Downbound Posted November 22, 2006 Share Posted November 22, 2006 A brief history first: Bought a 99 Forester in Sept /2003 with 113,000 kilometers on it from an independant dealer. Check engine light was on at the time p0303 misfire #3. they said not to worry we will take care of it. Well, 2 coil packs, 2 sets of plugs and wires later I finally asked for a compression test and lo and behold turned out to be a burnt exhaust valve. Had an extended warranty so that side was covered but since they had the engine apart decided to get the other side done and a new clutch installed. This was Dec./ 2004 (155,000 kms). By Jan 2005 noticed bubbles in the overflow..back to the dealer and they calimed wrong head bolts had been supplied so they would need to replace hg, which they did no charge. Drove ok untill this fall when noticed hot smell from engine (temp light never rose above 1/2 way at any time) and bubbles in the coolant (182,000 kms). Found a local subie mechanic who tested for hydrocarbons and sure enough hg again...Wasn't about to let the independent dealer have another shot so told my guy to tear it down and do it right..He found 2 head bolts had been stripped and one had bottomed out on the block, the bolt was tight , the washer loose. He suggested getting a new engine but felt that the dealer was responsible so he called then on my behalf to see if they would anty up any cash. To my surprise the dealership asked me to come in to see what could be done to make things right. They have offered to pay for a new engine if i covered labour. They also covered all the costs of my mechanic in tearing the engine down and the tow to their shop. They tried to get a used one from Japan engines with less than 50 k on it but none were available so I told then to check with CCR and they are in the process of doing that. The other option is to trade the car in with them on something else..They have an 02 ob with 47,000 kilometers on it. So I am in a quandry... They were willing to pay around 2300 Cad for an engine from Japan Engines. If the cost is not prohibitive (CCR ships air freight to Canada $$$) they will probably get one from CCR. Should I go that route? Or should i really look at dumping it? Any thought would be appreciated.. thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robm Posted November 22, 2006 Share Posted November 22, 2006 Sounds like great treatment from the dealer. You should let us know which one, they deserve the credit. My take on it is, if the car does what you need it to do, and is in otherwise good shape, stick with the Forester. A new engine for the cost of labour sounds like a good deal. How much is the labour? A new car would be a whole new set of problems. Good luck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Downbound Posted November 22, 2006 Author Share Posted November 22, 2006 Sounds like great treatment from the dealer. You should let us know which one, they deserve the credit. My take on it is, if the car does what you need it to do, and is in otherwise good shape, stick with the Forester. A new engine for the cost of labour sounds like a good deal. How much is the labour? A new car would be a whole new set of problems. Good luck. They quoted me 10.2 hrs.(shop rate to change an engine)should be around 900 + tax. The dealer is Car Canada, and I must admit they have stepped up to the plate. This is the second vehicle I have bought from them and have had the majority of my service done there. I will update when I hear from them. Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnceggleston Posted November 24, 2006 Share Posted November 24, 2006 They quoted me 10.2 hrs.(shop rate to change an engine)should be around 900 + tax. The dealer is Car Canada, and I must admit they have stepped up to the plate. This is the second vehicle I have bought from them and have had the majority of my service done there. I will update when I hear from them. Thanks if they are admitting fault i'd push for a lower price. apparently you did nothing wrong, and you paid for a good used car but do not have one. clearly their mistake is costing you money. not to mention inconvenience. does the car still have a warranty? at the very least you should get a discounted labor price. (no profit included). if they had done the work correctly, it wouldn't be cost them any thing now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idosubaru Posted November 24, 2006 Share Posted November 24, 2006 after all that abuse and bad workmanship i don't know that i'd trust the existing block. a CCR engine is a very nice thing, sounds like a good deal. ask them if you can keep the old engine. you can get up to $500 for a complete EJ25 even with bad headgaskets. i think i'd talk them down from the $900 too if they're admitting fault...but i don't know all the gory details either...a warranty involved at all...etc. but they didn't do it right, they essentially gave you bad service the first time around, make them fix it. what a cracked up story. i can't believe the dealer is doing all that work and it's hard to believe they suck SO BAD at working on their own freaking engine? installing an engine taking 10 hours and $900? lots of shops will install engines for well under half that price and it doesn't take near 10 hours. i realize that's not how they operate and you won't find a shop to give you a free engine. makes me wonder if you'd really be getting a new engine and how trust worthy these freaks are? i wouldn't trade it in unless it was a really really great deal. i'd never buy another vehicle from them unless i could get it serviced somewhere else. it blows my mind that they're doing all this service for you for free or at such great deals that other places would never do or have to be fought to do...but they can't get it right??? WTF? