Day said:
Nice save! You must know a CV axle replacement is cheap and quick, but I respect you for doing the head gasket without pulling the engine. If it’s not a rust bucket, it should last you a long time.
I live in the rust belt, and this car came from a dealer in Fairborn, Ohio. But somehow, it was either garage-kept or well-maintained—only one small rust spot on the rear wheel well, and nothing near the strut tower. The underside is super clean, no stuck CV axles, and every bolt I needed came off without a fight (probably thanks to years of oil leaks from the head gasket lol).
Fern said:
Any advice? My 2007 Outback snapped a timing belt. Thinking of swapping in re-machined heads and hoping it runs again.
You might get lucky, but I’d be surprised if the pistons and cylinder walls aren’t damaged from hitting the valves. Maybe it’s just a ding on the piston tops, maybe it’s worse. If it were me, I’d look for a wrecked Outback in a junkyard and pull the whole engine from one that still runs. Less risky than trying to patch up an unknown amount of internal damage.
Fox said:
How hard is it doing all this with the engine still in the car?
I usually pull the engine, but this time I left it in since I heard it was possible. If you unbolt the three motor mounts, you can lift it enough to get some room. Honestly, I think you could even do it without lifting the engine—the head bolts aren’t too bad. The worst part is cleaning the deck while hunched over the hood… my back is gonna hate me for this one.
@Franklin
I’m probably skinny enough to sit on the frame rail and work from there lol. What all did you have to disconnect to lift the engine? I need to replace my motor mounts on my ‘16 Impreza, and I’d rather not pull the whole engine if I can avoid it.
@Fox
Haven’t worked on anything newer than an ‘05, but here’s how I’d do it. There are three motor mounts—two on the bottom and one on top.
For the bottom ones, look for two nuts underneath (they might be hidden above the steering rack). Then, there’s a top mount near the firewall, close to the throttle body—two bolts hold that one in.
After that, you can either use an engine hoist or a jack under the block (use wood so you don’t crack anything) to lift the engine a couple of inches. You might want to wedge a small block of wood between the subframe and the engine so it doesn’t drop on your hands while swapping the mounts.
Once you replace the lower mounts, just reverse everything to put it back together.