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2008-2010 2.5ltr Engine Failures

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Old 21 August 2018, 02:30 PM
  #1981  
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Originally Posted by Matty81


good lad!.

keep us all posted as I’m interested to see how it comes along mate.
Will do. I'll start a new build thread at some point.
Old 21 August 2018, 02:32 PM
  #1982  
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Originally Posted by bioforger
Nothing arsey about it imo, could simply be the old head gasket bolt issue and nothing more But yea i get it, even getting those replaced will cost a bomb, so doesn't make financial sense, you'll make some of your cash back (well cash in pocket anyway, as you say no gain) at least by breaking it i guess.
This'll make you laugh.... my Subaru main stealers quoted me over £6k JUST FOR HEAD GASKETS ALONE!!!!!! hahaha. I actually laughed down the phone at them.

Paul, if you're reading, you're under charging!
Old 21 August 2018, 02:34 PM
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wtaf purely coz the engine has to come out i guess, so massive labour charge/time, that is nuts.
Old 21 August 2018, 02:42 PM
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Originally Posted by bioforger
wtaf purely coz the engine has to come out i guess, so massive labour charge/time, that is nuts.
This is a dealers I have known and used for the last 12 years of ownership, where I bought my first Subaru. I know for a fact they charged another friend £1,500 for head gaskets a while back and another friend £3.5k for a full rebuild. Yet they quoted me £6k for head gaskets!!!! Laughable.
Old 21 August 2018, 02:46 PM
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Must have been a bad month for car sales
Old 21 August 2018, 03:21 PM
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Originally Posted by bioforger
Must have been a bad month for car sales
haha. You're not kidding. They couldn't be more underwhelmed when I told them I'd bought the new one. All they said was why didn't you buy the one on our forecourt? Maybe because it was too expensive and un-forged????
Old 21 August 2018, 03:24 PM
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Harsh but fair My local dealer had the same attitude when i bought mine 4yrs ago, why not buy it from us? um maybe coz you didn't seem to be bothered and only offered a 3yr warranty with no remap thrown in? Salesman to this day still gives me a dirty look as if its my fault hah.
Old 21 August 2018, 03:42 PM
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Originally Posted by BrownPantsRacing
This'll make you laugh.... my Subaru main stealers quoted me over £6k JUST FOR HEAD GASKETS ALONE!!!!!! hahaha. I actually laughed down the phone at them.

Paul, if you're reading, you're under charging!
You should of asked for a breakdown of the 6k, interesting where the money was going.

Got a Type20 in from a customer, he was quoted £200.00 for a leak down test & £900.00 for engine removal & strip out investigation work from a dealer.

Best one I have had in from a dealer is a Hawkeye with h/gasket failure, they removed only one head, with the engine still fitted, put it back together & it was the wrong side head gasket.
Old 21 August 2018, 03:50 PM
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Originally Posted by MOTORS S GT
You should of asked for a breakdown of the 6k, interesting where the money was going.

Got a Type20 in from a customer, he was quoted £200.00 for a leak down test & £900.00 for engine removal & strip out investigation work from a dealer.

Best one I have had in from a dealer is a Hawkeye with h/gasket failure, they removed only one head, with the engine still fitted, put it back together & it was the wrong side head gasket.
haha. Brilliant. Why would you want to take the head off with the engine fitted? Surely that's even more work than popping the engine out????

Well I just paid the dealer £110 for them to do a hydrocarbon test on the car, which is as easy as them putting the fluid onto some paper and watching it change colour. Presumably I paid for every member of their staff to sit around drinking coffee and watching it develop???? Madness.
Old 24 August 2018, 10:37 AM
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I had been sniffing about at the Hatch 330s (not done any specific research yet on issues) but having read the last few pages of this thread i'll be staying well clear sadly. I've only had UK classics in the past which were bullet proof but reading this tells me stay well clear and don't go back to Subaru ownership.

