[Ravan]

So,
Any how I live in Nevada, and well the slot machine gods have blessed me.

I'm in an 01 Forester pure stock, forester L. Got it 3 weeks ago. it comes with and auto tranny with a filter on it that is still in Japanese."shudders"

I'm leaning toward king springs and the strut blocks from Subtle.
Because of the back country roads that are here, and I'm teaching my son
the art of Coyote hunting.

but the issue is....

I thought this might have the HG leak. It does not, It does have 167 thousand miles on it tho.

An oil leak on driver side, near steering column linkage.
I just can not pin point the leak, CV boot is shot on axel on that side also.

I guess my question is this, "Spend the cash on springs and blocks or, chase down the leak with a mechanic."

or really! would you do with $700 bucks. and wanting to make a better off road forester thats stock?

as for skid plate, and rear axel guard, plenty of street signs for that.


thanks,

John

ps, my first Subaru was a 86 Brat, that I beat the hell out of in 1 year back when I was a kid. I've grown up a little. Just a little....god I hope in 22 years
I've grown up, some.

 

[Blue Fox]

Chase down the leak first, a lift and better springs won't help you when you're on the side of the road broken down.

But chasing down a leak isn't hard, ask a local trusted shop to spend 30 minutes or so on a lift trying to track down the leak. What I'd do before you take it to the shop is to get a big container of concentrated Simple Green, a lot of rags, and put the car up on jack stands and start cleaning the hell out of the engine where you suspect the leak. Just cover everything with Simple Green, blast it with a hose, and repeat. Use rags to get off the difficult stuff.

It'll be meticulous, and tedious at times, but get the whole engine/underside of the engine clean. Odds are, you'll find the source of the leak yourself. If not, that'll give the shop the ability to look for it and spot it faster. You can't pin-point and oil leak when there's oil all over the bottom of the car.

There's that, or you can either pay someone to steam clean your engine bay/underside of the engine. I'm not sure how much that runs, but that'll work too.

Once you get the leaks sorted, tune it up a bit. Spark plugs, wires, air filter, transmission fluid change, diff oil change, pretty much take care of all the mechanical stuff first.

THEN if you have money left, go after the lift blocks. Like I said before, without a working car, the lift and suspension bits don't help you one bit.

That's my two cents on the matter, good luck!

 

[good dog]

+1 on Blue Fox's comments. You might have some money left over to start on the other things.

 

[frogstar7055]

Agreed,must be mechanically sound before you worry about modding for off road.

 

[adc]

I assume the timing belt has been replaced? How did you rule out a HG leak. Its probably 100% that an engine will have a HG leak before 200K....Count on it and save for it.

 

[SubaCool]

I've got an idea! Send ME the $700 and you'll get a good feeling from doing a good deed :biggrin: But if you don't think that's a good idea, then fine :icon_rolleyes: Go with what BlueFox said

 

[Ravan]

Thanks for the input guys,
I've pressure washed the engine, top and bottom, over the weekend.
Found out do not leave key's in car while pressure washing, or the nifty auto lock short
takes effect. Can smell oil hitting headers not sure tho if its the build up crap falling off that
I did not get. but when the wife gets home from work its going back up on the ramps for another look thru.


thanks again

John

 

[craigbhp]

The head gasket on the drivers side will drip oil right on top of the steering rack boot. If you do not see coolant leaking out it is not a big deal. I have seen slight oil leaks from head gaskets go for years on the ej25. When the coolant starts leaking that is when you want to change the gasket right away.

Craig

 

[Ravan]

I've marked the level on the coolent tank. There has not been a drop in the level after 4 weeks of daily driving by my wife to and from work, and with me taking it out on the back trails around Carson City.

 

[Hondaslayer]

Take care of the leaks first, chances are an oil leak on the left side near the steering column is either valve cover or headgasket (left side is notorious for oil leaks).

Get the leaks straightened out as well as any maintenance (tune ups, flush all fluids etc..)

Next step I would suggest is good tires followed by under body protection.