Blown Head Gasket> ? Heeeelllp!

I live in the Boston area and was planning a trip to Chicago to visit the inlaws. I wanted my 97 Legacy Outback 2.5 in top running shape before the trip and with 125 k miles on it I though it was a good idea to get a timing belt done on it.

I brought it to a local non-dealer shop and he charged me about $700 for the belt, new water Pump, thermostat and labor. I thought this was pretty fair. My wife took the car and headed out to do some errands. after about 1/2 hr of driving the car overheated, sputtered, stalled, and she just made it home.

I got it home and looked at it. I noticed the radiator was blown so I had it towed back to the shop for a new radiator. After another $300 he had the radiator installed, I went and picked it up. after I drove for about 20 MInutes I noticed an engine skip and drove it back to him. He says the car wasn't doing that for him and that a cyllinder on the right side sounds like it is stickinig.

The car doesn't seem to be running hot but after about 10 minutes worth of driving it starts skipping and sputtering. Am I Screwed or can this be fixed? ]

Reply to
al franken
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Get ready for small claims court!!! Your NON-SUBARU mechanic probably forgot to bleed the cooling system of trapped air. This is known to cause hotspots which lead to gasket and other failures. You need to get to a CERTIFIED subaru mechanic and get the issues documented to recover damages from your NON -Subaru mechanic. In central NJ the timing belt water pump etc would cost about the same at a dealership. You thought you could save a buck by letting a monkey work on your car and now you are out serious $$$$$. Why are people so stupid?

John

Reply to
jabario

I want to change the coolant in my 02 Outback. I've done this several times on my 95 and never bleed the system. How do I bleed it so I won't have a problem in my 02. Thanks Jeff

Reply to
Jeff

Well as a follow up I took the car for a test run this a.m I marked where the fluid levels were and I ran it fairly hard for 10-15 min. I looked at the fluid mark and nothing changed. And the antifreeze did NOT smell like hydrocarbon SO I am almost certain that that the skipping is due to a timing belt issue.

I know you only need to be off by a couple of teeth for the engine to run improperly SO I think the engine skip is due to an improperly aligned timing belt NOT a head gasket leak. I just hope there is no valve damage. I'm bringin it to the dealer Monday. Live and learn.

Reply to
al franken

Your owner's manual will show you there's a bleed screw at the top of the radiator. Follow directions in the manual.

Reply to
jabario

I've read that you can hold a strip of paper at the tailpipe while the engine is idling and the paper will actually suck INTO/TOWARDS the exhaust pipe if a belt has skipped.

Carl

1 Lucky Texan

al franken wrote:

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Carl 1 Lucky Texan

Reply to
Onne

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