sadarahu

by looking at your picture I can say what I saw. It was the rubber housing which stayed on the transmission and the whole rod was out. This has never been rebuild or repaired before. The new one they installed was a bit different than the original one and I wonder if this could be related to my other issue with MPG. I wen from 30mph to 21mph then (after the breaks job) it went up to 23mph. Now I have learned I need to take pictures and document everything because I cannot even put the old parts back in - they are gone. I own this car for only2 months and so far it has been a nightmare. Invested already over 3 grands and still have issues. will try to take a PIC of the left and right shaft to show the difference.

The mech told me it is the spring ate the point where it ends up and rubs the other part of the same spring.

I have had the strut -left front -replaced recently. While working on it at some point they informed me that the axle shaft got bad. I did not have any problems with it up to my knowledge. By the time I got to the car to see it the side that goes into transmission was hanging down, oil was leaking and 3 bearings exposed. I had to pay extra $300 for the repair. I wonder if it is possible that by incorrectly removing the strut, when the spring expands it could have pull the axel shaft and damage it ? I cannot prove this was the case, because I did not see it. I only herd the mechanic swearing and by the time I got to the car the damage was already done.

After replacing the front strut at the shop I hear squeak ing noise when turning both directions. I guess it happens onlu at slow speeds i.e. on a parking lot. I did not have that issue before. Is it possible that they montedvsomething improperly ? Forester 2007

I think vI should never see this shop again. They did not lubricate anything. When I stopped there they checked calipers and sais they are bad. Since I was watching what the mechanic is doing I kinda believe this was the case, but it is hard for me to understand that the breaks were working fine until the moment I decided to replace the pads. How is this possible that both sides went bad just by replacing pads ? I ended up replacing both calipers. After it was done but the wheels were still off I tried to move the drums and it was kinda hard to move them. Before the replacement after I pressed the break the drums were getting completel locked so it was not even possible to move them. I do not have experience witht this car so not sire how easy the should turn. The bottmo line however is that replacing calipers did not really changed MPG much. It went up from 21 to 23. I don't know whar else might causing it. When I bought this car 2 months ago I was quite happy about gas with MPG around 30. Now it is a disaster. Wonder if I go to the friend and he connects computer if it will show anything.

Sub2007 standard engine. What could possibly cause sudden change in MPG ? I have done some mechanical work but most of it was unrelated except break pads. Replace them at the shop , just front. Since then the disks become very hot. When driving in town for 1hr they are hot to burn a finger when touched. I just have this car for 2months and it seems that MPG was around 28-30. Recently it dropped to 21-24. Is it possible that hot breaks could cause that ? I bought the best after market available. I'm thinking about putting the old ones back, they were not to bad yet.

I hear you guys, but what do you do in case you bought the part and have a shop replaced it for you ? If you paid for the labor once then after exchange you pay again right ? I guess 2nd time labor should be covered by the manufacturer or the seller. If I keep trying one after another it could never end until the part is god quality. I guess I will never again order parts myself (unless I do the work). At least I know now that DS vibrations are more common so I have to figure out what to do next. I think Sub dealer was asking around $600 just for the part and then $300 for labor.

Fairtax4me - I bough the drive shaft from ROCKAUTO.COM When I driver below 50mph it all seems to be fine but on the higher speed I hear like humhumhumhumhum sound. This sound seem to appear after replacing the DS. The rattling noise from DS which was active around 45mph is gone. Generally this is very bad idea to buy parts then go to mechanic to replace them. The reasons is simple. If the part is bad they have to cover the replacement (part_labor). In case I bought parts myself they will probably replace it and tI could eventually get the DS exchanged by RocKAUTO but this will put my car out of order for several days and I would probably have to pay the labor again. On the other hand if I would let the mechanic get the DS and install it I would pay about $100 more just for that part. To make things worse I found two other issues with the car so I'm totally disappointed with Subaru. It seems like this car has not 80k but 200k miles on it although the CarFax shows 80k (when I bought it). Now the front suspension (not sure what the proper part name is) shock absorber went bad. I looked and figure out it was already replaced because the left one is yellow. It makes rattling noise while going over the bumps. The sealing around the driver door seems to be loose and when driving over 70mph I hear lots of noise so it probably needs to be replaced as well.

