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Showing results for tags 'head gaskets'.
Found 13 results
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Does 2010 Forester have a reputation of blowing head gaskets? -
Just picked up a 1995 Legacy Wagon with the 2.2 engine. Looks like the previous owner caught he lower radiator hose and overheated it and now the head gaskets are shot. Puffs white smokes and overheats. Question is this is my first head gasket job on a Subaru. How hard are they. Is it best to just pull the engine. Thanks. Any upgrades to do while I’ve got it out? -
I have to get an engine together for an 2004 Outback EGR 2.5L. The old engine has a hole in the case. I have a good short block from a 2002 Outback that doesn't have EGR heads so I want to remove the EGR heads and install them on my good short block. I figured it would be best to mill those heads and have any other necessary work done to them before installing on this short block. My question is which company provides the most dependable headgaskets? Cometic? Six Star? Suggestions? Any thoughts and suggestions from people who have learned what's the best route via personal experience? -
Hi Gang, I'm a first-time Subaru owner 'hopeful' and I am eager to know your opinion about purchasing a 2001 Forester, that has had some repairs and a lot of preventative maintenance. Thank you in advance! This is for sale by a self-proclaimed Subaru mechanic (not Subaru certified). He supposedly decided to specialize in Subarus since they represented a large percentage of what was on the road in his home state of Colorado. He buys them, fixes them, and sells them. He completed the work described below and explains that besides the cylinder heads and head gaskets, the rest was not necessary but was mainly preventative and done out of convenience since the engine was already out. He said170k miles is really not much for a Subaru that has already had the two Achilles heels replaced (headgaskets and timing belt - idler pulleys seized up on previous owner). Here's the work: Instead of just replacing the bent valves, he replaced the cylinder heads with ones from a 2003 with about 120k miles. Since the engine was out, he also did the following: Valve grinding/lapping. Valve adjustment. Had heads resurfaced, cleaned, and leak tested. Installed new fel pro MLS head gaskets Installed new timing belt, water pump, pulleys, and tensioner. Installed new fel pro valve cover gaskets, intake manifold gaskets, and exhaust manifold gaskets. While engine was out, he went over and resealed everything that could possibly leak down the road, including the notorious pcv baffle plate, and wrist pin cover. Oil change with Castrol GTX high milage, and a coolant flush. He took the car on multiple long test drives, as well as letting it sit idling with ac on for a couple hours. The car did not overheat, nor have any issues. Engine runs great, transmission shifts like it should. Brakes, and suspension are very smooth with no creaks, clunks, or any odd noises. Ac/heat work great, all power options work. Interior is in good shape. Has a few stains on the factory floor mats, but underneath carpet is almost like new. Exterior is in amazing shape for a 15 year old car. Paint is nearly perfect. No peeling, chips, or rust. He explains the car will need nothing mechanically for a very long time and will be super reliable for at least another 100000 miles. He builds a warranty on all the work he does into the price, $3600. Is there any reason *not* to purchase this car - can I get another 100k, you think, and is this really in great shape give the two 'achilles heels' have been addressed? Thank you! -
I have just recently gotten back into wrenching on Subarus again. It has been a little bit since I have done any gasket work and I want to make sure I have good information before I start laying down hard earned money for parts. 1. I am looking to put together a frankenmotor with a 97 or 98 2.5 DOHC shortblock and 95 2.2 heads. Both EGR compatible. I understand I need to use 2.5 oem head gaskets. I have heard some recommend gaskets for a 2.5 turbo engine for this application, but have not heard a specific part number or vehicle type to order turbo gaskets for. 2. I believe I am correct that the remaining gaskets needed can be sourced aftermarket without issue, keeping in mind that cam and crank seals need to be the brown rubber, not the black. Fel-pro etc. ok for valve cover, intake, exhaust, oil pump, etc.? 3. Oil separator seal- Grey RTV good? I'm installing the steel oem replacement. 4. I read the thread on the Gates timing belt kits. Any other recommended aftermarket supplier manufacturer/supplier? 5. Different vehicle- 2006 Forester NA 2.5 SOHC- It is due for timing belt again coming up on 200k miles. Head gaskets are seeping oil at a slow rate. Minor annoyance, but I will probably do the head gaskets and timing belt all at once. I have never worked on one of these engines but expect it to be similar to the 2000 and 2002 sohc 2.5s I have done timing belts on before. Anything else I need to do while I am in there? Do I need to pull the oil pump and check the screws? anything else? Turbo or NA head gaskets? OEM or aftermarket? 6. The head gasket tightening steps? The information in my old Haynes manual I don't believe is accurate. Can someone post the head torqueing instructions for my 97 and my 06 please? -
