Hi, I wonder if someone can give me some info to pinpoint this problem described below ...

After a while driving my Sti V there is a very obvious 'clunking' going on when the steering is at half to full lock and the car is moving and this is felt through the steering wheel at the same time, I can only describe it as a 'clunking' sound (whatever that means to you ) ... tis only when the car has been warmed up somewhat after about 10 mins or so of hard driving. Local garage (non-subaru as main dealer won't touch it) has had it in and he can't find anything wrong with wheel bearings, steering or anything from an 'inspection' with the car on the ramp and he reckons that its the diff fighting itself, he even took it for a spin ... does this make sense? The clutch was changed recently so I assume that he had a good chance to check for things in the drivetrain. It has been like this for ages now .... lately though (prior to new clutch) I can hear a noise like gear whine comensurate with road speed in or out of gear, braking or otherwise ... this newer noise is not obvious to others but I have owned the car for over 2 years and there was no such noise previously. I am now concerned that summat is gonna lock-up or otherwise cause an accident next time I is getting hard on the gas out of a bend

Is it time to uprate the gear box & diff(s) in anticipation of a potential 2.5 lt upgrade

 

Not sure what diff the car has, but plated diffs (which i doubt yours is) make a very disconcerting 'crack'/'clunk' when the car is being turned through a tight bend as the plate type discs rub (clunk) across each other. with all the other nioses you have, and the thought os a 2.5, i would be very tempted to go for a Jap Sti 6 speeder.
I think in projects here there ia a realy good thread about the swop. I think your garage man can do this for you aided by the step-by-step thread.
Try Grade A breakers for the 6 speeder, about £1500 all-in.
There is also a complete box for you car in the 'Car parts for sale' goes back about 2 weeks!
Good luck,
911

 

Ta for the info ... I have posted asking what diff is in my car as standard based on the transmission code ... just to be sure! I have driven 12K miles with the clunking noise with no other dodgey sounds till recently or handling issues.

This may just force my hand in the upgrade department ....... though I was gonna do the 2.5lt block first.