Great video. It was instrumental in me getting the job done! To those who find the roll pin as frustrating as I did: If your roll pin doesn't go into the differential and you know you are lined up rotate the axel 180° and you'll be good to go. Take a look at the grooves on your axel and the grooves on differential. You'll find that a "peak" goes through the middle on one side and a "valley" through the middle on the other.
When I was a Subaru tech in the mid to late nineties, we used the female end of a long 1/4 inch extension to hold the roll pin and install it in the axle. Just drop the pin in the cavity, give it a few taps and then finish it of with a non-tapered punch. Great video, I enjoyed it!
Eric, last year I sold my 95 Legacy but over the years I have had to change many axles in Subaru's not just due to them being defective but also due to transmission issues. All the steps you show will save people time and aggravation. I also support a Subaru Rally team and we have this CV axle swap down to about 3 minutes in the pits!! Thanks for the GREAT tips! Jeff Lehmann, Burlington ON Canada
Thanks Eric. After a two hour wait at the dealership and a $612 quote for the part alone, I went to Auto Zone, bought the CV Axel for $99. An hour later (with a few breaks to revisit your video), and I was up and running. I have a 2012 Forester, so it installs with a "C" spring rather than a pin, simply pry and push.
Just did this over the weekend with my sons 2002 Subaru Forester, spot on. Thank you so much for this video. Thanks to this video, I went back to the store and bought a punch set to get the pin out and then back in, saving me a trip in the middle of the repair. Love your videos, clear and concise.
The amount of rust underneath these "salt country" vehicles never ceases to amaze me. I have to admit that I am somewhat spoiled, as I have lived in California (where salt is not used on snowy roads) since 1972...prior to that, I lived in Omaha, NE, which IS "salt country", as far as I know. I currently own 2 (two) 2001 Subaru Foresters, one (the builder, a 148K mile car, with a blown transmission) spent some time in Massachusetts... as there is a "Tufts University" parking sticker on the left rear quarter window. The engine from this Forester went into my '02 Subaru Outback Wagon. That left me with the '01 Forester 'roller', which I had originally planned to sell off. After driving the Outback for a few months, I decided to sell it, as at 68 years of age, I found it somewhat difficult for me to get in and out of, due to its low stance, and on-the-floor seating. I checked out the Forester 'roller', and found it much easier to get in and out of, and its stance is higher, along with it's seats not being on-the-floor. The parts car, another '01 Forester is a salvage-titled car, having been hit hard in the right rear corner, knocking the tailgate and it's opening out of whack. The parts car came complete, I bought it and drove it home from San Francisco, before plucking its 92,000 mile drive train and installing in into the 'builder' '01 Forester. "Creeping" around under both Foresters during the transition really brought home the difference between the two vehicle's underside conditions as a result of the winter environments which they spent most of their lives in.
Pro tip: you can disable most Subaru seat belt alarms by turning the key until you hear the seatbelt chime, then buckle and unbuckle the seatbelt 20 times within 30 seconds. Then turn key to off position for 5 seconds. Then turn key until the seatbelt chime starts. The Sounds should cycle once and then it will stop. If you've done it correctly the seat belt light on the gauge cluster won't be lit after the first set of chimes. Your welcome
I'm getting ready to do this to my '97 Legacy Outback. Unfortunately my barn floor is dirt, so I have been stacking up on clean cardboard to make it less gritty. Great information. I hope mine goes as smoothly as yours did.
I know this video is old but I have a 1997 Subaru legacy gt 2.5l sedan. I'm replacing the cv axles because they make lots of noise when turning and have been going out for a while. I'm getting the parts from a local parts store for 94 bucks after core exchange. That's for both of the front ones. They are remanufactured and have a warranty. I'm replacing both of them very soon. Thanks to your video. I have the confidence I can do this myself. I'm borrowing some tools from a mechanic buddy . like the 32mm socket, impact, and braker bar. So its saving me hundreds of dollars. Thanks for the video. There's not really much on RU-vid about 1997 Subaru legacy's.
Great video I was going to take the subi to the shop to get replaced but after seeing the video one time I replaced mine and works great the differential was nice and tight and everything was a breeze. thanks
Eric thanks for the video. I just did both my fronts on a 1997 Legacy Outback and your video helped me finish both sides in just over an hour. I’ve never done CVs before. Thanks again.
