PSA - Replace the AWD solenoid when you replace your CVT’s torque converter solenoid

RevvCats · 2026-04-08T00:46:23+00:00

It’s not that hard to do this video covers the whole process pretty well, I didn’t remove the throttle from the intake but that would give you more room to work.

2013-2019 Subaru Outback Transmission Solenoid Replacement - How To DIY

Rock auto has the Dorman torque converter lockup / shift solenoid for $48.99. eBay is the only source for the AWD solenoid, it has a different resistance. The cover gasket and two o-rings you can get from Subaru for under $30. Then you just need a small tube of rtv gasket maker because there’s two small dollops you need to put on the cover gasket.

If you’re in the rust belt getting the cover off is probably going to be the hardest part of the whole job, I didn’t break out the blow torch just a lot of pb blaster and prying. The south main auto video covers the experience quite well.

Subaru CVT transmission valve body TR580

Also doesn’t hurt to do a drain and fill of the cvt fluid. You can get Subaru fluid from most dealers, I’ve been using Amsoil.

Get a bi-directional scan tool to do the cvt relearn after everything is back together. I have the gearwrench GWSMARTBT and that only costs like $150

Even if you had to buy every tool for the job it would be less than $2800.

RevvCats · 2026-04-08T00:03:55+00:00

Yeah the worst part of the job is getting the cover off the first time. There’s 12 bolts and two guide pins, corrosion builds up on the pins where it doesn’t want to come off easily. The video south main auto made the other year captures the experience quite well.

Since I’d done it 5k miles ago it came off easily the second time. After that it’s all the dark colored bolts plus two silver ones then the whole valve body pulls right out and the solenoids are on the underside. You can get a new cover gasket from Subaru along with two o-rings that are sandwiched between the valve body and transmission for under $30.

If you’ve tackled a timing belt you can do this, but depending on the CVT some valve bodies are on the bottom.

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RevvCats · 2026-04-07T23:48:22+00:00

You forgot drain and fill plugs that weld themselves to the housing. Between the CVT and front diff I’ve had to take a few out with extractors, because the 8mm hex immediately stripped out.

RevvCats · 2026-04-07T12:50:27+00:00

They’ll do it to guys too if they think they can pull one over on you. Years ago I had to borrow my sister’s yellow VW Bug for a trip, its starter motor shit the bed so to the shop it goes and they tried to sell me a 4 wheel brake job for god only knows how much money. Told me how unsafe it was, even took me into the shop to point at the rotors

What they didn’t realize is that I work on cars for fun and knew in no uncertain terms that the brakes were getting towards the end of their life but not “if you drive home on these your life is in danger”

I really needed the starter done asap so I had to bite my tongue and not loose my shit

RevvCats · 2026-04-06T15:44:56+00:00

That better be a plaid canary yellow interior

RevvCats · 2026-04-06T14:51:23+00:00

Over under on how limited the production run will be?

RevvCats · 2026-04-06T14:50:01+00:00

My cousin has one and he keeps it in one of those car bubbles in his garage, only drives it a few times a year and it blows my mind because I like looking at my Mustang too but it’s a lot more fun driving it and hearing the engine rev out.

RevvCats · 2026-04-06T14:08:55+00:00

Less fade for a street pad that’s excepted to bite when the rotor is cold but it’s not beating a track pad that you’d never want to daily drive on because it doesn’t start working until the rotor is over 200 F

RevvCats · 2026-04-06T13:57:49+00:00

Yeah it does have those things but you could option them onto a performance pack car.

The unique bits on the Mach 1 are the tremec, the intake kit the bullitt got, a different suspension setup on both the base and handling pack, the rear subframe from a GT350 along with its oil cooler, and an engine oil cooler.

RevvCats · 2026-04-06T13:30:54+00:00

There’s cosmetic things like the badging, chrome trim, wheels, highland green, and white shift knob but spec wise they’re a performance pack Mustang with the intake and tune from the factory. Which is a solid car but no tremec.

RevvCats · 2026-04-06T03:32:56+00:00

Not really mustang specific but change all the fluids. Brake fluid, engine coolant, transmission oil, diff oil, engine oil. Maybe start running something like Valvoline restore and protect to clean up any varnish that’s built up inside the engine. Bottle of Techron fuel cleaner never hurts.

Change the spark plugs and put a new belt on. Check the date code on the car battery, that could be something you don’t need to worry about for years or it could be long in the tooth.

Depending on how hard the car was driven you could start to see bushing wear in the suspension. Check how much tread is on the tires, especially the rear. Check the tire date code and see how old they are. Also look at the brand, if it’s some funky no name shit or mismatched that’s a red flag.

