right after i recently hit the 130k mark on my 98 rs..i noticed white smoke coming from exhaust after being fully warmed. then after pulling over i see coolant in my exhaust.. yep..my headgasket is about to go.

so with all the bs aside, im debating on either pulling the motor and replacing the hg on my pos 98 dohc motor or swapping in a ej20.

and to also note this was my daily, so down time cant be too drastic.

anyone have any suggestions or advice?

 

STI SWAPpP++++++++

 

+1 for engine swap.

I blew the headgasket on my '98 Outback, got it replaced and refinished the heads. 6 months later, it blew again.

 

swap the (future)beast and get it over with

 

wow, if u had the block and head professionally resurfaced..howd it go bad so quickly?

that just make me lean more toward the swap. plus this NA dohc bs is not cutting it.

and also, does anyone know who can modify the engine harness for me. the swap and the accessories is straight forward and would be a problem for me, but i will need to get the whole harness done.

 

Search on rs25, there are several options you'll find on there for people who can merge the harness for you.

If you're sick of your NA motor then I'd vote swap, I got tired of mine and swapped.. best mod so far ftw. Just a basic ej20 engine only swap shouldn't be as expensive as it used to be.

 

We linked it to water pump failure. I was also 18 at the time and drove the **** out of the car. I ended up spinning out into a tree and totaling it a few weeks after the second repair.

 

I would say if u want a sti get a sti not many shops are willing to do the full swap conversion. If it were me I would decide if I could rebuild the block or buy a new one. Seeing as it is a time issue a swap will take some time and cost a lot more than other options.

 

The 98 motor has this issue, it happens much more frequently then the later models.

A motor swap is going to cost A LOT of money and will require a bit of down time so you wont have your car for at least a couple of weeks (if everything goes well and all parts arrive on time), so keep that in mind.

If you're going to do a swap (to a turbo motor) you might as well go the extra mile and upgrade to a newer WRX engine since they will have to rewire the car anyway.


Again, that is all going to be VERY expensive and time intensive, which doesn't sound like what you're after...

Replacing the HG and getting a tune up looks to be like the option in which you're seeking. I know it wont be as exciting as a swapped GC (Swapped RS's are REALLY, REALLY fun and quick due to their weight!) but you'll be saving a lot of money, money that you could be buying a newer used WRX with. Your 98 is def a nice car (I had an RS too) but there are a lot of things that you're going to have to start replacing and it's going to end up costing you a lot just to keep a 12 year old car... Fix the HG, drive it around as your DD, save money, and eventually buy a newer car.

it's what I did and I couldn't be happier with my 07 STi!

 

I can tell you, Swapping it is going to be expensive, especially, since it looks like you want to take it to someone to have it done.

I spent about $3500 on my JDM swap and we did all the work ourselves. If we took it somewhere, it probably would have been closer to $6k. For a street legal USDM swap, its going to be about that.

Cheaper, get the HGs done. I hear the DOHC is a ***** to change them on too.

 

for sure EJ25 swap. This would be so sick if you could throw in an STi tranny too, but that would be quite pricey.

 

Fix the head gasket. Keep your rs as a beater. Get a new STI when you can afford it. It is nice to have a decent beater that you can park any where and not worry about it.

 

yep, i might have to go with the new HG route for now after daily driving a swapped,and dumped to the ground rx7 around. i figured there might be a possibility of swapping the motor at home with limited space, but its the wiring i have no clue about and will need someone to do it.

and lastly, having two cars with custom engine wiring harnesses doesnt sound like a good idea when **** goes down.

 

yeah if you have a shop do the swap your lookiing in the $6K range, if you had that much to spend you might just be better selling your RS too and youd have enough to get into a bugeye.
Just food for thought.

 

Hella crazy what happened to yours and mine also being in the 130k mark on miles. Heads gonna go on yours. Rod bearing on mine is gone. Years apart; and with engine problems, PRICELESS (i guess.) So which route are you taking?