I’m about to do mine on my 97 legacy outback as well... there’s a lot of rust though and I don’t have many tools so I know it’s gonna be a pain in the ass. Doing the pads and rotors took a while because of the rust
Sir, I tip my hat to you. Your video was tremendously helpful. Many thanks! I honestly never would have thought to hit the control arm with a hammer because I tend to be wary of hitting things with hammers when I am not sure if I will break something, but it worked wonders! I replaced both of my half-shafts in my 2000 Subaru Impreza Outback Sport today because the inner CV boots were torn. It took much longer than your video because I ran into two problems: 1. The cotter pins in the castellated nuts were so tight that punching the cotter pins out was a no-go for me.I was forced to break off both ends and drill out the rest of the cotter pin. Fortunately for me, the cotter pins were very soft metal and did not take long to drill out. I used a 1/8" titanium drill bit. 2. Boy, did that roll-pin on the passenger's side inner joint above the catalytic converter give me trouble! What caused me the most consternation was that I could not simply push the inner joint all the way in and punch in the pin. I had to pull the inner joint out ever so slightly to align it with the hole properly. I am sure you said it already, but proper hole alignment is critical (I can hear the jokes already). Probably should have figured that out earlier, but live and learn. I also used a long 1/4" ratchet extender to drive the roll-pin in. I placed the roll-pin into the end of the extender that connects to the ratchet, that way it would not slip off. Is there a special tool mechanics use with which to drive those roll pins in hard to reach spots? Once again, great video.
OEM subaru axles last a long time unless a boot breaks. Also, it looked like the shaft into the differential had the play not the axle. Also, it's usually easier to lift the hub off the ball joint. I like to use a spud bar. Slip the flat end under the unibody support behind the wheel well toward the back of the car and put the shaft of the spud bar over the lower control arm and you have enough leverage with a six foot bar to pull the ball joint out of the hub with one hand. Without disconnecting the sway bar. Also, it's easier to punch out from the side with the larger tapered hole. And you can pull the airbox and put the punch in the vice grip and tap it out from the top.
Taking the steering knuckle loose from the lower ball joint is the CORRECT way to do this. Congratulations. RU-vid is filled with videos showing the knuckle being removed by take the top of the knuckle loose, which requires messing with camber shims and most likely requiring an alignment afterwards.
I did the same job on my 2K Outback. Removing the sway bar from the control arm makes it much easier to slip the lower ball joint out. Also good time to inspect/replace ball joint. Eric, yours looked loose. A trick for aligning & installing the roll pin is to use a small piece of masking tape to hold it on the end of the same diameter punch used to remove it. Aftermarket axles are well known to have vibration problems at idle or rolling in Subarus. I encountered it with Autozone axles, so I rebuilt the inner torn boot, swapped both originals back in and vibration problem solved.
I was watching newer subaru videos on how to replace your clutch dropping the trans only, and couldn't figure out why my axles weren't coming out, LMAO, thank you so much.
Hey Eric. Thanks for the vid. Very helpful. FYI, I have a 1998 Legacy 2.5GT with a hesitation that I could not diagnose for years. A random mechanic told me to replace the knock sensor since the original sensor was too sensitive. Solved my problem. This applies to the 1997 too.
... only to discover the timing belt was off by one tooth! I'm about to do the belt on my '97 Outback Sport and am glad I watched your last video on the Legacy. You had this car for a long time!
Quick tip to ease the separation of ball joint stem out of the lower control arm: disconnect the sway bar link connection to the LCA! Notice that when he prys down on the LCA with the link connected it fights against his force...I disconnected the sway bar end link to the LCA and was able to pry with my breaker bar to disconnect the ball joint stem.....and much easier going back in. My car is 02 H6 Outback....great vid overall.
Eric, I believe that a '97-'99 Legacy with auto transmission has an electronically controlled AWD system. If you suspect the AWD system, you should be able to pull the AWD fuse, which will essentially turn it into a FWD car. I drive a '98 stick shift Legacy, I used an extra long pin punch from Company 23 to do my roll pins, it's a really nice tool as it has a step machined into the tip which holds the roll pin on the punch while you get it into position.
