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+--- Thread: Project RS (/showthread.php?tid=6314)
Re: Project RS - ScottyB - 05-10-2011
lost the latest round of subaroulette. got under the car today to see what filter i have on there (need to change oil soon) and was greeted with both headgaskets weeping a bunch of oil and a nice coating all over the subframe. didn't smell like coolant and i haven't lost any, thank goodness. it just went on an 800 mile round trip over Easter and thankfully held together through that. i can deal with oil seepage but in the interest of not pushing things the car's grounded and i'm preparing my anus for the inevitable bill....flat-4 = pull engine for head work.
subaru was supposed to have solved this issue on the n/a's years ago, and although there's less reported problems with newer models, there's no way to predict when this will happen or under what circumstances with the stock HG's. Hilariously, those wild n/a engines with their crazy 9:1 compression and stratospheric 6200 redline suffer from this instead of the WRX's that are boosted to the moon which makes zippy sense. subaru's "improved" HG they install as a replacement is supposed to be a solution, it damn well better.
but wait, there's more! coolant change is due in about 1,000 miles so that will be done (has to anyway with the heads off) and i'm only 10k out from a t-belt change, so i get to toss that service in there too. yay? its hard to be too mad since the car has otherwise been extremely reliable, but it still blows. now i get to drive the xterra around
Re: Project RS - CaptainHenreh - 05-10-2011
Oil? You sure it isn't just valve cover gaskets?
Re: Project RS - ScottyB - 05-10-2011
CaptainHenreh Wrote:Oil? You sure it isn't just valve cover gaskets?
yeah, unfortunately. just replaced those at 75k. it's all right where the head meets the block, both sides.
the later cars like mine have a slightly different design than the early n/a's that had the serious issues. those would leak internally, these leak externally, which is "better" or something.
Re: Project RS - .RJ - 05-10-2011
Its faster and cheaper for the mechanic to pull the motor rather than do the gaskets in the car. Probably get a break on timing belt labor while its out.
Oh, and you forgot the clutch "while you're in there" :lol:
Re: Project RS - Steve85 - 05-10-2011
Damn Scott, that sucks. Sure is a rare breed, I've never heard of an external oil leak, with no other symptoms, being a head gasket. Not that I don't believe it, it's just a new one on me. And having to pull the engine to do it...oy. BTW, it seems like all the other stuff would only be cost of parts, I can't imagine removing the heads without having to remove the timing belt.
Are the head gaskets for the NA and boosted cars the same part number? If not, maybe the turbo cars head gasket is much better and can be used as a replacement?
Re: Project RS - PDenbigh - 05-11-2011
Bummer man, sorry to hear about that :-(.
(Screw the NA, swap in a turbo engine!)
Re: Project RS - ScottyB - 05-11-2011
Steve85 Wrote:I've never heard of an external oil leak, with no other symptoms, being a head gasket.it's very weird but apparently the newer ones leak externally instead of internally (most of the time) and it's always at the bottom of the gasket of course.
Steve85 Wrote:Are the head gaskets for the NA and boosted cars the same part number? If not, maybe the turbo cars head gasket is much better and can be used as a replacement?
no, the n/a's use a different part number and gasket thickness. it's a solid metal/fiber gasket instead of the MLS gaskets the turbo cars use. i would MUCH rather use the turbo gasket but its not insubstantially thinner and could mess with cam timing.
and yeah, t-belt is getting changed while we're at it, it would be dumb of me not to. no clutch though, stocker's fine and i already found all the change i could under the couch cushions.
PDenbigh Wrote:(Screw the NA, swap in a turbo engine!)
yeah.....been thinkin' about it. maybe someday when i have a garage and can swap it on my own :twisted:
between this and the audi, i should really buy something that doesn't require engine/font clip removal for maintenance :lol: (j/k, to be fair the subaru isn't even in the same league of maintenance suck as the audi...not even the same sport)
Re: Project RS - WRXtranceformed - 05-11-2011
Damn bro I am sorry to hear that
At least timing wise it turned out well, it will be a big bill but you will get a major service out of the way while you're in there.I would even ask around the Suby forums...I'm sure there are a few enterprising people that would help you do all the maintenance for a lot cheaper.
Re: Project RS - ScottyB - 05-11-2011
some subpar pictures. hard to get the camera under there.
you can see the gasket joint right under the header flange.
![[Image: subaru003.jpg]](http://i120.photobucket.com/albums/o193/bradfosk06/subaru003.jpg)
better picture and you can see the mess it's made of the undercarriage. i thought my oil filter wasn't on tight and was blowing oil but it was clean.
![[Image: subaru002.jpg]](http://i120.photobucket.com/albums/o193/bradfosk06/subaru002.jpg)
estimates are....not as bad as i thought. will probably go with TurboTime in Cary NC since their price is actually reasonable and they actually know what they're doing.
Re: Project RS - WRXtranceformed - 05-11-2011
Dang that's up this way, long drive but worth it if they do good work.
