Blown head gasket?

[Shaggy]

So i need to get a car for my wife to drive to work and i was looking at a 97 legacy L 2.5 wagon with 200k miles for $1500. It had got in a little fender bender but the only things that were damaged were the hood grill and the drivers side blinker and headligh, the bumber was untouched and it didnt bend anything but the hood. Everything checked out fine but when i looked in the radiator i couldnt see any fluaid at all. I checked the overflow while the car was running and there were little bubbles popping up in it verry slowly. I know this is a sign of a blown head gasket but if the tank is low on fluid will it also cause this. I ran the car for 20 minutes and held the throttle at 3 grand for a while and it never overheated. If it has a blown headgasket im just gonna stay away from this one. Any input would be great. Oh ya, i didnt smell any exaust from the overflow either.

[ericem]

It is very common for those 2.5's to have a blown headgasket so it does not surprise me. If you are scared of replacing the headgasket you will definitely not want to have anything to do with this one.

[Shaggy]

Its not that im scared to do it its just that i dont want to deal with that right now cause im realy busy and she needs a car asap. But for the price its a steal if it doesnt have a blown headgasket.

[wtdash]

Edit: The 2.5 was in the LSi/Outback/GT - not in the L trim you listed.

If the rest of the car is in 'Good' condition, that is a good price, even if the HG is toast, which I bet it is. The 2.5 HG is a 'maintenance' item, like the brakes. IMHO the original HG's on 2.5's should just be expected to need replacing. Once done w/the new version it's good to go IF IT WASN"T REPEATEDLY Overheated! If it was, the lower-end/bearings will likely die shortly after fixing the HG.

If you don't have time to deal w/it, they generally won't strand you. And they are finicky...act up one day but fine the next. So you can drive it, just don't take long trips or let it overheat before you replace the HG.

TD

[Shaggy]

They told me it was a 2.5 and i read under the hood that it was a 2.5, there is a chance that i could be mistaken, but i am almost positive. But thats besides the fact, will the fact that the coolant is low cause bubbles in the overflow or is that only caused by a blown headgasket? I couldnt get the car to over heat and i had it running for over 20 minutes and i held the throttle at 3 grand for a good amount of time. The guy thats selling it said that it was his friends baby and i can tell that it was cuz the car is in great condition besides the fact that it has a little front end damage.

My wife has to drive it 30 miles to her job so do u think that it would do a 60 mile round trip if the headgasket was blown until i could fix it? I would tell her to check the water before and after she drives it and make sure she doesnt overheat it.

[asotwavb]

Move on. Sounds like a blown head gasket to me.

You can find a much better subaru, in good running condition, without body damage, with less than 200K for your price range.

[wtdash]

^ This is prime Subaru land around here - Pacific NW - and Subies aren't cheap...even the old ones. The only $1500 Subarus have even higher miles, are older 1st Gen Legacys or Imprezas....or need work.

I've personally bought 3 Outbacks w/bad HG's '('97-'99). I paid more than $1500 for all of them; and sold them for ~ $4K after fixing or swapping in the EJ22.

I would agree to 'Move On' if you have that far to drive-I wouldn't trust it. Also, that car only gets ~27 on the highway. W/gas $ headed up, you'll want more than that. You might get 30 w/an Impreza w/the 2.2.

Edit: If the seller will allow it, call around locally for a mech that can test for HG failure....I'm not sure if they are 100% accurate, but that should help diagnose it.
GL,
TD

[93forestpearl]

Umm, did you have the coolant checked for hydrocarbons?

[Shaggy]

No i didnt have the coolant checked, i dont even know where to take the coolant to get it tested.

I dont think the guy will let me take it to a mechanic cuz it doesnt have good tags on it.

I did want to fix it up and have her drive it and then turn around and sell it for some profit , i figured id get more than i paid for it, but i think that im gonna play it safe on this one tho because my wife is going to be driving it and i dont want her stranded. It sounds to me like it has a blown headgasket so i think ill keep shopping. It was just a realy good deal.

My question still hasnt been answered tho. Will the coolant being low cause the bubbles in the overflow?

Thanks for the input everyone i appreciate it.

[wtdash]

My question still hasnt been answered tho. Will the coolant being low cause the bubbles in the overflow?

Thanks for the input everyone i appreciate it.

I think it was answered, but not directly.....that's a sign of bad HG. Esp. if there's oily residue in there.
Td