1998 Forester Overheating

[jhay77]

I just bought a 1998 Forester with around 149k. I got a steal on the
car ($1k) as it had a known overheating problem. Just curious if
anyone has had a similar issue to this..... It will run at normal
(midway temp) all day long if moving down the road, but as soon as you
come to a traffic light or let it idle, it will overheat within a
couple of minutes and sometimes quicker. The cooling fans are
functioning and supposedly the t-stat and water pump have been
replaced. The kid I bought it from's mechanic suggested to me that he
thought it needed head gaskets at least, and probably heads. I still
have doubts about this, and am thinking about changing the t-stat and
flushing the cooling system first. Anyone have any ideas? Oh by the
way, I already purchased a set of heads, just in case...... I couldn't
pass up the deal at $150.

 

[Carl 1 Lucky Texan]

I just bought a 1998 Forester with around 149k. I got a steal on the
car ($1k) as it had a known overheating problem. Just curious if
anyone has had a similar issue to this..... It will run at normal
(midway temp) all day long if moving down the road, but as soon as you
come to a traffic light or let it idle, it will overheat within a
couple of minutes and sometimes quicker. The cooling fans are
functioning and supposedly the t-stat and water pump have been
replaced. The kid I bought it from's mechanic suggested to me that he
thought it needed head gaskets at least, and probably heads. I still
have doubts about this, and am thinking about changing the t-stat and
flushing the cooling system first. Anyone have any ideas? Oh by the
way, I already purchased a set of heads, just in case...... I couldn't
pass up the deal at $150.

Definrtly try to see if there is a 'bubble' of air in the cooling
system. There are 2-3 approaches, but, park on an incline or ramp with
the nose up. Confimr that the climate system is set on max heat, you
have a good rad cap and T-stat, good hose to the o'flow bottle and open
the radiator and top up with coolant - be prepared to wipe up any
spilled coolant as it is quite toxic to mammals (dogs,cat,kids -
seriously, a dog or cat can die from licking up just a little) and start
the car. make sure it runs until the fans come on and 'normal' temp is
reached, maybe 'rev' it slightly a coupla times, top up radiator if
necessary, top up o'folw bottle to max level, replace rad cap and let
sit till it cools (overnight works). Double check before starting that
the level in the radiator and o'flow are OK. Drive and monitor temp
gauge and o'flow bottle. If at anytime you see bubbles coming outta the
raditor, could be exhaust gasses from a blown gasket. There is extensive
discussion of this issue, try searching this group, and over at
www.ultimatesubaru.com .

Carl

 

[othelloperrello]

You SURE the fan (and its associated relay switch) are functioning
properly? I had the same problem and simply twisted the fan to run all
the time, and it alleviated the problem.
Just a thought.
othello

 

[jhay77]

You SURE the fan (and its associated relay switch) are functioning
properly? I had the same problem and simply twisted the fan to run all
the time, and it alleviated the problem.
Just a thought.
othello

I'm pretty sure the fans are functioning correctly, unless there is a 2
speed switch/relay and the fans are never making it to high speed. I
am a former saab technician, and we had a lot of problems with variable
speed fans on 9000's. Maybe this is a similar issue? Either way,
thanks for the help.