r1gixer1

hi guys,got some questions for ya.

i`ve got a type uk 2.5 sti hawkeye with blown head gasket/s. i trust the guy who`s working on it,he`s had good reveiws on here. BUT........

1 )has anyone else blown head gaskets.i probably did it at the ring but plenty of you guys have been too.

2)do i have it repaired as cheap as poss to standardish and get rid,as it`ll never be right again, as some of my mates are saying.i think that advice is based on experience with older/other makes of cars.

3)or while engines out and in bits do i have it uprated and keep it.

4)can it be better than it was and be a reliable car to love, cherish and thrash or will it be a troublesome money pit.

5)if i decide to keep/ up rate, what shall i get done [have`nt got £thousands and thousands to spend]

p.s anyone need an accomplice bank robber!!!!!!!!

Phil

Is it not still under Subaru warranty?

r1gixer1

full milltek with decat,walbro pump,k&n,forge hoses/header,340+hos.

i think they`d tell me to f**k off. thats the chance you take i suppose.

cheers.

jaytc2003

iTrader: (1)

1:- Head gaskets go, doesnt matter what the car is but it happens unfortunately from time to time

2:- If the repair is done correctly then there is no reason why it wont be as good as before. Things to check though are the possible causes for it to go in the first place. I know you mentioned the ring, but plenty of others have been without problems. Check the cooling system for instance.

3:- Depends what you want long term. If you only want standardish power then no need to uprate the internals. In fact the standard internals will take a reasonable increase in power without causing relability issues.

4:- See do, if done correctly

5:- see 3 Remember once you start you will be addicted

jaytc2003

iTrader: (1)

did you have a remap with those mods as the power seems high just for those mods

dazzlers82

iTrader: (3)

can you not put to standard then take back to subaru

r1gixer1

yeh,sorry forgot to mension the remap.

i did have overheating probs at the ring,was having to do cooling down runs on the road outside after doing two laps of the circuit.
the radiators been found to have a split in it but do`nt yet know if thats a result or cause effect. the cars still being checked over.

r1gixer1

suppose i could get it all put back together then put back to standard but theres a lot of work and expense just to get to that stage.

T5NYW

iTrader: (4)

If your having Engine out and the Heads off, concider replacing the weak links in the UK 2.5, valves and Pistons, it will be able to handle more torque. IIRC IMHO.

Tony

r1gixer1

whats that gunna add to cost of rebuild,a couple of grand? any reccomendations on type/make.

Phil

LOL Point taken

r1gixer1

appreciate the thought though. cheers

jaytc2003

iTrader: (1)

Im sure with the 2.5 the pistons are quite good but its the rods that let them down (from reading on 22b)

r1gixer1

wots 22b???????

jaytc2003

iTrader: (1)

the engine is going to be out of the car anyway for the heads so if you want to upgrade now would be a good a time as any. Speak with Mark at Lateral he can advise you on parts and he usually has them in stock. The only thing is you may have uprated internals but then you are probably going to need a new turbo to take advantage of the internals (higher boost). Probably around a grand for decent pistons and rods. Then you will probably need to do a bit of work on the block, maybe a slight oversize rebore but again Mark can advise you on that. You can also get uprated gaskets as well, think they are called cometic.

The overheating is probably the cause for the gasket failure dont forget to get heads checked for trueness. A cracked radiator will obviously cause a loss of coolant, the rate depends on the size of the crack and how much presure the engine is under. The cooling system in my opinion will need a good going over just to check that there are no obstructions (failed thermostat etc) If it is at a decent place though they should check this.

jaytc2003

iTrader: (1)

22B Bulletin Board

It has lots of good technical info, not as much rubbish as on here

Jamescsti

When the head gasket went on my classic STi it was due to a blockage in the radiator, mine was running on standard power.
But I would guess the head gasket went because of a radiator fault?

r1gixer1

cheers for all the info. i would love to do all you`ve suggested but obviously finances will come into it.might be able to run to some of it. thats why i started the thread,to find out wot you lot would do.

suspension and brakes would want doing then would`nt they. oh bloody hell!!

just had a look at 22b site. might be worth me asking same questions on there when i`ve got a final report on the damage.

