awd not working ?

well i blew my headgaskets somehow today , and trying to get the car up on ramps i had a one tire fire going and couldnt get up the ramp , had to back down and try it again. why is my awd not working ? thanks

Did you check to make sure the FWD fuse is not installed? Also make sure the drive shaft is installed. If your AWD was not working and the drive shaft is in and the FWD fuse it not present then you would hear some sort of noise somewhere. Sorry to hear about your headgaskets. If you are doing them yourself there is oodles of info on the forums.

yes the fuse is not installed. the drive shaft is installed. i had one wheel off the ground today trying to replace my fuel filler and i noticed i could spin the hub around freely , maybe that had something to do with it. car is also an auto and no noises. im gunna do the engine work myself , or atleast try.

the rear wheels are not ''connected'' to the trans when the engine is off, so a rear wheel spinning by hand when jacked up is normal. (no fluid pressure in the transfer case means no power / connection to the rear wheels.)

 

there is the possibility that something in the rear extension housing is busted causing no AWD. and if it's a new ''break'',( drum busted off the shaft) i think it would make some noise. but it could be ''grooves'' worn in the drums not letting the plates engage.

 

does your speedo work?

 

a failed speed sensor will eliminate AWD, the car will default to FWD. without one of the speed sensors the computer cannot make a comparison between the front and rear wheel speeds and therefore it cannot send power to the rear wheels.

 

if the car were still running, i would unplug the large connector to the trans located on the back of the engine. (largest of the three.) this will disconnect the TCU, put the trans in limp mode, third gear only, and cause ''binding'' in tight turns. if you get the binding, this means the mechanical stuff is ok in the transfer case and the problem is probably else where.

Edited July 1, 2011 by johnegg

the speedo does work yes.

then it is probably something in the transfer case, but i wouldn't work on it until you have done the engine.

 

this thread has some goods info. post #21 has pics.

(you may have to register to see?)

 

http://www.ultimatesubaru.org/forum/showthread.php?t=78467&highlight=grooves+dremel+grind*&page=2

thanks for your help. im just gunna bite the bullet and swap my 95's drivetrain over. money is limited for me and this will probably be the easiest and cheapest thing for me to do.

I swear that whole Senario happened to me like 4 months ago....

 

I was trying to get my little scoobie up a ramp when all the sudden my HG blew under the pressure. Well, after that I hit up a diet real hard for 16 weeks and got me some new head gaskets and guess what?!? My AWD returned JUST LIKE THAT!! It was the just the craziest thing....

 

cool story bro. haha

I take it back. I was drunk when I wrote that.

 

Sorry.

There is a solenoid that engages the rear wheels too and if it takes a crap the rear wheels won't engage. Happened to my mom's 98 gt when they were looking to buy it. As far as I know it wasn't an expensive fix. I don't know what it was called or where it was located so i'm not really that big of a help.

I take it back. I was drunk when I wrote that.

 

Sorry.

 

its cool man, dont sweat it.

 

There is a solenoid that engages the rear wheels too and if it takes a crap the rear wheels won't engage. Happened to my mom's 98 gt when they were looking to buy it. As far as I know it wasn't an expensive fix. I don't know what it was called or where it was located so i'm not really that big of a help.

 

well ive got an update to the situation. i put the car up on jack stands and put it in gear and the rear wheels spin , and they spin faster as i gave it gas. so there working. but i noticed the driver side front wheel was stuck , unless i realllly stepped on it. possible bad caliper causing my awd not to work when on flat ground ? me thinks so . lmk what you think.

With that car I think it transfers power diagonally between the wheels (ie driver's front and passenger rear). I got my old 98 hung up on a snow drift once and the only wheels to spin were the 2 that were off the ground and it wouldn't transfer power. I'm guessing that once it's suspended it gets confused. I know the awd was always working though because there were times I could feel it adjust getting it sideways in snow.

With that car I think it transfers power diagonally between the wheels (ie driver's front and passenger rear). I got my old 98 hung up on a snow drift once and the only wheels to spin were the 2 that were off the ground and it wouldn't transfer power. I'm guessing that once it's suspended it gets confused. I know the awd was always working though because there were times I could feel it adjust getting it sideways in snow.

 

this is because both the front and the rear are open differentials. the wheel with the least resistance spins and the other one just sits there.

 

you can try stepping on the brakes a little or applying the hand brake slightly to stop the spinning and hopefully the ''stuck'' wheel will engage.

 

or swap in a VLSD rear diff (they were standard on 03 era GTs and outbacks, easy swap). now your car changes from 2wd, one front and one rear, to 3wd, one front and 2 rear.

swap in a VLSD rear diff (they were standard on 03 era GTs and outbacks, easy swap). now your car changes from 2wd, one front and one rear, to 3wd, one front and 2 rear.

 

is there a diff like that for the front?

not that i know of.

if the car were still running, i would unplug the large connector to the trans located on the back of the engine. (largest of the three.) this will disconnect the TCU, put the trans in limp mode, third gear only, and cause ''binding'' in tight turns. if you get the binding, this means the mechanical stuff is ok in the transfer case and the problem is probably else where.

 

I did this and did not get any torque bind. I’m thinking it’s the transfer clutch solenoid. ButI want to make sure before I tear the tail end of the transmission apart to change the seal annoyed out as I will have to be making my own gasket in order to put it back together