Subaru Forrester Question

[gsgreenman]

Hi Everyone,

 

I was hoping to get advice from members of this community on the following:

 

I have a 2006 Subaru Forester 2.5 with approximately 81,000 miles that I own and have paid off the loan.  Recently, I took my car in for an oil change and was told that my car needs a new Head Gasket and received an estimate of $2800 of work.   When looking at the Blue Book value of my car, the estimated value appeared to be $4200.  Am currently debating between getting the work done or buying a new car.  I understand that no one has a crystal ball, but would love to get opinions on life of a typical Forrester after getting this type of work done.

 

Thanks so much in advance!

 

- Geoff

[1 Lucky Texan]

anytime someone comes at you for that kinda money - not a bad idea to get a second opinion. Post your city in a new thread asking for a soob-experienced mechanic near your city.

 

If the HGs are leaking externally, that kind of money will buy a LOT of fluid - just be vigilant and top-off oil and coolant as needed.

 

many folks reduce or cure external coolant leaks with proper use of Subaru Coolant Conditioner.

Edited August 6, 2016 by 1 Lucky Texan

[montana tom]

$ 2800 for head gaskets...must be a dealership ! Get another estimate or drive to montana and i'll do them for $800.  After you repair your hg you should expect 200,000 + miles with nothing more expensive than timing belt / component replacement and regular maintenance. Keep the oil & air filters changed, never never ever ! let it get hot , and any subi should go 300,00+ miles.

[mikec03]

First, as LT posted, your car could leak oil for a long time before you really needed to change the HG.  But to answer your question, the longevity of the HG replacement is entirely dependent on the skill of the shop.  And having it done at a dealership is no guarantee that it will last.  It's a gamble.

 

Given that you apparently can afford a new car, I would trade it in, now, rather then living with the problem. 

[wtdash]

^+1= LuckyTexan

 

I'd add that the HG WILL FAIL on any Subaru prior to about 2011, when they changed from the EJxxx to the FBxx engines, IMHO (although the FB haven't proven themselves quite yet).

 

Buffalo should have a few decent Subaru mechs that aren't dealer-based, which should be <$2K for the repair....but I'd stick w/a dedicated Subaru repair shop regardless.

 

HERE IS ONE of the better used-car resources and the '06 isn't too bad. Usually the HG's are fixed the car will be (mostly) reliable for a long time. You may want to consider the timing belt/water pump/spark plugs, etc if you do the HG's, as they're due @ 105K miles, I believe....much ofthat stuff has to come off during the HG repair anyway, so may as well do it while it's apart....should save $200-300 (?) in labor costs.

 

p.s. $4200 is Trade-In value (to a dealer) as the KBB Private Party value is $6700  (on Craigslist) w/those low miles...depending on overall condition.

Edited August 6, 2016 by wtdash

[Fairtax4me]

 

the longevity of the HG replacement is entirely dependent on the skill of the shop

 

Not the shop, but the mechanic doing the work. 

The shop could be run by an ASE certified and Subaru trained master tech. That person will almost certainly know how to properly repair the head gaskets. But if he has the new shop apprentice replace the gaskets... 

 

Head gaskets on those tend to leak oil and/or coolant externally and very slowly. That's an entirely manageable situation. You can easily get another couple years out of it and then decide if its worth spending the money to have the head gaskets done when its time for the timing belt to be done at 105k. 

You're already at the time limit of ten years for the belt. You may consider just having that done now, and wait until the head gaskets become a more serious issue.