tomson1355

No, I didn't pull the engine and wouldn't unless it needed a clutch. A handy tool to have would be a 10mm ratcheting wrench for the rearmost lower valve cover bolts. They are a PIA. And put the Camsprockets back on before putting the valve covers on. That way you can hold the cams with a wrench while you tighten the sprockets. Tom

I just did a 97 2.5 head gasket on a Legacy with 175,000 miles. I did not go any further. I didn't even change any valve shims. The car runs great and appears, so far, to burn no oil. Your mileage, of course, may vary. Your head gaskets won't look "blown", BTW. But there will be areas on the exhaust valve side that are shiny where the combustion gasses seep through. HGs alone are about fifty bucks. There is a gasket set for ~$175 that includes HGs and four thousand other gaskets and ORings and such, but doesn't include valve cover gaskets, which are another fifty bucks or so. People here use www.1stsubaruparts.com but I have found their shipping to the east coast too slow. Try www.worldpartsexpress.com . The prices seem to be the same. They are both discounted significantly from from dealer prices. Lots of threads and web pages on this repair. Good luck. Tom

If your fluid was dark at the last change it may be wise to have the filter and fluid changed. The filter may be dirty, restricting flow. Others have had success with transmission additives, such as Lucas. I wouldn't add anything without having the filter replaced first. The transmission pan is on the bottom of the transmission. There are two "pans" with drain plugs under the car. The transmission pan is the second one from the front. A dent in it can hamper operation of the transmission. Let us know what you find. Tom

Head gasket. Classic. Don't waste your money on a new radiator.

Cory, Can't help you with your car. Setright will set you right on that. But, men are "husky". Women are "curvaceous". Sorry if I'm off-topic or inappropriate. Gotta help where I can. Tom

Can't tell you the brand, but I bought it at www.carpartswholesale.comTom

Last time I took one off I put two 1/2" bolts (2 1/2" long) in adjacent holes on the pulley, wedged a crow bar between them and used that to hold it while loosened the bolt with a breaker bar. Using adjacent holes there was just enough room to get the socket in. Tightened it the same way. Tom

RH, and I believe it's 7/8, or 22mm.

If it was a 2.5L, I'd say leaky head gasket. I'd still want to rule that out if I were you, along with a cracked block or head. Check to see if there is coolant in the reservoir but not in the radiator. Check to see if there are bubbles coming up through the coolant when the engine is running, and check whether the coolant expands into the reservoir and stays there after the engine cools. Hopefully it is just Stop Leak, and it hasn't plugged up the system anywhere. Tom

I had better luck than you. Put an aftermarket AC condensor in 97 Legacy. It hooked right up and only cost $100, a fraction of the online Subaru one. We'll see if it lasts. Tom

Hi Mark, sorry about your misfortune. Let the coolant sit in the reservoir overnight and see if it gets sucked back in to the system. If not, it points to a leaky HG. Look at the coolant in the reservoir. Is it a nice clean clear green? Or does it look cloudy from contamination with combustion gasses? If you suck some out is there black gunk clinging to the sides of the reservoir? If you have money to burn, take the car to the dealer. But any competent mechanic should be able to do the HGs for far less than a dealer. Tom

Duh. Of course. You probably want to replace the cam seals. The choices that I'm aware of are to take the valve covers off and use a wrench or, as somebody suggested in one of the many threads on this, try a strap wrench on the sprockets. The valve cover gaskets run about $50, and getting to some of the bolts is a pain (I'd suggest a 10mm ratcheting wrench). There is always the danger of breaking a sprocket using a wrench.

Are you talking about the cam pulleys? If so, is it necessary to remove them to do just a TB? If you are also doing head gaskets then the way to hold the cams is to take the valve covers off and put a 1" or 25mm open-end wrench on the flats of the cams. Tom

I agree. Though in both phase ones I've put head gaskets in, the gaskets were intact, and the only evidence of a leak was the areas on the exhaust valve side of the gaskets that were shiny. It's not like the HGs were "blown". SOmebody correct me if I'm wrong, but it would seem that with the external leak (coolant leaving the system to the outside), if you just maintained fluid in the reservoir you could live with it awhile, and not be overheating. With an internal leak (combustion gasses entering the coolant and displacing coolant to the reservoir), overheating of one degree or another would occur as soon as enough coolant was displaced. I've driven two phase one internal leaks home after purchase (one I knew was leaking, one I didn't) a couple hundred miles without any real problem. The temp guage would move around a bit, but no major overheating.

