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Old 09-17-2020, 04:48 PM   #1
bluevelvet77
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Join Date: Sep 2020
Default 09 Impreza - conflicting coolant leak advice

Hey everybody! Thought I'd come to people of experience on this. It's not so much mechanical as it is advice on how to deal with used car dealers/mechanics.

I bought a 2009 Impreza and I've been loving it. However, I decided (after 2 weeks) to check on the fluid levels. The coolant was low in the res and after much research and debate, I decided to fill it with green (not blue) because that's what it had in it already. The color thing really bothered me but that's not the issue.

My local Subaru dealership forwarded me to their Chevy branch. Those guys told me a coolant flush wasn't in order, but the head gasket was leaking. I called the dealer I bought it from, and he urged me to bring it in right away so his mechanic could look at it.

That mechanic looked at it (after the leak was wiped away) and guessed it was most likely the water pump. Well I set out cardboard and in the morning it looked like the leak was to the back right, not the front.

I sent the pictures to the dealer's mechanic and no word yet. But it sounds like they will have to do the head gaskets after all. Should I bother with a third opinion? Or give them a little more time and more or less demand it be fixed or I return it?




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Old 09-18-2020, 07:33 AM   #2
Cujo31
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Join Date: Jun 2002
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Location: St. Louis
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2000 2.5 RS Sedan
2016 Base 5MT VRP

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It's the head gasket leaking. If this subaru dealership is where you bought the car from, they should fix it for free, or you could invoke a 90-day return policy or some such thing...

Lesson learned: When buying a used impreza, always inquire as to whether the head gaskets, timing belt & waterpump have been replaced, etc.. if they don't have records about what engine work has been done, either don't buy it or assume you're going to be replacing head gaskets if you do.
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Old 09-27-2020, 11:30 AM   #3
bluevelvet77
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Just a quick update for anyone who comes across this thread..

It was the head gasket (thanks Cujo). They replaced that and I had them do the water pump/timing belt because why not.

Now there is a "clanking" sound on startup, near the dash, that quickly goes away.
Possible loss of performance.. but I don't know if that's in my head or not. Seems to lose power here and there, maybe a slight delay in acceleration.

Not sure if I should try the same garage, request the dealer pay for a specialist or return it. Pretty bummed.
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Old 11-09-2020, 02:39 AM   #4
GenericNameHere
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Did you figure out what the clanking is? Same problem after hg replacement on gfs car
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Old 11-17-2020, 10:09 AM   #5
Khill4288
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I am stumped as to what is actually wrong with my 2007 Subaru Impreza 2.5i. It has 130,000 miles on it and I don’t know when the head gasket was replaced last. About a month ago I was driving when suddenly the check engine light came on, the Cruise light started blinking, and the temperature gauge dropped down to C. I could’ve sworn I heard the sound of something small and metal getting knocked loose just before this happened. I take it to my mechanic and his diagnostic machine says it’s a faulty thermostat. I take it a week later to get the thermostat replaced, and my mechanic says it wasn’t a faulty thermostat- there was no thermostat on it at all. The gasket around the thermostat had also been siliconed to the engine. He installs a new thermostat and seal, all is well. He takes it for a test drive and comes back with it smoking- it overheated after about two blocks. It was hissing and smoke pouring everywhere. He said the previous owner must’ve purposely removed the thermostat because of this, possibly to hide a head gasket problem. He removed the thermostat, reinstalled the new seal around the gasket, and tried to do a better job sealing it to the engine. As long as there’s no thermostat, I have no issues with overheating. Sometimes the engine temperature drops if I’m coasting downhill, but even then the heater still works. It’s a little sluggish when I step on the gas to pull out on a hill, but drives just fine in any other situation. There’s no white smoke, no fluid leaks anywhere, and my coolant is the right color and the level doesn’t go down. There’s no noticeable change in my gas mileage either. The previous owner mentioned an issue with the water pump, but said it was fixed. The timing belt is a little noisy, and the radiator cap might have a small area of dry rot.

What is really wrong with my car?
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Old 12-19-2020, 07:25 PM   #6
09erImprezer
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For future reference, the arrow points to the LEFT side. Direction is always defined from the driver's seat
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Old 12-22-2020, 10:54 AM   #7
Cujo31
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2000 2.5 RS Sedan
2016 Base 5MT VRP

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Quote:
Originally Posted by Khill4288 View Post
I am stumped as to what is actually wrong with my 2007 Subaru Impreza 2.5i. It has 130,000 miles on it and I don’t know when the head gasket was replaced last. About a month ago I was driving when suddenly the check engine light came on, the Cruise light started blinking, and the temperature gauge dropped down to C. I could’ve sworn I heard the sound of something small and metal getting knocked loose just before this happened. I take it to my mechanic and his diagnostic machine says it’s a faulty thermostat. I take it a week later to get the thermostat replaced, and my mechanic says it wasn’t a faulty thermostat- there was no thermostat on it at all. The gasket around the thermostat had also been siliconed to the engine. He installs a new thermostat and seal, all is well. He takes it for a test drive and comes back with it smoking- it overheated after about two blocks. It was hissing and smoke pouring everywhere. He said the previous owner must’ve purposely removed the thermostat because of this, possibly to hide a head gasket problem. He removed the thermostat, reinstalled the new seal around the gasket, and tried to do a better job sealing it to the engine. As long as there’s no thermostat, I have no issues with overheating. Sometimes the engine temperature drops if I’m coasting downhill, but even then the heater still works. It’s a little sluggish when I step on the gas to pull out on a hill, but drives just fine in any other situation. There’s no white smoke, no fluid leaks anywhere, and my coolant is the right color and the level doesn’t go down. There’s no noticeable change in my gas mileage either. The previous owner mentioned an issue with the water pump, but said it was fixed. The timing belt is a little noisy, and the radiator cap might have a small area of dry rot.

What is really wrong with my car?

snap guess I'd say needs a new water pump & probably just do the whole timing belt package deal while you're in there, esp if you don't know if it's ever been replaced...; maybe it's pulley is slipping on the timing belt?
The "said it was fixed" sounds pretty sketchy, given that the whole thermostat "fix" situation.
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Old 01-08-2021, 02:39 AM   #8
wildcat077
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Bluevelvet, count your blessings that the dealer replaced the head gaskets for you !
I just did the head gaskets, cam seals and timing belt kit on my 09 Impreza and it was the job from hell.Had to cut out the valve covers due to all the shouldered bolts being seized or snapping off.
As for your loss of power , your timing belt might be off a tooth or so,it's pretty easy to mess up if you're not careful when installing it !
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