Is the head gasket problem fixed?

[Geoff77]

I know that 2003 and newer models of the 2.5 liter engine are supposed to be fixed and not have trouble with head gaskets. In the forums I've heard of a few 2003 models having blown head gaskets. Has anyone heard of any 2004 or newer Subs having trouble with head gaskets? Im hoping to buy a 2005 or 2006 Forester but the thought of the head gasket problem is making me really nervous. Does anyone know what, if anything, was done to the engine to fix it, and how big a risk there is for problems in the 2005 and 2006 engine? Thanks very much.

[forester2002s]

1995 Models: Lots of Head-Gasket problems.

 

2005 Models: Few HG problems.

 

Any connection with mileage driven?

[mattocs]

1996 - 1999 2.5l are the years with problems, I believe. I think starting with 2000 they are less common.

[gbhrps]

Gentlemen,

 

I put 138 000 km on my 97 OBW without any headgasket problems when I traded it on a new 02 OBW. A year after I bought it, Subaru of Canada sent me a recall to have the car brought in, and have a special coolant additive added to ensure that the headgasket would not leak. I did so, as requested, and at present I have 96 000 km on the car without any problems at all. Next year I'll have the coolant flushed and refilled, and I'll be requesting the special coolant headgasket additive be put in again. Seems like a good insurance policy.

[99obw]

My observation is that problems are still fairly common in the early gen 2 outbacks, but the coolant additive seems effective in sealing them up when caught early.

[jellybytes]

Tell more about this additive please.. I have a '98 Legacy 2.5GT with 146k on it and no problems. I have heard about the head gasket leaks, but nothing about this additive.

[99obw]

You have a Phase I engine, which fails with an internal leak between the combustion chamber and the cooling jacket. The additive will do nothing to prevent or repair this kind of failure.

 

The Phase II engine develops external leaks between the cooling jacket and the outside of the engine. The additive is quite effective at plugging these leaks.

[Outbackman]

FWIW, 2001 legacy OBW, 60K miles no HG problems yet.

[Geoff77]

thank you for all of your responses. Im wondering the same thing that someone mentioned earlier. Maybe the lack of problems in 2004's and 2005's is attributable more to the fewer kms on these engines. No one seems to know what changes were made to the engine in regards to fixing the head gasket problem. Anyone?

[Lesbaru]

05 Impreza. 72 miles. No headgasket problems yet! (I've had the car for 5 hours now)

[99obw]

thank you for all of your responses. Im wondering the same thing that someone mentioned earlier. Maybe the lack of problems in 2004's and 2005's is attributable more to the fewer kms on these engines. No one seems to know what changes were made to the engine in regards to fixing the head gasket problem. Anyone?

 

If nothing else the gasket was changed at least once, if not many times.

[cookie]

For the early 2.5 I have seen three gasket versions that look quite different.

For the late SOHC 2.5 I am only sure of two versions and have heard rumors of a third.

I am currently running the late 2.5 (post 2003) gaskets in my 1999 Forester with the additive just to be doubly sure.The post 2003 seem to be faultless but I have less than 20,000 miles on them and the additive would fix any leaks anyway.

[capewaveride]

thank you for all of your responses. Im wondering the same thing that someone mentioned earlier. Maybe the lack of problems in 2004's and 2005's is attributable more to the fewer kms on these engines. No one seems to know what changes were made to the engine in regards to fixing the head gasket problem. Anyone?

 

 

 

Here we go. Moms 2005 forester has sprung a head gasket leak at 24000 carefully driven miles! Luckily it's still under warranty. Is this most likely an outer leak between the coolant and the outside of the motor? Although the service man said the leak was a potential fire hazard which I would assume means otherwise.

[capewaveride]

Hey, Sorry to scare anyone. When we brought the '05 forester in for it's head gasket replacement it turned out that it was simply a plug of some sort that had blown it's seal and was letting oil leak on top of the motor. What a relief.

[mikkl]

@capewaveride: Thanks for the update. I was hoping you would come back with news like this. I just purchased a 2005 Legacy Sedan and am hoping that the head gasket problem is a problem of the past!

 

mikkl

[capewaveride]

I haven't heard of any new head gasket failures yet. Lets keep our fingers crossed.

[Scottbaru]

Lets keep our fingers crossed.

