johnceggleston

here's a great link for 'engine noise diagnosis'. http://remanufactured-engines.com/page4.htm there's a 'test' similar to a wet compression test but with the plugs in, that if it silences the noise, then it's piston slap. here's a print out from subaru canada about piston slap. http://www.ultimatesubaru.org/forum/showpost.php?p=503185&postcount=4

was it the heads that were different or the pistons with shorter skirts? would that alone be enough to increase from 155 to 165 hp ?? i know my 97 has it, any 96's out there with with piston slap???

is that like almost pregnant??

so what if you put a 98 outback ECU into a 96 LSi. would the different programing change the need for higher octane. or is the need in the mechanics??

there's a god chance that they towed more than one car at a time, especially if they were going 40 miles. one car on top and one car with 2 wheels up and 2 wheels down. my son's car got towed at college and the tow company was very up front about how it was towed and they were very awear of the special needs of subarus. but they didn't want to lose the college contract so it was in their best interrest to be careful. find out what kind of tow trucks they have and how many. ask to sewe the tow slip. or suggest that it was best towed with 2 wheels down, and see what they say. auto trans have had tow issues for a lot of years the question is whether or not they knew it was AWD and whether or not they cared.

i also think that most all of the rear extention housings are interchangeable. this means if you don't have torque bind on your existing bad trans, and you buy a legacy trans for your outback, you can swap both your front diff and your rear extention housing onto your 'new' good used trans and go!!

i'm replying to this this distant thread because i have learned something that's related that i think is very interesting. it is my opinion that 97 leg auto trans and 97 outback trans (96, 95, 98, early 99 as well) are identical except for the final drive ratios, ie: the differential. i bought a "good" used 96 leg GT auto trans (TZ102Z2AAA, 2nd '2' means 2.5L) this week because i wanted the rear extention housing for my son's 95 leg 2.2 with torque bind. i got the trans cheap (75$) because the bell housing had a 2" X 6" piece broken off of it at the lower right mounting bolt. i got it home and realized a had a good front diff & bell housing on a bad 97 outback trans (TZ102Z2CAB) from another earlier swap. so i decided to see if i could swap the diff & bell housings from one to another. well seperating the front diff from the trans could not have been easier. 8 bolts and 4 nuts tap tap tap and it came apart. the gasket material between the 2 was a silicon type material i'm not exactly sure what, no gasket per se. so if you believe , like i do, that the legacy and out back trans are the same, and if the front diff is as easy to attach as it was to remove, then this doubles the number of auto trans out there that will fit in your car. and instead of buying the "matching" rear diff when you buy a 'not quite perfect matching' trans, it may be easier to swap your existing front diff onto the new used trans instead of swapping the rear diff. you also save the cost of the rear diff. from the research i've done the difference betwen the legacy final drive and the outback final drive is the ring gear. 2.5 L engines use the ring gear with 40 teeth, pinion w/ 9 = 4.44, the legacy uses a 37 tooth ring gear with the standard 9 tooth pinion = 4.11. anyway, i hope you find this information helpful. again, removing the front diff was easy. i see no reason it would not also be easy to re-attach it. this means any matching year trans will work in your car, you just have to swap the front diff. let me know what you think. john

THOSE WHO USE THE OLE TIMERS METHOD SWEAR BY IT. fill the system, turn the car on and let it idle with the radiator cap off til it comes up to normal temp and the t-stat opens, add coolant as it drops in the radiator. fill over flow to cold full line. install both caps and you're good. doing this with the front of the car a little up hill will help.

THE RELEASE YOU FEL IS THE DIFFERENCE IN THE BINDING ON THE FRONT AND REAR WHeels. as long as the trans is in gear and the engine is running and there is a difference between front and rear, you'll feel this. putinig it in neutral before park just allows the trans to bleed off the binding with out a clunk. the duty c solenoid is located in the rear extention housing on the trans, this is where the drive shaft comes out and goes to the rear wheels. changing the duty c can be done with the trans in the car but it's a job. especially if you are doing it in your driveway. all automatics from the 90's have basically the same clutch pack, manual trans have a different one, it's a viscous clutch. i don't think there is a silicone clutch pack for a auto trans.

put the car in neutral for a second before you shift into park, that should help bleed off the binding, or turn the car off before shifting into park.

