heartless Posted July 24, 2018 Share Posted July 24, 2018 yesterday morning the other half sends me a text that his car's (2006 LL Bean Outback) temp gauge was doing weird things... ie: showing hotter than normal, dropping, raising.... cant really see anything underneath because of the stupid plastic cover, but something was leaking coolant somewhere. Before coming home after work, he checked radiator levels, it was low, so he added coolant (about a 1/2 gal) & drove home... he says temp gauge never went above 3/4s, but still very concerned... When he got home, we popped the hood, and could not see any obvious leaks while the engine was still running but as soon as the engine was shut down, there was a very obvious leak below the drivers side head... oh great... headgaskets on an H6? I know this is not common, but not unheard of either, and from the dripping we saw, it was pretty bad. The thought made my already upset stomach even more queasy... but we could not think of anything else down there that it could be... (not nearly as familiar with the H6 layout as with a 2.2 or 2.5) We both decided we needed to pull the plastic under cover off and get a good look at things.. after letting the car cool down a bit, off it came... and to our surprise (and relief!) we found it was not a headgasket leaking, but a tube running just under the head that was seriously corroded and had finally burst. This tube comes off the thermostat housing, runs under the head and is connected to both the heater core and the throttle body at the back end. Now for the "what are the odds?" part - Just over a month ago, I had pretty much the EXACT same issue with my car - 2002 Forester with EJ251 - rusted out water tube... so much fun! But - at least it is NOT a headgasket, it can be replaced, and the part is already ordered (hopefully will be here in time to install over the weekend) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1 Lucky Texan Posted July 24, 2018 Share Posted July 24, 2018 does look like a spot where any chemical corrosion that starts would be accelerated by heat. any idea how much the part is? is it hard to replace? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idosubaru Posted July 24, 2018 Share Posted July 24, 2018 they rust out all the time, very common part to fail on those. they're like $50. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
heartless Posted July 24, 2018 Author Share Posted July 24, 2018 yup, part was around $50 including shipping, and it shouldn't be too difficult to change out.. good access at the bottom end where there is one bolt & it goes into the thermostat housing, the tight one is going to be at the back side where the two stubs split off - there is a bolt that holds it in place back there, plus the hose clamps going to the heater core and the throttle body.. access is a bit tight, but should still be doable. in all, it should actually be easier than doing the one on the Forester was, LOL. don't have to pull the intake to do it. idosubaru - Any tips you can share for the job? will we be able to fish it out & new one in without unbolting motor mounts or anything like that? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Numbchux Posted July 24, 2018 Share Posted July 24, 2018 Yep, when I worked at the dealership, we stocked those....fairly common. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GeneralDisorder Posted July 24, 2018 Share Posted July 24, 2018 Funny. We have never seen that here. I would lay odds that no dealer has either. No rust! GD 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
john in KY Posted July 24, 2018 Share Posted July 24, 2018 Replaced that part a few months ago and in my opinion, impossible to do without raising the engine. Let us know how long it took to reinstall that small bolt rear of engine. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
heartless Posted July 24, 2018 Author Share Posted July 24, 2018 7 minutes ago, GeneralDisorder said: Funny. We have never seen that here. I would lay odds that no dealer has either. No rust! GD yeah, yeah.. you live in the land of no rust.. for those of us not lucky enough to live there, rust is a very real, very annoying part of life. Especially so on anything more than a couple years old... My Forester is a 2002 - 16 years old... The other half's LL Bean Outback is a 2006 - 12 years old.. Both have had a long time to foster the nasty rust demon. Both have now had the same basic failure, just at different ages...The only reason I can fathom that mine lasted longer than his is due to the location of the tube, with mine being on top of the engine, thus slightly more protected from the elements than his (even tho his was slightly protected by the undercarriage cover). I just thought it was funny that both cars have had the same failure within a month or so of each other. At least it is not the dead of winter! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
heartless Posted July 24, 2018 Author Share Posted July 24, 2018 2 minutes ago, john in KY said: Replaced that part a few months ago and in my opinion, impossible to do without raising the engine. Let us know how long it took to reinstall that small bolt rear of engine. so you are saying we will most likely need to unbolt motor mount and lift the engine on that side to get the old one out & new one in? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
john in KY Posted July 24, 2018 Share Posted July 24, 2018 Yes. Drop the exhaust and loosen both motor mounts. I only did the one on the driver's side and that damaged the other side when I raised the engine. New mount runs around $60. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
heartless Posted July 24, 2018 Author Share Posted July 24, 2018 Thanks for the tip, John! will be sure to let the other half know. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
john in KY Posted July 24, 2018 Share Posted July 24, 2018 Just a thought: I installed that part from underneath the car. May be easier from the topside. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idosubaru Posted July 25, 2018 Share Posted July 25, 2018 Pretty sure you gotta lift the motor but I don’t have every model and year memorized. Some day fly out or ship and buy a rust free Subaru. Glorious 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
