0beron

My suspicion centers around the idea that an inexperience mechanic followed what the trouble code said and replaced the duty C solenoid without actually checking the transfer clutch. They drove around the parking lot and didn't feel any torque bind and congratulated themselves. Anyway, I can certainly see that the shop would be less than willing to have to spend another 6 hours that they aren't going to get paid for to make up a mistake if they can get me to just go away on some fools errand. I have a couple of good friends who are forklift mechanics and they constantly talk about "billable hours" and the fact that people are constantly fired for not meeting their numbers and that's the forklift industry never mind a high-end dealership with huge turnover. With that said I'm not saying that is the case. I'd like it to be something else. Tonight I checked the U-joints, they're fine. No play in the drive shaft to the diff. The wheel bearings are still suspect. The side making the noise is easier to turn than the quiet side. Of course there are no obvious sounds up on jack stands. Brakes aren't dragging, rotors look good. The wheel bearing seems the most likely, just because I can't rule them out, after spending a precious weekend under my beloved Subaru I just don't know if I can take another dissapointment. I'd continue to appreciate any other ideas out there and continue to appreciate everyone's help. Like I said, I've got a bundle of pictures from the diff. swap. Perhaps I'll add rear bearing replacement. Heck, at this point it's nearly a guide on rebuilding a rear end on a 96-99 Legacy. 0beron

Again, I would agree. The big gotcha being that the noise go away almost completely with the FWD fuse placed. I say almost because I did once here something from that wheel with the fuse in place. It certainly isn't as noticeable. CV joints and bearing check out. Brakes and the shield are a place to look next but have never been a focus because of the whole FWD making the problem go away. I'm considering dropping the driveshat and seeing what that does.

I agree there are other possibilities. I'm just at a loss as to what they are. I brought the car to another mechanic when I thought a CV joint may be at fault. They also thought the problem lay within the differential and noted the wheel bearings were quiet. A frozen U-joint to me would cause considerable shuddering a highway speeds. I don't have that problem.

Hey everyone, This is an update from my previous post. To recap I had a Duty C solenoid go bad on my 97 Legacy. By the time torque bind appeared there was also a noise coming from the pass. side rear wheel. The noise was/is present mostly during coasting. Never during hard acceleration. I would describe the noise as a skipping or grinding it isn't constant so it sounds in a sense like a piece of metal being dragged over concrete. There was some rather sever torque bind also. Long story short I brought the car to the dealer. They said they'd call me and tell me what they found. I purposely didn't give them a lot of information; I wanted to test their diagnostic capability. The called and said the Duty C solenoid was bad (that's what the diagnostic code said) I asked them at that time to check the transfer clutch. When I picked up the car, I saw the Xfer Clutch had not been serviced. I inquired and was told by the mechanic who worked on the car that the transfer clutch was fine. I drove the car home and noticed the torque bind was gone but the noise had not changed. I rang the dealership the next day they told me to bring it back in. When I came to pick up the vehicle they were insistant that the transfer clutch was fine. They insisted the rear differential was bad and suggested I replace it. They didn't feel it was worth it to service the differential and I would agree..if that had been the problem. I spent this past weekend swapping out the differential for a used one. 6-7 hours and some bruised knuckles later I have nothing to show for it. The problem is still there. I did take pictures so I could do a writeup if anyone is interested. I am thinking this is the transfer clutch. I really think the dealership should have replaced the clutch when the center diff assembly was off the transmission. However, I think I need a bit more ammo before going after the dealership. In fact, I think the dealership knows it's the transfer clutch and sent me on a wild goose-chase thinking I'd just ditch the car rather than swapping in a diff. Here's my questions (finally) would a burnt transfer clutch manifest itself as a sound inside the cab that seems to be coming from the pass side rear wheel? Could it be the extension housing? Does the Service Bulletin for the torque bind issue indicate that the clutch should be replaced? I have no problem paying for the parts what I have a problem with is the $600 in labor they want to charge to get inside the assembly. My argument is that they should have replaced it the first time. I think they didn't because the trouble code didn't say anything about the transfer clutch. If they would have listened to me they would have replaced it. I'm never going back to these guys again but, if the Xfer clutch is at fault, it should have been replaced the first time round. 0beron.

Yeah. That route isn't going to work. I just go off the phone with a local mechanic known for doing quality axle work. They also insist the noise is coming from the rear diff. So the dealership won't touch it, the axle place won't touch it and I don't have the time. Looks like I need to make time to go in search of a rear diff assem. 0beron

Perhaps an oil analysis would also be in order? The head gasket on my 97 Legacy (same engine) went at about 130k and is a suspected known problem for the 2.5L engine. With that said, if you do decide to purchase this car keep an eye out for a drop in the coolant level. At the first sign of a leak have the gasket replaced with the new version. It is possible, though not likely that a coolant flush and use of Subaru's additive would prevent the head gasket from going but I wouldn't count on it.

Thanks for the replies everyone. I agree the clutch pack should have been done at the same time. However, I think the diagnosis may be off. I am leaning toward a faulty pass-rear CV joint. I had the wife drive the car while I crawled around the back of the car (it's a sedan) and noted the noise was very specifically coming from the right rear wheel. I also noticed that noise was still occurring with the FWD fuse in place just not as loud. Finally, I drove my parents old Acura this evening and heard about the same sound and degree of intermitency coming from the, thought to be bad, front pass CV joint. Looks like I know how I'll be spending my weekend. I'll check back with the outcome. Local mechanics don't like to work on anything foreign (still). This is Michigan afterall and many mechanics lost thier jobs to the Japanese in the 80s. Not to mention Subaru does things a bit different. Even the hard-core auto people I know are suprised to the Subaru approach. Oh for a decent dealer in W.Michigan. Could still be the transfer clutch, but at this point I am in denial until I have further evidence. Certainly not the differential.

Hello everyone, I have a 97 Legacy GT. I've been through one engine already because a faulty head gasket and at 165k I developed a torque bind issue. Started out the wife mentioned the "OAT" light flashing. I could never get it to repeat. I'll add that the Haynes manual didn't mention the OAT light whatsoever. Anyway, about a month later I was driving it and noticed the torque bind. There was also a rattle coming from behind the front seats. Sounded like metal parts rolling around in a can coated of oil. I inserted the FWD fuse and headed over to a dealer. A new dealer this time, last dealer tried to nickel and dime a 4-wheel alignment up to over $500. I'll add that changed the rear diff fluid before taking the car to the dealer. I think the Duty C Solenoid finally failed about 1 mile from the dealer as the noise came back louder than ever. Between the duty C, some CV boots (up front) and some reasonable misc. stuff the total came to $960. $670 for just the Duty C. I insisted that they check the clutch pack while they had the thing apart. They told me everything was A-OK. Of course, it wasn't the torque bind is gone but there's still a rolling, scaping metal sound when the car gets to about 30mph. Doesn't happen on hard accel, intermittent during decel. May or may not get louder on turns. It goes away completely in FWD mode. Dealer says it's probably something in the rear diff. I'll add as soon as I gave them the impression I knew something about the problem, they lost interest in working on the project. My fear is that the transfer clutch is bad but they know if it is they're gonna end up eating the labor cost if it is. Any thoughts? Thier suggestion is to find a new rear diff assembly and swap it it.