I am so glad I found this video as my u-joint on my axle just went to shit as I was leaving work. Just need to get an axle and get it to my buddies garage and this seems like a very easy fix.
Another great job, thanks! I have to change my balljoint & this video although was not meant to address this gives a clear view of how I will proceed. I have to work outside for car repairs & it is great to see assembly before I get under.
Did this job on an 03 Olds Alero. That thing had those stub shaft adapters. One side went slick and easy. The other side...fought me every step of the way. At least once done the car drove better, both sides were shot.
I had the same car a few years back. Everytime I replaced the axles the stub shafts would come out from the diff. They shouldn't do that but they did, which made it really east to take care of that roll pin, although the added length meant I had to drop the tie rod to get it out. The replacement axles I used from advance were junk, but since both axles are the same and they had a lifetime warranty, i could change one out every six months or so....
a little trick i use for the rollpins is to put the tapered end in the vice and close it up slightly it helps with alignment of the pin and it might stay put in the hole so u dont have to try and hold the pin and punch with one hand then hit it with a hammer great vid i think u might have some diff bearing issues judging by the play in the diff output shafts.
I've seen the axle nut back off before, because it happened to me! haha. I learned the hard way to bend that piece. The manufacturer recommends 137 fb.ft of torque. I noticed you just wrenched that sucker on there, so maybe less likely to back off for you. I'm no expert but in theory, it could reduce the life of the new part. So, if you're going by manufacture specs, its essential to bump that notch.
Also, a tip... I am terrified of removing the ball joint crown nuts sometimes... Salt usually gets the better of them and I end up replacing a balljoint...(which is another nightmare) But then, this has been my luck on 3 cars... It may not be true for other people... INSTEAD... I mark/score the knuckle to the strut for camber alignment and remove the outer tie rods and lower strut bolt. This gives me to room to pull axles and replace bearings as well! Just my $.02 for what it is worth.
Something of which to take note: hammering the control arm after removing the castle nut to release it from the lower ball joint stud *may* mess up your lower ball joints. Here is why: shortly after successfully replacing my axle shafts, I noticed a clunking sound coming from the front end whenever I sharply cornered to make a right turn. The sound went away for a while, so I didn't worry about it. However, once the weather turned colder, I started to notice the same sound again, only more frequently. After some research, I think that my lower ball joints need to be replaced. I am not sure if the ball joints were already starting to go bad, or if hammering the control arm to release it from the lower ball joint stud may have contributed to it. What do you think Eric? Did this happen to you as well?
Awesome. :) Thank's to these videos, I was able to replace one of the drive shafts on my Renault myself. It was much easier than I thought it would be, and now the car doesn't knock in turns anymore. Me happy! :) I don't know if Eric mentions this, but on some cars it is very important to tension the centre nuts to the correct specs. Some cars has the centre nuts putting load on the wheel bearings which means that if you overtension the nuts, your wheel bearings could become all chewed up! I don't think ALL cars has this kind of design though, but it's worth checking.
The play in the axles you show at around 2:50 is actually not play in the axles themselves, but wear on the preload shims for the center differential stubs that come out of the sides of the transmission, this is common but causes drivetrain lag when decelerating and accelerating
My gf...exgf... just rolled my 94 Legacy Turbo... I am sad panda...I had just replaced the bearings, weather stripping and CV's too :( On a side note... GREAT videos Eric.... Really.
Hey Eric, if you're interested in reading about a cool handsfree HD camera...check out the "hero gopro" types of cameras. Just a FYI. Thanks for your time and effort. Well appreciated.
a trick to pulling the control arms down to get them off of the ball joint stud is to make a short chain and connect it into a loop and hook it over the control arm and place your pry bar in from the bottom and pry solely against the control arm itself and it works wonders
I think Eric has mentioned in a past video that you can basically keep using the driveaxle with split-open boot until it starts making noise when turning corners. For my 99 Legacy BK I'm seeing ebay prices from $40-$90 and Subaru parts website prices $180, and my mechanic here in Pittsburgh told me $100 part and $75 labor.
