TrashWagon

Subaru 3AT Governor Repair

This article is adapted from ULTIMATE SUBARU

1. Remove the governor cover (3 ten mm head size bolts, for
easy reference, bolts will be called by their respective head
size). This is to gain access to the governor assembly. This
is a very crude drawing of what the cover looks like after removal.

. This cover is located on the pass. side of the differential
portion of the transmission. It is just above and behind the
axle DOJ unit connection. From “downunder on my turbo car you
see this after the cover is removed.

Governor is the devise “bleeding” ATF. Axle stub from diff.
unit is in the foreground.

NOTE: On turbo’ed EA-82s, you’ll have to take the governor and
the bearing plate off as an assembly. This plate is held on with
two 8 mm head sized bolts (one can be seen in the above photo,
the bolt to the right in the assembly) On non-turbo cars the
governor can be withdrawn with out removing bearing plate. As
you withdraw the unit it will rotate slightly, there is NO position
orientation.

2. Place the governor assembly on a clean surface.

Shown here with the aforementioned bearing plate and it’s retaining
bolts.

3. Check the governor gears (driving and driven) for apple coring.
Apple coring is when the gears are worn in their center section
this will need adressed by replacement. They’ll look like apple
cores if they’re bad enough. If only the one on the governor
shaft is cored, it’s easy to change, but if the internal gear
is worn, then you’d have to open the tranny to replace it. A
dental mirror can be used to look into the transmission. This
gear is still in good shape. Some cars have nylon gears. Turbos
are steel.

3. Test the valve action in the governor. There is a spring
loaded valve/plunger assembly in the

governor body. Try pressing it down, and see if returns easily
to its original position. It

should slide smoothly and return to its original position. If
not proceed as follows.

4. Remove the governor valve body from the shaft assembly. (2
bolts). In the above photo they are the two 10 mm bolts still
in the unit.

5. Completely disassemble the governor valve body. (be very
careful with the snap rings, SAFETY GLASSES ARE RECOMMENDED)

Here it is totally disassembled. Note: keeping pieces laid out
in the order they came out is HIGHLY advisable.

As you can see she is going to “bleed” a little, so do NOT do
this on Mom’s kitchen table, unless you want sized for a body
bag!!

6. Using a suitable method clean all of the internal

components of the valve body. The areas called out in the FSM
that need attention are shown here.

Basicly any edge that can cause the valve to hang or stick in
the body needs attention. Remove any varnish, and deburr any
sharp edges. I used a cordless drill
and a “honing” stone, commonly used for sharpening knives (Arkansas
stone)

Being very meticulous, and making sure all surfaces are super-clean.
Clean everything that will

ever move or see tranny fluid. I also have a small engine lathe
that came in handy for the larger sliding unit.

7. Test-fit the valve in the body to make sure it fits well
and slides smoothly. If not, deburr a little more until it does.
Very improtant to make it slide like a hot knife through butter.
If any “catching” is felt the problem will return
in a week or so.

8. Reassemble the valve body. Make sure both snap rings are
seated in their respective glands. Once it is together, re-test
the plunger action. It should be moving like a well-oiled machine.

9. Install the governor assembly back into the tranny, making
sure everything is still

clean. If it is, install the cover, a VERY fine
layer of RTV silicone can be used on the cover gasket surface
if necessary.

10. The job is complete. Test drive and enjoy. This program
is not affiliated with any one or thing, and batteries are NOT
included.