Kwhistle Posted October 20, 2011 Share Posted October 20, 2011 I used to love this car -- 98 OBW. Tons of miles on it, a few minor problems. Finally fixed a bad rim issue on Monday, and had a nice ride to work this morning. Noticed that the engine was a bit warmer than what I usually have. Then on my way home this evening it got all the way to high about half way. Looked under the hood and the radiator was smoking. The hose coming of the top on the passenger side was hot, so I'm thinking it's not the thermostat. The cooler reservoir (if that's what it's called) was full to the brim. Other than that, the only thing that I noticed was that it the gauge shot up to hot from being about middle of the dial after I turned on the heater. It was pretty much stop for 5-10 minutes to let it cool then go for a mile or two the rest of the way. The only other thing I noticed was that it was the gauge shooting up when I accelerated. Any suggestions here? Do I replace the radiator? Stop by the dealer and get radiator cap first? Anyone knows if those Advance Auto radiators any good? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davebugs Posted October 20, 2011 Share Posted October 20, 2011 If the coolant bottle was full after this happened welcome to the Head Gasket club! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
the3rsss Posted October 20, 2011 Share Posted October 20, 2011 One of two things.....rad cap or head gasketsf Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
danbennett2u Posted October 20, 2011 Share Posted October 20, 2011 Are there bubbles in the overflow bottle when the car is running? Anything milky on the dipstick? Does sound like head gasket though. Main reason I wont even consider a 90's 2.5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rooster2 Posted October 20, 2011 Share Posted October 20, 2011 I joined the HG club in my 98 OBW a couple of weeks back. My wife then proceeded to cook the motor. Swapped in a 2.2, was my solution. I think you too have joined the HG club. If you haven't cooked the motor with heavy duty over heating, then replacing the head gaskets is your best solution. Use only Subaru head gaskets, after market head gaskets won't last. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kwhistle Posted October 20, 2011 Author Share Posted October 20, 2011 errrrrrrrrrr.... this really blows. I kinda figured when I bought the car with 195K on the odometer, the HG would've been taken care of by one of the previous owners. And was gonna sell the car in a couple months, too. I actually checked the oil and that didn't look funny in any way. Is there a way to test the coolant without doing anything too sophisticated? Can't really afford spending $500+ on HG or new engine and don't really have the means to do it myself. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davebugs Posted October 20, 2011 Share Posted October 20, 2011 If the coolant bottle is above the full line but hte radiator isn't full it's not a good sign. You can also look for oily residue in overflow tank. You won't see water in the oil - that's just not how 2.5 HG's fail. The 2.5's also don't seem to ever blow white smoke. If you keep driving it you'll ruin it for sure. But you may not realize that until after you've done the HG's and in a few thousand miles the rod bearings will start making noise. And just adding water doesn't work well. Search here for "burping" and you'll see why. Remember every heat cycle takes it closer to being unrecoverable. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kwhistle Posted October 20, 2011 Author Share Posted October 20, 2011 I guess I'll have to go mechanic shopping rather soon. What about all those permanent HG repair in a bottle thingies? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davebugs Posted October 20, 2011 Share Posted October 20, 2011 I guess I'll have to go mechanic shopping rather soon. What about all those permanent HG repair in a bottle thingies? You should search here a bit. Don't work. Clog the heater core, etc. Again Subaru 2.5 HG's are weird. They go "differently" than a normal HG. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
the3rsss Posted October 20, 2011 Share Posted October 20, 2011 My 2.5 went a few months ago. Never overheated but the bottle overflowed and i could see bubbles when I reved it hot. Also a strong smell of exhaust. from the bottle. The bubbles are exhaust. Like i said, its either a radiator cap or head gaskets Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kwhistle Posted October 20, 2011 Author Share Posted October 20, 2011 I think I'm gonna give a new rad cap a try first... just hoping it might help. Anyone ever used Stent brand that they have at Advance Auto. I just figure, I could return it there if it doesn't work or when I get one from the dealer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davebugs Posted October 20, 2011 Share Posted October 20, 2011 Stant is the most popular. But OEM is bast - again. OEM rad cap, thermostat and Head Gaskets or you're asking for trouble in my opinion. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kwhistle Posted October 20, 2011 Author Share Posted October 20, 2011 So I checked the car this morning, and noticed several things. One--the coolant got sucked back into the radiator. And two-the big radiator hose on the passenger side was looking sorta deflated, like from strong suction from the inside. Is that indicative of anything? Good or bad? