Shifter Won't Go into 1st or 2nd....

It uses rods. It is a direct linkage into the back of the tranny. Is there excessive play? (Like two inches side to side while in gear.) If there is, you might have toasted a bushing. Since that is a noticeable thing, and you haven't mentioned it, I doubt that is it. The first thing that comes to mind outside of the linkage is a bent fork. I've heard of bent forks in these transmissions from shifting too hard. That just happens to be something teenage boys tend to do sometimes. For your sake I hope it isn't though.

As Bill has pointed out, there isn't much in the way of external linkage on the Subaru transmission.

What you will see from underneath, is the bottom of the shifter connecting to a rod thru a bushing/yoke arrangement, with the other end of the rod connecting to the transmission shift rod thru a similar yoke. There is a small return spring at the tranny end. You might have to remove an exhaust shield to get a good look.

The tranny shift rod is moved in and out for 1-2, 2-4, and 5-R, and rotated maybe 15-20 degrees to move the shift forks thru the gate between 2-3, and 4-5. Or something like that.

If everything's intact, and there isn't anything physically blocking this action (have someone work the shifter for you), alas :-(

I don't know about the '99 gear box, but the one in my '02 WRX was really unhappy about the 2-1 downshift. It didn't grind or anything, it just wouldn't budge unless you were down to walking speed-ish. I autocrossed mine, and this was a frustrating glitch, to be sure.

I definitely recall reports of transmission damage on the early WRXes due to excessive force being applied here, so . . .

The usual fix is a junkyard gear box; around $500 in this part of the world. I usually spread the chore over a weekend, but I'd imagine someone doing it for a living could probably do one in about 4 hours as long as nothing else got in the way. Still, it's hard to resist the opportunity to do the clutch and rear seal while the tranny is out, and that all takes time.

Here's hoping a rock or chunk of ice found it's way up there. Best of luck.

ByeBye! S.

Steve Jernigan KG0MB Laboratory Manager Microelectronics Research University of Colorado (719) 262-3101

Most Japanese cars don't seem to like this.

You learn real quick how to double clutch if you want to downshift into low. The blocking rings on the syncro are slipping.

Well, the resolution was painful - the trans casing was cracked and the shifting-around messed up the rods = $2,900! I was able to source a good used transmission with about 70k miles (current one had 175k miles) and with a resurfaced flywheel and new clutch, the car is back on the road for "only" $1,900!!! Ouch.

Dan D '99 Impreza 2.5 RS (son's) Central NJ USA

Sooooo....any idea who/what caused the crack?

The trans shop had no idea, they had never seen this before. Only thing I can think of is that perhaps the PO, who had swapped in a 2001 engine after he blew the timing belt on the original, installed the shifter incorrectly or perhaps used incorrect torque values when buttoning everything up. I know the shifter now is a lot less sloppy than it was.

Dan D '99 Impreza 2.5 RS (son's) Central NJ USA

So was it $2900 or $1900?

The latter, using the used transmission I found.

Dan D '99 Impreza 2.5 RS (son's) Central NJ USA

You did better than I did. My 95 legacy had slow synchros on third and fifth, and would pop out of fourth if you weren't on the gas. So I had a shop put in a used transmission with 130k miles. I had them use the same clutch that I had put in myself just 40k miles before, and it still cost me 2200 bucks. But then again, this was the same shop that tried to convince me my cat was bad just because I had a check engine light on that they claimed indicated a bad cat. I assume it was a 420, they didn't volunteer that, and at the time I didn't know the various numbers. I asked them if it was possible that the sensor was bad and they said that that was not likely and wanted to change the cat to the tune of 1200 bucks. I told them no thanks and two weeks later it passed emissions with flying colors. They also wrote up about 2800 bucks worth of possible repairs that they wanted to do to the car while it was in for the tranny that ranged from coolant hose replacement to full pads and rotors on all four corners. The rear brakes only had 15k miles on them at the time. Horrible shop. I can't even remember the name, but they were in Rockville, MD near Parklawn road.

Well, I have a local shop that I have been a (too frequent and good) customer of for over 12 years. I trust them implicitly, and they have never screwed me.

On the car front, of course, last Saturday my son was rear-ended by a friend while they were on their way to a concert! $1,400 worth of damage which the friend is covering. It just never seems to end!

Dan D '99 Impreza 2.5 RS (son's) Central NJ USA

oh boy, can't wait until my kids start driving....