i recently acquired a 98 L AWD 2.2 w/ 160k for real cheap.. i was told it may need a T/O bearing when purchased..

so i did some searching about the problem on here, and read t/o bearing noise is heard when you first press in the clutch, the noise i hear (whirring, def. sounds like a bad bearing spinning) is when the car is idling in neutral, you press the clutch and the noise goes away. release clutch, noise is back.. i read on here that could be the tranny input bearing or pilot bearing..

i changed the tranny fluid, used some nothing-special valvoline 80w90. the problem immediately went away. and didnt come back for 3 days and at least 75 miles. i also changed rear diff fluid, neither trans nor diff looked dirty or smelled burnt. each drain plug had SMALL amounts of metal sludge on them, no large chunks of metal at all or even filings..

so which bearing would you say it is? also my last question is, are these trannys supposed to be really loud? when downshifting, you really hear the gears whine. this is my first subie, so i'm new to awd, and i've never had a cable actuated clutch either.

thanks for the help.
andrew