Finally Bought A Subaru

"FasTbird232" (fastbird232) 03/10/2014 at 12:56 • Filed to: Subaru

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1998 Subaru Legacy Outback wagon, five-speed, EJ25. Picked it up for under $200, which sounds awesome until you learn it's because the motor is blown. Previous owner brought it in to the shop, they tore it half apart and couldn't figure out what happened, so I bought it before he could scrap it.

My knowledge of Subarus began a week ago when I bought it, but thus far I've determined 1) the 2.5l has worse head gasket issues than a Ford 3.8l, 2) replacement 2.5s are hard to find around here, and 3) the damned thing has 240,000 miles on it already. Therefore, I'm leaning toward swapping in an EJ22 for reliability and availability.

Any advice from the Subaru crowd?

puddler > FasTbird232 03/10/2014 at 12:58

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not subaru crowd, but case your local junkyard. ls1/t56 swap.

FasTbird232 > puddler 03/10/2014 at 13:00

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Well, that's the problem: my local junkyards don't have anything quite as extravagant as an LS1. Hell, they don't even have an EJ22.

ifly737NG > FasTbird232 03/10/2014 at 13:00

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EJ22 swap would be pretty straightforward, only downside with the 2.2 is the 60k timing belt interval but I'd rather have that than the EJ25's headgaskets any day. I just sold my Subie a couple months ago. Miss it dearly. Two years newer and had the SOHC motor, but still had head gasket issues.

Arben72 > FasTbird232 03/10/2014 at 13:08

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Get a ej25 from a forester or a ej20 from a wrx. An Ej25 shouldn't be that hard to find....

FasTbird232 > ifly737NG 03/10/2014 at 13:11

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Yeah, I'd rather do the timing belt, too. Gladly trade the 40 hp for a better engine.

FasTbird232 > Arben72 03/10/2014 at 13:12

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They are around here, for some reason. Still can't find one anywhere nearby.

desertdog5051 > FasTbird232 03/10/2014 at 13:20

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When the motor in my 98 went. I found a place in Denver that rebuilds them for a reasonable price and includes shipping both to you and your core back to them. Can't remember the name but I found them in a search.

Arben72 > FasTbird232 03/10/2014 at 13:23

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Car-parts.com ;)

offroadkarter > FasTbird232 03/10/2014 at 13:25

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they don't have any GM trucks? You can find the 4.8, 5.3 or 6.0 all over

BLZD > ifly737NG 03/10/2014 at 13:33

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Or you could do with an EJ25 and just upgrade the headgaskets to the multi layer steel ones? my 98' 2.5RS never had an issue with the gaskets, and I wasn't even sure if they were done or not lol.

MazdaMonkey > offroadkarter 03/10/2014 at 13:43

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I agree, find an LS1 somewhere! Worth it even if you have to rent a uhaul and drive a couple hundred miles one day to pick it up.

Also, $200 for a subie shell is a KILLER deal. Once you get it running, you will have a good car on your hands! And if you dont, you can part the crap out of that and make your money back.

You can tell a Finn but you can't tell him much > FasTbird232 03/10/2014 at 14:12

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Rumor has it they redid the head gasket designs and the later EJ25's didn't have the problem. Added bonus is that the new head gaskets are interchangeable with the old ones.

NaturallyAspirated > You can tell a Finn but you can't tell him much 03/10/2014 at 14:23

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I can confirm this. The latest HG revision is of a very different construction than they were using in '98.

NaturallyAspirated > puddler 03/10/2014 at 14:26

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How would you fit a V8 in an engine bay designed for a flat 4? There's just no height there.

I think the best you could hope for is a flat 6.

NaturallyAspirated > FasTbird232 03/10/2014 at 14:39

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Nice price!

Mine is red :), and about 20k fewer miles (hit 219,000 on the way to work this morning), but otherwise identical - '98 Legacy Outback 5-speed with EJ25D.

I replaced my headgaskets last year, but other than that, I haven't had any issues with the motor. Were you planning on doing the engine R&R yourself, or having a shop do it?

Make sure you upgrade the oil separator plate while you have access to it. The plate is behind the flywheel, and the OE plate is plastic, which of course cracks and leaks oil all over the steering rack and eventually the ground. Details and parts are in this thread: http://forums.nasioc.com/forums/showthr…

ifly737NG > BLZD 03/10/2014 at 14:46

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I had multiple sets of MLS gaskets in different EJ25 motors... They did last longer, that was for sure. But I really think I just worked the engine too hard too often. Lots of towing, lots of mud... Just too much heatsoak and strain on a gasket with no other support structure. They all failed eventually.

I had thoughs of doing an NA EJ255 build for the better block but it didn't seem practical and I had to sell it anyway due to other circumstances :(.

puddler > NaturallyAspirated 03/10/2014 at 15:02

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i'm not scared to sawzall a hole in a hood.

FasTbird232 > NaturallyAspirated 03/10/2014 at 20:48

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Not sure if it is the head gaskets or not. Haven't yet put it back together enough to fire it up. No oil in the coolant out vice versa. Hell, I've never had a boxer so I'm not even sure what I'm looking for.

NaturallyAspirated > FasTbird232 03/11/2014 at 13:33

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The EJ25D's usual mode of headgasket failure is to leak combustion gasses into the coolant, so it's not unusual for the oil to stay clean, although puking coolant out of the overflow bottle is fairly common.

Here's what one of my gaskets looked like when I took it out: