steve2005
-
Posts
19 -
Joined
-
Last visited
Content Type
Profiles
Forums
Gallery
Store
Posts posted by steve2005
-
-
Good question. I kept my 99 Forester to 200,000 miles, and sold it. I never installed the "stop leak" and the engine never leaked. Few 99 DOHC engines actually developed an external leak, and I thought the factory "stop leak" (oatmeal) had the potential to cause more problems that it solved. Suburu extended the warranty on the 99 DOHC against external head gasket leaks to only 100,000 miles. Installing the "stop leak" now won't get you squat from Subaru and has the real potential to clog your radiator. Very few DOHC owners have posted stating that their cars have suffered external head gasket failures. I would say that your odds of never having an external head gasket failure, even without the "stop leak" , are excellent. BTW, I bought a new 06 Forester to replace the 99. The devil you know over the devil you don't know.
well thanks for the info! makes me feel a little more confident about this car. don't think i will fool with that conditioner. gut intinct is to stay away from it because of clogging as you say. understand cooling passages in these systems are small. temp gauge has always been rock steady even in hot weather with the a\c on. i do like it but this head gasket failure thing has me rattled. i've owned alot of these subarus and i like this one the most. i do like the foresters too! hope you enjoy yours! 2006--wow! btw did you ever have your valves adjusted on the 99 forester. i assume you had the dohc's with the solid lifters?
-
I'm not sure on the differences in DOHC and SOHC in the 2.5L...but phase I is the HG problems and I belive they ranged from 96-00/01
okay so i have the 1999 phase ll dohc. so are my chances better that i won't have the head gasket problem? also should i use the coolant conditioner in this engine? i was told once it would be an internal leaker if it ever does and its (conditioner) for the phase ll sohc engines.
-
I have the same question. Next year I will have over 200,000 miles on my 99 Forester. I will be in the market for a new car. Despite having made numerous revisions to the head gasket design, Subaru refused to even acknowledge the obvious internal head gasket failures with the 2.5L DOHC Phase I engine. Once the Phase I engine equiped cars hit 60,000 miles, the owners were largely left out in the cold, all by themselves. In this case, Subaru failed to meet even my lowest expectations for corporate responsibilty. If I buy a new Subaru that has a serious and wide spread design flaw I already KNOW how Subaru will treat me.
Secondly, the 2.5L SOHC is an interference type engine. If the timing belt, idlers, cams, or tensioner fail, or if the water pump seizes, extensive damage occurs to the engine. Gas prices are rising rapidly. Two years from now I may regret not having bought a car with higher mpg. The dollar is plummeting against the yen. Subaru replacement parts could become very, very expensive.
Actually, so far I have had a very good ownership experience with my 99 Subaru. Buying another Subaru should be a no brainer. But somehow it doesn't feel that way.
okay what about the 1999 phase ll dohc engine? that's what i have. are the chances good for this one to leak? i have 119,000 and no problems so far. i still don't understand if i should use the coolant conditioner in this setup?
-
drive sensibly? what is this "drive sensibly" of which you speak? thats no fun.
Seriously just watch the temp gauage everyso often and youll be fine, beating the crap out of it drive sensibly if its going to go, its going to go. Its not a performance issues, its an erosion issue of the HG and overestimating the sealing force required in a thin spot of the gasket. It's only about 15% of the engines and the longer time goes by, the less of these bad HG there are of none repaired HG's
nipper
okay--temp has always been stable even with the ac on on hot days. i might even jam the gas pedal to the floor a little more often now . maybe i've got a non-possesed engine blessed by the subaru gods. i am going to carry garlic in the glovebox and quit worrying about this. thanks!
-
I'm sorry, I meant internal. I have brain damage today. The conditioner is unlikely to do much for your engine.
okay, i can deal with this i guess. i did think only the sohc heads were the external leakers but i thought maybe the phase ll blocks starting in 1999 might have a somewhat improved gasket i think i read somewhere? will not use the conditioner and drive sensibly. i guess the check valve adjustment is the next big thing to do. a reputable mechanic told me if the engine idles smooth your solid lifter valves are okay. if it idles rough check the adjustment on them. mine idles smooth. humm anyway--thanks for your input!
-
DOHC heads on a phase II block will have some nice high compression. the SOHC piston dish and DOHC combustion chamber are smaller.
humm--wonder if you should use higher octane gas in the phase ll dohc's? i'm using 86 octane but i'm in the mountains. maybe 87 octane? has never pinged on me anywhere.
-
If you ever leak it will be external. Replacement of the gasket should be a permanent fix. Sorry, you have the poor gasket design.
Put a few bucks by for replacement if needed, and if you never need it throw a good party.
so do you think i should start using the coolant conditioner for this engine if it would be an external leaker if a leak should happen? glad about the external leak part of this puzzle. so the phase ll blocks always leak externally no matter what heads eh? i'm starting to feel better about this now. thanks!
