Head gasket problem. Need opinions.

Hey guys... My girl just got an 05 LGT last year right before winter...

Just did a full break job (rotors and pads all around, ended up replacing two defective calipers in the front)

She got a nice set of wheels and tires for it, we changed the headlights, put on an HID kit. She just started to fall for the car...

About 3 days ago we went for a drive to a store (first day after the break job was all settled) and we noticed the temp gauge climbing. She immediately pulled over, shut the motor off leaving the ignition on to let the fans cool it off.

We turned around immediately (only 3 mins away from her home) and parked the car. All this time the temp never reached the red zone on the gauge...

I heard coolant behind the dash for a while now, I googled it and found out it may be air in the coolant. I figured this temp rising is just an air pocket...

 

Next day I tried to bleed the system. fans kicked on, I pumped the radiator hose which was hot, then i reached down to squeeze on the bottom hose... it was cold.

I said **** it, thermostat... She had the car towed to Subaru today, I just got the call that the head gasket is leaking internally...

 

She is broke at the moment, can't foot the bill. The dealership quoted a price of $1800 and need to have the heads sent out and inspected... said the turbo might be damaged as well...

 

Don't know if I should believe all this stealership talk. No oil in the coolant, no coolant in the oil. Exhaust is not puffing white smoke...

 

What do you guys think?

What would you do in this situation considering the circumstance?

 

This just plain SUCKS

 

(Accidentally posted in the photo section as well, mind is racing sorry about that)

sorry to hear about the situation. Well, it would never hurt to get the car inspected by another shop that works on Subarus to confirm or deny what the dealer is saying.

 

It is somewhat easy to check if the turbo is failing: drop the downpipe and check for shaft play.

 

That's what I'd do for now.

 

How many miles does the car have?

its at 134k

She didn't have too much to spend on a car to begin with, and the LGTs just caught her eye. She likes performance and good looks on a car.

 

So would you just have them put in a new thermostat and fill it up with coolant for the time being?

The question is how fast is the leak?

 

If it leaks you're going to get rust on the internals, making $1800 look cheap.

 

My estimation is you can get this work down to about $1200 at non-dealer rates.

$1200 sounds a whole lot better, still hefty... however I would assume a dealership will do the job right maybe, vs some little shop... I really don't know what to do.

Tell us where you're from and some of us may be able to guide you to a reputable shop in your area.

Tell us where you're from and some of us may be able to guide you to a reputable shop in your area.

 

Well there's my first thought...^

 

Again find a normal repair shop.

 

 

Did to raise the right front corner of the car to burp the system ? You need to do that. Pull the cap off the turbo tank and watch the air bubbles.

 

 

How did the dealer test for a HG ? these cars are not known for HG's like the older cars. Tho there have been a few here lately.

I am from central Connecticut.

She brought the car to a Subaru dealership in Torrington, CT.

I did not raise the corner but i did park the car on a small incline in her driveway with the nose pointing up.

 

I actually asked the guy on the phone what he means by the head gasket leaking internally, since there was no sign of fluids mixing or smoke out of the tail pipe, i asked how they came to that conclusion with the hefty price tag. He told me that he will have to talk to the technician to find out what tests exactly were performed to draw this conclusion and that he will call me back in the morning....

Leaking internally to where? Did they leak-down test the car and witness the cooling system pressurize or something? Ask if they tested the oil for coolant (there are simple test kits you can buy at auto parts stores and if its bad you can visually see it). Plugs can discolor from coolant leaking into the cylinder... did they see it there?

 

Sounds like the stealership is stretching for $ unless they can verbally explain the data that supports the conclusion. If they don't have good explanations (with proof they can show you) I'd personally pay your bill and take it somewhere else or do some repairs yourself. Plan on a t-stat, upper/lower rad hoses, and a coolant/oil test kit. Pull the front spark plugs and look for burned coolant, etc.

I actually talked with the guy from the stealership... Get this, he tells me its an internal leak. He claims its leaking coolant into the exhaust... I said, but there is no white smoke comong out of the tailpipes... He tolde that its a very small leak thats why there is no smoke...

 

I asked him what kind of tests they ran to draw that conclusion.... To which he replied, "no real tests were actually performed"

 

Ladies and gentelmen, torrington Subaru techs have xray vision and or they are psychic!! :/

 

I think ill try to replace the thermostat first.

 

 

What kind of coolant do you guys use? Peak ok to use? I keep reading something about some conditioner aditive??

FWIW, I have never used the Subaru conditioner. IMO a sales pitch.

 

Any good name brand coolant for universal systems should be fine.

 

I have used both Peak and Prestone. Bought a gallon of Prestone, good for all systems the other day and mixed it 50/50 with tap water. Now for $12.00 I have two gallons on hand.

 

 

The real test for a coolant leak is a pressure test of the system and for a HG leak they should do a HC (hydrocarbon) test around the overflow tank.

If you have a coolant pressure tester with gauge you can check for a head gasket problem that way as well.

 

Hook up the pressure tester and pump it up to get some pressure built in the system, making sure the car holds pressure and is not pissing coolant under the car is the first step obviously. If it stays dry and pressured, start the car.

Keep an eye on the gauge while it is running and give it a few minutes. If the pressure starts to build rapidly or the needle vibrates rapidly you may have a head gasket that is cracked, the compression from the cylinders firing will be causing the needle on the gauge to dance around.

So now you owe the dealership $ and can take it to another shop(hopefully not another stealership)

 

Did you change the thermostat? Maybe its stuck closed

She didn't have too much to spend on a car to begin with

 

She got a nice set of wheels and tires for it, we changed the headlights, put on an HID kit.

 

She is broke at the moment, can't foot the bill.

 

It always works this way I'd say replace thermostat, replace coolant, and go from there. I've heard the additives/conditioners only really have an impact if you track it but they are inexpensive so some just figure why not.

We picked the car up yesterday, apparently they did run a quick test. The tech checked for combustion gasses in the radiator. Test was positive. It is a head gasket afterall :/

 

Better get that wallet ready

Go else where to get it done

Yup already on it. We had the subie towed back to her house for now. Who ever will be doing the job (were looking around right now) i will ask them to double check the diagnosis and pressure test the coolant system, just to be 100% sure.