heartless Posted July 25, 2018 Author Share Posted July 25, 2018 9 hours ago, idosubaru said: Pretty sure you gotta lift the motor but I don’t have every model and year memorized. Some day fly out or ship and buy a rust free Subaru. Glorious yeah, i would love to do that, but sadly, it would not stay rust free for long. not here anyway.. my other thought is just to move out there to the land of rust free Subarus.. I lived north of Seattle for a couple of years.. Loved it up there. But that was a lifetime ago Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idosubaru Posted July 25, 2018 Share Posted July 25, 2018 3 hours ago, heartless said: it would not stay rust free for long. not here anyway.. i get that and am similarly annoyed! but the data suggests decade+ old Subaru's are acceptable enough for you to start with. so very very roughly it would take 10-12 years for a rust-free subaru to receive the same conditions and get to the same condition as the 10+ old local market vehicles you're currently sourcing from. while we're talking - thanks for the mastercraft recommendations, i tried my first set a couple weeks ago, a very good local shop loves them. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
heartless Posted July 25, 2018 Author Share Posted July 25, 2018 5 hours ago, idosubaru said: i get that and am similarly annoyed! but the data suggests decade+ old Subaru's are acceptable enough for you to start with. so very very roughly it would take 10-12 years for a rust-free subaru to receive the same conditions and get to the same condition as the 10+ old local market vehicles you're currently sourcing from. while we're talking - thanks for the mastercraft recommendations, i tried my first set a couple weeks ago, a very good local shop loves them. oh, without a doubt, the older ones ARE more than just acceptable to me. =) If I could have any one of my choosing - completely rust free, in good overall condition - I would seriously enjoy another 1995 Legacy wagon (LS?) - sun/moonroof would be outstanding.. i miss that. I would then put it up on either Foz or Outback struts & the 15" wheels like I did with last one. Of all the older Subies I have had (89 GL, 90 Legacy LS, 95 Legacy - all wagons - and now the 02 Foz), I think I liked the 95 Legacy wagon the most. It just fit me (with better seats tho... I had swapped the '90 LS seats into my 95 - the stockers were just shot) And glad to hear you are liking the Mastercraft tires. They have been great for me. I do have a set of Cooper CS5s on the Foz right now, but only because they were on sale at the time of purchase and actually came out just a tad under the Mastercraft version price. Mastercraft snow tires are pretty awesome, too - Glacier Grip, i think it is.. Had a set for the 95 Lego. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
heartless Posted July 29, 2018 Author Share Posted July 29, 2018 part arrived Friday night via UPS.. we spent the better part of Saturday (about 6-6.5hrs total) getting the old one out & the new one in. the hardest part was getting the darn thing wiggled out, and the new one wiggled back into place.. even with lifting the motor. holy cow what a pain.. the one on the 2.5 was far easier! (even with having to pull the intake!) john in KY - you asked me to let you know how long it took to get that bolt in the back reinstalled.. less than a minute. LOL - used a deepwell socket, bolt in that, slipped it through the bracket (no chance of dropping it), found the hole (standing on a small stool (car was up on jack-stands), leaned way over and could just see the hole) and threaded it right in. (all heater hoses were disconnected & other stuff was out of the way). And after looking things over, there was no way that sucker was going in from the top side... while doing this one, we took a good look at the one that feeds the oil cooler... that one is next - not looking good. (thankfully, coolant was on sale recently so he bought plenty) but can someone explain to me why it is that the oil cooler line which is pretty much straight, one inlet, one outlet & 2 hanger tabs is around $80 (reg retail $114), while the other one, with multiple bends, a 2nd stub out and 2 hanger tabs is only $50?? this is completely bass-ackwards... you would think the simple one would be the cheaper one, and the more complicated one would be more expensive. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
john in KY Posted July 29, 2018 Share Posted July 29, 2018 Well I sort of suggested it wasn't going to be pleasant. That small bolt had me saying words I didn't realize I even knew. I also need to replace that oil line. Ordered it when I did the coolant line but haven't gotten around to installing it. And I noticed that line under the intake manifold has a rusted area. Well do both this fall when it cools down. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
heartless Posted July 29, 2018 Author Share Posted July 29, 2018 1 hour ago, john in KY said: Well I sort of suggested it wasn't going to be pleasant. That small bolt had me saying words I didn't realize I even knew. I also need to replace that oil line. Ordered it when I did the coolant line but haven't gotten around to installing it. And I noticed that line under the intake manifold has a rusted area. Well do both this fall when it cools down. yeah, the one under the intake on his is starting to show signs, but is not too terrible yet.. maybe we should go ahead and order one, just in case tho, LOL that oil cooler line, however... looking pretty nasty. maybe not as bad as the one we replaced yesterday, but not too far behind. that little bolt - yeah, after reading your post asking about it.. I kind of figured it was gonna be a bear.. but the deepwell socket worked quite well - that and my smaller hands, lol the only other difficulty we encountered was one of the exhaust studs.. several of the studs came out (rather than the nuts coming off) most went back in fine and tightened up fine, but on one, the nut broke free so rather than actually turning the stud back in, it was threading up the stud.. grrr Pulled it back out, cleaned up the rust on the wire wheel (was not too bad), got the nut off, then used the bandsaw to cut a slot in the end to use a screwdriver to re-install the stud.. then put the nut back on. it worked.. everything seems to be in order after getting it refilled with coolant.. even took it for a short test run to go get dinner. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.