1998 subaru legacy head gasket issue

I have a 1998 Subaru Legacy GT with 243,000 km on the engine. The car is in mint condition - arctic white paint. The head gasket now needs to be replaced. Did all the maintenance. I've been lucky it lasted this long. Car was mostly highway driven. Car is drivable and the leaking coolant is gradual and would go un-noticed to someone not familiar with the car. Head gasket is not reliable so getting it replaced by a certified Subaru mechanic. Will cost $3,500 to do it right. Don't recommend to do it cheaply because if its not done right the gasket can leak again.

Link that provides excellent info about problem:
http://allwheeldriveauto.com/subaru-...ained-part-ii/

An interesting read on cooling design problem:
http://legacygt.com/forums/showthrea...s-120477.html?

I had the same problem a while ago and I also suggest going with a mechanic that knows subes. $3,500 seems a bit steep though, for the HG, head's machined, new water pump etc. My quotes ranged from $1,800 - $2,700 and the highest was a sube certified. But what ever you decide to spend think about getting the transmission worked on. I know my trans has the third gear shift grind and in hind sight it would have been a good time to get it fixed.

The highest quote I got was $1600 from the dealership here. I wound up doing it myself and I recommend the same if you have a good place to work. I messed up and had to do it twice actually (heads were swapped L to R) but I'm glad I did just for the experience and chance to learn something new. I spent close to what I would have at the dealer, but I also replaced the water pump, timing belt, idlers, adjuster, rear timing covers, etc., ALL of the hydraulic lash adjusters, and I installed a transmission cooler and gauge. Plus I had the heads completely rebuilt.

Time will tell if it was a good HG job or not, but like I said, I was after the learning experience and the challenge.