I have just recently gotten back into wrenching on Subarus again. It has been a little bit since I have done any gasket work and I want to make sure I have good information before I start laying down hard earned money for parts. 1. I am looking to put together a frankenmotor with a 97 or 98 2.5 DOHC shortblock and 95 2.2 heads. Both EGR compatible. I understand I need to use 2.5 oem head gaskets. I have heard some recommend gaskets for a 2.5 turbo engine for this application, but have not heard a specific part number or vehicle type to order turbo gaskets for. 2. I believe I am correct that the remaining gaskets needed can be sourced aftermarket without issue, keeping in mind that cam and crank seals need to be the brown rubber, not the black. Fel-pro etc. ok for valve cover, intake, exhaust, oil pump, etc.? 3. Oil separator seal- Grey RTV good? I'm installing the steel oem replacement. 4. I read the thread on the Gates timing belt kits. Any other recommended aftermarket supplier manufacturer/supplier? 5. Different vehicle- 2006 Forester NA 2.5 SOHC- It is due for timing belt again coming up on 200k miles. Head gaskets are seeping oil at a slow rate. Minor annoyance, but I will probably do the head gaskets and timing belt all at once. I have never worked on one of these engines but expect it to be similar to the 2000 and 2002 sohc 2.5s I have done timing belts on before. Anything else I need to do while I am in there? Do I need to pull the oil pump and check the screws? anything else? Turbo or NA head gaskets? OEM or aftermarket? 6. The head gasket tightening steps? The information in my old Haynes manual I don't believe is accurate. Can someone post the head torqueing instructions for my 97 and my 06 please?
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Hi All, I was referred here from the CarTalk forum to seek advice on my to-be-crippled 2007 Forester. I'm the third owner of the vehicle, and the used dealer that I bought it from did a number of services to it before I purchased it, including new head gaskets. Well, his have started to fail now, and the Subaru specialist in town here has quoted me $2k for parts&labor. One person on the CarTalk forum suggested that it may be cheaper at a dealer, so some feedback on this would be appreciated -- is this a fair quote? The other thing I'm thinking about is selling the car, as I've been getting the P0420 engine code on and off for the past year now, and don't want to buy a new cat converter. How much is a fair price if I were to sell this to a dealer, and if I'm selling it privately? The car has 131k miles, a new radiator, all belts/hoses in good shape. Thanks so much! Ryan -
Hi everybody! I could use some advice . . . . . After my oil change the Valvoline guys had trouble getting my hood closed, and used a screwdriver to push down the hood-release cable. (it was sticking) Yes, they put the screwdriver through something they shouldn't have I had *just* had the coolant changed at the Subaru dealership because I'm aware of the typical head gasket issues. Mine is a 2006 EJ253, so I think it's low-risk, but it still pays to be cautious. So what was in my cooling system was the right stuff with the right additive (official Subaru stop-leak). Valvoline pulled off my radiator before realizing they actually had stabbed the air conditioning exchanger. So I've got my original radiator. I was *very specific* I didn't want any of their coolant in my car, but they topped it off with their product (probably XEREX) when they reassembled. * Is this going to be ok? They say Valvoline supplies Subaru's coolant. If that's the case, why shouldn't I just have them do it (giving them a bottle of the official additive to mix in) rather than pay 3x as much at the dealership? But if the Valvoline XEREX coolant isn't the right stuff, I'll probably be continuing to go to the dealer for that. My immediate concern is that I don't want the Subaru coolant/additive to react badly with the XEREX and plug my radiator or heater core. My long-term concern is that I want to not have to do a head gasket job on this car for a very long time if possible. Looking for some good advice from those who know these things! Thank you ~Nicole -
