idosubaru

yes, grab and shake it but sometimes that doesn't always show a bad bearing/bushing. sometimes it does, sometimes it doesn't. good and easy check though to grab and shake. drivetrain loading changes when the throttle is closed, that's why i suggest checking. the best check is to actually remove the carrier bearing, but that's kind of annoying for a guess. two bolts (14mm or 17mm) hold it up under the car, then 4 12mm bolts hold the front shaft to the rear shaft. that's it, then it comes out. slides out of trans, where gear oil will pour out from though. so it's only 6 bolts to remove and some stinky messy gear oil. hand shake is an easier and simpler place to start.

change the MT gear oil. it's possible that that torque bind and low oil have compromised the front diff, but let's hope not. if it's at minimum that that's not bad - but it's not a great sign either. oil is going somewhere or being lost. why? and was it ever run even lower than just minimum? front diffs don't typically loose oil at all...i think a lot of folks never even change it! torque bind on a manual trans is annoying and also needs to be fixed (VLSD needs replaced) since it does put strain through the entire drivetrain. it can be done without dropping the trans. if it's completely failed you can pull the rear half of the driveshaft and just run it in FWD until you get it fixed. not rotating tires properly, running mismatched tires, or improper towing (two wheels off the ground) will cause this. be sure to not do these things once you get it repaired.

for the whine i'd check/change the front diff gear oil (auto trans), ATF (auto), or MT gear oil (manual trans obviously). Hopefully the front diff doesn't have issues, they can whine.

parts debacles are the most frustrating, just get me the right part!!!! i've used aftermarket donut gaskets before, so they do work sometimes. online parts are nice....assuming you get the right one:grin:. parts on my door step beats an hour driving and waiting. though i get a fair amount of stuff too at parts stores, there's one 2 blocks from my work so that helps for convenience. learning on your own is the way to go. one of my favorite quotes is "I never let schooling interfere with my education".

have you inspected your carrier bearing? that's the center support of the driveshaft, i would inspect that. might be able to see something just by looking or grabbing really hard and shaking it. but if it's this minor it'll probably need to come off to feel the bearings/bushings in it. most driveshaft issues (ujoints, carrier bearing, bushing) are speed dependent/related and get worse over time. what if you're driving in reverse and then close the throttle? does it do it then? or can you not go fast enough to make it do it?

i wouldn't be too worried about it, though i understand it's annoying. most of the parts you're describing just happen to be sort of "problem areas" in general, not just for you or a particular year. for your O2 - just install a spark plug anti fouler and then thread your O2 in there, they probably removed it because it was causing issues. common problem for mid to late 90's subarus and up. lots of threads about it on here. easy and cheap fix. what i would suggest is asking sometimes before you buy, like on here. but that's tough too i know - do i ask or do i not? it is no secret that subaru and brakes are a boneheaded conundrum, they have some ineptitude when it comes to logistics, manufacturing, and costs in the brake design department. i urge you to click here and not read but just glance at all of this text to show that point: http://forums.nasioc.com/forums/showpost.php?p=18085854&postcount=1 that was complied because of how confusing subaru brakes can be. not just changes but sometimes things interchange, sometimes they don't, sometimes it matters, sometimes it doesn't...it's a debacle and folks get wrong parts all the time on brakes. the donut gaskets, as with any aftermarket parts, can look different and be slightly different from factory. in this case - they'll work if everything is perfect, but if you can't draw it tight enough it might not. gaskets, orings, seals, and more look different but work. sometimes there's a couple different options and the computer doesn't do a good job of delineating which models get which one. often times there are parts that are best to get from Subaru - and sometimes it depends on the engine - some subaru engines aftermarket gaskets are better - some subaru engines you better stick with OEM. it's just hard to know what to ask here for and what not. but you just ran into two annoying areas. mechanical stuff always involves road bumps...parts, tools, instructions, etc.

oh okay, it's deep. it does sound really high pitched on the recording. if it was the rack you'd probably have steering issues. you'd have like a delay and some quirks with steering, but worth a look for sure.

so power goes directly between the fuse and component part? the relay or sensor (CTS) would both be on the ground side of things?

the main fan and subfan fuse in the cabin both have power. next i should test the fan connector? one of the pins should have 12 volts and the other is a switched ground, is that correct? thanks guys!

is Threebond anaerobic sealant? i'm a weirdo who always goes with subaru's recommendation of using anaerobic sealant on engines. it doesn't dry ANYTHING like RTV. i don't know how it works but every time i use it (case halves, cam carriers, oil pumps...etc) it remains much different consistency. it *seems* like it's not drying at all. but somehow it always holds. external bits will smear and remain a playdoh like...sort of consistency..not quite like that either. anyway, it's always done that and always worked. so if Threebond is an anaerobic or possibly nothing like RTV at all i suspect it might be normal. i would be surprised if shelf life is an issue myself.

you don't mention if it's auto or manual but i would guess it's an automatic? if that's the case just install the FWD fuse to temporarily alleviate the torque binding, that's not good for other components anyway so install the fuse until it's fixed properly. likely vibration like that will be driveshaft ujoints or cv axles that were replaced with aftermarkets.

i would expect a motor trans mount to have others issues or experience it while sitting still. a motor/trans mount doesn't automatically "fix itself" while sitting still...though maybe there could be some other mode working. if it sounds related to the throttle plate - have a look at the throttle itself and the throttle cable. maybe there's a loose adjustment nut or the throttle plate itself is borked.