I'm looking for a new used car. I like Subaru, but I won't consider a 2.5. I'm considering some 6-cyl Outbacks online, pre-'97 Audi A6/S6 quattro, possibly a Toyota/Lexus mini-SUV. It's hard to drive with my fingers crossed.

[gfcrane]

I bought an 05 Forester XT in Feb and it now has 2,500 miles on the odometer. It has been losing a small, but steady, amount of coolant from the overflow tank since day one. Usage to date is 500 ml. This isn't much but I've had many new cars which use virtually none. For instance my 02 Nissan Maxima used exactly 50 ml in two years.

 

SUSA says it's normal and the dealer can find no leaks or any pressure loss. Nonetheless, I am nervous. My Toyota of nearly the same age has lost exactly zero from the overflow tank. The only difference is the XT's overflow connects to the pressure tank thru a hose run thru a hole in the top of the overflow tank with a loose fit. The Toyota connects to the bottom thru a threaded fitting. It appears some evaporation could occur thru the gap between the hose and tank. In any case, I don't think an engine should consume coolant given the "near thing" designs of today.

[Gnuman]

Well, I'd consider a 2.5 if it was SOHC. . . the DOHC version is a B***h to work on. With the plugs horizontal, and pointing right at the frame rails, they are dificult to get to, along with the dificulty of getting at anything around the heads. . . the rest of the engine is like the 2.2's that I love so well. . .

 

I'm concerned about the H6's as they all seem to be DOHC units. What is the reason for this? I cannot see any real advantage to this layout, except for more moving parts, and more chances for failure. Add to this that the DOHC design puts the plugs and wires in one of the most inacessable positions I can imagine on these cars. . .

[cookie]

may be normal. I add a tiny bit to both of my cars every few months. The coolant recovery tank actually is vented to the air I believe, and some evaporation of the 50-50 mixture of water and glycol would seem to be normal.

Gnuman,

 

It seems on a boxer that a DOHC becomes so hard to work on that its advantages are lost. It should give you a bit more power and allow better valve layout and plug placement. In reality most of the time we don't operate in RPM ranges where the advantages would count.

[sljudson]

I know that 2003 and newer models of the 2.5 liter engine are supposed to be fixed and not have trouble with head gaskets. In the forums I've heard of a few 2003 models having blown head gaskets. Has anyone heard of any 2004 or newer Subs having trouble with head gaskets? Im hoping to buy a 2005 or 2006 Forester but the thought of the head gasket problem is making me really nervous. Does anyone know what, if anything, was done to the engine to fix it, and how big a risk there is for problems in the 2005 and 2006 engine? Thanks very much.

 

 

I recently took my 2005 Impreza 2.5L, SOHC (I think) into dealer for a couple of recall repairs. I left there with an estimate about $2000 for repairs needed. Bought it new off the lot in July 2005. Been a homemaker since, so mileage is less than 80k. I knew it was using oil up somehow but never saw leaks on driveway, etc. Was told both heads leaking majorly. I asked where all the oil was going and learned about a protective plastic "tray" on underside of car. It has a dense foam piece laying inside it which I was informed is FULL of oil. Not a happy camper....now reading through these posts it seems to be a common 2.5L issue. Estimate also includes replacing both front cv boots. She asked if I'd noticed a burning rubber smell (the boots). I had noticed a smell. I thought it was hot oil. Attributed it to the oil I was losing somewhere.

 

Now, the original reason I landed here: about 3 yrs ago, yes, 3 yrs.....we drove through a huge Christmas light display in Branson, MO. I'm talking about an hour long drive at a snails pace in a long line of cars. Mine never overheated or showed any other symptoms of being unhappy with the drive, but a couple of days later the CEL showed solid and cruise control light blinking. Cruise control inoperative. Autozone read the codes. There were a couple of them, both indicating the O2 sensor. I have yet to replace it being a widowed single mom. I've got some more ideas after perusing the forums. PCV valve, speed sensor...and the little secret that CC is disabled when CEL is on:)

 

Anyway, just wanted to add my 2005 to the list of head gasket issues. I tried accessing the list link also. It says it's locked.

 

Thanks for all the time and effort to keep people informed. This is a great forum!

 

Sherri

KCMO

[brus brother]

05 Legacy sedan Just had HGs done for leaking oil both sides.

05 Outback, haven't had the heart to look and see what evil is lurking in that pan beneath the engine now.

[1-3-2-4]

I know this is a old thread but the best way I found for removing plugs on the DOHC is to pull them from under the car then from above.