i wouldn't mess with the electricity until you know the wiring diagram. long , long ago, some one talked about what "should" be found at the fuse holder but i can't remember. there a chance it's just resistance, no volts.??????

i hanen't experienced a fluid change causing binding, but i have experienced an intermitent binding / FWD light. my son's 95 legacy, 180k, with a 96 leg auto trans, 125k, started to bind after the trans had been in for about 4 months. (it's the last time i put in a used trans without replacing the DUTY C). so we put the FWD fuse in. some times the fuse would work and FWD would light up and eliminate the binding. some times the light would not come on and the binding continued. so we left the fuse in and hoped for the best. he reported the FWD light was on most of the time but occasionally, when he was driving it hard, the light would go out. i then tried a flush and swapping out the TCU but no change. after a couple of weeks, i pulled the rear drive shaft (left the fuse in just for grins) and off he goes. 3 days after the fuse removal he called to say the FWD light came back on. thanks murphy!! so the duty c can be intermittent. it's my opinion, and only my opinion, that the things are heat sensitive. and when running at 70 /75 mph and then being pressed to run harder, the duty c would quit working for a while. the duty c is not teribly expensive, 100$ at the dealer, maybe 75$ online. but the labor is a killer. 285$ last time at a local shop to swap in a good used rear extention housing. good luck, let us know what you find.

did you get a look at the c ar in north jersey? what was it like? is this the same car on ebay? http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/1996-Subaru-Legacy-LSi-Wagon-AWD-Needs-Motor-Work_W0QQitemZ330149806274QQihZ014QQcategoryZ6783QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

find the exact same car with same options and mileage for sale, that is your value. when i wrecked my 93 leg, the insurance company bumped up the value of the car a little to avoid the hassle of "disagreement". i paid 5500 for the carwith 100k, drove it 75K, they said it was worth 2300 bumped it to 3000 less deductable, i got 2500.

for automatics read these http://www.ultimatesubaru.org/forum/showpost.php?p=630282&postcount=11 http://www.ultimatesubaru.org/forum/showthread.php?t=77389

look here: www.car-part.com the noise you speak of may be from a wheel bearing.

if you said , i missed it, what make , model , year, miles, trans....recent service?

call and ask. he may not read his email.

did you see this? http://www.ultimatesubaru.org/forum/showthread.php?t=59033

97 and 98 are exactly the same. ...xxxxxxACAA. ask for a 30 day warranty, if it works when you put it in you're probably ok. ask what happens if it doesn't work when you put it in. why did yours fail?

nipper will correct me if i stray. the drive split is determined by the on/off cycle of the duty c soleniod. it's usually 90/10 front/ rear. there are 2 speed sensors, one for the front diff and one for the output shaft from the trans to the rear diff. when the TCU detects a speed differential between the 2 , it changes the front/ rear drive split, (it varys) to a maximum of 50/50, (maybe 60/40). the TCU accomplishes this by changing the rate of the on/off cycle of the duty c solenoid. by placing the fuse in the FWD holder under the hood, you change the duty c from an on/off cycle to an always on. this creates front wheel drive only or 100/0 split. but it's more like just fwd. 90/10 may not sound like much, but if you put in the fuse you can feel the differeence when you drive the car, even if the front and rear are turning the same speed. very noticeable. if you place your trans selector in 1ST, 2ND or REV. you will command the TCU to provide a 50/50 spilt (maybe 60/40). hope this helps.

true, but we also know that with an awd in park and the rear wheels off the ground, you can spin them freely. the towing thing, with rear wheels down, is a lubrication problem not a gearing hard connection problem. a short tow is possible, but speed and distance will kill your trans. that's why they say it can never be done. and that's a good rule, NEVER TOW AN AWD A/T WITH WHEELS ON THE GROUND. unless you disconnect the wheels from the trans.

i assumed it was a typo. it's either a 5 speed manual or an 4eat. i cant imagine your run-of-the mill subaru owner going to all that trouble. maybe a sooby fanatic, but what do i know.

i realize you didn't ask for help and will find what you want, but i saw these and thought you might be interested. by the way, what is a 5 speed automatic?? http://washingtondc.craigslist.org/nva/car/375545880.html http://newjersey.craigslist.org/car/375516952.html but 97 LSi is 2.5L.

i think my outback owner's manual says i can tow 2000 lbs max, but anything over 1000 needs electric? brakes on the trailer. i've read that the towing limits are different in other countrys.?