1 Lucky Texan

I had a small carabiner for a while but the white SUBARU and blue paint wore off. Right now, just have a Papa Murphy's discount keytag. but, you might like this gif I made from a Rubber Bandits music video;

here, I think shops must charge within 15% of a written estimate - did you get a written estimate? I agree that there is likely an issue with the oil-controlled valve phasers or their switches/sensors. Oil pressure should probably be confirmed after that much work. if it didn't have the present problems going into the dealers shop, could easily be from their work on the car.

how is the car used? drive thru any very high water?

car details?

are you losing coolant? always (safely) check inside the radiator when suspecting cooling problems - don't trust any level in the overflow. confirmed fans operate OK? is the car new to you? if not, anything happen or work done before this began? is coolant being pushed into the overflow? does the level in the overflow fluctuate a little between cool car and hot car?

+1 on keeping up with fluids and tune-up parts. you can make the car feel sportier with suspension upgrades; new struts, heavier anti-sway bars, stickier tires. and lighter rimes will free-up a coupla ponies and give you a chance to personalize the looks a little. Maybe a lightweight crank pulley too. most cops don't care how fast you turn corners. "it's more fun to drive a slow car fast than a fast car slow"

amazon I think. made by Hopkins ??? it's kinda nice also that it has a plug on the end. It might be 3 inches longer than necessary but I haven't cut any off yet. when you're doing gear oil, pour very slowly.

are you experiencing a problem? post the symptoms and maybe someone will be able to offer a suggestion.

car details? is the car new to you or did this problem just begin? any wrecks or work done on the car recently? many folks have good luck doing 1-2-3 drain/fills on the automatics. Delayed engagement can sometimes be helped a lot with fluid change and a bottle of Trans-X. and it's the only fluid you check while idling.

.could be 2 different problems...on the noise going straight, sometimes there can be debris caught between back/inner side of the rotor and the brake shield. Could be a symptom of a wheel bearing going bad. Getting the car up on jacks and lifting/rocking each wheel in the up/down - 12 oclock to 6 oclock would be good. They shouldn't move. Listening to them with a mechanic's stethoscope while turning would be good to try too. checking the calipers for free sliding movement wold be a good idea. maybe they are binding. double check lug nuts - some recent posts about loose lugnuts or improper size lugnuts causing problems.

is it in sync with wheel rotation? could someone pace the car on foot and pin down the location better?

brighton - still suffering?

jmoss - how's the car doing?

I like this for trans/diff filling;

yikes - how often do you feel it should be swapped?

well, the wet clutch pack lives in the tail area of the trans. It swims in ATF. the front diff does have its own drain plug but fluid level filled and checked with the dipstick tube.

you might try image search, youtube and dig around at www.opposedforces.com

^^^^ swap tire pairs front to back - inspect steering , suspension and brakes of course.

check car-part.com or LKQ for a used trans. wonder if the car was abused in the past? different size tires or towed with 2 wheels down?

my fear is, its the center diff. have read several posts and the MTs seem to always exhibit the symptom when warmed-up, but not stone cold. I don't really see how an axle would behave this way.

^^^ what they said none of them come stock with power if the key is off however. some folks modify them for all-time power. try to buy a quality adapter - I have read of cheap ones that wiggle too much or w'ever and short out and blow the little 'fusistor' on the back of the power port. nuisance to hazard issue.

if she is near RetroRoo in Henderson, our own site-owner could take a look, or, contact user @traildogck over at http://www.subaruoutback.org/forums/67-classifieds/330529-diy-facility-classes-denver.html he has a mobile repair biz in Colorado, he'd be able to investigate for any problem and likely spend some time to make sure your daughter knows enough about wheels to at least get one on safely enough to take to a shop for final torqueing. If she has a Discount Tire in near her city, they have a superb reputation for customer service, they've helped my wife. MIL and all 3 daughters several times with free flat repairs and new tires and other issues. Might be best to schedule a time on a tues, wed or thurs as they can be very busy on/near weekends.

the original problem may have been due to vandalism or poor practice at a tire shop - the present problem 'could' be from the emergency purchase of lugnuts and those are now part of the problem. being remote from her, I think you will need to send her to a shop and have them THOROUGHLY examine everything on the car. And, a typical woman may have to tighten and loosen lugnuts with half their body weight pressing down on a typical jack-tool wrench. It's tricky. Add to that using a 'star' pattern and not tightening in a circle, and it's easy for some folks to get a wheel 'on' but it be improperly torqued-down. And that is with new/known good parts.

If vandalism is suspect, there are aftermarket security lugnut sets available (with a keyed or spline nut requiring a special tool). No, they don't guarantee the nuts can't be removed by a determined thief/knucklehead - just presents a deterrent that may send them to their next , easier, target. she could discuss those at a retailer like Discount Tire or maybe NTB as well.

yeah, may not be torque bind as you keep saying popping. Torque bind would cause a binding feeling in tight circles/turns. It may cause a sound as well. could you get the car to do this in a parking lot at slow speeds? if so, have someone pace the car and listen for it to be central, or louder on one side than the other. aftermarket new or rebuilt axles are 'iffy' ,aftermarket rebuilt the worst.