Thanks guys. I'm completely confused and frustrated. I bought this Subaru hoping I'm getting decent quality although I realized I there might be some minor issues. IT only has 80k miles, but I wonder if it was tampered. The bottom of the car is very rusted. Before this one I have had Yaris-2007. So the same year with around 90k when I trade it. I wasn't so rusty and in much better shape. I just replaced drive shaft and motor mounts (3). The DS was ordered from RockAuto. When they were working on it we discovered that some wholes on the front of the assembly do not match. They guy enlarged the holes to be able to mount it. The previous knocking sound when driving 45mph+ disappeared. I was almost happy but now I discovered that when driving on higher speeds (60mph+) there is different sound but quite annoying and not normal. I know something is still wrong because I have had 2 4WD vehicles in the past so I kinda remember the feeling. It is like a humming sound hoomming from underneath. I greased the DS on the connectors but it did not help. I wonder if there is any way that if the DS is not mounted perfectly straight it might be making this. It is really hard to tell for me if it is straight or not. It could be also something else. I have already invested almost 2 grands and seems like I'm dumping money to the drain. On top of that I have a feeling I need to replace shock absorber as I hear typical sounds when going over some bumps, although I can't figure out which one. I hear it on the left but nut sure is it the front or rear. Any method to test that ? I see the front left was already replaced and it is not original (different color). No idea how much this might cost. Art

Thank you all for your posts, I'm sue some people will benefit from this. Well although I'm not 100% idiot most of this is tabu for me. Never done flush, refill or anything like that. I also have no garage or tall lift to get the car up. My mechanic said will charge me $60 for the labor so it is not worth the hassle to do it myself. My concern is the fluid. He said the fluid itself will cost around $200 and it must be genuine Subaru product. I appreciate if you could point me what fluid shall I order. This is Forester 2007 with 80k on the odometer. I have no idea when any transmission mantenance was done just bought it) so I would rather assume it never had a full 100% flush. Not even sure if the trans was ever in maintenance.

OK, replaced motor mount, drive shaft and there is a significant improvement although I think I still hear wheel bearings making rubbing noise (or perhaps I'm already over sensitive).... Advice for those who would want to replace DS on their own. The bearing mounting nuts attached to the floor are really poorly mounted and very easy to come off the chassis when the bottom is rusted. We had to weld one back, so be careful. Also prepare yourself that some after market parts need to be fixed before installed. The wholes on the mounts did not align so we had to drill them out a bit. Made a mistake and ordered only 1 mount (instead of 2). The same mount at O'Reily Autoparts costs $100 while on line only $40 - pure rip-off! THANK YOU ALL FOR POSTING HERE AND YOUR HELP, REALLY APPRECIATE IT

I saw some posts stating it is easier OR cheaper (labor) to replace whole hub with the bearing installed than removing and pressing the bearing. Just looked up rockauto.com today and I see they have only assembly kits where bearing and the hub are separate. It seems that the only improvement here would be about the old bearing removal. Any idea how to make it as much cost effective as possible ? I was quoted for 4 bearings (front and rear) at about $850 just for labor :-( Art

Subaru Forester 2007. I just checked at the shop for the transmission flush and they quoted me at around $250 stating that the labor is only around $60. The rest is 2 filers and the fluid (all Subaru genuine), although it wasn't Subaru dealer or shop. They also mentioned something about 2 different methods saying that only one is recommended. When changing motor oil at Jiffy Lube they quoted me for this at $130 so it's $100 difference. My question is: Do I really need to use original Sub fluids and filters. Is it possible that something could go wrong if I use any after market products and what would you recommend ? ARTHUR

I posted the code but not sure how to address it. Shall I replace the sensor, check wiring, connections, whet else possibly can cause this code to come up ? I thought I expressed the issue clearly

Thanks - Sooberoo So you talk about taking the part of the enclosure around the manual break - right ? If so, where do I start ? I will try to see if there are any videos on YT. Replacing my radio gave me a real hard time, because all those plastic elements are really hard to remove without proper tools + "know how". The know how is the key here. I know it is very tight between the beak and the seats, so I'm hoping I would not have to remove the seat to get to it. This sensor seem to behave erratically. For the last 3 days the warning hasn't go on once, but need to take care of that. I don't want my ABS refute to work when I really need it and would count on it. Is it possible that something might be also not connecting near the wheels ? Arthur

I have put the car on a computer today and we got this code: 56 - Longtitudinal G sensor Malfunction Any ideas what is it ? ARTHUR

Dear friends - now I'm completely lost. I visited my friend mechanic. He checked the car and told me that the noise is not coming from the drive shaft bearing. His worker checked the underneath and told me that the right front wheel axel is loose and needs to be replaced, but none of them could tell me if the noise is coming from that. IT seems like I might be just blindly replacing parts one after another and hope that at some point it will be the right one. This car has around 80k so I wonder if it is likely that DS needs to be replaced. when I drive 45-55mph and put on N gear there are no noises. I wonder if the gear is set on N if DS is still moving ? if it is then the noise is not coming out of it because it's gone when on N. I also do not thin tit is coming from an engine because no matter what RPM the engine runs smooth (as long as the speed is below 40mpg there is no noise). I guess I need to stop at the Subaru dealer shop and let them diagnose it, although I hesitate of doing this because I know they are much more expensive and after buying a car for cash I'm very tight on budget. Does anybody know god Subaru shop in / around Chicago ? ART

