I have a 96 legacy outback awd and it stuters when I have the wheel cut all the way to the left or the right and give it gas. It seems like the awd is banging in and out of gear. Is this normal? I noticed there is a fuse holder under the hood that says FWD, I installed a fuse there and the FWD light came on on the dash. I know this is a warning light but Does the fuse belong there?? The car runs good this way. I read that this means that the car is in Front wheel drive only. But somthing is jamming or something, the car jumps forward as the gears bang around, only with the wheel turned Any help please?????

With the wheels fully turned you are putting a lot of strain on the frount diff, its possible its going bad, or is running low on oil.
Its possible it may also load up the center diff as well, which would indicate its also going bad, and would explain why locking the car in FWD stops it happening.

Diffs are funnythings, I would check the oil levels in all of them, as well as look for signs of leaks.
And if your not familar with the workings of them, then get a mechanic to check for play.


Normaly clicking, or banging etc when the wheels are fully turned is a sign of a bad CV joint, but it would do it regardless of the car being AWD, FWD, or even in neutral.

Ya its not a clicking as from CV axles, Ita a banging and play in the drive line, Do you think low oil inthe differentials would do this?
Going nuts in Ma.

I actualy don't know what sort of diffs the subi use anymore.
The last subaru I worked on still had mechanical ones all around.

I believe many of the more modern models use viscus diffs in the middle and back, and possible in the front as well.
A low oil level would of course be bad for such a diff, as they require oil to function correctly.

That said, all diffs require oil for cooling, and a diff with a low oil level will soon over heat and begin to show signs of excessive wear.
If one of the diffs has suffered some excessive wear then it may show up as the symtombs described.

Im not much of a driveline expert, Im just running through the list of things I would check if a car with the above problem was presented to me.

A low fluid level is a good sign of a bad diff, or a diff one its way to going bad.
Any play in the diff is also a good sign, altough if you don't know what your looking for, then its hard to know whats an ok amount of play, and what isnt. (some diff designs have play in certian directions, but not others, and in certians amounts).


I do know that in the legacy, like all AWD subi's the front diff, and center diff are all housed in the transmission case, with the gear box. (some have a seperate oil supply, some don't). It sounds to me like the problem is a combination of faults with the center and front diff.
Since its likely they share the same oil, it could explain the problem.

I lifted the car and checked the oils. The rear was full but now I cant understand the front. The tranny is full and up more there is a small gear box were the front cv axles come out of, I found a drain plug there but no fill plug. Does the tranny fluid do all of the front gear boxes? I cant find no other fill plug except on the rear diff. any help would be awsome, Thanks.

On my 93 w/5sp the whole transmission/front diff/transfer case shared the same fluid.
ByronP

If its an AT, then it could be the torque converter...

I have a '96 Legacy, and when turning hard one way or the other, as in a U-turn, I think I know what you're talking about. It's called "torque bind" and was a problem in the models around '96 - '99. It comes from wear inside the rear differential -- apparently there's a fix for it; my mechanic says it's not too terribly expensive, something like $500. But I've got 165K miles so hope she'll hang in there just a little longer so I can get something a bit newer.
Here's a link: http://www.legacycentral.org/library/torquebind.htm

Currently I own a '95 Legacy, I just bought it b/c I previously owned one and drove it until I sold it with 211,000 miles. I feel these are great cars with little problems. About your AWD not functioning properly- if you crank your wheel all the way to the right or left and feel your rear end "hopping" its viscous coupling. I had this problems with my old legacy at 130,000 miles- I just changed the oil as recommened and didn't worry about it. I had no other problems with the powertrain b/c of it. However, if you are getting jerking elsewhere- say in the front of the car when the front tires slip and your waiting for your rear tires to grip something else may be the cause- what I do not know.

Currently I own a '95 Legacy, I just bought it b/c I previously owned one and drove it until I sold it with 211,000 miles. I feel these are great cars with little problems. About your AWD not functioning properly- if you crank your wheel all the way to the right or left and feel your rear end "hopping" its torque binding. I had this problems with my old legacy at 130,000 miles- I just changed the oil as recommened and didn't worry about it. (Subaru said they put in an additive to help with this slippage) I am not sure if they were pulling my leg or not. But after changing the fluids in the differentials, I did not notice it. Also, I had no other problems with the powertrain b/c of torque binding. However, if you are getting jerking elsewhere- say in the front of the car when the front tires slip and your waiting for your rear tires to grip something else may be the cause- what, I do not know.

On my 93 w/5sp the whole transmission/front diff/transfer case shared the same fluid.
ByronP

All Subaru's with Automatic trannys have a dip stick for the front diff. located to the left of teh motor as you face it all teh way down on top of the diff. housing behind the AT. It has a yellow handle and gets dirty so it is hard to find!!

Hey Saturn DONT LISTEN TO THESE DRAMA QUEENS! - I have a 97 GTB that did the same thing about two months ago, I know exactly what you are talking about....It's your 4wd solinoids in the transmission...... I had mine replaced at a cost of $900 NZ and it fixed the problem instantly, its no biggy and the trans shop will most likely do a transmission flush at the same time. good luck!

I know exactly what you are talking about....It's your 4wd solinoids in the transmission...... I had mine replaced at a cost of $900 NZ and it fixed the problem instantly, its no biggy and the trans shop will most likely do a transmission flush at the same time. good luck!

NZGTB is right there was problem with the silinoid in 4EAT (automatic) equiped AWD Subaroos of that vintage. The rear tail cone that housed the clutch pack and silinoid was replaced on my '98 EJ22, 4EAT, Legacy L wagon with 30k on the clock for FREE under warrenty!!

almost all the time whem it is the transfer clutch solenoid it will set a code.with a scanner you can check the duty cylce percentage.or with a ohm meter is resistance.but the more likely cause is that there is 2 teflon ring seals in the transfer case that were into its housing.the best and most complete repair is as follows.
1-replace transfer case
2-replace transfer clutch solenoid
3-gaskets for both above
4-teflon seals
5-the end plate ring must be measured for the transfer clutch pak
and the new correct transfer clutchs replaced.

this can all be done without reoving the trans

hey there.. I had this same problem and got it fixed by a Mechanic. They told me that its because the 4wd is made for loose terrain therefor with constant driving on grippy tarmac it creates alot of stress on the diff...thats all i know...hope it helps