-
but do the later 1999 phase ll blocks have an improved gasket on the dohc heads or is it the same gasket used on all the dohc phase l blocks. i hope someone knows. i might keep this outback if i can find out for sure if this is the case. i love this car otherwise but this headgasket thing is bumming me out. thanks you guys for the info on this! steve2005
-
well, my guess is that since it's a DOHC, and the 99 outbacks had the internal leaking hgs as well as all the other DOHC EJ25s, i would suggest that you keep an eye out for anything odd floating in your coolant overflow tank.
according to nasioc (couldn't find much on the block info here) the 98 and 99 DOHCs had the phase II block. but, from my fuzzy knowledge, subaru still used the same hgs through that generation of legacies. they didn't update the design of the gasket until 2000-ish, long after the DOHC was replaced by the SOHC.
so yeah, no additive, check the overflow tank and the temp gauge regularly...
and of course, knock on wood, say prayer, salt around parking space, garlic clove in glove box, etc. etc.
well thanks for the info! i guess you answered my question! it's all in the head gasket and not the phase block that's under them. it's the sohc heads that will leak externally if they ever leak at all and all of them are phase ll blocks. it doesn't matter if it's the phase l or the phase ll block for the dohc heads. if they ever leak it will probably be an internal leak regardless of which block is under them. i hope i finally got this right. i ordered the conditioner but i will think more on this before i put it in if i even do now. i like the garlic idea. might come in handy camping sometime! thanks!
-
how are you sure its a phase II motor when it has DOHC heads? im confused... :confused:
if you don't smell coolant burning on the cats, then you don't need the coolant additive. if so, then you need the additive. but i guess you still need to check for internal leaks?
it all depends on what headgaskets are in there. and, i have no clue given the description presented
and, my brain hurts now...
well i looked behind the power steering pump where it says japan and it has one ridge instead of two which according to the nasioc subaru forum is a phase ll engine block. i have no coolant loss now but i'm wondering if this would be an internal leaker or an external leaker (if it ever leaks.) it's my understanding that you only put the coolant conditioner in a phase ll engine with the sohc heads to stop external leaks. (some rare 1999's and all 2000's and beyond.) it's no good for the phase l engine blocks with the dohc heads. but what about the phase ll blocks with the dohc heads which were produced in 1999? i guess i'm in the twilight zone with this engine setup. wierd.
-
okay, i have the 1999 outback with the phase ll block and the dohc heads. is this a better setup than the phase l with the dohc's? full blown phase ll's with the sohc's might develop an external coolant leak from what i've read here. what will the phase ll with the dohc's do if this should happen to me? would it be an external or internal leak? i'm confused about putting in the conditioner in this engine. i'm going to do it though. no leaks yet (119,000 miles) using distilled water and changing regularly. any advice will be appreciated here. steve2005
-
the garageman i go to says that he never does it b/c they usually don't need it. If they do it is somewhat costly b/c you need to buy a shim kit. I'd say if it doesn't rattelaround too much don't worry about it.
i was thinking the same thing. thanks!
-
These valves are adjusted using shims that are replaced if they are found to be out of tolerance. This is a major hassle as when you loosten the cam berrings, you change the clearance (it shouldn't, I know, but it does). For that reason, you need a special tool to push down on the valve caps in order to remove the shim for measurement. Then you measure the old shim with a micrometer, and order a new shim by taking the measured clearance, the thickness of the shim, and the difference you need to bring it into adjustment into account. This is a major PITA, and perhaps a lot of the reason they went to SOHC in the second gen of the engine, which are much easier to adjust the valves on. The '96 DOHC had Hydraulic adjusters, but I do not know if they fit. If they do, it may be worth getting 16 of them and retrofitting. This is only worth it if you plan on keeping the engine for several hundred more miles. . .
thanks!
-
Read this thread.
http://www.ultimatesubaru.org/forum/showthread.php?t=10217&highlight=VALVE+ADJUST
Commuter
thanks for the info. very informative thread.
-
Read this thread.
http://www.ultimatesubaru.org/forum/showthread.php?t=10217&highlight=VALVE+ADJUST
Commuter
thanks for your info!
-
-
great site for info! i just joined to see if anybody was concerned about valve adjustment at 105,000 miles? i have a 99 outback with the dohc 2.5l with 113,000 miles. i dont seem to see much about this. it has run great and still is aside from the crank seal i fixed at around 62,000 miles along with the timing belt. dry as a bone since. the book calls for it but i have not done anything about this. would like some thoughts on this. i dont think i'm going to mess with this if it's not critical and it's running good. thanks for any input on this.
-
great site for info! i just joined to see if anybody was concerned about valve adjustment at 105,000 miles? i have a 99 outback with the dohc 2.5l with 113,000 miles. i dont seem to see much about this. it has run great and still is aside from the crank seal i fixed at around 62,000 miles along with the timing belt. dry as a bone since. the book calls for it but i have not done anything about this. would like some thoughts on this. i dont think i'm going to mess with this if it's not critical and it's running good. thanks for any input on this.
What are the bad years for the 2.5L engine?
in 1990 to Present Legacy, Impreza, Outback, Forester, Baja, WRX&WrxSTI, SVX
Posted
well sorry if you think i am annoying but i'm on a fact finding mission and have still not found an answer to my question about the phase l block and the phase ll block in regards to the head gasket issue and the dohc heads in the 1999 transition year for the outback blocks. are the phase l blocks with the dohc heads more prone to leak than the phase ll blocks with the dohc heads? as i understand it, which phase block has something to do with this (or maybe it doesn't). that's all i want to know.--sorry