Head Gasket leak and over heating

[philly]

I have a 1995 Subaru Legacy that probably has a head gasket problem since I'm seeing the water level in the reserve tank to be empty every morning. I've already was stranded once with the car overheating, but after a few hours of sitting the car started right up but eventually got hot again..I've already installed the Moroso blue bottle sealer for head gasket leaks and changed the thermostat. I'm not getting any heat coming out in the car and also when putting in coolant noticed the collant wasn't going down into the engine after a while. It stopped bubbling and when I squeezed the hose connected to the radiator I got no air bubble to push the coolant sitting in my container on top of the radiator..Need some help to help troubleshoot... 

[idosubaru]

how many miles?

 

testing for exhaust gases in the coolant would be the definitive test.

 

I have a 1995 Subaru Legacy that probably has a head gasket problem since I'm seeing the water level in the reserve tank to be empty every morning. I've already was stranded once with the car overheating, but after a few hours of sitting the car started right up but eventually got hot again.

 

overheating and being low on coolant are not headgasket symptoms.

 

fill the coolant - make sure it's bled of all air or it will overheat.  fill it with nose of the car up in the air higher than the rear.  some have a bleeder screw on top of radiator passengers side.  air will cause it to overheat...then boil...then push out all into the reservoir and engine bay.

 

once filled with no air bubbles - is it loosing coolant or still overheatin

 

headgaskets are rarely an issue with EJ22's and are usually caused by overheating from something else - though with frequent overheats it very well may be the headgasket by now.

[nipper]

Well over heating and being low on coolant can be a HG if he cooked the engine, which I suspect. Chicken or egg at this point, as I hear by now there is engine damage of some sort.

[philly]

Thanks guys for your responses.. The miles are 165k.. If I cooked the engine could I start it up again after the car sits for a while..What about a clogged radiator, since when I pushed on the hose there were no bubble coming up in the coolant being added to the car? This is strange also, when I'm driving the car will die and before it dies, when I hit the gas pedal there is no power and the car putt, putts and then dies and I can't get it to start. I wait about 2 hours and I can drive it only a short distance before it will die again...This happened the other day while driving it. The temp got to about half and maybe a tad over half. I was driving for about 25 miles. When I came to a stop or idle the car wanted to stall out. Then it just died. When I open up the hood the left side of the engine was smoking and you could feel the vibrations and hear the boiling of the radiator in the reserve container.

[nipper]

Cooking the engine, yes it will start and run but it would be down on power possibly and using more oil. Sometimes it will run fine cold but stall when hot. As things heat up, metal expands, oil thins out, so those two things that may have aidded in making compression when cold can not keep compression when hot.

Clogged radiator usually creeps up on you and causes the car to run hotter first before over heating. 

 

You need to do a wet and dry compression test next and tell us all the numbers.

[ivans imports]

HGs