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What is 4EAT?

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27K views 24 replies 15 participants last post by  Kevin 
#1 ·
I have a 1998 Subaru forester L with an automatic trans, and I was wondering what makes it a 4EAT? And how do people manually shift if it is an Automatic?
 
#8 ·
So my car can be used 1 2 3 D as in gears 1 2 3 4. Am I correct?
Yes.

Does this make it faster?
Barely/No. It may hold it in gear slightly longer, thus marginally faster. But if you wait too long, it'll bounce off the rev limiter and any advantage would be lost. Just keep your foot buried and it will take it to redline and shift perfectly for you.

If you're dying to switch gears that badly, buy a manual transmission or install paddle shifters.
 
#11 ·
It's easy to drive for people who don't want to learn manual or don't want to drive manual.

My mom drove a stick shift car all the way until 2001. She has had chronic ankle issues in her left ankle, so she bought a 2002 Civic auto at the time and was much happier with it. Now she's in a 2010 Legacy with the CVT, which is a lot better :biggrin:

Performance-wise, there isn't much of an advantage with our 4EATs, but some higher end cars that have launch control systems use automatics because they can shift faster than a human with a manual ever could.
 
#10 ·
^^^ That all comes down to personal preference and your needs.

A person running rally cross may likely want a 5 speed manual transmission(5MT) so they can select their gear for the conditions and turns. Some one who likes to row(shift) their own may like a 5MT just for the reason that is what they like. A person who likes simplicity may pick the 5MT over the 4EAT due to its lack of electronic control devices like solenoids, sensors, fluid pumps, transmission control unit....

Some one who drives in constant rush our stop and go traffic or some one with a bad knee may not want to be shifting a car with a clutch all the time so the 4EAT would be more appealing as it is more set it in drive and forget until you need to back up or park. A person who wants to go to the drag strip may choose a 4EAT over a 5MT because there is no break in acceleration when shifting like a manual transmission has.

Much of these reasons and others have been covered in this sticy at the top of this sub forum, here http://www.subaruforester.org/vbulletin/f89/automatic-vs-manual-1883/
 
#13 · (Edited)
He's saying if you have it in 2nd and you dont shift it quick enough, then yes it will at that point bounce off the rev limiter. If you dont want it to hit 4th(cause you'll never use it in a 1/4 mile acceleration race) just put it in 3rd and keep it at full throttle and it'll do the work for you at just the right time.

Another advantage of the auto is that it is capable of being used well into the 400hp range with no issues whereas the manual has some weaknesses at that point. Such as: if you launch the manual hard you can damage the drivetrain. Also with lots of power you can get clutch slippage, calling for an upgraded clutch which in turn shocks the drivetrain more when launching. None of that is an issue with the 4eat
 
#14 ·
... Another advantage of the auto is that it is capable of being used well into the 400hp range with no issues whereas the manual has some weaknesses at that point. Such as: if you launch the manual hard you can damage the drivetrain. Also with lots of power you can get clutch slippage, calling for an upgraded clutch which in turn shocks the drivetrain more when launching. None of that is an issue with the 4eat
The weakness of the 5MT is that it uses some plain bushings running on an oil film instead of roller bearings, and uses hypoid (spiral-cut differential-type) gears. These two items cause the 5MT to require extreme-pressure GL-5 (differential) gear oil. Besides low demand, the 5MT was dropped from the XT because even with GL-5 oil it did not hold up long enough under the stress. The design of the 5MT is barely adequate for the NA engine.
http://www.subaruforester.org/vbulletin/f88/first-gear-grind-kind-24613/index2.html#post284043
 
#15 ·
I actually really like my 4eat. My only beef is that personally I would like the gears to have their own steps... Especially from D to N. manually shifting it is fine, no issues picking a gear coming out of a turn and such. However I have gotten a bit excited a few times and smacked it from 3 to N...
 
#16 ·
The newer 4eat doesn't have that issue since you can bump shift it electronically. My only real quarrel is it should be upgraded to have at least 5 gears 6 would. And closer ratios with the extra gears. I really liked my dsg in my vw but the maintenance is pricey. The way it shifted though was blissful.
 
G
#18 · (Edited)
I manually shift for fun and to keep the 4EAT from upshifting too soon at too slow speed and lugging the engine, which then leads to clunk-->downshift-->high revs--> upshift which takes a long time for the TCU to think through, shakes the whole car and scares the passengers and is generally annoying. I mainly just move the gear selector from 3 to D and vice versa. I usually keep the gear selector in 3 for anything lower than 35 mph in city driving, although turning onto a low-traffic straight road I like to go slow through the turn, then slam gear selector into 1 and mash the throttle.. :biggrin:

I do sometimes accidentally miss the D and go right from 3 to N.

5 gears and with the torque converter locking only on 5th gear would be great. My 4EAT Forester is running 3000 RPM at 70 mph, and with a muffler delete that is not fun! Perhaps another gear would also help the fuel economy, but with the NA engine, going up hills on the highway would be even worse with lower RPM at high speed. At 70 mph and 3000 RPM my N/A doesn't have to downshift for most hills (unless the ever sensitive cruise control is on, then it will immediately downshift/ unlock TC and make the engine scream at like 4500 RPM).
 
#19 ·
Reviving an old thread heh

Something that hasn't been mentioned, but is noteworthy imo is that the 4EAT comes with VDC (I think the H6 outback was the first one to have it). I couldn't find any resources on other markets than NA, but in NA the manual doesn't have VDC.
Here is a video where they compare the MT and AT of the SG Forester by putting the wheels on rollers and seeing how they get out:

At first I've been disappointed abt the 4EAT bcz I wished it had 5 gears which could improve economy, I'm starting to like it tho. The MT has a constant 50/50 AWD bias, whereas the AT can do sth around 40/60 to 50/50 I think. It changes the bias throughout the ride. I was also annoyed of it being in the wrong gear all the time but you get used to the pedal and learn to predict when it upshifts and properly dose your pedal.
The reason for the 3rd gear to be below D is I think to overtake ppl. Just slam it down, floor it and then calmly put it back in D. Mine's got the sport shift so I can do a kind of semi-auto shifting which I only use when going downhill or when it doesn't shift up and I don't wanna give too much gas, which happens from 2nd to 3rd gear a lot (in Germany, we usually drive 50kmh in the city, and sometimes there are areas like schools where they go down to 30kmh so these two speeds are very commonly driven. 4th gear starts around 45kmh I think, 3rd gear at 30kmh, it doesn't immediately shift up tho. Gotta go up a lil to 33-35kmh).

Just wanted to share a couple things I picked up myself or on the net for future readers. I forgot what exactly I was googling, this thread was one of the first couple results tho :))
 
#20 ·
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#21 ·
The ability to select and hold a gear, with the 4eat, is absolutely essential when driving in soft sand.
In deep sand and with traction control'off', you would manually select 1st and hold that until good forward speed is achieved .
Then a manual shift to second to get the rev's down. In deep, soft sand I will keep it just like that until clear.
In my 2020 , the same thing except the paddles are used.
 
#25 ·
Nope, the "HOLD" button. It's a two way rocker switch with "POWER" on the other side which changes shift points
models I have owned.
Be good to record what model you actually have pls
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