John/Horace

If there is warranty on ptu maybe go back and see them. If you are changing oil look with a magnet for metal filings.p

All gear boxes and transfer cases and differentials have a vent because of differential pressure. Oil and assembly air space heat up with use and would pressurize, forcing oil out through gaskets and seals if not vented. Usually the vent tube has a small one way check valve at top to prevent contamination; on jeeps especially they go up high as they can in case anyone plays Uboat captain. I changed the oil two years ago and have no pic. I’m due to change it again in a few weeks, will post a picture then. I’ve never seen it shown on engine bay diagram.

https://www.bobistheoilguy.com/forums/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=2009508 Great write up on link about torque to yield heat bolts Paint mark the belt on the pulleys, transfer marks to the new belt. Some cars have recess in block where bolt goes through pulley to prevent them from moving. Should be timing marks on cams and TDC on timing cover. Mitchel is good for specs and procedures.

Looks like rear forward lateral arm. https://www.rockauto.com/en/moreinfo.php?pk=7525384&cc=1447563&jsn=14&jsn=14 And rear upper control arm, adjustable is what people are recommending costs a bit more, $60 plus shipping. https://www.rockauto.com/en/moreinfo.php?pk=8439460&cc=1447563&jsn=35&jsn=35 Plus the upper $7 bushing . https://www.rockauto.com/en/moreinfo.php?pk=8438860&cc=1447563&jsn=462

Someone needs to build one of these.

Over the counter RTV needs to dry over night at reasonable temperature before you refill fluid, or it will leak. Transmission shops have a special sealer that does set really quick so they don’t have to do that. Trade transmission parts supply places will sell it, very pricy I hear. Same stuff factory uses.

Somebody needs to be one of these with a 70-80’s Dodge Colt and a Dakota frame with a V8 of course. https://jalopnik.com/the-infamous-brooklyn-trar-1843021840

Fluid levels would have to be off for quite a while to cause the wear that would create a noticeable sound. I have seen the tin foil heat shield on these cars come partly loose and rub on drive shaft. They are held in place with very few fastners, adding a washer and few extra fastners fixes it. Drive in a tight circle at slow speed with windows down and listen for sounds, both directions.

Back of the engine compartment. It’s a rubber hose you can follow up from the ptu unit. IIRCC I removed part of the plastic intake when I changed the oil.

Try jump starting car with jumper cables from other car, using the remote connectors under the hood. Report back what happens.

Yeah monthly is reasonable on a car you know with no ongoing issues. When I first get a vehicle it’s weekly until I trust vehicle. For a car to all of a sudden drink 3 quarts of oil out of the blue with no visual signs like oil slick in drive away or blue smoke billowing from exhaust or running like death...very unusual IMO. I think spark plugs would foul really rapidly if the oil is being consumed by engine in short time frame like a thousand miles. Catalytic converters on vehicle will also be toast really quick.

In the front the strut mount bearings wear out eventually, get noisy from corrosion etc. By the time you buy strut mount and cartridge and wrestle with spring might as well buy whole strut. You would also need a good strut compressor tool to do the job. Labour intensive job as well. I like KYB struts, not sure if they make ones for journey.

Another option is a nut splitter. It wrecks nut but doesn’t damage threads underneath. Princess Auto (Harbour Freight) and Canadian Tire carry them. Buying online from web site and pick up only, no store entry in my area, social distancing. Larger one is $25 at crappy tire regular price.

You are in the rust belt ...Ontario so corrosion in suspension parts is horrible. PB blaster or other penetrating oil and let it sit over night. If still stuck Yellow cyclinder of gas is MPS I think they call it; hotter than propane although not up to acetylene worth a try. Use a 6 point socket or wrench not 12 point, they seem to grab better on seizes stuff. Sawzall or zip blade last resort I guess.

I assume you have checked fuse F121 in the passenger kick panel. Its for the push button start, they call it wireless control module in owners manual. Put meter on continuity, make sure it beeps when probes across terminals.

It didn’t suddenly get a lot noisier in the last little while, it was gradual? Noisy high milage engine that leaks a bit. I usually go to a thicker oil like 5w30 or10w30 to quiet things down a little on this type of engine. Valve lifters and or timing chain are expensive repairs. Long term used engine from auto recycler like LKQ probably cheapest option.

Electronics items can have something called electronic crib death. In the first couple of mins of operation it’s the highest frequency of failure as components all heat up for the first time. Harness does have a converter unit in it, electronics of some sort. Often stuff is quality tested but there can be some defective stuff that slips through. China may have had a bad day.

If it’s a manual key start it’s easier to trouble shoot if you have two people. When the key is held all the way clock wise in the starter engage position, there should be battery voltage going to the small plug connection. One person holds key, other person uses multi meter. Large wire always has battery voltage. If there is 12 volts there and no reaction, starter could be toast. You can also test a loose starter by itself when it’s not in car. Jumper cables positive to large lug feed bolt, ground clamp to body of starter. Foot firmly on starter, jump power over to the positive small terminal on plug for two seconds, usually jump wire with clamps used. If should cycle the starter and cause pinion gear to throw out and engage. If it it only occasionally works when given signal, worn solenoid on starter normally the cause.

Probably not grinding, abs pump cycling on and off. Scan for codes always a good starting point. Even an intermittent issue will often store codes.

If the battery was changed last year it was probably salvageable, unless it froze from sitting when completely flat. Was it tested and replaced free in warranty ? You could have more than one problem happening, unless the funky transmission shifting was tied to tranny electrical voltage supply. Work on the starting issue first. You need a decent charged battery, measuring under hood on the remote terminals is tricky. You need to get good contact, scratch the meter probes until you have shiny metal and then get reading. Need at least 12.2 ish volts dc usually. Most new batteries have enough charge off shelf to start car. The click you were hearing was probably the contacts in the solenoid built into starter. Sometimes low voltage will do this. Trying to tap starter was good try, sometimes helps dirty contacts make better connection. Starter would still need replacing though. How about marking starter relay under hood, then switching it with another identical relay. See what happens. Starters don’t have fuses because of the high amperage surge under load. The relay takes dash push button signal and sends it to solenoid mounted on the actual starter. The large bolted cable on starter is straight positive feed from battery. The small plug is the signal coming from dash push button. How many miles, kms on car? There is a large 125 amp fuse for alternator you could check, but I think car will start even if it’s blown.

In the extreme cold full synthetic is a big help (I have family in Calgary) for starting , warm up etc. I used to switch from regular Dino to synthetic in winter and back again, when syn was priced like gold. Stick to 5w20 in winter if you stay with conventional, block heater becomes more critical. Stay safe out west, cheers.

Great thanks for the update. Being proactive and cautious like you are will save you money in the long run. My son is only interested in car repairs now that he is married and has moved away . Good to get them involved at an early age.

Is the check engine light on dash on. If so scan for codes. Are you filling tank and doing manual calculation or using dash indicator?

Would be nice to have functional sound clip. What he is calling grinding could just be surface rust clearing off a car for sitting too long. Try uploading clip on different site if you can.

I’m assuming all wheel drive R/T. Could check both c/v shaft boots on rear for visual tears, grease on outside of rubber boot. When water/sand gets in they wear out fast. However shaft can also get noisy even if boots still ok. Wheel bearing sound usually follows speed of car, so highway speed would be loud hum normally. Not strictly a reverse thing in my experience. Rear diff needs to have oil in it. Remove level check plug and make sure oil not contaminated and level is full. Could jack up each rear wheel and try spinning. Should free wheel with a little bit of brake pad noise. Has tranny had oil and filter changed yet.