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Subaru Legacy/Outback Unusual Clunks and Noises

50 messages,  Last post on Feb 12, 2008 at 3:17 AM

You are in the Subaru Legacy & Outback Forum.

What is this discussion about? Subaru Legacy, Engine, Wagon

Messages Page 3 of 5

#21 of 50 2003 outback wagon 2.5l piston slap/valve adjust by dcmsox2004

Jul 16, 2007 (11:48 am)

i've noted that other folks have had their problems with the 2.5l engine, and the obonoxious loud ticking noise which seems to appear without any prior cause... however, my car was in the subaru dealership in january '07, after the garage which takes care of basic maintenance noticed an oil leak from one of the manifolds, and they told me that they were aware of gasket failures in certain subarus, and to have the dealer replace under the powertrain warranty.
( had about 57k at the time, and less than the 5 years).
i did exactly this, and the next morning, sure enough, it was the proud owner of a loud ticking noise, which became more apparent as rpm's increase in city driving. ( please also note that the dealer replaced the timing belt since this had to be removed anyway, and i only had to pay for the part)... at highway speeds, the noise is very hard to discern, primarily due to highway and tire noise, and running at about 2,500 to 3, 000 rpm on the tach....
the local gargage, which is highly respected and aaa approved, noted that they have mentioned that the valves might need to be adjusted as this is common when timing belts are replaced.... the dealer however explained that this should not be necessary because the valves were not impacted when this major engine work was performed...
the question to subaru was, why did this new headache inducing noise appear after this major engine work when it never, ever made this noise before..... tis a mystery to them, and next week it will go in to the dealer for analysis and whatever engine repair is necessary to eliminate this unpleasant situation.. this will be under my extended warranty purchased through the dealer at the time of purchase, so glad i did...........
and for the individual who may think this should not be made a big deal.... spend 27 grand for something which now sounds like my '62 beetle's engine and you be happy with it... we all should expect high quality from suburu for what they tout as exeptionally crafted automobiles....

#22 of 50 Re: Check engine light [pathtomax] by sstevek

Jul 17, 2007 (6:37 pm)

Replying to: pathtomax (Jul 16, 2007 11:19 am)
Like yours I think mine may be intermittent, it turned off on the way home today. Sounds like it may be the same sensor,

#23 of 50 Re: 2000 Subaru Outback Boxer Eng. Piston Slap [2000sub] by subyparts

Jul 19, 2007 (11:31 am)

Replying to: 2000sub (Jan 16, 2007 3:44 pm)
Yes you should take the vehicle back to the dealer and insist on having them change the driver side pistons. there was a bulletin out for knocking noise and it depends on your warranty that you have. it should be covered if you have a subaru gold plan!!

#25 of 50 96 AWD Legacy Wagon Drivetrain Noise by dimwittedmoose

Aug 26, 2007 (5:13 pm)

I've searched the archives, and come up with nothing, so here goes a new thread.
 
Our fairly new(to us) 96 Brighton AWD Wagon w/136k on the odo has a ballsy rumble coming from under the vehicle. To me it sounds more pronounced in the back seat than the fdront, but I now how sound can travel from its origination point in a vehicle. It is pretty consistent both in town at low speeds and also on the highway. The noise seems to be vehicle speed-related and not engine speed-related, so I'm leaning towards drivetrain issues.
 
Before I go in and replace wheel bearings, wheels/tires, Center Driveshaft bearing, axles, and tear into the rear differential, I was hoping this forum could help me isolate the cause a bit.
 
My wife drives it more than I do, so her despription is what I'm using here. She says(and PO comfirms this) that the noise is more pronounced when making a sweeping right hand turn on the open road but turning back to the left, the noise is still there, but not as noisy. A simple right hand turn on a city street doesn't generate any more noise than a left hand turn and no clicking sound symptomatic of a CV joint going bad.
 
The PO is a friend of ours and has stated that this noise has been with the vehicle for as long as they've owned it and it hasn't gotten any worse over the last 50k. Thee PO did some on- line research and found out that Subaru re-designed the 97 model drivetrain to get rid of this "problem".
 
If any of you know what this is specificically and how to fix it, I'd be eternally grateful?
 
New tires didn't solve the problem for the PO, so I'm sorta ruling that out.
 
If I have to install a 97 or later rear Differential or drive train, will they interchange and how do I tell if I'm getting an"improved" model other than checking the VIN number on the car?
 
thanks
 
Max

#26 of 50 Re: 96 AWD Legacy Wagon Drivetrain Noise [dimwittedmoose] by xwesx

Aug 27, 2007 (10:55 am)

Replying to: dimwittedmoose (Aug 26, 2007 5:13 pm)
I think it is probably the drive shaft bearing. It is not the bearing itself, but rather the rubber bushing around the bearing that causes this problem. My '96 Outback had it when I purchased it at 83K miles, but it only manifest itself when accelerating (increased torque) and sounded like a "thunking" under the car, in the rear (even though the bearing itself is mounted about at the mid-point of the cabin).
 
Replacement of the front drive shaft (which included the bearing) with a junkyard special solved the problem and it never returned (put 140K additional miles on the car). New, I think the "part" was about $500, because for some moronic reason the bearing was not available without the front shaft. Basically, these are two separate parts, save for the bearing having a slightly dented bit of metal on it to affix it to the shaft. Once removed from the car, a heavy duty screwdriver will shift that metal "ding" and allow you to slip the bearing off the shaft. Finding a new bearing, though, might be tricky unless a shaft is attached.

#27 of 50 Re: 96 AWD Legacy Wagon Drivetrain Noise [dimwittedmoose] by ateixeira

Aug 27, 2007 (11:00 am)

Replying to: dimwittedmoose (Aug 26, 2007 5:13 pm)
Just by probability the most likely cause would be a wheel bearing. We've seen a lot of those fail, is all.

#28 of 50 Re: 96 AWD Legacy Wagon Drivetrain Noise [ateixeira] by xwesx

Aug 27, 2007 (11:28 am)

Replying to: ateixeira (Aug 27, 2007 11:00 am)
I veered away from a wheel bearing due to the length of time the previous owner stated it was making noise. Still possible, I suppose - just seems less likely to me.

#29 of 50 Re: 96 AWD Legacy Wagon Drivetrain Noise [xwesx] by ateixeira

Aug 27, 2007 (11:30 am)

Replying to: xwesx (Aug 27, 2007 11:28 am)
Our 626 had one fail. The noise was speed-dependent and got progressively worse. It did seem to deteriorate slowly, though.

#30 of 50 Re: 96 AWD Legacy Wagon Drivetrain Noise [ateixeira] by xwesx

Aug 27, 2007 (11:35 am)

Replying to: ateixeira (Aug 27, 2007 11:30 am)
That is what I would expect from a wheel bearing. The drive shaft bearing noise is speed dependent as well, as it is basically flopping around in its rubber seat and does it faster as the shaft turns faster. But, I would also expect the noise to intensify under higher torque situations.
 
To me, it almost sounded like someone thwacking the underside of the car with a rubber mallet.

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