I have a 98 2.5 Outback with 135,000 miles. Recently noticed thick oil sludge in the coolant overflow tank. I suspect a bad head gasket. Has anyone else had similar problems? I don't get coolant in the crankcase. How much time does this engine have?

just had similar problem , cost a lot of money unless u can fix it yourself get the wallet out big time

if your not to set on the 2.5 you can give CCR inc. a call or e-mail and say you want a rebuilt 2.2 litre, or you could get another rebuilt 2.5, if your attached to the power it has over the 2.2. realistically, you dont know when you HG is going to blow, it could just be a heat related leak, when engine warms up it leaks, when it cools down, leak isnt there, like my old EA82, or it could be bad, i say change coolant and oil more often until you have made your decision on what you want to do with this situation. if you change your oil like every 1000 miles from now on, you have a lower chance of having a bearing robbed of oil, remember to also consider a HG replacement, get the new new ones that have titanium filaments in them, supposed to get rid of the leak, and have the heads checked for cracks and warpage. cost for both options are about the same, new engine vs. HG replacement, unless you do the work yourself, its not to hard really, dont think its not going to be difficult though, read up and get some "homework" done and see what your options are for you. if you need help, you know where to go.

 

 

~Josh~

By far, the cheapest, and probably the smartest, way out is to repair the engine. Head gasket replacement usually runs about $1200 at a dealership. It's much less expensive if you are able to do the work yourself.

 

CCR is a great organization, but I would not spend around $3500 to put a rebuilt engine in a seven year old car with high mileage. Plus you live in New England. Road salt induced body rust will soon be rearing its' ugly head, if it has not already done so.

http://users.sisna.com/ignatius/subaru/headgasket.html

 

This link may have information helpful to you.

 

If it happened to me, I'd probably get the HG's fixed, as The Dude mentioned, although it seems that many people that have had this done at the dealership have paid >1200. I'd most likely have the work done at an indy shop that had done them before.

 

Steve