paulivan

Does that grease packing method apply to the 96 legacy outback? I've seen in the manual that there are two types of bearing depending on model, one is tapered the other is not. Just want to be sure its the same; is yours a tapered bearing? I'm not sure I could pack my bearings like you describe.

That is a little confusing; if have it right then I ended up with the whole knuckle and hub assembly from the shop as one complete unit and installed that. I'm pretty sure that i torqued the axle nut with wheel on the ground so maybe that explains the problem. The axle nut was a little loose when I checked things out after all the grinding and squeaking started. Tough learning curve. I guess I'll just take the hub and knuckle assembly back to the machine shop to press new bearings and try again, this time torquing axle nut with wheels raised. Shop told me not to add any additional grease when installing, something about bearings factory packed with special lube. Any suggestions for keeping the wheel from turning while torquing nut? I read one post said put bar between two lugs and braced against ground, is that safe for the lugs? Thanks for help.

I removed original hub and replaced with used hub and new bearing. Maybe I should just buy a new hub/knuckle like you did...or do you think the machine shop could tell if something is wrong with the hub when I take it to get new bearing pressed?

I replaced Rt front bearings not too long ago with a new (used) hub. The bearing failed within 3000 mi. Is this a sign of something else wrong? I had machine shop press in the new bearing. Are there some common errors during installation that would cause quick failure? --especially the hub install to axle part because I trust the machine shop, but who knows? Any tips for my second time around? I'm using Chilton manual as my guide. cheers

Thanks everyone, I learned a lot more than I thought I would from that mistake! USMB Rocks! PT

Just to follow up with one more question now that all seems to be OK with the leak after overfilling. Since I put so much fluid in there (8qts new fluid went in then about 4 qts were drained off to get the proper level) did I put in enough new fluid to make this a complete or adequate fluid change? should I continue to drain/fill a couple more times or just leave until time for another change? Thanks, PT

OK, now I think I understand: It looks like I have been removing the entire "holder" which never had a fuse in it anyway, so this would not have had any effect on drive. If I flip the cap on the holder and put in a fuse then I'll be in front wheel drive, but sounds like this is a useless maneuver anyway so I won't do it... unless I put a donut spare on the back in which case I will need to insert a fuse... If donut spare goes on front I guess there is no issue? Could someone tell me what AMP fuse I should use for this if I ever put the spare on so I can keep one available in the spare tire kit? Thanks. PT

A friend told me that a mechanic friend told him (bad news already?) that removing the FWD fuse/plug from my 96 Leg OB would disable AWD just leaving front wheel drive and this would save on tire wear. I've been doing this during summer months based on his advice. After reading another thread about this I'm not sure now what this actually does or if it is a good idea at all. Could someone here give me an idiots guide version on how this fuse/plug is wired, what it does and if I should continue removing it? Thanks, PT

No advice for this thread; Just reading with interest because a friend told me that his mechanic told him (bad news already?) that removing this plug would disable AWD leaving just front wheel drive and this saves on tire wear. So, I have done this to my 96 Leg OB for summer months. He mumbled something about a problem of rear differential not getting proper lubrication but this was a minor issue? Now I'm not sure if this is a good idea or even does what I was told. I thought I'd just jump into this thread to see if someone here can tell me what I'm actually doing by removing the AWD plug and if this is a good idea at all...???? PT

The drained fluid was red. Filled ATF through long dipstick tube on driver side that goes to pan, not the tube on passenger side with a short dipstick and gear oil in it . I'm sure I got that part right. I saw no no leakage anywhere except the passenger side of tranny case, around rubber seals on housing which has now stopped. I guess my tranny has lots of room for extra fluid...or it leaked out of tube and I just didn't see it. PT

Thanks for the gentle flame broiling of my mechanical ego! I'll post again if any trouble arises so others can learn from my experience. For now all seems to be going OK. I did not notice any symptoms or change in performance while it was overfilled, just the leak coming from trans housing. There is a cylindrical shaped part of trans housing, passenger side, vertically oriented, about 10" long and 1" diam, with what seem to be two rubberized seals, top and bottom. The leak seemed to be coming from these seals. It is not a separate part, just part of the bell housing mold. Does anyone know what this is? PT

I did not check how much drained out, now I know better for next time! I drained about 4 qts after I noticed the leak so it looks like I had 4 extra quarts in there for a little while. I guess I did drain about 3-4 qts originally. Seems to go OK for now, leak stopped, but I worry about any permanent damage or future problems to be expected from this. PT

Did I damage my 2.5L, Leg-OB auto transmission by putting in about 1-gallon too much fluid and driving a couple hundred miles? I drained fluid by removing pan plug then put full fluid amount specified in Chilton manual (10 quarts!) following process described which said nothing about only getting partial drainage of fluid. Later I found a small amount of fluid leaking around passenger side upper transmission case. I removed about 4 qts of fluid to get the dip stick to read correctly. Will this overfilling have damaged my transmission? Should I look out for any signs of trouble now? I drove around a bit and the leakage seems to have stopped. Am I OK to drive without worry or is my tranny about to blow any day now? I understand the correct procedure now, just hoping for advice on what to expect as far ans any permanent damage. Thanks, PT

Did I damage my 2.5L, Leg-OB auto transmission by putting in about 1-gallon too much fluid and driving a couple hundred miles? I drained fluid by removing pan plug then put full fluid amount specified in Chilton manual (10 quarts!) following process described which said nothing about only getting partial drainage of fluid. Later I found a small amount of fluid leaking around passenger side upper transmission case. I removed about 4 qts of fluid to get the dip stick to read correctly. Will this overfilling have damaged my transmission? Should I look out for any signs of trouble now? I drove around a bit and the leakage seems to have stopped. Am I OK to drive without worry or is my tranny about to blow any day now? I understand the correct procedure now, just hoping for advice on what to expect as far as any permanent damage. Thanks, PT

Did I damage my transmission by putting in about 1-gallon too much fluid and driving a couple hundred miles? I drained fluid by removing pan plug then put full fluid amount specified in Chilton manual (10 quarts!) following process described which said nothing about only getting partial drainage of fluid. I checked my fluid after filling and it was high but I am not too experienced and thought it was OK because I put the amount specified. Two week later I found a small amount of fluid leaking around passenger side upper transmission case. I removed about 4 qts of fluid to get the dip stick to read correctly. Will this overfilling have damaged my transmission? Should I look out for any signs of trouble now? I drove around a bit and the leakage seems to have stopped. I understand the correct procedure now, just hoping for advice on what to expect as far ans any permanent damage. Thanks, PT