The notorious head gasket failure finally occurred. Like the timing belt change I did last year, I didn't take my Forester to the Subaru dealer and hand over $1,600. Instead I again went to the web and my Chilton manual, and dug in.
DIY Difficulty Level: 7/10
This can be done by an experienced home mechanic in a reasonable amount of time. For me, it was a week. And that was only because the heads were at the machine shop for 4 days. If you are able to do your own timing belt change, you already have most of the tools and skill needed to do your own head gaskets.
Required Tools
You will need 3/8" and 1/2" torque wrenches, a twelve point 14mm socket, a torque angle meter, a floor jack, and an assortment of common hand tools. If you have done your own timing belt change before, you have what you need and this isn't a big trick.
References
There is no sense going to go into the whole process myself. There are tons of people who have been kind enough to create in depth videos and tutorials on the process. Here are the best that I have found, but I'm sure a Google search will yield the latest and greatest:
Tips
My biggest tip is to disassemble as little as possible. When removing the intake manifold, do not disconnect everything. The manual suggests that you remove the intake manifold completely. Don't do it. Only remove enough crap to get at the bolts, and nothing more. Pull off the alternator and A/C compressor (without disconnecting the lines) first. You can support the whole assembly on scraps of wood. The manifold just needs to be far enough away from the heads to remove them.
Other Tips
- Soak the exhaust manifold studs with PB Blaster at least 8 hours before trying to remove them. The combination of aluminum head, steal studs, stainless nuts, high heat, and road salt catalyzed by water pretty much welds everything together. Do not skip this tip!
- Use assembly lube on all cam and rocker roller surfaces before re-installing the heads. This is just good practice, and doesn't hurt anything.
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