I expect the dealer to call tomorrow with the bad news - the dreaded head gasket leak on my wife's '96 Outback. I have seen post stating that the going rate is about $ 1000 USD. Actually this seems pretty cheap if it includes both heads including machining etc.

 

I suppose I may be able to jump in and do the work myself. It looks like the engine would need to come out or at least be severely moved downward. I haven't done a job like this on a car but I rebuilt my water cooled 4-stroke motorcycle engine from the crank up. It runs great. Any thoughts from someone who has BTDT would be greatly appreciated.

 

Paul

Paul, do you have access to a hoist? the engine comes up and out. It is not super hard to do, but you do need a good workspace and the right tools for this job. Have you ever changed the timing belt on this car? that should give you an idea what you are getting into. it is possable to do this in the car, but it is a major PITA to do it that way. taking it out is easier by far, believe me. I do not know if the 1K price is one side or both, so I cannot speak to that. I have done this on a couple of 97 and 98 engines. the 96 is a bit easier as it has Hydraulic Lash Adjusters, making valve clearance issues nonexistant. The solid lifter models are a bit trickier in that you really have to keep the shims and cups in order or you will mess up your valve clearances. . .

Thanks for the info Gnuman. I have a good workspace and some time. Engine hoists are cheap at Harbor Freight Tools. I suppose it would be worth a try just to dump some stop leak in both the cooling system and the oil before. Should I give that at least a try before digging into this disaster?

Just to give you a time frame, I've never pulled an EJ22 engine before this weekend; before that I've pulled and swapped an engine in my Brat and replaced the clutch in a Geo Metro (pulled engine and tranny together). That being said, Corky (who's done a number of engines) and I pulled and installed an EJ22 in my '91 Legacy in just under six hours. Pull the engine to do the head gaskets.

 

By the way, this should put an end to the question on how to do the clutch.....pull the tranny or pull the engine? Corky and I did the clutch on my Legacy two months ago by pulling the transmission; almost 11 hours total time.

Is there anyway that someone here will do a write up for how to pull a engine, with photos, that will give us peace of mind to pull a engine.

 

Thanks

A friend told me he knows a mechanic that does 2 engines a day in a shop and they don't remove the engine, he told the engine stays on

Is there anyway that someone here will do a write up for how to pull a engine, with photos, that will give us peace of mind to pull a engine.

 

Thanks

it's easy. if you're scared then you probably shouldn't attempt it.

 

only tricky part is seating the torque converter of the auto trans. the trick is to make sure it's seated all the way in.

 

pulling the engine - unbolt exhaust. remove intake. disconnector electrical connectors. remove alternator wires. unbolt a/c compressor and swing it to the side (it'll push to the right and allow the engine to be pulled without removing a/c). remove fans, radiator if you'd like. unbolt trans. pull motor. it's straight forward, there's nothing all that big about doing it. if the engine/trans don't want to seperate use a screwdriver or equivalent to start seperating them and work your way around the bellhousing.

 

there really is no "science" or "how to" because each is different. depends what you're doing and why you're pulling. just pull whatever you need to get it out. sometimes you leave the intake and connectors connected if you're just pulling the block (hold them up and out of the way). sometimes you can hack and cut the hoses if it's coming out of a junked car and it's really easy, just cut everything, unbolt and remove.

I post this link every time I come across a HG thread:

 

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

 

Lots of good info linked from there, including the step by step information you're looking for:

http://home.comcast.net/~skipnospam/Head_gasket_replacement.html

 

Click through the "Next" links at the bottom of the page to see the procedure.

 

Steve