michaelbteam Posted December 13, 2006 Share Posted December 13, 2006 I love my older Legacy's because a half baked backyard mechanic like me can easily deal with most peripheral issues like timing belt, etc. and axles without much trouble. Also that the EJ22 is non-interference in case the timing belt gives up suddenly. I had a 99 Outback that frustrated me with an elusive HG problem so I have stuck with the older Leg's. My QUESTION: are all the later Sub engines interference? Any recommendations on buying a later model Outback, what years may be more reliable than others? A friend is looking to spend up to $9K on a used one. THANKS, any feedback appreciated. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
91LegLS Posted December 13, 2006 Share Posted December 13, 2006 I could be wrong, and almost instantly corrected by someone else here, but I think all EJ25's, with some exceptions, are interference engines. EJ25's installed around '00 and later seem to have had the HG problem resolved. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnceggleston Posted December 13, 2006 Share Posted December 13, 2006 I could be wrong, and almost instantly corrected by someone else here, but I think all EJ25's, with some exceptions, are interference engines. EJ25's installed around '00 and later seem to have had the HG problem resolved. non interference subaru engines died in 1997. fini, kaput !! all 2.5's are interference. 95 , 96 were the last non-interference engines in the us. and the best for a swap, 95 better than 96. question: could you put a 95 2,2L into a 94 legacy? could you put a 94 2.2L block into a 95 legacy if you used the 95 intake?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idosubaru Posted December 13, 2006 Share Posted December 13, 2006 there are some late 90's legacy wagons and impreza's sedan's and OBS(except the impreza RS) that have the 2.2 liter engine. i think even up to 2000...2001...2002 maybe some impreza's have the 2.2. i'd go that route myself since they don't have the head gasket issues. no way i'd drop 9,000 on a newer 2.5 unless it was 2003 or newer, but that's just me and i'm a little different than most. up to 1996 the 2.2 is a non-interference engine (like the legacy you speak of). 97 and up 2.2's are interference engines. all 2.5's are interference. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Manarius Posted December 13, 2006 Share Posted December 13, 2006 But, the 1996 Legacy 2.2 has solid lifters that need readjusted every so often. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
michaelbteam Posted December 14, 2006 Author Share Posted December 14, 2006 there are some late 90's legacy wagons and impreza's sedan's and OBS(except the impreza RS) that have the 2.2 liter engine. i think even up to 2000...2001...2002 maybe some impreza's have the 2.2. i'd go that route myself since they don't have the head gasket issues. no way i'd drop 9,000 on a newer 2.5 unless it was 2003 or newer, but that's just me and i'm a little different than most. up to 1996 the 2.2 is a non-interference engine (like the legacy you speak of). 97 and up 2.2's are interference engines. all 2.5's are interference. GOOD STUFF--why only 2003 or newer? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idosubaru Posted December 14, 2006 Share Posted December 14, 2006 GOOD STUFF--why only 2003 or newer? because of 2.5 headgasket problems from 1996-2002 (end date is not exact). some like to debate this, but to avoid debate and questions just type in "headgasket" in the new generation search function on this website, youll see reference to 2.5, EJ25 blowing headgaskets, overheating, etc. i'd avoid that engine. yes, this is a board and people come here with problems and it isn't like all of them do it, but there's no shortage of them either. look through all those "headgasket" threads and note that none of them are EJ22, 2.2 liter engines. the issue is fixable and the "new" style headgaskets fix the problem once addressed, so another option is any 2.5 that has new headgaskets (assuming it was done right with the new Subaru updated head gasket). i can swap engines, replace head gaskets and all that jazz, no big deal. but not everyone can do that, so i suggest making the decisions according to your own situation and desires. i personally would never let a friend pay "top dollar" for any 2.5 in that year range - like i said do a "search" and you'll see why. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
porcupine73 Posted December 14, 2006 Share Posted December 14, 2006 But, the 1996 Legacy 2.2 has solid lifters that need readjusted every so often.I guess I should check that out when I do the timing belt on my '96 legacy brighton next week. I wondered what lifters it had. Most manuals imply it has HLA's. I guess I should pull the valve covers during the job and check clearances. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
msmithmmx Posted December 15, 2006 Share Posted December 15, 2006 Its simple, If you buy a subaru with a 2.5 before 2003 and it's at or about 125K miles sock away 1500 for a headgasket repair Its not if it will happen, its when! Put that number in your price. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Manarius Posted December 15, 2006 Share Posted December 15, 2006 Its simple, If you buy a subaru with a 2.5 before 2003 and it's at or about 125K miles sock away 1500 for a headgasket repair Its not if it will happen, its when! Put that number in your price. I think you're a little too hasty to say that. Nipper said that 10-15% of all cars with the EJ22 actually have HG problems. