Questions and Answers

Subaru Forester Had No Gear Oil Q. I have a 2003 Subaru Forester XS that we believe never had gear oil put in it since it rolled out of the lot. We started hearing a loud humming sound before our first oil change and the dealer could not find anything wrong with it. After 11,000 miles, we started hearing the same humming sound and it started getting louder.

My husband checked the gear oil and discovered that there was no gear oil in it at all. He had it checked by an independent oil place to see if there was any trace of gear oil at all and there was not. The dealer is saying that there is no way the car can run without any gear oil. Is this true? Ours did!

A. You didn't specify which assembly, manual transmission, transfer case or differentials, was missing the lube. But in any case, the vehicle will run if any one of these had no fluid.

If you can document the fact there was no gear lube in the unmentioned assembly, do so and bring it to the attention of the Subaru Factory representative, not just the dealership. Call the Customer Service number in the Owners Manual to make the appointment.