rottenweiler

Don't know the name of the radiator sealant, but it was NOT Subaru's. Some junk from Auto Zone. Yes, the heads should have been milled the first time, about 5 thou. was taken off. On this last go-round he used all of Subaru's gasket sealers and turbo head gaskets. Richard.

As I promised, here is an update on my son's Impreza. After getting both heads milled and reinstalling everything it is running great and seems sealed tight. The problem was owner/mechanic error. I have made many myself, so it must be hereditary. After replacing the first head gasket, which had a minor leak, the new one continued to leak a tiny amount. He purchased a bottle of leak detector and radiator sealant. Yep, the overheating was caused by the leak sealant. It had formed almost a solid block of all tubes across the top of the radiator core. He ended up reverse flushing and using strong agitation, large hunks of solid sealant kept coming out of the radiator. Lesson learned! He now considers himself a expert in r&r of the 2.5 Again, thanks for the help and suggestions. A couple of you hit it on the head. Pun intended. Richard.

Okay, last update for awhile. Went in today and he has pulled the engine, disassembled both heads, and they are going to the machinist. He also will be purchasing all gaskets and sealers from a Subaru dealer. After he gets everything back together and in the car, I will let everyone know if this solves his problems. If not, I think he will be in the market for a high mileage Yugo. I appreciate all of the replies and suggestions. Thank you. PRB

Update. He installed the new correct thermo., but not much change. Runs fine around town and up to 55/60 with no problems or overheating. Drove it to work today 30 miles on expressway, no problems. Coming home it overheated . If he turns the heater on, the temperature drops back very quickly. He has also flushed the radiator. he is almost ready to pull the heads again and change out the head gaskets. PRB

Sorry, it is a 2002. The local parts stores do not carry this xstat thermo. but he is ordering one. Also, he added more coolant and drove it on the express way with no issues, but then turned around and increased his speed to ?? and it began to heat up some. He will be double checking the coolant again, because it does seem to be taking some after each heat/cool cycle. I don't think he has it burped properly yet. Time will tell. Again, I will let everyone know the final solution. PRB

Yeah, I should know better. It is a 1992 Impreza RS 2.5. I am in at my son's house now, but he is working today. I found the box from his new thermostat and it is a Stant 14147. Looks like the wrong one?? I will check around the parts stores in the area, but doubt they have the 48457. Maybe have to order one. PRB

I really appreciate every reply. I will be going in this afternoon to check on his progress and will let you know. I too believe that it is cooling related. PRB

Thanks guys. He has filled and burped several times and does not believe that to be the problem. The Felpro gaskets may be my fault, because I recommended them to him. I use them exclusively in my engines. I can't think they are the problem, but you guys know better than me. Maybe I had better go in and do a leakdown test and try to see what is going on. Thank you for the suggestions. It may be several days before we find a solution. I will let everyone know how it is resolved. PRB

New member here with question. My son, with Impreza 2.5 just replaced his head gaskets w/felpro mls, etc. He only had a very, very minor coolant leak prior to replacing the gaskets. No overheating, no oil in coolant, no misfiring, and excellent compression in all four cylinders, etc. He decided to replace the gaskets so that he would not have any future problems. He reassembled and now has an overheating problem, but only after putting the transmission into gear. It will sit and idle for any length of time, even with fairly high rpm's, with no issues, but as soon as he engages the tranny, it begins to heat up. He was and is very meticulous in teardown and reassembly. Has checked, rechecked all fluids, lines, and everything else he can think of. Any help would be appreciated. I can only provide moral support, as I am a small-block chevy guy. Thanks. PRB