So I recently i've been having a heat problem with my car a few weeks. After getting out after a long drive there's just a smell of burning coolant and the bonnet is awfully hot.

Took it into a garage and had a coolant flush, where it was discovered there wasn't much coolant in it at all.

Then everything was fine for a week, then same problem started happening this time with a gurgling / boiling sound.

Took it in again and had a full service done Oil, Cambelt and Spark plugs since these needed doing any way and in the process the coolant was drained and replaced again.

Then everything was fine for a week, just pulled up to a petrol station. Noticed the burning coolant smell again and noticed it was pissing coolant out the expansion tank. Opened the bonnet and watched it shut down on the turbo timer and smoke/steam started rising from the area at the base of the cambelt cover.

Why does this keep happening?

 

Sounds like air lock mate you can try refilling the coolant through the small hose from the header tank I hear people who have probs do that . Iv never had a prob just refilling through tank letting her run squeezing bottom hose with cap off with heating on full blast for 10 mins then refitting cap . If All that fails do a head gasket sniff test

 

Is your passenger side carpet wet at all?

 

I'll check.

What is the sniff test?

My friend thinks the head gasket is blown.

Would they have gone near the head gasket when doing the service because the timings line up well.

 

Passenger side isn't wet, The gasket was changed 2 years ago according to service history. Opened the header tank and the coolant isn't filled to the top.

 

Does it matter if I don't run the heater?

Mine doesn't work because my heater matrix is bypassed as it was leaking and it's too expensive to get it repaired just to have heating in the car.

 

Head gasket!!

 

Head gasket is blown & the matrix is probably the cause of it. Get it to a proper Scooby specialist to confirm diagnosis then get it repaired properly.

 

Makes sense now reason I said about wet passenger footwell as heater matrix is first to go when hg is on way out mate. So that the reason it by passed . I would say def hg . Heater matrix I did on first Scoob propa pain complete dash strip down

 

Personally I would check, Heater matrix, Thermostat and water pump

 

A blown head gasket even though they were replaced 2 years ago by the previous guy?

Great how much is this gonna host me? I shelled out £290 only last week.

 

Ah.........the financial pleasure of owning a Scooby........

 

Also I'm not quite following. Are people saying that bypassing the heater matrix CAUSED the blown gasket or the fact that the matrix was leaking and needed to be bypassed was a symptom of a gasket about to blow?

 

It will be a lot more than that £290, although these cars are great value for money to buy compared to cars of similar power, they cost a fortune to run & maintain. This is why only true enthusiasts are able to stick with it long term. To get it done properly you'll probably need £1200 Inc shells.

 

Bypassing the matrix isn't a problem. Although a blown matrix can be a symptom of HG failure, it can also cause it by the coolant level running low causing overheating.

 

a blown head gasket is a doddle to fix and should cost no more than 500 quid even from the biggest of rip off merchants. And what are these shells you say need changing, f*ck all needs changing bar the gaskets and maybe a head skim and pressure test

 

LMFAO £500. Maybe a DIY job, but if the OP was capable of that I doubt he'd be asking for advice on here. Crank bearing shells are a common failure after HG failure.

 

agreed, when total head gasket failure occurs, crank bearings commonly follow due to low oil pressure and water in the oil. In this case its taking a week for it to get a little boil on. From my experience he will probs get away with just changing gaskets. And mechanics must see you coming if you think 500 is to cheap

 

If I fix this is it just going to blow in another 2 years?

Because it had 2 new gaskets in 2010

 

Absolutly not mate. If its done properly and you use good quality parts it will be fine. Dont let people scare monger you about it, find yourself somebody who is handy with cars (everyone knows some one) and get them to do it. Its an easy job to do i dont see any reason you dont have a go yourself tbh

 

Not if it's done properly & cooling system is properly maintained & never allowed to overheat. A top tip is fit a proper coolant temp gauge with audible warning like a Defi.

 

Api, sc and engine tuner I believe all advise a shell change when doing hg s. 500 to take engine out , remove heads , skim and pressure test gonna be a 100 if you lucky, hg s are 100 quid, oil 50 , head bolts prob at least 50 , inlet manifold gasket 10, coolant all adds up 500 is not realistic at all .

But it may not be a hg you got any Scoob specialist s near you they will know in 30 mins.

 

Mate Iv done gaskets myself in the past & using proper parts not EBay crap, you'll be looking at about £500. It's a days labour as engine needs to come out so I don't think you're being realistic about what a specialist will charge to do it. It's a no brainer to do the shells & only an idiot would chance it. Plus while it's stripped down it makes sense to do the timing belt if not done recently plus oil & filter & all the other little gaskets which will be disturbed. Believe me the parts bill soon mounts up, do it right do it once, or spend yet more time & money sorting it out later.

 

The famous words of a newbie..........

Head gaskets are not a doddle to change, it is an easy job sure, but to do it properly you need the engine out. A pair of 'proper' head gaskets - ones that are worth fitting - are, as a minimum, £125.00 + VAT a pair. Then cam seals at about 8 quid each plus VAT and a good days labour for anyone, amateur or professional, whether they work in your drive or at a workshop.

There will be other things too that pop up and bite you once it is out, not necessarily major things, but the odd few tenners here and tenners there mount up. You might find that the clutch is worn enough to need thinking about whilst it is out. So add whatever that might cost. If the belt hasn't been done recently then it would be sensible to change that too.

See the costs creeping up.

Reading between the lines I suspect that there may be damage to the head face or block top. If a Subaru is run for any amount of time with the wrong inhibitor [ antifreeze ] or the wrong amount, electrolysis sets in and rots the block or head away with the electrical charge generated. Water + aluminium + steel = Battery.

Fortunately the heater matrix doesn't fail regularly and I think we have either fitted or supplied less than ten in all the years we have been in business doing Subaru. However it is a right pita to change, the entire dash needs to come out. Cost of a good secondhand one is anywhere up to £50.00 max

Before you tear the dash out, get the engine out and heads off and see what is what. If the car has done more than 75,000 miles and is pre 2001 you must check the crank and bearings or there is every likelihood you will be doing it all again in a few weeks time. Leave the matrix for the minute, it can be dealt with later and by-passed too if necessary. It won't be much fun driving around in winter without a heater for a short while. But logically is it better to prove that there is a fault with the matrix rather than get stuck in to a dreadful job for no reason.

Good luck, what you are describing is head gasket failure no doubt.

David APi

01926 614333

 

I'm just flogging it.

I'm 22 on min wage and it's suppose to be my daily driver. I'm not middle aged on loads of money with this as my 2nd or 2rd car. It's pretty much costing a 1/4 of it's worth in repairs every month.

 

What car is it? ie what model and year?

22 is young for insuring a Scoob, let alone running one as a dd.

 

1995 Import GC8 WRX