bobert Posted October 28, 2015 Share Posted October 28, 2015 Hi, I recently bought a non-turbo '97 Impreza privately for relatively cheap. Car is in excellent condition, bodywork and paint is immaculate, all electrics work, very little rust and only a small bit of welding. No MOT issues as of September. It is completely stock However a couple days after buying the car I noticed thick white smoke coming from the exhaust once engine was warmed, getting thicker with revs and a sweet burning smell which must be the coolant. After engine is fully warmed up, steam starts coming out of the rad cap -- I assumed the worst straight away, however, the oil is fine - no milky or off-colour substance at all, so no crossover of fluids there Done block test, coolant has no combustion gases in Engine does not overheat after any time, no bubbling at all in expansion tank? There are no external signs of a coolant leak either, no spotting on the ground at all even when engine running. The only symptoms I am getting is this smoke/steam from exhaust and radiator cap, and the coolant smell. Could there be anything else that could be causing this? Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quit Posted October 28, 2015 Share Posted October 28, 2015 mine gets alot of condensation on start up! is it decatted ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobert Posted October 28, 2015 Author Share Posted October 28, 2015 Cheers for the quick reply :D car isn't decatted, and I'm 100% sure it isn't condensation - theres nothing on startup, only when the engine fully warms up and it is really thick, sweet smelling clouds. It doesn't stop either its like a continuous 'feed' of fluid to burn if you get what I mean Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quit Posted October 28, 2015 Share Posted October 28, 2015 turbo on its way out mayb ? Mine goes after a couple minutes from cold but I rarely use it which doesn't help 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quit Posted October 28, 2015 Share Posted October 28, 2015 Checked if thermostat is working ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobert Posted October 28, 2015 Author Share Posted October 28, 2015 Non turbo mate, could thermostat be the problem even if it doesn't overheat? Temp gauge never goes above half way. I could take it out and test it anyway. Might replace rad cap too incase its faulty and causing pressure build up Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quit Posted October 28, 2015 Share Posted October 28, 2015 Could be I don't know much about the na lump turbo header tanks are known for not sealing after a while Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scoobyghost Posted October 28, 2015 Share Posted October 28, 2015 The temperature gauge would read half even if the coolant is empty. I know from experience. Car leaked and had no coolant but temp gauge didn't move. Have you noticed a drop in coolant level? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobert Posted October 28, 2015 Author Share Posted October 28, 2015 I check it regularly - it's actually slightly above the max fill line and it hasn't really gone down at all. I've had the car a month now and regularly take it on 20 minute journeys - the amount of smoke coming out I would imagine I would have noticed a drop in levels by now Checking thermostat tonight, radiator cap is rusty on top but seems like the valves in it open/close as they should Cooling system hasn't been pressure tested yet - is there a chance the head gasket could be blown still? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scoobyghost Posted October 28, 2015 Share Posted October 28, 2015 Do you check the header tank or just the overflow tank? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobert Posted October 29, 2015 Author Share Posted October 29, 2015 Thermostat works, decided to replace the coolant as it looks like a previous owner has used some kind of sealing liquid - little rubbery balls floating around. Rad cap seems ok but might spend a tenner to get a new one anyway - any recommendations? I'll check the header tank once that's all done - am i right in thinking that's the shallow bit on top of the radiator, with the tube that goes into the expansion tank? Sheared a !Removed! bolt when taking the thermostat out that's going to be a pain in the !Removed! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gambit Posted October 29, 2015 Share Posted October 29, 2015 That's the expansion the main tanks the black metal one with metal cap. Might be worth when cold starting the car up with the cap off see if any bubble flood the metal tank. Bit worry they've used a sealant [emoji15] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stants Posted October 29, 2015 Share Posted October 29, 2015 I'd suspect the 'sealant' is 'steel seal' type stuff supposed to 'fix' small cracks in head gaskets, My Bro used it in his punto didn't work taht well he stopped loosing all the water but it put out thick white plumes of exhaust/coolant everywhere he went 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gambit Posted October 29, 2015 Share Posted October 29, 2015 Yeah that's what I think it will be. [emoji17] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tidgy Posted October 29, 2015 Share Posted October 29, 2015 if theres stuff in the coolant sounds like its been on borrowed time with th HG :( 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobert Posted February 24, 2016 Author Share Posted February 24, 2016 Well this will give you guys a laugh. I made this post after I bought the car back in October. Since then a bolt snapped in the water pump whilst removing the thermostat, spent a month trying to extract it and god knows how much on tools, given up, taped the thing back together in December and got it to a garage ****.ing tapwater where a pressure test confirmed head gasket. Decided to go for an engine swap which worked out cheaper than the work involved with a head gasket replacement Bought an engine out of an identical subie which ended up being the wrong engine (ej201) (!!!), got another one coming tomorrow (ej20e) which matches up with the vin plate. What a !Removed! mess, 5 months just to get a car on the road I suppose the upside is I've learned a shitton about cars and especially subaru engines 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aucky Posted February 24, 2016 Share Posted February 24, 2016 @bobert just have to think,it will all have been worth it once it done Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Piggysniffer Posted February 25, 2016 Share Posted February 25, 2016 If I'm not mistaken, all scoobys have to have have "Subaru coolant conditioner" running in the coolant system at all times otherwise you void any head gasket warranty that a car may have on it, basically from my research on the subject it is infact rebranded kseal, apparently is was specific to certain models for a while and then was rolled out across the board, have a Google and see what pops up .....or was it radweld....hmm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jay762 Posted February 25, 2016 Share Posted February 25, 2016 just looked into a coolant flush for mine and it only detailed coolant standards not specific Subaru branded stuff - ended up getting this stuff Fuchs Maintain Fricofin LL Long Life Antifreeze / Coolant http://www.opieoils.co.uk/p-77984-fuchs-maintain-fricofin-ll-long-life-oat-antifreeze-5050-ready-to-use-premix.aspx Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aucky Posted February 25, 2016 Share Posted February 25, 2016 If I'm not mistaken, all scoobys have to have have "Subaru coolant conditioner" running in the coolant system at all times otherwise you void any head gasket warranty that a car may have on it, basically from my research on the subject it is infact rebranded kseal, apparently is was specific to certain models for a while and then was rolled out across the board, have a Google and see what pops up .....or was it radweld....hmm Holts radweld [emoji6] Sent from my LG-D855 using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Piggysniffer Posted February 25, 2016 Share Posted February 25, 2016 Oops, I've got kseal in mine now 😬 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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