Coolant worries

[The FNG]

I have a 1991 loyale that I bought recently (5spd man, pb 4x4, 220k). I recently did the timing belt kit along with oil pump seals, camshaft seals, crankshaft seals, ac and ps belts, and water pump. Since I removed the radiator to do the belts, I had to fill it back up. I used the procedures that miles fox has on youtube. Generally speaking, everything seemed to be fine at first.

 

I drive about 90 miles round trip in my soobie to work, the store, etc. It seems like I am loosing coolant every time I drive the car. The overflow tank is at the full mark and I burp the lines every time I fill the radiator. When I turn the car on at first, I usually hear some gurgling from the heater core (air in the system) if I don't fill it up. Sometimes the car acts like it is going to overheat, so if I turn the car off and let the temp gauge fall and start it back up, everything is fine. I don't see ant bubbles in my coolant and I can't really tell, but it doesn't seem like there is any oil in the coolant, it kinda smells a little funny in the overflow tank (maybe like gas, but like I said it is hard to tell, very faint). I definitely don't have any white exhaust, and there are no puddles under the car. I do have a little bit of milkshake under the oil cap, but when I change the oil, it looks completely normal.

 

Other than that, I have been throwing an egr solenoid code and have a little bit of a rough idle at running temp (around 500 rpms). Oh, it seemed to have this issue when I bought it, but not as bad. I have no idea where to start, I just hope it's not HG's or worse. I heard it may be intake gasket, but my luck in life says otherwise...

[The FNG]

http://s748.photobucket.com/albums/xx125/nickmohrbacher/91%20Subaru/?action=view&current=IMAG0485.jpg

 

Maybe this pic can help. I did notice that when the engine was hot, it smelled like really hot or possibly burning coolant. Is it possible that the head gasket just has a very small leak and this is what is happening?

[nickolai]

http://s748.photobucket.com/albums/xx125/nickmohrbacher/91%20Subaru/?action=view&current=IMAG0485.jpg

 

Maybe this pic can help. I did notice that when the engine was hot, it smelled like really hot or possibly burning coolant. Is it possible that the head gasket just has a very small leak and this is what is happening?

 

That is very possible. But it could be intake gaskets too. You might see if you can't find a leak with the engine warm and running.

 

A telltale sign of a bad head gasket (though a lack of this does not rule out head gaskets) is instant pressure in the radiator. If the radiator has a lot of pressure before the coolant has any chance to warm up, you've got a compression leak into the cooling system. This will usually cause bubbling in the overflow tank especially after the engine is turned off from operating temp. This is my experience anyway. Best of luck.

[The FNG]

Thanks for the idea Nickolai. I found the leak:banana:, or at least a small one. I'm not sure how much damage or problems this causes, but hopefully not much. http://s748.photobucket.com/albums/xx125/nickmohrbacher/91%20Subaru/?action=view&current=IMAG0488.jpg Could you tell me what gasket this is that I need to replace along with any others that I should do while taking care of this issue?

[nickolai]

That would be you intake manifold gaskets. Most people on here strongly recommend an OEM replacement for them, as all the aftermarket ones are of inferior quality.

 

It should be a pretty straightforward process. Just make sure your gasket surfaces are clean, and maybe take a couple pics of the engine before you tear into it, so you can get all the hoses hooked up again in the right spots.

 

While your in there it would be wise to replace your thermostat. You said sometimes the temp will spike and then drop, which indicates a sticky thermostat, which is bad mojo for the head gaskets if it does overheat. I cannot stress enough the importance of going OEM with the thermostat here! It's what everyone here recommends, and now I do too after having 3 aftermarket ones in a row cause my car to overheat. It's a little more expensive, but well worth it.

 

 

Concerning the photos, why post a link instead of putting it in the post? I'm just curious because photobucket takes FOREVER to load on my dialup!

[idosubaru]

that gasket is the intake manifold gasket and like he said the Subaru OEM gaskets are much better than most (maybe all?) of the aftermarket flimsy ones i've seen. Go with subaru for this part. Be very careful removing the intake manifold bolts. If they get tight when loosening, post back here for a litany of ways to remove the bolt without it shearing off.

[The FNG]

[quote name=Concerning the photos' date=' why post a link instead of putting it in the post? I'm just curious because photobucket takes FOREVER to load on my dialup![/quote]

 

I can't figure out how to do that. Didn't really spend time with it sorry. If you tell me how, I will start doing it though. And thanks for the info, I will be ordering it soon.

[nickolai]

To put an image in a post, go to photobucket, and to the right of the picture will be a box with different codes in it. Copy and paste the "IMG code" into your post and it will show up as a pic after you submit the post.

[The FNG]

test run...