Advice Needed RE Engine Problem
 

I bought a 1998 V4 WRX STI Type R a couple of weeks back, this is the first Scooby i have bought so am totally "Green" with these cars. It was running fine for the first week then I noticed there was a smell of oil within the engine bay. I checked the Oil level and that was fine, I had a look underneath to see if it was dropping oil and there was nothing visible by eye or on the drive. A friend of mine also had a look and said he thought he may be able to see spots of oil dropping near the back of the engine which was turning into small plumes of smoke as it was hitting something hot (Exhaust Manifold?) We also noticed that the Coolant level had dropped to nothing after appx 30 mins driving.
This morning I topped the coolant up to its Max level and also checked the oil which was fine. I drove the car at the speed limits and could hear a rattling/vibration noise from the engine, it was only happening when my foot was on the accelerator and stopped when i lifted off. I had already decided this wasnt sounding right and took the car back home, I changed down to third at a roundabout and the car lurched and sounded like it was going to die on me. The vibrating noise was getting worse and literally as I turned the car onto my drive it totally cut out. I checked the engine bay and underneath and again can smell oil but no sign of it dropping anywhere. The coolant however has totally disappeared again. Can anyone offer some advice on what they think the problem may be or if thet have experienced a similar problem? Thank you in advance for your assistance.
Matt.

HI, oil smell could be oil dripping from leaking drivers side cam cover. (common problem).
Losing coolant could be a few.. Rad Cap, Header tank leaking, Slightly split rad, Air lock, Split hose??
You will also get loads of people say Head Gasket gone.... which it might be but check out the simples first.
If unsure get a reputable garage to have a look.
Good luck :thumb:

Where are you topping up and checking the coolant levels??
Use the header tank on the top of the engine.

You need to have it looked at by a professional. The engine noise is your main concern.

dont want to scare you, but the car dying on you doesnt sound so good and what type of noise are you getting? if possible upload a video so we can hear what type of noise you are getting, if you cant take your car to a garage who knows this cars asap and get it check and just avoid driving, i had similar porblems with my old scooby, but no problems with losing water but i had a noise coming from the engine and losing power it felt like the car was dying on me and that was a knocked engine i just hope that this isnt the issue with your case, all the best mate just let us know the outcome.

Thanks for the suggestions, I forgot to mention that I cant get it started at all now. The electrics are fine and theres fuel in it , it almost sounds like the whining noise when the batterys gone flat? Any further advice would be greatly received.

Ive been checking and filling the coolant levels at the front right hand side of the engine bay (rather than the header tank). Also i forgot to mention earlier that I now cant get the car started at all, theres enough fuel in it and the batteries fine but when i try and turn it over it sounds like when you try and start a car where the batteries gone flat. Any suggestions gladly received!

Thanks for your response, The original noise I was getting before it cut out was best described as a vibration/ rattling coming from the front of the vehicle i.e the engine bay. This got progressively worse over the ten minute journey until it died on me. The rattling/vibration noise was loud enough for me to be checking the glove box etc for something like a locking wheel nut vibrating on the plastic. I now cant get the car to start at all, the electrics seem to be fine and theres enough fuel in it but when i try and turn it over it almost sounds like when your battery goes flat. Forgive me for sounding like an idiot but when you say 'Knocked' engine what do you mean?

I checked the Header and the coolant is full to within appx 1 inch of the cap, it appears to be an almost yellowy cloudy colour but when you dip it , it comes out pink (like it was in the bottle).
When i first drove the car a week ago the engine was extremely hot,the temp gauge in the car was reading halfway but i could hear what sounded like the coolant boiling in the header tank when i lifted the bonnet. If I have lost the bottom end then what would indicate that, or what would cause that? Thank you for your continued assistance.

Halfway is spot on. Not Extremely hot.


That's probably because it was. If your temp stays below halfway, your fan kicks in and you heaters work as they should then i can see no immediate problem with the coolant system.


You probably haven't lost it... but worst case scenario! That's why i advised you to get it to a garage, as any opinions on here will be pure guess work, educated or not.

when the car was dying did the oil light flash? does sound like bottom end but as b13bat rightly says its all guess work as we cant see/hear the car but if bottom end was going it would make a rattling noise under load and also you would lose oil pressure slowing down which would cause it to die before stopping

Thank you, your opinions are valued and I appreciate you taking the time to try and help.

When the car was dying I didnt see see the oil light flash, the car was making a rattling noise when my foot was on the accelerator but stopped when i lifted off. Appx 3 mins before the car died I changed down into third on a roundabout and the car lurched and almost sound like the wheels locked or the car stalled temporarily before re-applying the accelerator. The rattling got worse all the way back to my house before it cut out as i went onto my drive.

was the rattling at around 1500-2500 revs? thats what mine was like, but like i say my oil light was flashing when it was cutting out, is it knocking at all? just while its idling? best bet mate drain oil and see if its a bronze colour (indicates metal contaminated) or take your sump off (8mm or 10mm bolts cant remember) and see if you can see any metal filings also while its off you can push on your conrods to check for play, but if it has gone there deffinatly will be metal fillings in oil. were are you mate?

theres a vid of what mine sounded like mate
http://i1228.photobucket.com/albums/...h_MOV_0185.jpg

Yes it did sound like that but only when i pressed the accelerator, it didnt make the sound when it was idling. It wont start at all now.

Ive checked the oil and it is a cross between Normal Oil colour ie fairly transparent and a bronzey colour. Ive wiped the dipstick on a clean cloth and held it up to the light and as far as i can see it doesnt appear to have metal filings in it however the colour you described is accurate. Im in Silverstone.

shame your not local mate, it does sound like bottom end (i have had it twice and hate to say) but you need somebody to have a second opinion actualy listening to the car, do you know of any members close to you? thats all i can suggest mate

Thanks for the advice mate, this is my first Subaru and Ive only been on here for a couple of days so I need to have a look around and see if theres anyone local to me. When your bottom end(s) went what did you do about it and what sort of costs were involved? Also what causes it to happen?

i bought it with bottom end gone as a project bud rebuilt the engine which cost me around 1000 but i did it with a friend who is a fully qualified mechanic (and im telling you them papers need tearing up) as he was teaching me i wasnt checking his work and whilst he was rushing he put 3 conrod caps on wrong way, to cut along story short run it for a week and bang:( then i bought a 2nd hand engine for £500 and put that in. this is also my first its not a good start to subaru ownership.

the reason it went first time was that the lad didnt keep up with servicing and wasnt looked after at all

My theory based on information supplied -

I think you may of had a coolant leak, which had dropped onto the exhaust causing the burning smell, Antifreeze can smell like oil when burnt,

This in turn has caused the H\G to blow forcing water into a cylinder,

Water not being compressible has then caused a con-rod to bend,

And it wont start due to being Hydro-locked,

To test for this take out all four spark plugs and wind over for a few seconds

Replace the spark plugs and attempt to start, without topping up the water

It should start albeit with a mis-fire (do-not run for long!!!!)

If I do all the things you have mentioned above and i do get it started (and not run for long) what will i have to get repaired?

Im sorry to hear you've had problems too! Im gutted because I've become instantly hooked on these cars and now it seems I have quite a big problem on my hands. The car seems to be straight as a die apart from obviously the engine packing up lol
Thanks for your help its appreciated :)

If it is that then im gutted!!! Thanks for the link anyway.:)

Full re-build im afraid :cry:


I hope im wrong :thumb:

Please keep us all posted

Thanks for your assistance i'll keep you posted!!

Even if it is a rebuild not the end of the world,ive been there.

Chin up fella :)