car was purchased 1.5yrs ago. I asked about open recalls and this TSB, even giving them the number. They stated the car had no open recalls and that I would have to contact SOA for assistance there. I contacted SOA and was promptly assisted by a young lady who listened to my entire schpeel, telling her this is my 4th Subaru vehicle, I am an ASE certified tech (was a few yrs back and don't work in the field any longer but not their concern) and the issues I am seeing with the 5EAT. My info was taken and sent to another rep that followed up the next day. She stated that being a TSB, not a safety recall, I would have to take the car to a dealership, pay for a diagnostic fee and verify there is a problem at which point SOA would make a decision to generously assist with reimbursement or not, depending on what they found. Pheww, I get it but what a pain in the a$$.

I just want the update done and the dealer knows nothing about it, or at least the two service writers I spoke to didn't. I could call another dealer that is about 45 mins away I guess but no guarantees. For now ...a reset lasts quite a while, especially seeing how the last tank of fuel lasted about 30 days from lack of driving.

New business? LOL

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I will update as well....

 

I contacted my local dealer where the car was purchased 1.5yrs ago. I asked about open recalls and this TSB, even giving them the number. They stated the car had no open recalls and that I would have to contact SOA for assistance there. I contacted SOA and was promptly assisted by a young lady who listened to my entire schpeel, telling her this is my 4th Subaru vehicle, I am an ASE certified tech (was a few yrs back and don't work in the field any longer but not their concern) and the issues I am seeing with the 5EAT. My info was taken and sent to another rep that followed up the next day. She stated that being a TSB, not a safety recall, I would have to take the car to a dealership, pay for a diagnostic fee and verify there is a problem at which point SOA would make a decision to generously assist with reimbursement or not, depending on what they found. Pheww, I get it but what a pain in the a$$.

 

I just want the update done and the dealer knows nothing about it, or at least the two service writers I spoke to didn't. I could call another dealer that is about 45 mins away I guess but no guarantees. For now ...a reset lasts quite a while, especially seeing how the last tank of fuel lasted about 30 days from lack of driving.

 

New business? LOL

 

 

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Honestly if I hadnt had all of the information my dealer probably would have told me there was nothing as well. I wouldn’t even bother with SOA. I paid like $100 for this or something. You just need a dealer with some intelligent techs. I spoke with someone over the phone for a half hour before I even scheduled this. The guy happened to be a 4th gen enthusiast as well and was interested in helping.

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Honestly if I hadnt had all of the information my dealer probably would have told me there was nothing as well. I wouldn’t even bother with SOA. I paid like $100 for this or something. You just need a dealer with some intelligent techs. I spoke with someone over the phone for a half hour before I even scheduled this. The guy happened to be a 4th gen enthusiast as well and was interested in helping.

 

 

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You are absolutely right. I need someone who cares. Up until now and even through the purchase I have yet to find that.

 

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Where are you located?

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Niagara Falls/Buffalo area NY. We have two Subaru dealerships within a 50 mile radius. Both are large scale dealerships but I question their enthusiasm, especially towards the older models.

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Niagara Falls/Buffalo area NY. We have two Subaru dealerships within a 50 mile radius. Both are large scale dealerships but I question their enthusiasm, especially towards the older models.

 

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Oh I saw WNY thought you lived in West New York New Jersey. Figured If you did I had the place for you.

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