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The 2.2 blows so few head gaskets I'd want to be really sure before I pulled it apart. I think i would start by changing the radiator, cap, and thermostat and try it before making up my mind what to do. If it still overheated I'd do the gaskets, but only after being quite sure. The exhaust can be done almost at almost any chain or indie cheaper as Nip says. All this is fairly easy stuff to do if you have a place to work and a few tools.

If he means vac to the regulator it would tell you if it works.

even paranoids have enemies. I don't think adding the goop is a bad idea because a few folks have had leaks in cold weather with the new ones.

1995 early????

this would save posting trouble. Hi my name is____ and my ____ Subrau____ with 2.5 engine seems to have blown head gaskets. What do I do now?

Why you lucky dog! At some point Subaru started fitting the new improved head gasket with far less failure on the production line. I had this fitted to my car at great expense in 2003. Cars that were fitted with the new gasket are not affected by the service bu;lletin. Many folks have wondered when this started, what's your production date?

On a 160,000 mile engine I think I agree with your buddy. I live in San Mateo and of course we don't have salt, but it took me very close to the five minutes your friend estimated to replace the front ox sensor.Let us know how adding more conditioner works out becuse a lot of folks may have to go this route in the next few years. Being a cranky ex-mechanic I had the latest gaskets fitted and run the conditioner too.

ts not unusual for new ball joints and tie rod ends to feel very stiff. They loosen up very quickly in service. Beer is good and will help.

My 99 Forester always takes at least two seconds, sorta like rrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrvavoom piston slap. This is why I said before they have to check with Japan to see if its OK to start. The joke when I was in NYC was if you broke down on the Cross Bronx you only had to fight three guys for your battery. I never saw a NY cop do anything, they must have changed. A guy used to rent a garage around the corner from my friend's house in Queens. He would drive new Caddys in at night and they would drive out with no front fenders and get parked down the block with a trail of fluids back to the garage.

Have you added the Subaru coolant conditioner stop leak? It could help your engine. The heads don't have to come off for a valve adjustment on your car. I have a 99 Forester with 123,000 and I just changed the front oxegen sensor on a code PO420. It has kept the check engine light off for a month so far. I don't know if this will cure the po420 permanently as I suspect the cats are tired, but what the heck it was cheap and easy and the light is off. Oxegen sensors are tired after 100,000 miles anyway so this is just maintence at the worst. If your car does not lose too much coolant you may be ok keeping it full. Some folks seem to run these for years with a small leak as you seem to have. The woman I bought my car from said she always had to add a bit of coolant.

If you are in England it might be possible that the car has the 2.2 engine. This is a far better engine than the 2.5 IMHO. Head gasket problems are rare and they run for years. I think my brother in law has about a 97 Legacy wagon in New Zealand and I am sure it has a 2.2. He has had no trouble at all other than regular service.

You might try a compression check and adjustmnet a CB suggested. Sorry the Seafoam gave no joy. If a valve has just started to be too tight sometimes an adjustment can save it. If it has been running a bit open for a while I have had no luck with them. Be sure to check the EGR valve as CB suggests before tearing it down.

I've only seen it on a manual I helped a neighbor with. It seemed to be corrosion on the pins. If some of the folks who have done several comment here we will both know if the automatics can stick too. I was looking for a hidden bolt, but it was just stuck.

As said above good luck! If that fails you have to go with colorblind's advice.

I would try a decarboning agent like Seafoam first. It would be pretty cheap and a lot of folks get carbon misfire.

Lets here that again after you get the engine seperated from the tranny. They can be sticky.

Sounds it to me, but chack all your connections too. I would pop off the alt and take it in to be tested while charging the battery.

This is a job for a Subaru shop. If you follow his reccomendations you are good to go for years.

Having personally worked on cars and busses on the street in Queens and Brooklyn I know what you mean.

If it starts with no churning if you hold the key on to build up fuel pressure it just has a tiny leak somewhere or a leaking check valve. If it runs fine when it starts its probably not an injector problem, but it could be a small injector leak. If it were my car I would start by claming all the injector and fuel lines and changing the fuel filter. If the car is on warranty I would just turn the key to build up pressure until the dealer had time to fix it for me. It can be just a bit tricky to find a small pressure leak or weak fuel pump. Dealers often don't want the owner to work on a waranteed car themselves.

That ought to go fast enough to stick in a snowbank! Enjoy!

Sorry, I see that you did. I would look for leaks in the lines starting with the injectors. It is common for injector lines to shrink and leak in cold weather on many cars. This can cause bleed down.

Did you try the turn on the ignition switch for several seconds before trying the starter yet?

There are some folks who figure those water pumps last forever. I'm not one of them. Anything that gets that much wear, is that cheap, and can destroy the engine gets replaced on my car. I do expect them to last about 120,000 miles but why take it back apart?

I have heard of a misaligned spring catching abd then releaseing.