this isn't a big deal. it's not even known if the car has this issue. and if it does it's $6 to fix and my 2 year old can do it, big deal. you can read the ongoing thread of many YEARS of folks that have fixed this and reported back, you don't have to ask "will it last?". i can see some room for concern but so far given the results i'm fairly confident it's close to a non-issue anyway.

if you have a smoking wire i would look there for your issues. get that working right and go from there. i'd also suspect a vacuum leak, though not necessarily just at the carb. maybe as simple as a brake booster or something. spray some starting fluid/carb cleaner around the engine bay while someone is cranking it and see if it starts...location of the spraying will isolate a leak (make sure your smoking wire isn't flaming when you do this ) i got nothing on the carb. my tractor doesn't have one and that was intentional. always starts after sitting for long periods of time, it's awesome.

i wouldn't buy all new strut mounts. you can buy loaded struts that come as a complete assembly ready to bolt on. sounds like you want a specific brand though which is probably why you're not going this route. i bought a rear one for a friends car at $84.99.

no you don't use lucas, it's best not add anything to your oils or ATF, this is about the one exception. there's a complete thread about the delayed engagement including hundreds of folks that have done it. and there's me and a few others that work on a lot of subaru's and have seen it a bunch of times. it's Trans X Automatic Transmission Slip Stop or something like that. Available at Wal-Marts, Auto Parts stores, etc. Just read the thread for any more info. It's nothing to be worried about at all actually, just a heads up for the test drive, bargaining, or the future.

i like the dam analogy, that's a good one. yes engineers have earned their stereotypes.

all that boiling of water leaves mad residue inside your system too unless you're using distilled water which many don't do.

thanks. in theory i know a ton.....i've had electrical engineering classes and labsf. V=IR P=IR^2...gaussian surfaces, BLEH. practically speaking i might just stick the probes in my toes to see what happens. GD you silly rabbit. thanks, for the tips i can do that.

the 99 is the one year auto trans that has a serious issue - but it's actually resolvable with a bottle of fluid (which we normally dont' recommend except in this one instance - cures in a bottle are typically bad news). the 99 is notorious for a delay when going into gear problem. see if it has it, drive the price down, then fix it yourself for $5 by asking us how. or at least keep it in mind if it ever starts having issues. when you go from park to drive it takes a second..or 10 to finally go into drive. classic 1999 4EAT issue that only gets worse if not resolved. most shops consider that a couple thousand dollar repair because the seal that's leaking is buried. a few bleed over years like late 98's and early 00's will have it too. GD is right though the auto trans are more reliable than the manuals...though maybe not 99's if you include this issue. 4WD so be sure to rotate tires properly, don't have it improperly towed with both wheels off the ground, don't run mismatched tires, etc and change the fluid. you're due for a transmission fluid change too. at 12 years old and 87,000 miles it's probably had 30 oil changes and one or none ATF changes. timing belt job, there's a really good chance at least one pulley should be replaced, you're over 12 years old now. the pulleys should be checked.

good point rooster. an honest shop will do this very inexpensively and you'll end up with better metal too that hopefully won't rust in a year. parts are cheap...it's just metal pipe and welding - so you're paying time. they're set up to do this stuff quick it's just hard to find an honest shop not wanting $500 from you.

yes i have a multi-meter...keep in mind my skills at using it are waaay behind my other mechanical familiarity. AH HA - so i just tested it wrong, like stuck the MM in each leg of the fuse - that's not how to test it i see now, obviously that circuit isn't working so duh i didn't get anything! I can test each SIDE of the fuse...or more correctly just the power side by testing the power side and putting the other terminal to any ground. the fuse should always have power but necessarily be grounded? Fuse has two legs - I can test for 12 volts on one side (so to speak), right? I'll do that next, thanks guys. I totally would have given that connector 12 volts, i'm glad you said that. I have no qualms about "learning the hard way"! Thanks again for helping out the electrically inept!

Why did you reseal it? That implies preventative maintenance or previous issues - one means something different than the other for diagnosing this. What he said - if it was completely noise-less before the work then the seals are borked or something. If you have to do it again get Subaru seals. I've pulled a couple oil pumps with relatively new seals and the mickey mouse gasket has a tendency to swell and be difficult to reuse, it doesn't want to stay in place. So plan on using a new one if you take it apart. If you were trying to fix issues you previously had, I and others have had new oil pumps (or known good non-ticking pumps) solve TOD. Also - how long did the car sit? Sometimes they just take a while if oil is drained out of the system and the HLA's bleed down. Most folks think their engines are blowing up or somethign catastrophic happened after a head gasket job because they're so loud. 10-20 miles of driving and they quiet right up. Shouldn't be that big of a deal on just a reseal, but who knows.

dude, that is so bizarre? i feel like i asked this already but does it do it while sitting still? if you rev the engine up and then let the throttle close, will it still make the noise or you have to be moving? if it doesn't do it while sitting still (which i feel like you implied before), then it shouldn't be engine related. but it's strictly related to throttle - i can hear it?

if you're not concerned with lasting then yes, aftermarket suppliers are fine. ebay ocassionally has really cheap parts too. exhaust is just plain annoying, subaru wants $500+ to fix exhausts, that's preposterous. i picked up exhaust parts off ebay for like $80 for hte converter for the same car a 1996 Legacy L in this case. the converter is on a friends car and about a year old and in HORRIFIC shape, i don't know if you could make something rust any quicker than this thing has. so yeah, they work just fine but they're definitely cheap and not intended to last long.