Head gasket set..

[98bk6]

I was looking into changing my head gaskets and I came across this on ebay http://pages.ebay.com/motors/link/?nav= ... 0830536262 (http://pages.ebay.com/motors/link/?nav=item.view&id=150830536262) I was thinking about getting it I just want to know if it'll be worth it or get something more exspensive? I would want to know the best route to go before I waste money.. Any advise would greatly appreciated..

[MonstarMotorsports]

since its about the single most important part you can buy for your car. and its extremely expensive and pain in the ass mistake to fix... DONT skimp out. go OEM subaru. or you will regret it, 100% garunteed lol.

[decke48]

Dont cheap out it only last like 1000 mile,and the seals are hard as rocks. Go oem or felpro at least

[02_Legacy]

I had good success with the Cometic full engine set, as was stated above, I would not go off brand on such important gaskets.

[Dead91silvia]

Subaru parts:
OEM Subaru Head Gaskets only!
rear oil/air separator plate

Felpro for the rest is just fine. Dont get cheap gaskets. 2.5's need good HG's. Also get the printout from Subaru for the QT spects and sequence on doing the gaskets. They are VARY specific!

Oh, nothing but NGK plugs also. Best if you get them at Subaru, they cost the same where ever you go anyway. And yes, it's worth spending the almost $20 a piece for them. I get them whole sale and it's cheaper for me to get them at the Dealer then the parts store.

Also, get the heads surfaced no matter what. I didnt on the frist set I did and I popped them again within 40K. Just clean up the block and your good to go.

[1996Battlewagon]

I'll say it too: DON'T CHEAP OUT ON THESE THINGS!!!!

I've heard great things about Cometic so at least check them out. Here's another brand to look into that's really high quality:

http://allwheeldriveauto.com/six-star-s ... sket-kits/ (http://allwheeldriveauto.com/six-star-subaru-head-gasket-kits/)

[98bk6]

:smt006 cool awsome guys thanks for the help, how about head bolts would it nessary to change them too? I want to pick up some oem or arp head studs as well. Oh and since I'm going to do all that I was thinking of do the timing belt and water pump as well while I have the engine out. What should I go with an oem or oem STI belt/water pump kit? I've heard the STI has faster and better water flow than the stock n/a 2.5 water pump. She is coming up to 150k (143,xxx as of today) soon so thats why I wanted to give her a special treatment. Yeah any more advise, recommendations and/or tips would help me out alot. Thanks SL-i family.. :wink: :smt006

[98bk6]

I'll say it too: DON'T CHEAP OUT ON THESE THINGS!!!!

I've heard great things about Cometic so at least check them out. Here's another brand to look into that's really high quality:

http://allwheeldriveauto.com/six-star-s ... sket-kits/ (http://allwheeldriveauto.com/six-star-subaru-head-gasket-kits/)


Have you or anybody used these I want to know how there're holding out? :smile:

[98bk6]

Subaru parts:
OEM Subaru Head Gaskets only!
rear oil/air separator plate

Felpro for the rest is just fine. Dont get cheap gaskets. 2.5's need good HG's. Also get the printout from Subaru for the QT spects and sequence on doing the gaskets. They are VARY specific!

Oh, nothing but NGK plugs also. Best if you get them at Subaru, they cost the same where ever you go anyway. And yes, it's worth spending the almost $20 a piece for them. I get them whole sale and it's cheaper for me to get them at the Dealer then the parts store.

Also, get the heads surfaced no matter what. I didnt on the frist set I did and I popped them again within 40K. Just clean up the block and your good to go.

Thanks dead that's good to know. Would it be good to resuface te block too?

[Dead91silvia]

No need to re-surface the block. I have head of people dong but even the machine shop I use says they have never done one and I'm one of 4 of there shop that do work on Subaru's.

Timing belt- Get a Gates Timing belt kit. It will come with all the idler bearings and such and I have never heard of a Gates belt falling and they come with timing lines on them that make alining it super easy. The bearings, if I remember right, are NSK's and are the same that Subaru uses from the factory. so again, good stuff.

As for water pumps, the only thing I will say is make sure to get a NEW one and not a Re-manufactured one. Other then that, You could get a OEM Subaru or even a good aftermarket one would work fine also. I cant even remember the pump I have on my BD. I think it's a Subaru one, but it's been a few years.

[98bk6]

What about seals, o-rings, and gaskets, is the any partoculaur brand I should be getting besides oem?

[kimokalihi]

I also recommend the subaru coolant conditioner. After I decided to rush my replacement block project and not wait until I had money to rebuild the heads and instead just scraped the old crap off and installed them with new gaskets I soon had an external coolant leak on top of the block between the head and the block. I was pretty bummed but before tearing it down I decided to try the subaru coolant conditioner since it's only about $3 at the dealer and is said to fix some head gasket leaks so I dumped a bottle in and within 1 day it was gone and it's been probably 5+ months and it has not leaked a drop since. Amazing. Subaru says to run it in all their engines so it can't hurt.

[Dead91silvia]

Ok, I litaraly just did head gaskets on a customers 98 OB last week and this is what I do...

