foam-n-fibre

Thanks for all the help guys. I think I'm going to be upgrading to a newer outback. I think it is confirmed that this is not anything other than a head gasket, and while I consider myself a handy guy, engine replacement or redoing the head gasket is not something I'd be doing myself. This car does have enough other minor issues that I could throw a lot of money at it, more than it's worth. If I'm looking at something in the '01 to '04 range, any obvious problems with certain years that I need to watch out for? Thx, Peter

With the coolant reservior very close to full, the coolant only has to be pulled up about an inch or 2 to get back into the rad, so for sure there is a rad cap issue. Here's a few more thoughts/symptoms: When the temp gauge was really high, you could hear the sound of boiling in the engine block (or it sure sounded like it). I was able to intermittently get heat from the interior heater, and the hose on the right side of the rad was hot (normal kind of hot, not super hot). If it was a thermostat issue, would the rad hose on the right side of the rad at the top be hot, or would it stay cool until the thermostat opens? The car has an unknown mileage on it since the speedo and odometer have been intermittend working for maybe 1/3 of the time for the last 3 or 4 years. It's for sure over 300,000 km, close to 200,00 miles. Leaking gas tank when full, dead A/C, dead rear wiper, oil drips, a bit of rust at the back corners of the rear wheel wells. Not much in the way of new expensive work done on it recently, so it might be time to cut my losses if this is a head gasket. But, it's been 100% reliable, never a breakdown or non-start ever, so can't complain. Thanks, Peter

Hi group, I've got a 99 Outback with what I think is all the signs of an internal head gasket failure. Suddenly losing collant, overheating (either due to lost coolant or exhaust in the colling system), coolant reservoir is super full, and it smells like exhaust, and there is white foam floating in the reservoir, along with a few black bits. I also noticed a bit more white exhanst that usual, though still not much, earlier today, and sometimes you get the smell of coolant after the car is stopped. The only weird thing is that I also seem to have issues with the rad cap not allowing collant back into the system as the engine cools. After topping the system and limping home with lots of easy coasting, I let it cool and the hose on the right side of the rad at the top was fully collapsed due to suction, until I opened the rad cap. I'm kind of thinking that I have a problem with my rad cap AND my head gasket. But, it would be nice if SOMEHOW, this could all be traced back to a rad cap. Wishful thinking? Or could this be something other than the head gasket? If I'm going to sell the car as-is, is it worth throwing any money after trying to investigate this more? Thanks, Peter