Eric; obviously the roll pin locks the CV axle onto the stub protruding from the Case. I saw 4-6mm of end play on video. Side end play spec should be available. There will not be an almost zero end play, or side loading of carrier bearing will destroy it. After axle replacement they always seem tighter since roller balls were replaced in a good reman unit. Complaint of front rear awd hesitation? Maybe power transfer governor pressure inside the case. Sticking-burrs or varnish etc. Worn degraded seals or shims on main planetary shaft that need replaced. Shim packs one is always bearing majority of the load in any automatic. Improper little metal shim costing a few pennies in a bad rebuild will cause main-shaft catastrophe of excess free-play walking backwards in the case.
That's no good if we're talking about symetrical AWD. To check the problem more closely lift the car, then give it gas a bit. You'll notice small difference as the front wheels turn slightly faster, but that's normal. If the rear wheels aren't moving at all, then you've got a serious problem with the all-wheel-drive system.
There is a viscious diff. that splits power between the front and rear axles. There is also an electric clutch that engages that diff. There is a little fuse box under the hood, rh side, on the firewall that controls it. Pop in a 20 amp fuse and you have a FWD subaru, which really tears those front axles up, but they were free....
one thing i allways loved with Subaru is the 4WD transmission but that Flat (Boxer) Engine if for say a head gasket fails it would be one hell of a repair to replace it i mean that means you have to take out the entire engine? well yes many cars of the era also had 4WD hell even 4 Wheel steering (Mostly Mazda and Ford what i know of), Like VW synchro, Mercedes Benz 4Matic, and even Volvo and Ford, dont know whos system was more reliable but these are just things i know.
God damn it eric... I had to do this job on my buddys 01 Legacy Wagon last night i could have used your help lol... On the other hand, i was able to pop the tie rod off and the strut bolts to get the axle out with a bit of wiggling, The ball joint was seized in there and i couldnt get it out so i took the alternate approach. Gotta love working in the rust belt. Now if you can post a video of doing the bellows boot on the steering rack before i have to do next week i'll be happy ;) Keep it up!
Thanks! I really appreciate you documenting the process here. I did the driver side CV on my '97 Outback last weekend after watching your video and it went smooth and fast because I already knew what I was up against. Thanks again!
I saw that too, except it looks like he had enough leverage to do the job without bothering to loosen the endlink. If I had to loosen any part of the sway bar, I would go for the bushing mount up top because chances are they're easier to remove (i.e. seizing).
Very helpful video! I found it easier to disconnect my anti-sway bar when I did mine. You don't even need a pry bar to move the lower control arm then.
Nice and informative vids Eric. I have a 99 Legacy GTB and I am sure the front axle is stuffed. Car makes a knocking noise under the left front floor and the boot on the axle next to the diff is gone completely.
Very understandable. What should I do if the inside gear/spines come out with it. There is a retaining ring which keeps it from supposedly coming out now keeps it from going back in. 1993 Subaur
My rear pads are 50%+ worn or so and my parking brake comes right up like that too. The easiest indication is that the brake reservoir is a little low, if there are not other known fluid leaks, then the pads are somewhat worn. The park brake requires zero adjustment normally and it's just a pad replacement needed.
Great video, I was able to replace both CV axels on my legacy and saved about $500. Your method of separating the axle from the control arm was different from some other videos on this topic, but it saved me from a locked nut and I didn't have to worry about alignment. Many thanks! Can you do a video on the rear CV axel on the same car? At this point I wouldn't tackle that job without seeing it done first.
I was reading online that people had problems with aftermarket axles causing vibrations with automatic transmissions while in gear sitting still. That only using OEM axles can prevent this? Theres a major price difference
...I would look at the center or rear differentials. Now I am going out on a limb here, but I believe the center diff is an "open" diff, so it should transfer the power to the side of the differential with the LEAST TRACTION. So if you fronts are slipping, the center diff may not be "locking-up" and transferring any power at all to the rear differential. What I'm saying is that this may be normal behavior. STi and certain WRX and LegGT have "Limited Slip diffs" to prevent this.
see the briansmobile1 video on doing the axles. you do not have to remove the balljoint, just the two upper strut bolts and the axle nut then it has just enough room to wiggle out.