Yes, you guys are right. I will leave the most expensive for last. The mechanic said that the poor engine pads could damage the drive shaft and I think he is right. I will also check the junk yards. The mechanic claims this is the cheapest price for DS ($450--500) but I will do my homework and see if I can get it cheaper. Do you think that replacing stabilizers is a DIY job ? thanks again for your time to reply ART

OK, today I did some test driving on a smooth surface. The noise was coming at around 35mph when pressing the acceleration gently. When I took my foot of it was disappearing. I also noticed on the HWY it came back at around 55mph. I stopped by at a different shop (not so fancy). I let one mech drive it for few min but since there was crowded he couldn't even get to 35mpg. We inspected the car again and he found few issues (at least to his opinion). - the bearing and the bushing abound the differential shaft was the thing that is making the noise. I inspected it and I would very much agree on that although there is no 100% guarantee this is the cause. WE lifted the car and I put it on run to let the wheels spinning. No significant noise. I understand that when the wheels are in the air there is not much power transferred onto differential shaft. I saw there is a small rubber bushing around the shaft (where the bearing is) so perhaps it is enough to replace the bushing, but I do not know how to test the bearing itself if it is god or bad. - he suggested to replace the engine suspension pads (and I agree on that) because when accelerating with the break on the one side of the motor lifts up and there are some noises when doing the same on reverse. - he also suggested to replace the stabilizers The checked for parts and told me that the bearing itself cannot be changed because there is nowhere to get the parts. They can only get the whole shaft assembly and replace it. The bearing itself is not available. Not sure if this is true but to replace all of this I was quoted $950. I wonder what you think about this. I only have this car for 2 weeks and already dumping money into it so at least I need to be sure if this will fix my problems and how to deal with the warranty (?) if there are any issues after replacement. At this moment it seems that the wheel bearings might not be an issue, but I will know that for sure after other things are fixed. ART

I wonder if it would make sense to take the car to the Subaru dealer. They told me they have rack (kinda like for a bike) so they can put the car on it to drive in place and determine if the noise comes from the bearings (although the charge for it). I'm rather short on a budget after buying this car for cash and was hoping I can just drive. Now instead right after buying I have to deal with the mechanics and dump more and more $$ into it. I'm not very happy although now I have no choice but to deal with it. My last car was Toyota Yaris with 65k miles same year.(2007). No work required and I made 35k on it. Decided to change it simply because it was to small for longer trips. Unfortunately looks like I did not make the best deal. I will try to observe some more if the rattling sound comes from the engine area or rather the wheels, although it is really hard to find out.

1 Lucky Texan I'm driving every day 10-50 miles (both on streets and HWY) so testing wouldn't be a problem. Just filled out today. Can you explain more about this: "tank FULL of high octane gas". I drove a bit today (Sun) but with the speeds below 30-35 I do not hear any noise. I also have to close my windows to hear it. Will inspect the car underneath next 2-3 days to see if there is anything possibly loose or making noises (but I doubt).

I have a tech scanned the computer. He found 3 codes but we were not sure when they were reported. He had reset everything and cleared out memory so after last 2 times then ABS light went ON they should show up on the list. Not sure if this will bring any valuable information but I will check this with him next week. In the meantime I will take a look at the sensor connectors. I wonder how many parts for the Forester are compatible with Outback (for example sensors) ? Art

Thanks grossgary will take you advice. I did some light testing today while driving and I observed that the noise now is different (after changing the tires). The tires were on source of rattling sound but the sound still exists. It sounds kinda like hitting the hummer lightly into some hard surface and of course the frequency is rather high. When I was accelerating rather fast I could not hear the sound. When I was driving about 35-40mph slight acceleration was causing the noise. The rattling nose persisted until I took the foot of the acceleration. I would rather say the sound was coming from the front but I will do some testing tomorrow and have somebody drive while sitting in the trunk. BTW. Does anybody know what is the average labor time to replace one bearing. I spoke with one mechanic and he says it is very laborious work. He estimated 3 hours per wheel and I wonder if this really should take that long. I though if the labor cost is acceptable I would replace all 4 bearings and forget about it for few years. I know I can drive with this noise around, but going on a trip of 6-8k miles is kinda risky. Arthur

Thank you very much. You are all so helpful, I'm thrilled with the responses and I really appreciate your time for posting. Yes I did the first step which is replacing the tires. $500 gone but the tires that the dealer had put on were total crap (although it looked like a new ones). The tires are god now and the rattling sound is almost gone. Yesterday I drove on HWY however and I still hear something. I can only hear this sound with the speed over 50mph or so. I still guess the bearing needs the replacement. Now I cannot be sure is it the front or the back. I will give the suggestion the the friend mechanic with the temp measuring and we will see. I will report back here so this can be used in the feature by others with similar problems. Arthur

What can cause ABS light to com ON (even with the gentle breaking). The light stays ON until I turn off the engine. When I start again it is OFF but eventually it will go ON again at some point. Forster/2007 ARTHUR