Im coming to the conclusion that Mitsu somehow layed a defective tc/tranny on us for the 03's. I dont hear many horror stories for the 04's and the 05's are just coming out. Talk of tranny's with tolerances out of whack are becoming common as people are having them rebuilt. Ive chosen that route as I am hearing whining/howling and getting locked out of second gear. From the suggestion of a Mitsu tech at the dealership, Ive used synchromesh w/ mitsu friction modifier, and mobil 1 for the t-case and rear; ive also changed the fluids many times.

These seem to be bandaid fixes as the tranny will soon continue its old habits. My transmission and t-case will be rebuilt this week. Im really curious what they find.

Just to put it into perspective, Ive driven my car hard enough to have fun in (like any other Evo owner has) Ive driven my camaro equally hard while my friend with an STI has been with me during many canyon and street runs. Seems like my transmission is the only one that has suffered. But I am not surprised; it is a first year run car! Small defects are common and are being fixed. Now that I know a problem spot with the car, I am going to place attention on it (ie fix it) Even the heater dial gets stuck in the middle though the dealership did fix it for me and it works fine now!

I cant say I blame mitsu too much for this; they were trying to put out a product too fast ( mitsu had to meet a production date to export this car to the US) We in the government make the same mistakes lol My only qualm is that I hear mitsu wont honor the warrenty on the drivetrain etc due to abuse. My stance is that its sometimes up to the customer to approach this subject with calmness and a sense of respect towards the service manager.

With more and more complaints being filed against Mitsu w/ respect towards the tranny and drivetrain, Im really curious to see what other TSB's will be filed...heck we might be lucky enough to see a recall lol...maybe not

 

I just dropped my 2005 evo with 5700 miles off at the deal to get the tranny rebuilt because the 5th gear is grinding. they are also puttin in a act clutch/fidanza flywheel and redline 75/90 gear oil. I'll post updates when I get my car back.

 

^nice!