I know that you may have already resolved the issue but it sounds like your having an all wheel drive clutch problem. if you set it up on a rack or jack up all four wheels and run it to about 15mph and use the FWD fuse under the hood and let them slam together and separate about ten times by inserting and removing the fuse it should resolve you issue
The front driver cv boot is ripped on my 97 legacy outback and it’s making noise on left turns, It’s rusted to hell and I have minimal tools and space to do this but I’m gonna give it a shot and do one for now and do the other later. I’ve never done a job like this so it should be interesting
I have had 4 Subarus and have changed the half shafts in most of them and I find they all have some play on the differential stubs. and I see that is a typical Subaru,, lots of engine oil leaks..
Wow, 600k! That's impressive. I'm not a tech, but I drive a suby and have swapped a full drive line. While I've never opened up a transmission case I believe, if you are getting power to the front wheels and not the rear, it's going to be an issue with the center diff. Subies have a center diff that splits the power between and front and rear diff. I believe all three are open differentials on your year/trim. If your fronts are moving and neither of the rears budge...
Eric, I'm sorry. I'm sure you've answered this question about ten trillion times, but I'm in the market for a new camera, and I'm happy with the quality of your videos. What kind of camera do you use? I'd like to keep it under around $500. If your camera is out of my price range, is there a camera you would recommend in my price range? And while you're at it, what kind of video editing software do you use? I'd really appreciate hearing from you. Thanks for your time.
Remove factory exhaust. Remove Oil pan. Install oil return bung Install Oil feed using oil filter sandwich plate Install turbo manifold Install turbo Run oil lines Install intercooler Fit and weld intercooler pipes and exhaust pipes Run vacuum lines to bov/ wastegate Tune car or run turbo ecu. That is all. Have fun!
Hey Eric, Check the U- joints on the rear drive shaft they are non serviceable on this vehicle and often go bad, which may also add to that hesitation feel!
ANY HELP WOULD BE MUCH APPRECIATED: Last week, my AWD 97 Legacy Outback 5 speed started "Clicking" around the driver side front wheel, while driving in a straight line, it would click lightly and last a few seconds, then over the course of a few days the clicking got louder and lasted longer. 4 days/200 miles later, while driving in a straight line, the steering wheel began to vibrate and wobble (turn left to right off center) ONLY WHEN ACCELERATING (hence my suspecting a bad CV Axle), it would stop once I 'coasted'. I discovered if I turn the steering wheel all the way to the left and drive in a complete circle, afterwards, I could continue driving 'normally'= the clicking, the vibration & the wobbling were gone and stay gone for many miles (drove home and the car hasn't been driven since). I was told it is my CV Axle, which confirmed my suspicion, that's how I came to find your video. I am wondering if he/I may have misdiagnosed the problem and my doing a CV Axle replacement is not going to solve the problem. Any help would be greatly appreciated. THANKS!
I'm curious, if there was no to be play in the diff, then where would the rotational play come in from? It looks to me that it would have to come from the splines wearing, which increases the space between the spline teeth. But then wouldn't the splines from the diff also be worn (wouldn't they wear together)?
Hi Eric, Any reason why you didn't just disconnect the swaybar endlink? I assume you were just trying to save time, but it looked like the swaybar was deflecting a lot while you were prying down on the LCA. It seemed like disconnecting the endlink would make it a lot easier to move the LCA and it wouldn't take too long to do. Anyway, thanks for another informative video!
great video Eric! Maybe at the end of the video you should have talked about symptoms of bad axles, or what bad axles do or look like? But oh well! Too late now! Keep up the great work buddy
Would it have been easier when prying the lower control arms down, to remove one of the bolts on the sway bar end links?? Would that have made a difference??
A friend of mine got a subarua like yours from a family member of his for 200 bucks because both front cv shafts had snapped. By the way with both shafts out or snapped the allwheel drives can still be driven they will role when they are in park.
Definitely enjoyed that. I'm going to have to do an axel boot change at the very least on my Subaru Outback Limited 10/1998 MY-99 2.5 Litre wagon. Considering a front axel change out as they've done a lot of miles. But I'm definitely going to have to change at least one "front axle seal" on the transaxle as it's leaking a bit of fluid and I'm hoping it's fairly straight forward? Your videos are awesome for the home mechanic. 👌
