spruitt Posted March 18, 2004 Share Posted March 18, 2004 I am rebuilding an EJ25 Phase two engine with DOHC Heads in my 97 2.5GT. I want to make the headgaskets as bullet proof as possible, any suggestions? I plan on using a head stud kit, and updated gasket from subaru dealer unless there is a better way? In the past, I have blown 3 sets of head gaskets, thankfully all but one was covered under warrenty. Thanks in advance for the help!! Steve Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Setright Posted March 18, 2004 Share Posted March 18, 2004 There is some sort of coolant additive that should help things. An official fix apparently. Do a search on the board... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
theotherskip Posted March 18, 2004 Share Posted March 18, 2004 you could have it o-ringed. http://wac.addr.com/auto/obs/headgasket/headgasket.html he talks about it about midway down the page... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
99obw Posted March 18, 2004 Share Posted March 18, 2004 IMHO the sealer will do nothing for a Phase I. I explained why in this thread: http://www.ultimatesubaru.org/forum/showthread.php?s=&threadid=12410 The biggest thing is to make sure the block and the head are perfectly straight and clean. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Dude Posted March 19, 2004 Share Posted March 19, 2004 Hey Spruitt, If you find a way to make the 2.5L DOHC head gasket "bullet proof", in the name of humanity won't you please tell Subaru of America? Those goobers could really use a clue. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
adge_082 Posted March 19, 2004 Share Posted March 19, 2004 Someone once mentioned to me that he had great results with copper head gaskets for high boost applications. Would that work? He may have been FOS too, not the most reliable information source, but it made sense, and i know of a guy who will make them for any application, not sure of the cost involved though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ranger83 Posted March 19, 2004 Share Posted March 19, 2004 Sir, sorry - All is Lost and your head gaskets will jump out of your engine as soon as you turn your back on them. That's right, the engine that powered the most popular car in the US, by far, of all Subarus - 9x Outbacks - and garnered Subaru a reputation for reliability and durability is actually prone to headgasket problems far beyond any other car made. Or not. Mine has 131K, still no head gasket problems, stay tuned. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Setright Posted March 19, 2004 Share Posted March 19, 2004 I think non-proprietary HG's would be a good idea. Can't be worse anyway. Point of Interest: My recently aquired Impreza, EJ201, has very thin metal gaskets, only two layers and less than 1mm thick. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tiny Clark Posted March 19, 2004 Share Posted March 19, 2004 Unless coated properly, copper and aluminum are not a good mix as far as corrosion is concerned. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NOMAD327 Posted March 19, 2004 Share Posted March 19, 2004 May not be an issue for you, but engine would have to be removed to use studs for head mounting. It would not be possible from that point on to remove heads with motor in car. Many people pull engine for head service anyway, but option to do in car would disappear. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spruitt Posted March 19, 2004 Author Share Posted March 19, 2004 You all are great, I really appriciate all the replies!! Well, At least you made a non-laughing situation into one I can at least smile about. I understand that with the stud kit I can't do any head work without removing the engine. Has anyone you know used these with any amount of success? I also will look into the o-ring as brought up in an earlier thread. OK, HERE IS THE SOLUTION YOU HAVE BEEN WAITING FOR...................... EVER SEE THE ALUMI-WELD PRODUCT ON TV? LETS ALL JUST WELD THE D*MN THINGS ON.....I KNOW, I'M NOT MUCH HELP. Best of luck to all. Steve:banghead: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
K9Leader Posted March 19, 2004 Share Posted March 19, 2004 Originally posted by Ranger83 That's right, the engine that powered the most popular car in the US, by far, of all Subarus - 9x Outbacks - and garnered Subaru a reputation for reliability and durability is actually prone to headgasket problems far beyond any other car made. There are a few thousand (tens of thousands?) of Ford Windstar (mostly 1995) owners who would beg to differ. --K9Leader, who knew enough not to own a 1995 Ford Windstar Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pulloff Posted March 19, 2004 Share Posted March 19, 2004 I am by no means an expert in o-ringing a head but I work on pulling tractors (don’t laugh they actually have some pretty interesting engineering in them) with some friends of mine in my spare time. The tractors are inline-6 multi-turbocharged engines on methanol. The head gaskets are 0.060 copper, the heads are o-ringed, and the blocks are also o-ringed with receiver grooves. The wire used is stainless, the blocks are cast iron, the heads are aluminum. The tractors run 3 turbos in 2 pressure stages and run 7000 rpm and approximately 80-130 lbs of boost. The tractors only run at full throttle for about 10 secs so it goes from cold to red hot in a few secs so it is a pretty extreme test of a head gasket over a very short duration. Head gasket failures are extremely uncommon. I’m not an electrolysis or corrosion expert but there have been no problems with the copper/aluminum or copper/iron interface although the head is only on the tractor for a year and then it gets freshened up for the next year. I know it’s comparing apples to oranges but that is the extreme situation that I’ve seen copper head gaskets and o-rings work in. I think the copper head gasket with o-rings would be an interesting experiment on a Subaru that is driven every day. I know the system can take some serious abuse but I am curious how it would stand up to the long term abuse of everyday driving. How would it seal in freezing conditions? What kind of life expectancy would it have? If it is a truly superior head gasket system why don’t auto manufactures use it, cost? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cookie Posted March 20, 2004 Share Posted March 20, 2004 equipment I agree. Jimmy diesels have used steel O rings for years with little rubber o rings for oil and water passages. They can take a beating for half a million miles. When I was a kid I had a Norton I fitted with a soft thick copper head gasket. Stopped all gasket problems I was having becuse of an extreme compression ratio. Sealing head gasket surfaces is nothing new and I am surprised Subaru has done such a bad job of it. The thin metal gasket of the new ones is a bit better as they are allowing the head to support the liners. Studs would be good except for the head removal problem. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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