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Downbound Posted November 25, 2006 Author Share Posted November 25, 2006 after all that abuse and bad workmanship i don't know that i'd trust the existing block. a CCR engine is a very nice thing, sounds like a good deal. ask them if you can keep the old engine. you can get up to $500 for a complete EJ25 even with bad headgaskets. i think i'd talk them down from the $900 too if they're admitting fault...but i don't know all the gory details either...a warranty involved at all...etc. but they didn't do it right, they essentially gave you bad service the first time around, make them fix it. what a cracked up story. i can't believe the dealer is doing all that work and it's hard to believe they suck SO BAD at working on their own freaking engine? installing an engine taking 10 hours and $900? lots of shops will install engines for well under half that price and it doesn't take near 10 hours. i realize that's not how they operate and you won't find a shop to give you a free engine. makes me wonder if you'd really be getting a new engine and how trust worthy these freaks are? i wouldn't trade it in unless it was a really really great deal. i'd never buy another vehicle from them unless i could get it serviced somewhere else. it blows my mind that they're doing all this service for you for free or at such great deals that other places would never do or have to be fought to do...but they can't get it right??? WTF? I haven't heard back from the dealer. They were waiting for a quote from CCR to ship to Canada but with the Thnaksgiving holiday i don't suppose I will hear from the dealer till Monday or Tues. The dealer isn't a Subaru dealer, they began as a used car superstore but recently have also become a Chysler/Dodge/Jeep dealer too. I have a feeling that this is far from over but having them admit responsibilty is a big first step. My gut feeling is that they really don't want to fix the car, as they may be on the hook further down the line should something else go wrong. If that turns out to be the case ie: the cost of importing an engine from CCR is too expensive, it will be interesting to see what sort of deal they are willing to make on another vehicle. As i mentioned they have an 02 OB with low KMs, and if we end up going that route, you can be assured that the local subie mechanic I found who took the lead with the original phone call to the dealer will be getting all my buisness. And if they do get an engine and install it the first stop will be at my local guy to make sure that the work was performed properly. Will update when I hear from the dealer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Downbound Posted December 12, 2006 Author Share Posted December 12, 2006 Update...Well it has taken a long time but my engine has finally arrived and is being installed as I type..The dealer claims they never heard back from CCR (personally I think that the air freight shipping costs to Canada would have boosted the price to more than the dealer was willing to pay) but managed to get one from Eagle Japan Engines near Toronto..Stopped by the dealer last night and there it was in all it's spotlessly clean glory....They are still picking up the cost of the engine and I am to cover labour (shop rate 10.4 hrs @ $88/hr.). I have had a number of people tell me that once I get it back to get rid of it...What experence has anyone had with replacement engines?? All things being equal and with regular maintenance can I still expect a couple of 100k out of it?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idosubaru Posted December 12, 2006 Share Posted December 12, 2006 in general you should be good to go for 100,000 miles. i'd have new timing belt and water pump installed if you want to keep it that long and the pulleys checked/replaced. if it's a japanese engine with unknown history/condition/miles and has a pre 2000 2.5 headgasket in it, i wouldn't trust it. i bought a JDM engine this year and it had be headgaskets. all they'd give me was new headgaskets, i'd have to install them...but i never even received the gaskets. another regular member of xt6.net bought a JDM engine this year and also has a bad headgasket right now. i will not buy another one, but people on here have success stories and i'm sure they'll pipe up. i'll rebuild my own, buy CCR or get a used one first next time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Downbound Posted December 21, 2006 Author Share Posted December 21, 2006 Update..well my 2 month saga is over..I picked up the forester with the rebuilt engine on Dec. 18, was a little noisy at first (lifters??) but after 200 kms has quieted down. The first place I took it given the history of the dealer"s work on it was my local subie mechanic to give it the once over...Everything seems fine except for a leak around the oil presure switch which he corrected. He also noticed the right front inner c/v boot was torn and replaced it. He said bring it back in Jan for an oil change and he would re-inspect the engine after I have put some km's on it.. the dealer had also washed, waxed and detailed the interior of the car so it actually had that new car smell..I must admit that they did step up to the plate on this one but wonder if it was because I had my local guy tear the engine down where he found the stipped and bottomed out head bolts and he contacted them...guesse we will never know..so now hopefully it will be many more years and many more kms of happy motoring..btw if anyone in the ottawa area is on this board and needs a competent and honest subie mechanic I would recomend they get in touch with Herb White at Herb White Automotive in Merrickville. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Downbound Posted January 10, 2007 Author Share Posted January 10, 2007 Well...I have put 1300 kms on the rebuilt engine and it is running great, it was a little noisy at first but seems to have quieted down as the km's added up. My local mechanic had suggested to bring it in for oil and filter after a break in of around 12-1500 kms. and am going to do that in the morning..My question is.. since it is basically a new engine should I consider puting in synthetic oil? Thanks in advance.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bgd73 Posted January 11, 2007 Share Posted January 11, 2007 I have a pit in my stomach after reading your post.I thought errors you had were impossible. now my opinion is even worse about ej engines. Did they simply bottom a bolt too long? (obviously). To strip one, by a pro's standard.... that is a scary thought about block integrity. I hope you get great service to make up for troubles, and it was a mechanic irresponsible. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keltik Posted January 11, 2007 Share Posted January 11, 2007 Awesome service there, and one day im gonna find some of that stuff that gives your car the new smell. Personally i'd say stick with good ol' dino oil unless you plan on running this car for over another 100,000kms where the benefits of running synthetic would really be noticed. Theres so many scary problems like piston slap and noisy lifters, not to mention oil leaks - i would stick with bog standard oil. Its cheaper too Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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