2008 Tribeca Transmission/ front diff fail- I'm going in!!

[dave silva]

Wife's car, has 110,000 miles. it felt like a trans failure, It had been running perfectly then suddenly would not go forward, and then it would, felt weird but she was able to get it up to 50 and drive it home.

So i rolled it into the garage to have a look and discovered the front wheels were not engaging. It got stuck in the grass and only the back wheels were spinning.

Back story- we bought the car at 90K, i proceeded to do all the scheduled maintenance. The front diff was noisy. I drained about a pint of black smelly oil from it and replaced it with 3 pints. It sounded a lot better but i'm thinking that diff was wounded.

I'm thinking it has failed and not the transmission.

Not sure how to proceed. I can get a used trans including the diff for about the same price as a new diff. (i think)

But most of the info on trans replacement has them coming out as a unit.

How should i proceed?

thanks

 

[Uncle Vern]

When did you post this and it doesn't look like you've gotten any help, have you? I wish I could help you but I'm a new owner of an 08 Tribeca and I have some problems with the transmission myself.

 

[dave silva]

Yup, I can only assume Tribeca owners are not the kind of people who do their own transmission swaps.

The failure was the front differential and even though they do come apart, the trans and front diff are sold as a unit. So i got a used trans for $800 and dove in. I got a paid layoff due to Covid and got it done. Took about a week (also home schooling my kids) Car runs great.

Big job but not the hardest thing i've done on a car.

 

[Uncle Vern]

Yup, I can only assume Tribeca owners are not the kind of people who do their own transmission swaps.

The failure was the front differential and even though they do come apart, the trans and front diff are sold as a unit. So i got a used trans for $800 and dove in. I got a paid layoff due to Covid and got it done. Took about a week (also home schooling my kids) Car runs great.

Big job but not the hardest thing i've done on a car.

Thanks for the response, much appreciate it.

Glad your car is up and running, kind of wish I could get time off for Covid.
Tribeca owners not wanting to get dirty?, say it ain't it so LOL. I'm an industrial mechanic different from autos but a machine is a machine and with the right tools and knowledge pretty much anything can be fixed.
This is my first Subaru, or should say the wife's, I'm just the one who has to fix everything she is the brains.
Well for now now I just put the old valve body back in, it runs just got some light and I'm looking for a couple things to help me along my journey, a good scanner and of need be software to work on this thing.