So what say ye gurus regarding radiators for '00obw 129k miles..... replace with a new OEM? Some aftermarket with aluminum tanks that is more durable? There's probably already threads dealing with this issue but hey what's one more!

 

I smelled coolant the other day and she was a few quarts low. Today I checked it out and I could visibly see coolant peeping from the right (passenger) side of the radiator bottom, I assume probably where the plastic tank meets up.

 

Unfortunately I also notice a slight bit of moistness at the tell tale areas of for the head gasket external peeping leak for this early phase II 2.5L. Hopefully those will hold out!

www.radiatorbarn.com

 

Used them twice...been happy with both times. Once for our old Subaru Legacy, and then for our new to us Nissan Quest. Stock OEM replacements both times. The prices were about $100 cheaper than the local Advance Auto Parts and Autozone for the exact same brands. Good Luck!

Not to alarm you, but at least to give you a 'heads 'up. My experience with a leaking/weaping radiator turned out to be related to a head gasket going bad. The bad head gasket allowed exhaust gas to sometimes but not always to bleed into the cooling system. The added pressure or heat caused the radiator to leak. I replaced the radiator, and after driving for a week, noticed the car would occassionaly but not always over heat. Replacing head gaskets cured the problem.

Strakes, thanks for the info. The all metal $160 radiator was tempting. I decided to go OEM. Since I had $100 Subaru Bucks that cut the price down quite a bit.

 

Rooster2, head gaskets??? !! What year/model soob was that on? The '00obw phase II 2.5L/sohc failure mode (if it fails) is typically the external leak as opposed to the earlier phase I's, which failure mode (if it fails) is typically the exhaust blowing into coolant leak. I do see a slight bit of moistness on the HG's at the rear/firewall side of the engine.

Strakes, thanks for the info. The all metal $160 radiator was tempting. I decided to go OEM. Since I had $100 Subaru Bucks that cut the price down quite a bit.

 

Rooster2, head gaskets??? !! What year/model soob was that on? The '00obw phase II 2.5L/sohc failure mode (if it fails) is typically the external leak as opposed to the earlier phase I's, which failure mode (if it fails) is typically the exhaust blowing into coolant leak. I do see a slight bit of moistness on the HG's at the rear/firewall side of the engine.

 

My radiator problem, which resulted from a HG problem, was on a 91 Leggy with the 2.2 motor. I also saw this same thing happen on a 97 Leggy OBW with Gen 1, 2.5 motor known to create internal HG leaks. So, recommend keeping a close eye on your engine temp guage after new radiator installation to see that your motor is not over heating. This is especially so, when running the engine under heavy load, such as high speed, climbing large hills, or running max AC on very hot days. I hope your new radiator solves your problem.

I hope your new radiator solves your problem.

hehe that makes two of us!

 

I have noticed no overheating previously. When it gets to 202F the fans come on and then the temp starts dropping. Even in hot weather with a/c max I have maybe seen it get to 206F a few times.

 

This appears to be a related thread, my radiator failure mode sounds the same as this one: http://www.ultimatesubaru.org/forum/showthread.php?t=52558

sounds about like the scheduled on time Head gasket failure.

Thanks for the help. Well finally got a round 'tuit of replacing the radiator. It's nice that Subaru's are pretty straightfoward to work on. I installed a new OEM Subaru radiator. It seems to have solved the problem.....I hope!

 

An intersting thing I noted is that the front of the old radiator had a lot of what looked like dust mixed with grease on it, covering probably a good 50% of the surface area. This could not be seen trying to look in between the a/c condensor and the radiator. I have some pics but haven't gotten them saved off the camera yet. The engine coolant temp now stays lower longer in stop and go traffic with the new clean radiator in there.

porcupine, i wouldn't concern myself with this being head gasket related. the newer style like yours will only seep externally. that being said, you drained and refilled coolant for the radiator swap - i assume you added the subaru goop additive for Phase II EJ25's with the new coolant?

Thanks grossgary. Yes I always put in a fresh bottle of the glop with the coolant changes. I do see a slight bit of wetness at the firewall side of both headgaskets but no actual dripping. Right on any engine can get that pesky exhaust blowing into coolant HG failure but it is not the typical failure mode for this phase II 2.5L.