Hi Garry!
So I found a glob of oil in the coolant reservoir. Car has 192,000 miles.
2.5L automatic. Considering my options...
1. Replace the headgaskets and resurface heads. My mechanic suggests this is
10 hr. labor job. Will this be sufficient or should I go through the whole
engine?
At 200K, the engine is probably gonna want a substantial amount of
work to really freshen it up; timing belt, tensioner, water pump, and
seals if nothing else. Don't think I'd stop at head gaskets unless 1)
money was real tight, and 2) I accepted the very real possibility that
additional work would be required, either immediately, or shortly
thereafter. Really would only make sense if you are doing the work
yourself IMO.
2. Buy a reman engine. Anyone done this and can recommend a source?
Colorado Component Rebuilders has earned a good reputation.
<
http://www.ccrengines.com/>
As you appear to be employing a mechanic, this is probably your best
option in the long run. Be darn sure that the AT, (and the rest of the
drive train/suspension for that matter) is tip-top before putting $2K+
into a $4K car . . .
3. Buy a junk engine, can an engine from a latter year model Outback go in
here? I would also consider a smaller engine, I think made a 2.1 02 2.2 that
came with a manual trans.
I'm sure you could retrofit a 2.2L, but you probably won't want to pay
someone to sort out all of the little details. Again, only realistic
as a DIY project, and only then if you can live w/o the car for
whatever time it takes to make it happen. A salvage 2.5L would vastly
simplify the project, but salvage yards vary in the amount of effort
they put into insuring that the engines they sell are serviceable.
Usually they will offer at least some sort of warranty, but you will
still have to pay for the swap (again) if you get a bad one.
(BTW, the 2.5 DOHC engines are fragile, and often suffer cam
bearing/carrier damage as a result of even minor frontal impacts . . .
This sometimes isn't evident right off, either, so be warned.)
4. Sell it on EBay (Make me an offer!)
The body of the car is in pretty good condition, though has some deep
scratches from close encounter with tornado debris.
'96 OB with 200K, a bad engine, straight body, and clean interior is
probably worth $1000 tops. Probably have a hard time getting that on
ebay, but you might call any local yards that handle Subarus to see if
they're interested. I buy fixers myself from time to time; contact me
if you're anywhere nearby (Colorado front range), and we'll talk.
Any thoughts appreciated.
I'd be real tempted to keep driving it until it totally gave up the
ghost, (Maybe try some of the "magic" sealants available at the auto
parts store? Couldn't hurt.) and then look at option 4 pretty hard
before committing to option 2; this again assuming you are paying
someone to do the work as opposed to DIY.
If it were mine, I'd start looking for a lo-miles replacement engine,
(or a crunched 2.2 Legacy; I like the 2.2L motor better, myself, and I
have a feeling that the 2.5-2.2 swap will probably require a "donor"
car) and swap 'em myself.
Yr most welcome. Hope this helps a bit.
ByeBye! S.
Steve Jernigan KG0MB
Laboratory Manager
Microelectronics Research
University of Colorado
(719) 262-3101