Head gasket problem...
Asked by Guru86FCG Jan 08, 2020 at 12:35 AM about the 2002 Subaru Outback Sport
Question type: Maintenance & Repair
Last year, I found out I have a cracked head gasket and that it's going to cost
$1800+ to repair. The car had one previous owner and it has 43,000 mi on it.
How much would it be to replace the whole engine, or is the repair a better
option?
2 Answers
Why replace an engine with only 43,000 miles on it? Make sure the mechanic does the job right. Remove the engine, resurface the heads and use top quality multi layer gaskets.
TheSubaruGuruBoston answered 4 years ago
Yup. To second, it's critical to have the heads pressure tested at the machine shop that's cleaning the heads, and replace the idler and tensioner pulleys with the t-belt. $1.8k should easily cover ALL this, as $1.3-1.8k is the envelope cost. Your 2.5i has a rugged block, so suffers this surgery quite well, and should reach the quarter-million mi mark, although the 18yr body is about to rust apart? Be careful here, as you may want to say goodbye. Note also that most used whole motors available will probably have some HG damage and maybe even active seepage, so should get new HGs anyway. So you ARE better off with the rebuild, but only if the carcass shows little or no corrosion by living out of the salt belt. Almost all 2002-2007 Imps here in the Northeast are is salvage yards awaiting being crushed. The early 2.5i SOHC is also a bit of a fuel hog in the old Imps. Fun to drive, but thirsty. Yet I HATE the new 2.0 with CVT; a rare 2.0 w/ manual trans is actually a frugal, fun to drive iteration after 2012. Weigh your options, and good luck. Ern TSG/B