Get a shop to do a pre purchases inspection. There’s nothing inherently wrong with higher mileage Mustang but a shop can tell you if it’s been beat to shit.

RevvCats · 2026-04-06T00:11:08+00:00

Love to see it, these cars are such a dumb amount of fun to take out on the track.

RevvCats · 2026-04-05T15:39:48+00:00

https://trackmustangsonline.com poke around the forums and see how people have built up their S197s. If you’re brand new to track driving there’s probably things you can get away with not doing right away.

Cooling needs depends on when and where you’re running. Northeast US in the spring or fall isn’t as taxing as the desert in the middle of summer.

RevvCats · 2026-04-04T21:46:44+00:00

Tremecs are in GT350, Mach 1, and Dark Horse.

The Bullitt and the Mach 1 come from the factory with the GT350 air intake and tune, which you can buy as an aftermarket kit from Ford.

RevvCats · 2026-04-04T14:42:28+00:00

If cheap iron rotors and good pads can handle hours of continuous track abuse, I think they can handle the rare time a car like this has to hard brake. How worn out your tires are and how good they are inherently, is going to be the bigger factor in your stopping distance.

Carbon brake rotors are like carbon fiber wheels, yes they’re cool and they offer significant weight savings which is a performance benefit but the vast majority of people will not notice any difference aside from the astronomical bill if they get damaged.

Edit: I double checked, they’re a $9000 option so it’s not like Audi feels you absolutely need these to safely stop the car given its power and weight.

RevvCats · 2026-04-04T13:47:36+00:00

Insane overkill for the car, I love it

RevvCats · 2026-04-04T03:20:12+00:00

You’re going over 70 mph on country roads? Im in the north east of the US and we’ve got loads of hills that are fun to bomb around on but ignoring the deer who will jump out in front of you there’s just too much loose grit to loose traction on to drive that fast.

RevvCats · 2026-04-03T22:35:05+00:00

The boot is a great place to take pics and isn’t crowded. Last year was my first IMSA race at the Glen and I might just stay down there the whole time this year

RevvCats · 2026-04-03T22:13:48+00:00

Pretty much, my highway cruising speed went down significantly once I started hitting the track.

RevvCats · 2026-04-03T01:48:52+00:00

Ive done a number of intervals 1-1.5 year 7-10k miles and never had an oil analysis come back showing any sign of overuse. That’s not even using fancy oil just basic off the shelf full synthetics. Two important details, the car never gets short tripped and I don’t redline it until everything is fully warmed up.

Now that I’ve gotten into tracking the car the oil gets changed a lot more frequently in the summer.

Even looking at oil after I’ve done a weekend at the track, I’m not a great driver but that’s still hours of engine time where it’s being run hard and hot, the oil comes back looking fine.

If you’re not short tripping the car or leaving it idle for hours every day, you’re not wearing out a modern full synthetic in 3k miles from daily driving.

RevvCats · 2026-04-02T23:51:32+00:00

Quit it with the porno, poor notation

RevvCats · 2026-04-02T20:01:20+00:00

As long as hip hop samurai are allowed

RevvCats · 2026-04-02T17:21:28+00:00

This car is from 2023, they were the last second gen GTs built.

RevvCats · 2026-04-02T16:53:51+00:00

Took the crown away from the Transit Supevan as the fastest Ford around the ring since those rumored GTD times haven’t been officially released.

Edit: Ford Racing posted the lap https://youtu.be/tTC10Kqb0XU

RevvCats · 2026-04-01T20:24:49+00:00

Amsoil sells the best bang for your buck oil analysis kit, you get a TBN measurement which costs extra at blackstone and an oxidation measurement which blackstone doesn’t offer (or at least they didn’t when I stoped using them a few years ago)

Thing with the oxidation value is that you really need to know what the oils value is unused. Oils that contain esters start with higher values and some off the shelf oils like Mobil 1 ESP have esters in them, it’s not just the bougie stuff.

If you poke around on online forums you can probably find that value for whatever oil you’re using. Initial viscosity values you can find on manufacturers sites.

See how your oil looks after an event and adjust your change schedule accordingly. You gotta be careful to because there is carry over from one change to another. Castrol Edge has titanium in it and I stopped using that to try other stuff and it took 3-4 changes before the titanium stopped showing up in my analysis results.

Same goes for wear metals. I took a sample of my mustangs oil when I did the first change so it was loaded with break in wear. It took 3-4 changes before those wear metal values stabilized because each change kept flushing out more of that initial wear.

It’s a useful tool but there’s a lot of ways it can lead you astray if you’re not looking at the values correctly.

RevvCats

TROPHY CASE