Re: Project RS - ScottyB - 05-11-2011
WRXtranceformed Wrote:Dang that's up this way, long drive but worth it if they do good work.
it's not bad actually, i can get to Cary in 30 minutes if traffic isn't bad. not many alternatives anyway.
Re: Project RS - WRXtranceformed - 05-12-2011
ScottyB Wrote:Ohh dang that's right, you all moved up to the research triangle area!WRXtranceformed Wrote:Dang that's up this way, long drive but worth it if they do good work.
it's not bad actually, i can get to Cary in 30 minutes if traffic isn't bad. not many alternatives anyway.
I will be in Greensboro today actually, then Raleigh next week and out to Winston Salem the following week.
Re: Project RS - ScottyB - 05-12-2011
WRXtranceformed Wrote:I will be in Greensboro today actually, then Raleigh next week and out to Winston Salem the following week.
if you're in Raleigh and have time, give me a ring...i'm about 20 mins from the airport.
Re: Project RS - ScottyB - 05-13-2011
no help from SoA. apparently they are "not inclined to offer any assitance" due to me basically doing my own maintenance (i.e. oil changes, filters, tire rotations, etc). ironically the ONE maintenance item i always had done at dealers was the coolant changes expressly because i know subaru likes to use a particular coolant additive in light of the gaskets and i figured i was being extra careful.
not surprised, but slightly bummed. at least now with the new t-belt and upgraded gaskets it should be good for the next 100k miles and beyond.
Re: Project RS - ViPER1313 - 05-13-2011
How big of a deal is the little bit of external weeping :dunno: I know that some other cars (VW VR6s come to mind) do the same thing and it's really not a big deal. One of my SHO's head gaskets was weeping a tiny bit of oil too - never worried me much.
Re: Project RS - ScottyB - 05-13-2011
ViPER1313 Wrote:How big of a deal is the little bit of external weeping :dunno: I know that some other cars (VW VR6s come to mind) do the same thing and it's really not a big deal. One of my SHO's head gaskets was weeping a tiny bit of oil too - never worried me much.
i hear you. i think it's not as much about how much it's weeping right now as much as how much it's gotten worse, quickly, and i'm nervous of the trend. it's at the point where it's nearly dripping out of the car but as i'm driving it's smearing/atomizing all over the bottom of the chassis and partially burning off the engine. it's always weeped a little bit - like, just a faint dark line where the head/block meet and i totally ignored it. now it looks like a total mess under each HG.
and on my part i'm just assuming its weeping externally. i can't really prove its not doing it internally too, but i haven't seen any indications that i can tell for sure.
Re: Project RS - ScottyB - 05-18-2011
heads are getting decked 'n checked just in case. i never saw the temp gauge move, but (A) factory gauges are kinda worthless and (B) i'd rather be sure.
turns out TurboTime will be replacing the OEM single-ply junk gaskets with the STi MLS gaskets. they don't even touch the n/a gaskets anymore. they're nearly identical in thickness so it won't jack the cam timing up, and considering the HG's don't really fail on boosted cars, should be bulletproof on this. yay.
1 day of driving the xterra is enough for me. actually it's enough for my wife as well, since i still haven't gotten used to the 2x longer braking distances and she doesn't find that as funny as i do :lol:
Re: Project RS - ScottyB - 05-29-2011
got under the car to check things over and wipe all the oily gunk off the engine cradle and noticed my header has melted my steering rack boot just enough to split it open. argh. it was dumb of me to think that wouldn't happen, honestly.
fashioned a cheapy heat shield from aluminum flashing just to keep the worst heat away. considering the boot lasted 2, 3 years taking direct heat from sitting in some of Atlanta's worst summer traffic i'd say the shielding will probably be fine until i think of something better.
so, if i'm taking the tie rod off to replace das boot and that will mean an alignment to be safe, i'd might as well get my arse moving on that rear trailing arm replacement so i can get everything aligned at once. hopefully the next update will be with some driving impressions, then i can just sit and enjoy the thing again for a while.
Re: Project RS - ScottyB - 12-21-2011
not much to report. suspension goodies and steering rack boot are on hold because i'm a big pussy and don't wrench in cold weather, and it looks like tires are going to be a sooner rather than later ordeal, so that will be a focus in the spring if i can get them to last that long.
decided to do a little oil analysis following the HG replacement to make sure everything was still buttoned up in there and no leakage. its also been a while since i've done one and i was curious how it was running as i close in on 100k miles. used a little more oil than usual due to some heavy mountain driving in GA with some long grades and engine braking. i'm happy and will run the next change out to 7,000.
![[Image: E83621.jpg]](http://i120.photobucket.com/albums/o193/bradfosk06/E83621.jpg)
Re: Project RS - WRXtranceformed - 12-29-2011
Nice man! I need to do that with the new car...it's always good to get your intervals dialed in, but I am impressed it seems to be doing really well. I miss my Subarus...they were always so stout and reliable (until you run tons of boost through them
)