Flashing ECO light and will not shift out of first

2003 SUBARU FORESTER
45,000 MILES • 2.0L • 4 CYL • 4WD • AUTOMATIC
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SUBARUFORESTER
  • MEMBER
  • 5 POSTS
Hey, I live in Canada and have a JDM 2003 Forester cross sports that has the flashing ECO light and won't shift out of first. Did you have the same problem that you resolved? I'm just trying to be clear so I don't buy the US version and make a mistake. Anyways any help you could give me would be awesome. Thanks!
Dec 27, 2018 at 4:51 PM
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STEVE W.
  • ✓ASE Certified Mechanic
  • 15,200 POSTS
  • ASE Certified Mechanic
That transmission is know for this failure mode. The first step will be to get it scanned for the failure code(s) that will be in the transmission control module. That is because any electrical malfunction triggers this fault. The most common failure is a shift solenoid. (usually A) next is a failure in the transmission range sensor. Scanning it first should point you to the problem. Being it is a JDM version, you may need to get the parts from Japan. They are getting more common in other places but parts can still be hard to get.
Dec 28, 2018 at 10:21 PM
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