galen95 Posted September 20, 2015 Share Posted September 20, 2015 Hi all, first time posting, seems like a great community. The problem: I have a 2001 Subaru legacy L. It has 190K on it, mostly highway miles. It needs its head gaskets done, but I just took it into a shop and the repairman said it wasn't looking too bad, they were seeping but not leaking. Driving home from work yesterday it started to overheat for the first time, temperature gauge got up to H but did not redline. Managed to coast pretty much all the way home (downhill) and let it sit in my driveway for awhile. Checked the oil and coolant levels and they both appear to be fine. Oil is maybe a tad high (slightly above F). Took off the radiator cap (with engine cool) and it bubbled and then was still. It seems like there are little copper flecks in there, not sure what those are from or what they indicate. Don't seem to see any of the notorious white sludge in my coolant that would indicate that the head gaskets have blown. Recently (May) replaced the radiator and thermostat, so I wouldn't think those would be the problem, although I'm not too sure on the longevity of thermostats. Looking for some help on diagnosing the problem! Might just be time to go get the head gaskets done? Thanks for any help! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TKFlight Posted September 21, 2015 Share Posted September 21, 2015 Recently (May) replaced the radiator and thermostat Did you use a OEM subaru thermostat? The white sludge usually doesn't show up with these years because they are external failures. But yes if they are seeping its time to get them done, they've made Multi-Layer Steel head gaskets for these years so I recommend purchasing those for the replacement. Also always use OEM subaru parts for the cooling system, thermostat, water pump, etc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1 Lucky Texan Posted September 21, 2015 Share Posted September 21, 2015 (edited) I think in years across 3 Forums I have only read of 'chocolate mousse' oil/coolant emuslion showing up once. And white coolant out the tailpipe is also uncommon for our cars. It can all happen, just that the most comm on is either external seeping/weeping/dripping happens, or full-blown combustion gasses in the coolant pushing it into the overflow tank (particularly 1st run of DOHC 2.5 liter engines in the late 90s to 2000 or so). stay in the habit of checking level in the radiator, confirm OEM style thermostat (a MUST) maybe get a new rad. cap. On both my cars, I clamped the overflow tube to it's nipple on the rad neck. I used 2 small zipties. confirm rad fan operation - they can fail or, confusingly, get intermittent - sometimes coming on when tapped. Edited September 21, 2015 by 1 Lucky Texan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikaleda Posted September 21, 2015 Share Posted September 21, 2015 A good shop doing a Subaru head gasket will compleatly replace your cooling system, water pump, radiator, thermostat. I suggest you get it done as soon as possible, the less it overheats the better. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lstevens76 Posted September 21, 2015 Share Posted September 21, 2015 An Aisin or Gates water pump is fine and used by many other people on here. Just avoid the cheap aftermarket ones as they tend to leak. Copper flecks sounds like someone added stop leak to the system, specifically bars leak. It wouldn't hurt to flush the system to get any remnants of that out. Another possibility (Although not as likely as things mentioned above) is the temperature sensor. It can go wonky as well, but it's less common than the problems listed above. And if the head gasket is "Seeping" is it seeping coolant or oil? If it's coolant you could just have air in the system and be low on coolant. Make sure when you check the coolant you take the cap off the radiator. The reservoir is just that, a reservoir. It doesn't show you the proper coolant level that is in the system, only in the overflow. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lstevens76 Posted September 21, 2015 Share Posted September 21, 2015 A good shop doing a Subaru head gasket will compleatly replace your cooling system, water pump, radiator, thermostat. I suggest you get it done as soon as possible, the less it overheats the better. A good shop is going to test the radiator, not replace it. They aren't going to replace anything that isn't damaged or worn out. That's literally a waste of money. And depending on when the timing belt/water pump were last done they may not be replaced either by a "good shop". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikaleda Posted September 21, 2015 Share Posted September 21, 2015 (edited) A good shop is going to test the radiator, not replace it. They aren't going to replace anything that isn't damaged or worn out. That's literally a waste of money. And depending on when the timing belt/water pump were last done they may not be replaced either by a "good shop". Unless a customer tells me they have replaced the rad I replace them when doing any major service. A $100 radiator on a $1000 dollar head gasket replacement is nothing and only makes sense. As for the timing belt, unless it was just replaced within a year or 20k miles you might as well replace it while your there it doesn't take that long. It does make sense because the labor prices excead the price of the part by a lot Edited September 21, 2015 by mikaleda Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lstevens76 Posted September 21, 2015 Share Posted September 21, 2015 Not going to argue, but personally I wouldn't ok a shop to replace a radiator that flow tests and pressure tests fine unless I've overheated the vehicle or don't know the history on the cooling system and I'm in excess of 150k+ miles. Especially when most shops I know charge in excess of $200 for a new radiator. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikaleda Posted September 21, 2015 Share Posted September 21, 2015 Not going to argue, but personally I wouldn't ok a shop to replace a radiator that flow tests and pressure tests fine unless I've overheated the vehicle or don't know the history on the cooling system and I'm in excess of 150k+ miles. Especially when most shops I know charge in excess of $200 for a new radiator. Most people don't know the history of their cooling system. $200 for a rad replacement would only be if they weren't already there. Doing a head gasket the system is drains the motor is pulled and its literly two bolts and you can pull the old rad out and reinstall the new rad. No need to charge extra labor for a five minuet job. I can buy a brand new Subaru rad for right around $100. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikaleda Posted September 21, 2015 Share Posted September 21, 2015 Oh and the time it takes to test the radiator in labor time just about pays for the new one Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikaleda Posted September 21, 2015 Share Posted September 21, 2015 Also if I had a customer refuse a rad on a head gasket job when I recommened it, I would refuse to give them a warrenty. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ccrinc Posted September 21, 2015 Share Posted September 21, 2015 Not going to argue, but personally I wouldn't ok a shop to replace a radiator that flow tests and pressure tests fine unless I've overheated the vehicle or don't know the history on the cooling system and I'm in excess of 150k+ miles. Especially when most shops I know charge in excess of $200 for a new radiator. Yeah, but you're cheap. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idosubaru Posted September 21, 2015 Share Posted September 21, 2015 Either approach is a good fit as long as it's communicated and people know what they're paying for. There's plenty of people on both sides of that equation to make them both a good fit, communicating it is wise. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bushwick Posted September 22, 2015 Share Posted September 22, 2015 (edited) You didn't refill the radiator with tap water, did you? i.e. 50 % tap / 50% coolant or 70/30, etc.? House water will build up minerals within the radiator, eventually choking it, but it typically takes time. If you have a long, dusty drive way or rural roads, the dust will cake up in the fins and can cause overheating too. Failing waterpumps can be culprit (never buy any with plastic impellers like what VW installed factory as those break over time and are a hassle). I'd do the head gaskets (get the heads inspected for warpage or the entire repair will be worthless) while obviously flushing the system and adding distilled water and fresh coolant. Purge any air as that can cause overheating. Inspect that the fans are working (turn AC on and both should work) and check the sensor is in spec. Edited September 22, 2015 by Bushwick Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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