Gear Head

iTrader: (2)

You'll be better off replacing the engine for a good second hand one of the same year.

tiny gsy

I bought mine from a mate because the headgasket had gone. I got the heads reconditioned and then new gaskets fitted when it was all put back together and haven`t had any trouble since. Like has been said, it may be worth investigating into why the head gaskets went. I know on mine they/it had failed due to a burst coolant hose so it may well be related to the crack in the rad. IMO its not worth replacing your engine with one of the same year as I believe that will be more costly and there would be no reason for it to be any less likely to have issues than the current engine you`ve got. After all, the chances are that if you got a replacement engine out of the same year car then its probably been in an accident and so could have had some damage caused to it then.

Hope this helps

merlin24

iTrader: (1)

The 2.5 do seem to have head gasket/liner issues - do a search on SN for the threads.

Mick

jaytc2003

iTrader: (1)

how do you work that out? The original poster has a hawkeye so its not exactly an old engine. If he got a replacement (history unknown) and there was a problem with his cooling system then the same thing will happen, whereas his own engine he knows ho its been treated and as long as the reason for the failure is found and rectified then it can be as good as new

jaytc2003

iTrader: (1)

the liners can be weak if going for silly power outputs, however the newer 2.5ltrs I believe use semi closed deck blocks so dont suffer. I think the weak liner issue was with earlier open deck 2.5ltrs.

Again, same thing with head gaskets

stevebt

iTrader: (8)

I would get it rebuilt to a higher spec and go to Chy at pennine subaru his gurantees are fecking superb

stevebt

iTrader: (8)

mine is a closed deck 2.5ltr and I'm going for 600bhp this year and I have no worries about the liners on my engine

r1gixer1

thanks guys got a lot of ideas there.
once the engine/ car has been fully checked out i`ll see what needs doing then what i can afford to do.
i was sick when i got the news but i can see there is an opportunity to make a few improvments and am fairly happy now that i dont have to get rid of her.
thanks again i`ll let you know how it goes.

Gear Head

iTrader: (2)

There will still be engines available! Especially after nearly 2 years on the road.
An engine that has over-heated is more of a risk. Very difficult to ensure there is no head or block warping. And with the 2.5's having weak blocks anyway, I wouldn't rebuild the original.
By the sounds of it, the owner is on a BUDGET! We don't all have 4K to throw at our engines. £1500 would get him a nice low mileage engine. Spend a few more pennys on the cooling system, job done. So, for half the cost, he is back on the road.

Tracking costs lots of money and I would advise staying away unless you have the odd 5K sitting behind your sofa for the odd piston wanted to jump ship.

jonny_693

iTrader: (5)

Do you still have the oe parts? If you do i would suggest this, even tho it might cost you a few hundred to do! What price could you put on a subaru repair or even a new engine?

r1gixer1

cheers lads

jaytc2003

iTrader: (1)

Its only the earlier blocks that appear to be weak and that was something to do with the liners, the blocks themselves are fine. The fact the engine is only 2 yrs max will mean its a newer type engine (probably semi closed)


the thing is he may be on a budget but think about it. That £1500 may buy an engine where the history is unknown, you then still have the labour costs for putting it in etc so your probably not going to get much change from 2k realistically.
For about a grand, you can get uprated pistons and rods. The labour is the costly part, however remember the engine will be out of the car anyway for the head gaskets, so labour wise its then a matter of splitting the block, checking for bore trueness etc, maybe hone/rebore for the new pistons. So I reckon again probably about 2k albeit with a rebuilt engine that is capable of much more. Obviously the cause of the original fault does need to be rectified though.

A decent garage will check the heads as a matter of course with head gasket failure, and I must admit in this case there probably would be some distortion (tracked hard around the ring!)