Potential rod knock?
I have a 2008 Subaru Forester that I've noticed has a light knocking sound in the 2-3k rpm ranges in 1st and 2nd gears (in the video you can hear it starting at ~2200 rpm until I let off the gas) regardless of engine temperature. It's not the hard knocking sound you see from late stage rod knock but is definitely coming from the engine. Can't determine if it's coming from any specific spot as it only happens under load and only slightly when in neutral.
Engine has less than 80k miles on it and oil changes have been done religiously at 3k miles. According to several other anecdotes, this knocking sound is completely normal for the 2015-2019 series WRX but I can't find anything about the EJ253.
In the event that this is knock, is she safe-ish to drive another ~2,500 miles before I get the engine replaced? Just changed the oil, no shavings in it or the filter, and I will be keeping rpms below 4k.
Posted Oct 6, 2025, 7:14 PM UTC