98 leg 2.2 SOHC Auto 298,000 miles hg went cant afford new car, $700 to repair, provided no cracks, etc. do i have any other options?

At that mileage, price another engine. That kind of miles, you do the HG job you have a high probability of having blow by, unless you can live with that possibility.

 

Personally I would look for a lower mile engine as the 2.2 is robust.

Those headgaskets are actually unbelievably easy to do as far as headgaskets go, just about the easiest subaru headgasket job there is. Blow by possibility mentioned earlier I have no experience with how prevalent that is so no comment.

 

if you want to replace the engine:

http://www.car-parts.com

 

Option 1:

You can use any 1996-1998 EJ22 from a legacy or impreza

If yours has EGR, you need to get an EJ22 with EGR. You should ask the seller as there is no rhyme or reason as to which have it and which don't in 96-98's.

If yours doesn't have EGR you can use either and block the EGR hole.

 

Option 2:

You can use a 1995 EJ22 from legacy or impreza as well if you get the exhaust manifold with it. Same EGR rules as Option 1. In 1995 only auto's all have EGR and manual trans do not have EGR (this rule doesn't apply to other years though for some reason).

 

Option 3:

You can probably even use older 1994 and earlier EJ22's - your intake manifold bolts to the engine and I'm not sure which exhaust they have, but if it's dual port you'd have to get the exhaust manifold with those too. I'm unfamiliar with the 94 and earlier models so not sure what else you need but it can be done.

 

Option 4:

Another cheap option is to get an EJ18 - available in 1996 or 97 and earlier imprezas, but you'd have to get a dual port exhaust manifold with it. Those can be had really cheap, I got mine for $150 with only 100,000 miles and a warranty. They're basically identical to your EJ22...timing gear, water pump, cam seals, crank seal, oil pump, valve covers...everything is the same. Just bolt Ej22 intake manifold to it.

 

*All Ej18's have EGR (that I know of), so any Ej18 will work on your car, you just use the EGR if your vehicle has it or block the hole if yours doesn't.

how much do you think it would cost to change an engine? im on a tight budget here

replacing the engine is cheaper than the labor for the heads as long as the engine is less cost than the labor on the heads. You would be pulling the engine anyway, unless the hg's were done in the car, which is more work than pulling the engine.

 

700 is not a bad price to do the work, as long as your mechanic is competent with subarus (reflected by his experience, not his price) Similar work can be twice that at shop rate

thnx

what he said - depends what your mechanic charges for labor, for engine swaps (some mechanics like to do them more than others, some not at all), etc.

 

doing the headgaskets with the engine in the car could be the cheapest, gaskets are the only parts cost, then resurfacing ($50) and no pulling hte engine so it could be least amount of time....but you'll be hard pressed to find a mechanic willing to do those heads in the car probably.

 

also depends what you find an engine for. i gave you everything you needed to know above to search car-parts.com and see what the cheapest motor you can find is that will work.

 

add the cheapest motor you can find to your mechanics rate for installing an engine and you can compare that to the $700 figure he quoted for the headgaskets.

has anyone tried that bars head gasket repair, my friend said it worked great for him any comments? http://www.barsproducts.com/catalog/view/12-head-gasket-repair-1100

depends are you looking for a temp fix or a real fix.

 

Personally it is a good way to make a repairable engine scrap if it doesnt work.

what are the odds of it working?

How did you determine HG failure?

 

GD

A day, a week, a month, a year?

 

Mostly I have heard not working.

 

A HG is a very complicated system. It has to deal with compression forces of 18000 psi, oil pressure (10-60psig), coolant (14 psi), Heat of combustion, cold, I wouldn t even use it on a car I didnt like.

loss of antifreeze, only air in system, however no visible leaks, no smell of coolant in car it wasnt pushing out overflow tank, overheating also on a pressure test on the compression stroke she was blowing bubbles no smell in exhaust either

If you are going to use a block sealer, use the 'liquid glass' sodium silicate formulas. If it works and how long it lasts is largely determined by how well you follow the directions, using pure clean water, etc.

 

I have used it with success. I would only recommend it as a temporary solution to buy you time to source another motor, save up some money, or accumulate tools and gumption to attempt the work yourself.

 

It is a good idea to bypass the heater core when applying this stuff so you don't clog it up!

FYI i had another motor installed '97 2.2 140000 miles better then 298000 sux, old motor was running perfect other than the hg issue