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idosubaru Posted December 15, 2006 Share Posted December 15, 2006 I think you're a little too hasty to say that. Nipper said that 10-15% of all cars with the EJ22 actually have HG problems. can you edit your post to EJ25 instead of EJ22? he mentions a percent, but he's never said where that number comes from either. that percentage is his oppinion as far as i know. another point to someone buying a used subaru - who is more likely to sell or trade in a vehicle - someone with a perfectly good running EJ25 or someone with headgasket issues? so...whatever the percentages are, i'd guess the percent of ones on the market for sale with issues are higher than those being driven. to the original poster - again...this forum is one of our best resources, read through the headgasket issues, read through the handful of people that bought used EJ25's only to find the headgasket was blown...there's actual proof of that, no guesswork, speculation or debate needed. it's all documented right here. read through that stuff...and make your decisions accordingly. if you don't care about a small percentage chance of possible issues, then who cares. for instance - i wouldn't mind driving an EJ25, but i would rather my wife have an EJ22. that small percent doesn't bother me, but i'd rather sway the percentages in favor when choosing her vehicle....and i did, we got a 2.2 for her. they are both excellent motors, but the EJ25 does have more issues than the EJ22, so take that information and use it to make the best decision given your finances, resources, desires for the vehicle and personality. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WoodsWagon Posted December 15, 2006 Share Posted December 15, 2006 I'm growing to dislike the 2.5 DOHC, just through my own experience. It seems like lots of them blow, Bought ours blown, pulling one out of the JY that's blown, and pulling one out of the woods, that's most likely blown. Try finding a used 2.5 at any junkyard that doesn't have a blown headgasket. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnceggleston Posted December 15, 2006 Share Posted December 15, 2006 I'm growing to dislike the 2.5 DOHC, just through my own experience. It seems like lots of them blow, Bought ours blown, pulling one out of the JY that's blown, and pulling one out of the woods, that's most likely blown. Try finding a used 2.5 at any junkyard that doesn't have a blown headgasket. sounds like it's 2.2 time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WoodsWagon Posted December 15, 2006 Share Posted December 15, 2006 The car has every accesory in the book, it needs the 2.5 to haul it's fat arse around. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nipper Posted December 15, 2006 Share Posted December 15, 2006 can you edit your post to EJ25 instead of EJ22? he mentions a percent, but he's never said where that number comes from either. that percentage is his oppinion as far as i know. That comes from a consensous of many many many subaru sites. It's a very educated guess, and i would even bet money on it by all those here with 2.5 and dont blow head gaskets (i consider the cut off 140,000 miles and no recent servicing of the coolant system). You wont get numbers from subaru, but from watching the boards HG's do come up, but not in any amount to signify more then 15%. It's just the engineer in me. BTW other cars do have premature HG failure, some in much larger numbers, and they treat the buyers worse then subaru does. nipper Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idosubaru Posted December 15, 2006 Share Posted December 15, 2006 The car has every accesory in the book, it needs the 2.5 to haul it's fat arse around. ha ha, that's funny. if you can pull the motors yourself you can probably slap on the new headgaskets yourself can't you? with new headgaskets that motor rocks, you'd be golden. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nipper Posted December 15, 2006 Share Posted December 15, 2006 I'm growing to dislike the 2.5 DOHC, just through my own experience. It seems like lots of them blow, Bought ours blown, pulling one out of the JY that's blown, and pulling one out of the woods, that's most likely blown. Try finding a used 2.5 at any junkyard that doesn't have a blown headgasket. blown Heagasket is not blown. Blown is a connecting rod through the side of the engine ...... nipper PS i like the engine. It has lots of torque and makes mountain driving a pleasure. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idosubaru Posted December 15, 2006 Share Posted December 15, 2006 do come up, but not in any amount to signify more then 15%. It's just the engineer in me.. well i'm an engineer too, aerospace at nasa, i'm no stranger to numbers or subaru's. it is a good idea to convey in percentage terms, i think that helps people understand more than "some". but to suggest a %5 window seems overly tight, how about 9-16? ha ha. BTW other cars do have premature HG failure. i.e. dodge neon's, i've replaced those as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wayne Boncyk Posted December 15, 2006 Share Posted December 15, 2006 well i'm an engineer too, aerospace at nasa, i'm no stranger to numbers or subaru's. it is a good idea to convey in percentage terms, i think that helps people understand more than "some". but to suggest a %5 window seems overly tight, how about 9-16? ha ha. i.e. dodge neon's, i've replaced those as well. OK, now! So, how many NASA or ex-NASA engineers own Subarus? How many are active on this board?? (I know of at least TWO now... :cool:) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnceggleston Posted December 15, 2006 Share Posted December 15, 2006 OK, now! So, how many NASA or ex-NASA engineers own Subarus? How many are active on this board?? (I know of at least TWO now... :cool:) how many nasa engineers does it take to fix a subaru? NONE, subarus are fixed by drivers!!! that's about as close as i can get to funny. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nipper Posted December 15, 2006 Share Posted December 15, 2006 how many nasa engineers does it take to fix a subaru? NONE, subarus are fixed by drivers!!! that's about as close as i can get to funny. so thats why they dont go fast .... Subarus have been FIXED i have to get one of those un fixed ones hehehehehe Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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