Probably a silly question, but is there any problem with having the ends of the axles out in the slop all winter? Are there any little hub caps that you can get to cover them when you have winter wheels on?

i've never had a problem with them being exposed here in the land of rust, so you being in a lesser rust prone area would probably be fine. given how everything else rusts up here i'm not sure why they don't.

 

most subaru wheels have the axle nuts covered via a hub cap or center cover, does yours maybe have those?

My Subaru wheels have a plastic cover, my steel winter wheels do not. I must have driven the 97 like this for years and never noticed. I think it's just newer car syndrom.

 

A lot of our roads get treated with mag-chloride. It's very hard on aluminum wheels, so most people run their snow tires on steel.

more like: no problems till you need to change a CV.....

if you are concerned, remove the wheel and spray paint the axle end / nut with black Derusto paint.

 

or day glo pink.

The end of the axle is about the last thing I'd worry about. Brake lines, the fuel filler tube, emissions pipes, trans cooler lines, all that stuff will rust out before there will be a problem with the axle tips. There's many products you could spray on the ends though as a little protection if desired, like amsoil heavy duty metal protector, kanolabs Prevox, etc.

Smear some anti-seize on it and ride. If you're really concerned, most parts stores do sell bearing caps for trailers. You might be able to find a set that fits and hammer them on.