What problems should i look for in a USED MY99 2.5RS? Its at a used car dealership and want to make sure im not spending money on a lemon. TIA!

head gaskets...are a common problem w/ all the RS's style motors (2.5)

we own 5 2.5 motor cars, all have had needed head gaskets.

its just a matter of when.

-Noah

How much does a head gasket replacement cost? (ballpark figure)

head gaskets...are a common problem w/ all the RS's style motors (2.5)

we own 5 2.5 motor cars, all have had needed head gaskets.

its just a matter of when.

-Noah

Really? Crap - I thought that was just the DOHC cars. On well, just more reason for a swap... :)

Head Gasket jobs vary for DOHC, SOHC, and the 6 cylinder cars but for the most part its roughly $1,600-$2,000+

-Noah

Wow that sucks, Makes me think twice about buying one.

Really? Crap - I thought that was just the DOHC cars. On well, just more reason for a swap... :)

That was the case, but now we are seeing the SOHC do it as well, normally it occurs after 100-125k miles. There's a reason why SOA mandates a coolant conditioner now ;)

-Adam

That was the case, but now we are seeing the SOHC do it as well, normally it occurs after 100-125k miles. There's a reason why SOA mandates a coolant conditioner now ;)

-Adam

Coolant conditioner? Hmm.. Where do you get that - from Suby? I need to do a flush anyway...

Any dealership will have it and we do as well, it's cheap like maybe $2.50 or less.

Any dealership will have it and we do as well, it's cheap like maybe $2.50 or less.

Cool, I will check it out. Thanks for the info!

great.... I have little over 100k now... :( I got the car used and the previous owner didn't know about the coolant conditioner. So that didn't get it in until ~90k or so... :( Hope mine would last a little longer...

That was the case, but now we are seeing the SOHC do it as well, normally it occurs after 100-125k miles. There's a reason why SOA mandates a coolant conditioner now ;)

-Adam

oh yea....check ur axle boots....i just recently discovered that on my car that was up in the air a few days ago that one of mine were pretty much broke and didnt know it since it didnt drive any different....and i had the car for less than a month....ugh i hate suprises.... /me rolls eyes

oh yea....check ur axle boots....i just recently discovered that on my car that was up in the air a few days ago that one of mine were pretty much broke and didnt know it since it didnt drive any different....and i had the car for less than a month....ugh i hate suprises.... /me rolls eyes

You should frequently check these. Think about it, your car is a '98 most likely purchased in '97 so it's nearly 10 years old. These things happen.

oh yea... i just wish i knew about it before i bought the car...but oh well...not much i can do now....

Where did you find your car and how much did you pay? I cant seem to find anything in CALI.

Also im weary of buying a used car from an out of state seller, this would be my first pre-owned car.

Ricky who was/is a customer bought the car from another customer of ours. It's a 98 RS with a WRX conversion that I did a few years ago, I've know the history of it since 20k-some miles.

Just saw a post yesterday that another customer (James) just sold his 98 RS/WRX conversion as well.

There are not as many RS's out there, so they're hard to find and usually will fetch a pretty penny. What are you looking for exactly?

-Adam

Im selling my WRX because my insurance is about to go WAY up. So now im looking into the 1998-2001 RS. Ive found numerous Rs's but im really picky and want a Black one. (I know beggars cant be choosers) but im willing to wait for the right one. Im not looking to mod it heavily im just looking for more of a Daily Driver rather than a project.

Ricky who was/is a customer bought the car from another customer of ours. It's a 98 RS with a WRX conversion that I did a few years ago, I've know the history of it since 20k-some miles.

Just saw a post yesterday that another customer (James) just sold his 98 RS/WRX conversion as well.

There are not as many RS's out there, so they're hard to find and usually will fetch a pretty penny. What are you looking for exactly?

-Adam
oh god no it wasnt easy to find my first RS....took me like 4 months of solid searching to get it...i was just lucky as hell to get a tip from adam about the RS i just bought...and good news its getting fixed soon and not gunna sit in my garage ;)
bad news...ill be stuck with a civic hatch for a little bit...oh well...40mpg...awesome gas mileage FTW!!! :D

Sorry about the noob question, but when a head gasket goes or one of its seals, it leaks a ton of oil right? My subie is leaking a ton of oil. It gets on the stock exhaust headers and burns/smells when I drive for more than an hour.

Sorry about the noob question, but when a head gasket goes or one of its seals, it leaks a ton of oil right? My subie is leaking a ton of oil. It gets on the stock exhaust headers and burns/smells when I drive for more than an hour.

Not a noob question at all, people should never feel bad about asking honest questions the first time....

AFAIK the answer is NO, you would be getting oil in your coolant (foamy ick in your radiator cap) and/or external leaking of coolant from the head to crankcase union on your engine.

What you are experiencing is most likely typical Suby valve cover gasket leakage.

Cool cool. Thanks wombat.

Cool cool. Thanks wombat.

No problem, onion. ;)

Actually when headgaskets leak on a Subaru, it loses it's coolant and then becomes apparent when they overheat. Basically, the cylinder combustion leaks past the head gasket and displaces the coolant into the overflow reservoir. Typically the reservoir will become black from the exhaust and smell like fuel as well. When they're really bad, there will literally be exhaust bubbling in the reservoir, when this is the case, you can barely drive a few miles before they overheat. Hope this tidbit of info helps :)

-Adam

Yeah. All I want is it to stop leaking oil... Hopefully it won't cost me an arm and leg to have fixed.