Hey everybody I’ve got a ‘98 outback 2.5l auto and a few days ago on the way to work she started making a weird noise. At first I thought it was static from the radio but I turned off the radio and it was still doing it. Then I thought something was dragging so I stopped at a gas station and there was nothing. Not related to engine speed at all and only does it while moving, definitely sounds like either front or center of car. It’s also intermittent. Doesn’t start til Im a few blocks away, and on the interstate it would do it for a few miles, then be silent for 10 miles, then start again, etc. Best way to describe it would be like loud radio static or a grinding sound like something dragging across pavement. Absolutely zero vibration, only the noise.
I heard a similar noise once and it was someone else's radio antenna stuck in my wheel well somehow. This was back before everyone switched to shark fins.
Looks like the sound is something related to the heater. I had my buddy riding with me and holding his head by the radio he said it’s definitely coming from behind the dash. It’s still like a slight grinding type sound. He thought it was a stuck cd trying to spin but there’s no cd. I do know something with the mode selection is busted. Like no matter what button is pressed it always blows out the center vents and defrost. Sound is still intermittent, sometimes does it even with the fan turned off and other times I’ll run the heater all morning and never hear it.
If that's the case, the good new is the blending unit is easily accessed from near the accelerator pedal. I had to do some troubleshooting on mine last summer and I was pleased to see that. The levers and linkages are readily visible.
Ok never mind I jacked up the car and was checking out the heat shields when I found the sound. Where the Driveshaft comes out of the transmission there’s like a 4” long metal cylinder that looks like a dust guard, it’s disconnected from the tranny so it’s just sliding around on the driveshaft. It looks like it’s supposed to be welded or pressed to the tranny but I don’t really have room to do anything besides spin it with a screwdriver lol. He’s a picture I found on eBay, I circled the piece that’s sliding around.
Better find a new 'buddy' next time you need a co-pilot!
That looks like the dust cover that protects the rear seal. Not sure, but I think it's just a friction fit. If yours won't go back on tight, then maybe it has lost contact surface metal due to corrosion, or it has worn a low spot in the trans case - or both. The part is replacable if corroded but I'd say that's a waste of time if the trans case has wear in the contact area. Did you try pushing it back on? You might also entertain the idea of coating the mating surface with some metal epoxy.
Didn’t want to press in at all so I used some sealant I had lying around. Seems like it held so far but I didn’t drive far. If it falls off again I’m probably just gonna cut it off lol. Thanks for the help guys.