Last edited by An0n0m0us; 24 August 2018 at 10:40 AM.
Old 24 August 2018, 01:46 PM
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I would suggest getting a car with a forged engine ,as i am sure there are plenty out there ,or build it into your budget , the 2.5 is a great engine , i have two fsti with forged engines and still prefer it over the 2 litre jdm i had , the 2.5 being much quicker off the mark plus a load more torque , the cars other than engines are generally very reliable , a bad choice would be buying a french car not a subaru lol
Old 24 August 2018, 03:03 PM
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Thanks so if it's been forged then it should be all good? My alternative wasn't French i'm not mad it was the AMG 45. More expensive to buy but a lot less to run!
Old 24 August 2018, 03:07 PM
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Forged should be good , head bolts race crank bearings forged pistons , amg expensive when it goes wrong , from freeback on the amg quick but no character a bit boring , too many launches clutch brakes and it’s around 2000£ for a new one
Old 24 August 2018, 03:58 PM
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OK thanks. I'd love the 330s although none near me to go and look at. I've seen one that's been forged and turbo upgrade but a long way away. I'm only used to the burble of a classic is that still present in the hatches? I've seen some about and seem very quiet?
Old 24 August 2018, 04:11 PM
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Originally Posted by An0n0m0us
OK thanks. I'd love the 330s although none near me to go and look at. I've seen one that's been forged and turbo upgrade but a long way away. I'm only used to the burble of a classic is that still present in the hatches? I've seen some about and seem very quiet?
I've owned 2.5 engine Subarus now for 12 years and am on my 3rd as we speak. Don't get too hung up on the failures and let it deter you from purchasing or spoil your ownership experience. Be aware of the problem and if possible put financial provisions for the repair to one side just in case. They are great engines to own trust me. Fair enough I've had 2 failures now, one in either car, but I wouldn't have purchased a 3rd car if they were not that good to such a pleasure to drive and own.

Buy it, drive it, enjoy it, fix it if it breaks.
Old 24 August 2018, 05:49 PM
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Originally Posted by BrownPantsRacing
I've owned 2.5 engine Subarus now for 12 years and am on my 3rd as we speak. Don't get too hung up on the failures and let it deter you from purchasing or spoil your ownership experience. Be aware of the problem and if possible put financial provisions for the repair to one side just in case. They are great engines to own trust me. Fair enough I've had 2 failures now, one in either car, but I wouldn't have purchased a 3rd car if they were not that good to such a pleasure to drive and own.

Buy it, drive it, enjoy it, fix it if it breaks.
Cheers I just don't like nasty surprises with cars so always try to avoid potential problems which is why I won't have BMW because of VANOS and all the horror stories etc. I'd be a lot happier buying one forged if that eliminates all the known risks. But then you have to trust the conversion has been done to a high standard. Are they any better on fuel consumption than the classics? Published figures are always a waste of time so I don't pay much attention to them. If driving sensibly is closer to 20mpg rather than 30mpg then i'll probably have to give up on it.
Old 24 August 2018, 06:23 PM
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Roughly 24mpg sensible driving
Old 24 August 2018, 06:28 PM
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If you research into every car brand or performance car you'll find they have weak spots and issues prone to failure. If you thought like this you'd never own anything at all. Evos have weak gearboxes and transfer boxes and also suffer engine failures, all focus RS models are prone to engine failures and loads have given up already, etc etc. If you research everything you'll end up buying a diesel Skoda and nobody wants that. 😁

you'll never get 30mpg average from a newage or later Subaru. All mine have averaged 22mpg or around that. I don't own these cars because of their amazing fuel economy, I own them for the fun and excitement they bring. If you want to own one you need to make sure you can cover running costs, service costs, expected and unexpected repaid costs, tax and insurance. If you can't cover these you may be looking at the wrong car for you.

I hope for your sake you take the plunge, they really are great cars.
Old 24 August 2018, 06:32 PM
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Originally Posted by peter zippy reid
Roughly 24mpg sensible driving
Thanks so not much better than the classics I had, that's a real shame. Does being forged make any difference either way?
Old 24 August 2018, 06:40 PM
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Originally Posted by An0n0m0us
Thanks so not much better than the classics I had, that's a real shame. Does being forged make any difference either way?
My freshly forged 2.5 new shape with 335bhp is getting 26.7mpg on average now since trip reset. Mostly from daily work trips it still gets 22-23mpg.
Old 24 August 2018, 06:42 PM
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Originally Posted by BrownPantsRacing
If you research into every car brand or performance car you'll find they have weak spots and issues prone to failure. If you thought like this you'd never own anything at all. Evos have weak gearboxes and transfer boxes and also suffer engine failures, all focus RS models are prone to engine failures and loads have given up already, etc etc. If you research everything you'll end up buying a diesel Skoda and nobody wants that. ��

you'll never get 30mpg average from a newage or later Subaru. All mine have averaged 22mpg or around that. I don't own these cars because of their amazing fuel economy, I own them for the fun and excitement they bring. If you want to own one you need to make sure you can cover running costs, service costs, expected and unexpected repaid costs, tax and insurance. If you can't cover these you may be looking at the wrong car for you.