Ok, so had to stop driving the OBS Tuesday due to the do coolant loss, which is going out the reservoir and not the tailpipe. Yes, blown head gasket. So, starting tomorrow afternoon/evening I'm going to pull the engine and start work. I'm trying to first make sure I have everything, and second see what i should and should not do along with a few other questions. What I have for parts: Full Engine Gasket Set; Fel-Pro Head Gaskets (pair); Complete Timing Belt Kit w/ WP, Idlers, and Tensioner; TYC Radiator, Camshaft Sensor (probably don't need it but I have it); new o-ring PS Pump resevoir; new o-ring AC Low Pressure line; Separator Plate (metal); Tube of Subaru RTV I'm also picking up a used set of fans to fix the AC Fan the PO proceeded to cut and hot wire to the battery (yeah, don't ask). I know the AC Works, just leaks right there at that O-Ring (recently charged and tested, until it leaked out all the freon). Now for the questions: 1.) On the engine itself what all gaskets/seals should I replace while its out? This kit appears to have included everything. I already planned to do the head gaskets, valve cover gaskets, and remove/clean and reseal the oil pan along with the Valve Seals and the Camshaft seals and the front oil pump seal. 2.) Is there any way to test the rods/bearings on a Subaru Engine without disassembly? I know I can see them after removing the pickup tube assembly, but not sure there is enough room to move them and check for a bad bearing. 3.) Based on these questions, what's the largest & smallest torque I'm going to need? I can't find my torque wrenches (moved recently) and may have to buy new. I want to try and limit cost so if I know the lower and upper variance I can try and find 1 or 2 torque wrenches to cover it all instead of the 3 I can't find right now (had 1/4", 3/8", and 1/2" Pittsburgh ones). 4.) While I am in here other than cleaning out the engine bay completely (including cleaning the subframe) what else would be smart to do? -
Hi guys, I'm new to the forum and wanted to see if anyone had any advice on working on my Subaru. It's a 1997 Subaru Legacy Outback with the 2.5L DOHC engine. Of course I had the head gasket go so now it is sitting in my driveway as I get ready to work on it. What I wanted to know is there anything else I should be looking at and replacing while I am working on the engine. I know the timing belts are known to have some problems so I was going to replace that. Anything else I should keep an eye out for? -
I am trying to diagnose my overheating issue with my wagon. I am trying to find out if there is a good way to tell what the problem is? First I found a busted hose by the water pump, replaced it, it ran for a day without issue. Then it came back. Then I did the thermostat replacement. Then I found a small leak in a metal coolant line (near throttle) patched it with JB weld. I thought that would fix the issue. No deals. I am trying to figure out the next step to find the problem. Is it the water pump, radiator, head gasket? Something else. It does not blow white smoke. The water pump does not make noise. It does smoke a little under the hood near the throttle area. Could it be that it is not circulating oil properly? Could that be it? Any ideas on how to definitively find the problem will be very helpful. Block test next???? Thanks all. -
Hey everyone! I am brand new to this forum and actually joined in order to get some advice from more experienced owners of Bajas and Outbacks. That being said, I am no newbie to working on cars and love learning more about them, anyway, on with the questons... I inherited my '03 Baja from my dad who passed away in February, right now it is in need of heaad gaskets, well basically most of the engine seals are leaking a little, and new metal needs to be attached in the area of the drivers' side rocker panel/pinch weld below. There are other minor things; paint touch ups, some bondo from when it was rear-ended etc. BUT, I was looking into installing a turbo. I don't really know much about this specific engine, but i have heard that the oil and coolant feeds for a turbo are already there. I haven't looked into it at all and am wondering if that is true, and if not, maybe I would be better off getting a new pre-turbo'd engine. Also, is it easy enough to do a 5 speed swap? Or, maybe an H6 5 speed swap {{evil grin}}? I realize this is a big old money pit at this point, but I want to have it for at least another 10-15 yrs, I want a Subaru, and I'd rather my dad's than any other, so it's worth it to me. I'm just sort of trying to get a better picture of what is feasible, and what wouldn't really be worth it. I've got a local welding shop estimating $1200 to fix all frame issues and guarantee the whole thing for 10yrs, and I'm thinking the head gaskets will be another $1000ish, which leaves me with around $1500-$2000 to do some upgrades etc. Obviously some of the above mentioned mods wont get done for a while, but what do you think would be the best use, as far as upgrades, of my extra $2k-ish once all repairs are done? I was thinking about some high mount offroad lights, a turbo, and maybe a new audio system, the current one works intermittently. Basically getting rid of it is out of the question, and I'm going to be having some extra money to dump into it soon. Let me know what you think, any opinions are greatly appreciated. ~c4pt1n54n0 -
hello my name is mike ,i'm from IL and have just purchased my first Subaru,2001 outback $600.00 bed head gaskets. $200.00 and 8 hours of labor its back on the road. I also gasket matched and ported the intake,cylinder head and exhaust manifolds, are there any other quick and easy mods I can do that any knows of to get a little more pep out of the motor?