Head Gasket Data

[mikec03]

I occasionally read Justin Stobb's AWD website blog on HG's. I was a little surprised at the number of recent letters from people with 2002-2005 Subarus with HG failures. So I added up the last 3 months of letters and divided them 96-99 [dohc w/ orig. composite gaskets]. 00-01 [sohc w/ orig. composite gaskets] and 02-05 [sohc w/ orig. one metal sheet and rubber coating gasket]. I included the 02 with later years since most of the legacy model run was made with the metal gasket.

 

This is not a scientific analysis to save anyone posting the obvious.

 

96-99 7 failures

00-01 6 failures

02-05 8 failures

 

A couple of conclusion:

 

1. The '02+ failures seem higher then instinctively I feel they should be given the age and mileage.

2. There are some double failures mentioned in the letters so it reinforces the point that the skill of the people doing the replacement is vitally important.

[idosubaru]

it's more dynamic than that too. 8 failures? i realize you're just gathering info but that's a drop in the bucket statistically, some folks on here have seen more, repaired more, or owned more blown EJ25's than that themselves.

 

subaru's extended headgasket warranty is applied to 2000-2002 models, so should 02's be lumped into the 00-01 range. i mean i guess it depends how they drew that line....maybe they just started adding coolant additive at a certain date?

 

newer vehicles will get more resources devoted to them - money, repairs, questions, research, opinions, reported, etc. older ones are more likely to just get dumped and move on.

 

the older ones are easier to find blown on craigslist or other online or local trader type places. i can pretty much find one...if not multiples...per day for sale and they're usually the DOHC's.

Edited December 20, 2010 by grossgary

[mikec03]

Grossgary

 

Please note that the data is for the last THREE months of emails only. And how many people even know of Stobb's blog and how many would even bother to email him if they found his site? So I think that the numbers are kind of significant.

 

Subaru switched the HG's very early in the '02 production run for OB's and Legacies and their guarantee didn't apply after that. I think that the HG from from the change in '02 to just recently is essentially the same although they may have changed the part numbers.

 

I think another conclusion from the emails: It's surprising that some of the original composite gaskets from the DOHC and the 00-01 motors lasted well over 100K miles.

[GeneralDisorder]

The problem cannot be broken down by year because there are engine that cross-over year bounderies - it MUST be broken down by engine model AND year.

 

'96 to '99 EJ25D's are one engine and production dates matter for which head gaskets they were equipped with.

 

'99 EJ253's are completely different phase-II MAF engines.

 

'00 to '05 are EJ251 MAP engines and have to be further broken into production dates for changes in HG's.

 

Also there is the Subaru "Conditioner" (stop leak) that will solve a lot of the EJ253/EJ251 weeping problems in a more-or-less permanent way. Unless the customer is completely anal about the tiny bit of oil weepage that this product cannot possibly stop - in which case the head gaskets must be replaced. In a large percentage of cases shops will reccomend replacement of the head gaskets when this is not neccesary - it's an easy to point out problem and hey let's face it - dumping in a bottle of stop leak for a customer is not the kind of work that keeps shops (or dealerships) employed.....

 

GD

[Fairtax4me]

Interesting to know. Only time will tell if the newer engines and gasket designs will hold up. 8 instances over the course of 3 months does seem significant for an online community, but how does that number compare to other brands being reported with having the same trouble?