I hope for your sake you take the plunge, they really are great cars.
I went through all that with my classics, my last being my 3rd car and purely a weekend car but my head has been turned with modern performance engines returning decent fuel economy and cheap tax bands such as the AMG 45. It's 360bhp with less than half the road tax and fuel economy of 30+mpg so can be used as a family car as well as a performance car with sensible running costs. I've never even sat in one let alone drive one so no idea if they are a great drive but the figures really appeal to me. The scoob is going to be back to the same problem I had before, a huge drain on money when with 4 children I have a lot of other things to be paying for. In the last 4 or so years fast and affordable running costs have become reality which I never thought i'd see. I just wish Subaru would catch up and do the same.

Last edited by An0n0m0us; 24 August 2018 at 06:43 PM.
Old 24 August 2018, 06:44 PM
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Forged are a lot more durable , sg9 fsti average 35 mpg on a long run , noise wise as subaru’s get newer then you tend to loose the burble it’s down to newer cars having more equal length headers , worth a longer trip to get a better car , mine was london to scotland lol
Old 24 August 2018, 09:29 PM
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Ok thanks and that explains the lack of burble then there’s a few classics locally so still get to hear that roar when one gets floored. I’ll have a look for sti hatches for sale locally to give me an idea what the 330s is like.
Old 24 August 2018, 10:35 PM
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Originally Posted by An0n0m0us
Ok thanks and that explains the lack of burble then there’s a few classics locally so still get to hear that roar when one gets floored. I’ll have a look for sti hatches for sale locally to give me an idea what the 330s is like.
I've a forged 330s and get 25mpg mixed driving but mostly spirited. Not so much burble from them. If you look up youtube you'll hear a few. More of a roar than a rumble which i really miss. Of course with a single exit exhaust u get near the sound we all love , but the quad pipes look better (imo)
Old 24 August 2018, 11:31 PM
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Originally Posted by CharlySkunkWeed
I've a forged 330s and get 25mpg mixed driving but mostly spirited. Not so much burble from them. If you look up youtube you'll hear a few. More of a roar than a rumble which i really miss. Of course with a single exit exhaust u get near the sound we all love , but the quad pipes look better (imo)
That's great thanks for replying. Have you had any issues with it mechanically or been pretty bullet proof? Been thinking about it this evening and trying to persuade myself for the performance the costs are worth it as long as it's forged.
Old 24 August 2018, 11:58 PM
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Originally Posted by An0n0m0us
That's great thanks for replying. Have you had any issues with it mechanically or been pretty bullet proof? Been thinking about it this evening and trying to persuade myself for the performance the costs are worth it as long as it's forged.
its been fine since rebuild. The odd puff of smoke on start up but been told forged do that.
Old 25 August 2018, 08:33 AM
  #2007  
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we don't find them that much less reliable than anything else within certain limits

if your wanting to push the EJ25 / EJ257 haredr then one of our CNC's Closed Deck inserts will increase reliability massively
Old 28 August 2018, 08:49 AM
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Originally Posted by AS Performance
we don't find them that much less reliable than anything else within certain limits

if your wanting to push the EJ25 / EJ257 haredr then one of our CNC's Closed Deck inserts will increase reliability massively
Old 28 August 2018, 08:55 AM
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https://www.carcomplaints.com/news/2...-lawsuit.shtml
Old 28 August 2018, 09:32 AM
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Originally Posted by ThePredator
Your 3rd new sti is forged with no reason
I like Your new one, hopefully it will survive 50k miles
Yes, my new STI is fully forged now because the original engine seized up on the dyno. They were pushing 400bhp from the original engine, so no wonder really.


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