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davebugs Posted October 20, 2011 Share Posted October 20, 2011 All bad. How is rad fluid level? Read here about BURPING because if rad level is down at all and you're gonna try a new cap you're gonna need to drain the coolant to get it burped to have ANY chance of getting all the air out of the system. And if air is still in the system you're stil not gonna learn anything and are very likely to put another overheat cycle on the engine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kwhistle Posted October 20, 2011 Author Share Posted October 20, 2011 Couldn't see the fluid level, I don't a have a house garage, and it was dark outside. As for burping, why not just top off the radiator? I understand the procedure is pretty much what's described here: http://www.ehow.com/how_7369_burp-cars-cooling.html And many thanks for the replies! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davebugs Posted October 20, 2011 Share Posted October 20, 2011 Search HERE for BURPING!!! Subaru's are a bit different. There is even a utube video link here by a member. You're trying to be too lazy for your own good. If you're just gonna top it off and put a new cap on you're wasting the few bucks the rad cap is gonna cost and getting closer to the HG job. There is a 90% chance you need a HG job already. If you take the easy way out with a rad cap WITHOUT burping, or take the thermostat out, "miracle sealers". or similar "fixes" you're just heading to more overheat cycles and if you didn't already need a HG job you're on your way to a HG and rod bearings job which doesn't make sense to do in my opinion. And any 2.5 you buy at the JY is likely gonna have the exact same issues. That's why I usually 2.2 swap them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kwhistle Posted October 20, 2011 Author Share Posted October 20, 2011 Is this the youtube vid: Again, many thanks for the replies. I definitely want to try some home fix like a flush, new rad cap, possibly new thermostat before digging into my savings for a HG job. That said, I don't wanna do any band aid fixes either that would come back to hunt me. How much are the 2.2 engines usually? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davebugs Posted October 20, 2011 Share Posted October 20, 2011 Yea - that video is basically what I do. Often I drive the side of the rad that has the rad cap up on ONE Rhino ramp or unlevel ground. I've had trouble with those little plastic screws in the top of the rad. Usually a 2.2 swap costs about the same as a real HG job (heads checked/resurfaced, etc). It's just that a used 2.2 if probably o.k. (they are kinda bullet proff) and a used 2.5 is likely to have the same problems as the one you already have. Again search around here. You'd want a 95 2.2 Automatic (with EGR) as first choice. 2nd choice would be a 96 (you'll need the single port Y-pipe), followed ny 97 (and you'l need it's Y-pipe). Good luck. Hope for the best, but budget for a HG job/2.2 swap. ANd the more you mess with it unsuccessfully the more the 2.2 swap is recommended. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davebugs Posted October 20, 2011 Share Posted October 20, 2011 Notice that you start with the coolant DRAINED! That may be the most important step. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kwhistle Posted October 20, 2011 Author Share Posted October 20, 2011 Notice that you start with the coolant DRAINED! That may be the most important step. Drained just from the rad, or from the thermostat as well? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davebugs Posted October 20, 2011 Share Posted October 20, 2011 Pull the lower hose from either but I find disconnecting the hose from the water pump plastic piece the easiest myself. The lower rad hose at the rad the clamp is often difficult to get at. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
the3rsss Posted October 20, 2011 Share Posted October 20, 2011 I think your wasting your time and money here. If the bottle overflows its one of two things. Radiator cap( I think you ruled that out. as you said the coolant level went down in the bottle) or headgaskets. Is get a stock. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
the3rsss Posted October 20, 2011 Share Posted October 20, 2011 Id get a cap just for the hell of it. Did u check for bubbles? Take a wiff of the bottle? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caboobaroo Posted October 20, 2011 Share Posted October 20, 2011 Sounds like a headgasket failure. The EJ25Ds or the DOHC 2.5 that is in your car have a history of having internal headgasket failure whereas the newer 2.5 SOHC engines have external headgasket failure. I'm willing to bet thats what the problem is, I see it quite often. I think we charge roughly $2500 for that particular job out the door. The shop I work for is called All Wheel Drive Auto and can be found on the web at http://www.allwheeldriveauto.com. We not only do service work but we also sell complete headgasket kits. The owner has done his research on the best parts to use, most of which is OEM. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kwhistle Posted October 21, 2011 Author Share Posted October 21, 2011 $2500? LOL, the car isn't worth that much. Anyway, gonna try the rad flush+rad cap tomorrow, if no luck I think the car will be scrapped. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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