Subaru:
Head gaskets x2
Oil/air separator plate (at back of motor) w/ fasteners
NGK plugs x4
Half moon seals if needed (for back of heads)
Upper and lower radiator hoses (aftermarket ones dont fit for crap.)
A couple extra Cam cap bolts... It it's EVER been worked on before, it's almost a guaranty someone mucked up the cap bolts... They are a PITA to remove.

Felpro:
Cam seals x4 (come in a pack of 2 most of the time)
Front crank seal
rear crank seal
Valve cover gasket set (should also include grommets) Subaru might be better, but also cost twice as much...

Gates Timing belt kit (with bearings, belt, and if it's the newer 98-99 style, it should also have a tensioner included.)
New water pump
thermostat and seal

Coolant is up to you... Make sure when you add water to your mix, that it's Distilled. If not the minerals in the water will eat up the aluminum in time. Kimokalihi also had a good idea with the conditioner. I never even have heard of it.

If the intake manifold and exhaust gaskets come off in good shape, I re-use them with sealer. I use Toyota FIPG sealer on anything that needs it (friend got bunch of this stuff for me, works AWESOME!). I use copper sealer on the exhaust and it holds up great, but if you want to do everything right, you cane get these new. They arnt that spendy.

I'm sure I'm forgetting something but thats pretty much it... Hope that helps :smile:

[98bk6]

I also recommend the subaru coolant conditioner. After I decided to rush my replacement block project and not wait until I had money to rebuild the heads and instead just scraped the old crap off and installed them with new gaskets I soon had an external coolant leak on top of the block between the head and the block. I was pretty bummed but before tearing it down I decided to try the subaru coolant conditioner since it's only about $3 at the dealer and is said to fix some head gasket leaks so I dumped a bottle in and within 1 day it was gone and it's been probably 5+ months and it has not leaked a drop since. Amazing. Subaru says to run it in all their engines so it can't hurt.

Yea I just did a coolant change and I put a bottle of the conditioner in there also hope it'll last till I do my head gasket..

[98bk6]

Ok, I litaraly just did head gaskets on a customers 98 OB last week and this is what I do...

Subaru:
Head gaskets x2
Oil/air separator plate (at back of motor) w/ fasteners
NGK plugs x4
Half moon seals if needed (for back of heads)
Upper and lower radiator hoses (aftermarket ones dont fit for crap.)
A couple extra Cam cap bolts... It it's EVER been worked on before, it's almost a guaranty someone mucked up the cap bolts... They are a PITA to remove.

Felpro:
Cam seals x4 (come in a pack of 2 most of the time)
Front crank seal
rear crank seal
Valve cover gasket set (should also include grommets) Subaru might be better, but also cost twice as much...

Gates Timing belt kit (with bearings, belt, and if it's the newer 98-99 style, it should also have a tensioner included.)
New water pump
thermostat and seal

Coolant is up to you... Make sure when you add water to your mix, that it's Distilled. If not the minerals in the water will eat up the aluminum in time. Kimokalihi also had a good idea with the conditioner. I never even have heard of it.

If the intake manifold and exhaust gaskets come off in good shape, I re-use them with sealer. I use Toyota FIPG sealer on anything that needs it (friend got bunch of this stuff for me, works AWESOME!). I use copper sealer on the exhaust and it holds up great, but if you want to do everything right, you cane get these new. They arnt that spendy.

I'm sure I'm forgetting something but thats pretty much it... Hope that helps :smile:

Thanks dead, If I do everything by myself it'll under $500. I also want to ask you one more thing how about head studds would I need or want to replace those also?

[Dead91silvia]

I have never had a problem reusing the old bolts, but thats me. I only replace them when they are messed up in one way or another.

I have never used studs... Someone else will need to chime in on that one...

[Thomistopheles]

When you tighten down head bolts, there's both stretching and torsion going on. With studs, you just have the stretching force clamping the head down. Easier on your block threads, more clamping force to keep your heads from lifting. That's my understanding of it.

ARP studs are great, but they'd be overkill if you're not running forced induction or bumping the compression waaaay up. I ran them on all my toyota builds, but that was with engines putting out twice the horsepower they did stock. I don't think you need to worry about your heads lifting on a 165hp NA EJ25D. That money is better spent getting the heads worked over at a good machine shop.

[1996Battlewagon]

Last time I checked, the ARP head stud set for the EJ25D was around $250 from ARP themselves. I agree with Thomistopheles: a bit overkill if its just a standard head gasket job.


Have you or anybody used these I want to know how there're holding out? :smile:

I'm running them right now because a TN Subie shop basically told me to. Installed them on my JDM 2.5 about two years ago and the actual hands-on feel is outstanding. The car has traveled about 30k miles since then, I don't drive it easily and it is still strong as all holy hell.

[98bk6]

Thanks guys, well I am planning on rebuilding the motor next spring so should I just wait till then to put on arp head bolts, im plan on a low compression turbo build, I have a sti crank shaft and rods but I don't know what kind of pistions to get, but that'll be another tread in the near future. But for know would I want to get my heads cleaned and do a valve adjustmemt too?