Red, I did my first timing belt job 5 months ago in the course of doing my first head gasket job. I suggest doing it yourself for several reasons. One, to save money. two, I learned a lot. Three, it's very satisfying to repair your car successfully. OTOH, it's very humbling when you don't. While you are in there, it is suggested to pull the oil pump, replacing the O-ring and tightening the screws on the back. Consider replacing the water pump and any idlers or pulleys that are suspect. There is a wealth of information on TBs on this message board. Do a search. I would not have been able to do the job without reading previous threads, and without the help of the kind and able people who hang around here. Tom

Sorry, Tim, it doesn't sound like a thermostat. It sounds like classic head gaskets. Try sucking some of the overflow out and look at the sides of the reservoir. They'll likely be gunky from escaped combustion gasses. Don't let your mechanic get confused and replace the radiator as happens frequently. Your radiator (and your cap and your thermostat) is probably fine. It's a sharp looking car. Tom

It doesn't take long to overheat the second time around because the coolant doesn't return to the system. Air heats up quickly. Is your reservoir fuller than it should be? Tom

I did it that way the first HG job I did. I held the cams in place to measure and then rechecked the measurements after installation and they were off. Maybe if everything was good and clean and you bolted the cams in place and turned them a few times to seat the shims and the buckets, you might be OK. The better way is to measure before the cams and heads come out, and you still don't need the tool. Tom

I am not an expert. I have repaired only two DOHCs with leaky head gaskets. But I still have an opinion. I don't think flushing has anything to do with HG failure on the 2.5 DOHC. The head gaskets don't "blow". They seep. Tiny air bubbles enter the coolant from the combustion chamber on the compression stroke. The leakage develops over time due to the design and construction of the block, heads, and gaskets. The design and construction was changed for the 2.5 SOHC and the seeping apparently stopped. SOHCs are probably flushed at the same rate as DOHCs yet don't develop the same head gasket problems. Therefore, I believe it is a design and construction flaw, and not improper flushing or filling of the cooling system. Flushing and filling are blamed because the first symptom most people notice is overheating, but I think the overheating is because the head gaskets are finally seeping after 100,000 miles or so of expansion and contraction related to heating and cooling. Jiffy Lube should get a pass. Tom

Hi Tomasr, It sounds like a classic intermediate gum problem all right. If you search the forums for the words "head gasket" (which is what we call intermediate gum) you will find many threads and much help on the subject. The heads are probably not affected in a meaningful way, but it sounds like the gum is not necessarily "broken" but leaking. Tell us where you are from, if you don't mind, next time you post. Tom

Mine is not an expert opinion and should be viewed as such. IIRC, the 2.5 in the 99 Legacy is still the DOHC. Your engine is prone to leaky head gaskets between the cylinders and the coolant with exhaust gasses leaking into the coolant, wreaking havoc with the cooling system. The coolant conditioner will not help in this situation. It will only help to plug leaks where the coolant is leaving the system. I can see no reason why flushing the cooling system would have any effect on your head gaskets. If flushing were all it took to blow HGs, they'd have blown long ago. I can also see no reason why conditioner in your coolant would turn your oil to sludge.

Reid, You need a large left, a large right, and a total of 4 small ones for each of the spark plug holes. Tom

Hm. Why is he putting additive in for an internal leak? The typical internal leak on the 2.5DOHC is a leak from the combustion chamber into the coolant, for which the stop leak will do nothing. Did he say how he diagnosed the leak?

By golly, you're right! It's on the door itself actually. 8/96. Thank you!

A certain AC condenser will fit my 97 Legacy GT if it was manufactured by 4/97. Does anyone know how to tell what month the car was made? Thanks, Tom