Well, it happened on Friday. My 98 Forester with 147K kms started to overheat on the way to work, and after getting it towed to my dealer, I found out that my head gasket is done. Bummer.
I guess my question is, will this happen again? It's been a great car up to this point.
If PROPERLY done, my machine shop buddy says probably not. Block should be checked for warpage (not too likely), heads should be shaved if there's ANY warpage (often times there's some, but it's under the limit, so the shops don't bother), and use the latest design gaskets.
His take on the problem is that alloy heads will almost always warp a little initially, then quit, so once you've experienced that warpage (usually resulting in a gasket failure), you can shave them and they'll stay "flat" from there on. My limited experience with this issue says he's right.
i just bout a 98 forester with 130k miles, i love the car. and i am seriously considering keeping it. but all this head gasket problems is making me wanna sell it as soon as i get the title in the mail. seems like this is bound to happen to every forester.
question: does driving your car a certain way help prevent head gasket problems? i hardly every go over 65mph or over 2500rpm, will this help save the head gasket? if u put less stress on the engine by drivng slow with low rpm's will that save the gasket?
this is a really nice car, looks great, runs great, can do a lot with. but is it worth the headache and looking over your shoulder all the time? i might just get rid of it as soon as i get the title because nothing would be worse for me than being stranded in the middle of the freeway out in the middle of nowhere!
I bought it with 110K kms on it, so I can't comment on how it was driven previous to my owning it, but the last 40K or so kms have been
80% highway driving, and almost entirely cruise control, with the CC set to 110-115 km/h (so, about 68-70 mph, which is the highway speed limit here in this part of Canada). At that speed, the RPM needle stays around 2800 rpm.
i just bought mine with 130k miles on it, and i know for a for sure that there is air in my heater core because i can hear the water noises coming from under the dash. i think air is trapped in the heater core.
the car runs silent and the engine sounds healthy. did your scar exhibit any problems before it tanked? can it be working perfectly fine today and bottom out the next? thanks
For any car - yes, head gasket failures are always sudden, but not always catastrophic. One minute everything is fine, the next minute... not. I came across a turbo Saab beside the freeway one day; it had steam coming from the tailpipe and two women looking forlornly under the hood. My brother used to have one, so I knew what it was - head gasket failure between cylinders 2 and 3, which are too closely spaced. Sure enough, within the last mile the engine had gone from hunky-dory to no hope of running. When they cranked the engine the coolant level in the reservoir pumped up and down. D'oh! Other head gasket leaks can be nursed for months.
No, I hadn't had any problems that would have indicated the gasket was going. The weekend prior to the head gasket going, I had driven it
1600 km on the highway, in two 8 hour back to back days without any problem at all. Then a work week of normal around town driving, and then it went on Friday.
some people mistake this "bubbling" for "boiling" There's a subtle difference... and it's important -- one says "air is being pushed in" and the other says "There's trapped air and cooler coolant just hit something hot"
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it may have been that long drive that did u in man, i know one time in my old 1990 toyota celica i drove back from vegas (approx 300miles) and when i got home i immediately opened the hood for no reason. i dont know what it was but something under there was GLOWING HOT. i think long drives put a lot of stress on engines. the scary thing is i have a
3000 mile drive i have to make early next year. my big concern is breaking down in the middle of no where. all by myself.!!!!!!!!
it was dark outside, and when i opened the hood the plate over the "cylinders" (if thats what they are) was glowing red! funny thing is that if i didnt get into a accident with that toyota , i wouldnt have this subaru. toyota is extremely reliable!! i'm gonna sell the forester for a honda crv or rav4. i just hope it doesnt blow before i get my title and can sell it!!!
will do, but do u recommend i just go to a local mechanic or do i have to go to a subaru dealer? will the average mechanic be able to refill the coolant properly on the problematic forester? thanks
I dunno. I make these long trips a few times a month, for work reasons. I've been doing some more reading, and I *may* have had air in my radiator core. A week ago, I remember hearing draining sounds for a second or two, immediately after shutting off my car. I didn't really think much of it at the time, because I had never heard it before and it had been raining a lot. Of course, one of the gaskets may have been leaking and air might have gotten in that way.
Anyway, if you're worried about breaking down, just get a CAA membership, a roadside kit, and make sure your phone is charged. "Can you hear me now?"
yes. there might have been air in your heating system. another scary thing for me is that i know there is air in mine, i mean i can hear it everytime i drive off from an extended park. after learning this i am going to walmart to buy 2 gallons of coolant so i can bleed out that air pocket. i just hope its not a leaky gasket that caused the air to enter the system!!! that would really piss me off.. but then again even if i have to shell out 2 grand for a gasket tomorrow, it still wouldnt be that damaging for me because i was lucky enough to get this car for more than 2 grand below the market value. gonna get dirty with coolant today.
another thing. ever since i bought this car a few weeks ago, i've learnt more about cars in the last two weeks than i ever knew before. terms like: head gasket, heater core, synthetics, horizontal engine, dohc, sohc, blow by, etc. hope this car is worth the trouble.
message board(Forums) or asking questions there. using the search function for specific questions can be a good resource too. many soobs will give up their air bubbles if filled 'nose up'. park on an incline or drive up on ramps or on a curb or (safely) a stack of lumber,etc. Fill the radiotor (make sure the climate contorl is set for max heat) run engine till fans come on, rechek rad., put rad cap on, Turm everything off and fill the o'flow to proper level. Check everything in the morning. If radioater and/or o'flow are low. repeat procedure. If JUST the o'flow is low, top it off and monitor for a few days.
yes, i already did. i read all the horror stories on there. my only redeeming factor is that i payed below market value for the car from the dealer, so if the gasket does blow, the repair costs will make me cut even with the market value. i did some research before i bought this car, but i didnt do enough. if i had seen all these stories before i bought the car i definitely wouldve steered clear from it. thanks
Same here, but I paid market value. So if my HG blows, I'm screwed. Plus, the tranny is screwy, and now I need new ball joints. Standard maintenance to be sure, but the predictable HG is just too much. I wonder why Consumer Reports doesn't know about this, and reflect it in their ratings.
I love the car, but it's falling apart and going to explode some day.
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