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Yep, 2 vacuum solenoids by the LH strut tower in the engine bay. They're very simple solenoids that block vacuum normally, and open to allow vacuum past when power is put to them. I would start there, with a multimeter you can identify if power is making it there (I've seen switches and wiring fail). Then, make a visual inspection of the vacuum lines from those solenoids to the engine, and also from them down to the actuator on the side of the transmission. You can even pull these off and feel for vacuum with the engine running. Yes, there should be an indicator light on the dash for the diff lock. This is an entirely separate circuit with a switch on the transmission, and somewhat prone to failure, so don't take that as gospel. And yea, if your front diff and axles are intact, it would be fine to drive with the diff locked with a missing axle. Don't run it in gear with it unlocked, as your center and rear spider gears will be spinning like crazy (which they are not designed to do).

1. Yes your diff lock isn’t working 2. It should drive and the orange light in the dash should turn on 3. Crawl under the car and manually pull the cable to lock it. It’s on the passengers side of the trans. Unbolt the cable bracket so the cable will move by hand. Then move it. If that doesn’t work - move it back to the other position just in case it needs worked back and forth It may be working fine. On XT6s, sometimes the system doesn’t engage while sitting still. The car needs to move a little to engage. yours may not engage simply because it’s not moving. So I wouldn’t try to diagnose it until you get a new axle. Check the fuse, switch, then vacuum hoses, and cable to see if it’s seized. The switch is in a good place to get things spilled on it. Driving without a rear axle won’t matter at all in this case. Absolutely zero damage will occur to the center diff. It is going to spin the rear driveshaft the same way no matter what - there will be zero change or difference, the trans can not even “know” the axle is missing. The center differential is locked and does the same thing wether there is a rear axle in place or not. The rear diff will be loaded probably exclusively to one side but that’s not going to matter either.

Make sure you check the coolant in the radiator, when it's cold. Many times the coolant will not pull back into the radiator so the overflow bottle seems full but the coolant system is low. Good visual of all hose connections, recommended. Check to make sure all the fans are working. Is it an original Subaru thermostat? Don't use and aftermarket.

Thanks for the responses! At least I have some where to start. I’ll be sure to post what I find...once it stops snowing. Gotta love fall in Montana! At least the hunting is good.

Agreed about your towing comment. But if the centre diff is locked, there will not be any damage to the centre diff. I’ve done it for 70km due to necessity before. Ran the same, no noises etc. I fixed the issue once back at civilisation, unlocked the centre diff and continued as usual. Cheers Bennie

1988 and earlier GL hatch are EA81 and I don’t think will work. But GL wagons will work. Look for 1990 loyale rear axles.

You can use any EA82 rear axle. Should be readily available new or used. EA82s were available 1985-1994 in Loyale, GL, RX, XT models and others.

Not the first, won't be the last to do this

All good mate, it can happen to the best of us! And an easy fix is best too! Cheers Bennie