'98 legacy gt wagon

[mxzx80]

this is my first post on here, I dont have a subaru currently but I am seriously thinking about buying a friends 98 legacy gt! it's in really good shape, but it has 245k miles on it and still runs good! always well maintained! since I'm new to this I was just wondering if I have some life left on the 2.5 motor?? Any info is greatly appreciated

 

thanks

[Red92]

it's in really good shape, but it has 245k miles on it and still runs good! always well maintained! since I'm new to this I was just wondering if I have some life left on the 2.5 motor??

 

 

Welcome to the forum. :cool:

 

Does it have any service records, and do you know if or when it had the head gaskets replaced?

[idosubaru]

if it's never been overheated then it's got some life left. if it's been overheated or an unknown history/engine then there's no telling.

 

this era EJ25's have bad headgasket issues which is a catch 22 sometimes:

 

it's nice (and not hard) to find one that's already had them replaced since the updated gaskets are better.

 

but if they've already been replaced that also means a really high chance that they've been overheated because of the way they fail - random and unpredictable overheating is the first sign before anything else. this often leads to bad overheating. previous overheats are the likely cause of the relatively high number or lower end failures and cam seizures.

 

best case scenario is an EJ25 that's never had the headgaskets replaced and replace them yourself with the updated gaskets. then you've got the issue taken care of and it's never been overheated.

 

at that mileage the timing belt components all need replaced - ebay kits are the way to go for complete timing pulley and tensioner replacement. $160-$180. interference engine - if the belt breaks the valves bend.

 

be wise to have the valves adjusted too, which is a debacle to do on this motor.

[mxzx80]

thanks for the info! now I kow what to ask about!