Transmission, blew third gear out!

**enigma9011** · 03-20-2011 11:30 PM

2003 WRX, 73000 miles, 05 gear set, exedy heavy duty organic clutch, 18PSI, VF39, STI Injectors uppipe downpipe exhaust etc etc etc, anyways, I bought this car pretty heavily modified so I have no Idea who did the gears.

I just got an alignment done today and brand new tires put on so I wanted to put the new tires to the test around some turns, doing some spirited driving, shifted from 2nd into third wasn't even fully on it or near redline and boom terrible grinding /rattleing noise... not to mention we were recording this on video while it happened... Anyways, drove the car home at this point, rattleing noise and all (I know shouldn't have driven at all at this point but I did), all gears except third are functioning. Just wondering if anyone here can give me an idea of how much the repairs are going to run me for this and what my options are. I'm in a bad spot financially and I'm in Hawaii so i know labor is going to be a *****. I've never worked on a transmission before and I don't have many mechanically inclined friends but I do have access to a hobby shop with lifts and tools I could use if this is even feasible. Input please. Thank you.

**oguitar** · 03-21-2011 02:19 AM

It would be better to ask on a local forum.

Post the video and good luck man.

**zax** · 03-21-2011 06:21 AM

It's going to be expensive, no matter how you look at the situation. Your best bet is to find a lower-mileage 2003 transmission (can be had for around $800-$1000) and pay for the install. The gearset in the 2003 transmission is the same as the 05 gearset, save for better synchros in the 2005... makes me think that the gears have been blown before, or else why replace the gearset at all?

I understand you're in a rough spot financially, but this is the consequence of buying a modified car (which is why we typically suggest against buying modified Subarus). Given the set of mods on your car, I would propose to drop the cash -- about $2000 -- to have the transmission rebuilt with something slightly stronger: LGT gears or STi RA gears. On the other hand, a stock 2003 WRX transmission should be able to withstand the torque of those mods listed... my guess is that the previous owner launched and drove the living **** out of the car, and you happened to purchase a ticking time bomb.

If you're looking for a definitive answer, "yes" or "No, you didn't blow your transmission," we can't give one with the provided information. I suggest for you to change your transmission fluid; if you see chunks of gears in the fluid upon draining, you blew your transmission...

**EvoEatr** · 03-21-2011 12:30 PM

As far as cost, the cheapest route by all means will be to put a used gear box in it. I have rebuilt these trans. before and they can get pretty costly if you do everything you are supposed to when you repair them. Look around, when I popped second gear in my trans I found a used one online with 60k miles for $400 bucks...

**enigma9011** · 03-24-2011 11:08 PM

UPDATE:

Ok so I brought the car to a trans shop... the charged $675 to pull the transmission and take it apart. I feel like that price is already a little high. I'm in Hawaii so I expect this type of thing for being on an island but I did look around and call around for transmission shops, none of them really had reviews.. a few wouldn't even touch a subaru transmission and a fellow subie owner recommended this place so I had the car towed there. I looked at the trans and 3rd gear is completely destroyed however the rest of the transmission appears to be OK. I'll go back to the shop and take a bunch of pictures but I can't get a quote until tomorrow. So far it sounds like the quote is going to be over $2000 dollars. This doesn't really sit well with me and I want to know if you guys have any advice to prevent myself from getting screwed on this. I'm going to look at the quote in detail and see if I can order some of the parts needed for the rebuild myself to avoid dealership costs or overinflated prices on parts. Any suggestions to the effect that would prevent me from getting ripped off in this scenario?