Mr B

Any chance in any paperwork you got with car you know what garage done work for him, a clever call may lead to fact they already know about car as tested for the seller & then you have some hard proof he new about issue prior to sale.

A lot of the problems can be caused from debris entering oilways during rebuild & also lack of good oil flushing cycle after rebuilt. If engine is evaluated well prior to work commencing & work done to a high standard then it not a problem, you always going get an odd job go bad but making a mountain out of a molehill just to cover your a55 on every job at expense of the customer is not professional service or good mechanical engineering.

^ It not luck

Absolute rubbish, I have done a fair few 2.5 heads gaskets only & had no come backs & have 2 which regular for servicing & mot & one of those done almost 60k with no issues. HG issue is breakdown of coating & normally it leaks external & any water ingress is minimal, obviously you gauge engine condition prior to planning route of repair but a lot of these leaks are so small they hard to diagnose let alone bad enough to do any major damage. Bottom bearings are engineered for greatest stress & that is not from compression or ignition but from inertia of sudden change of direction at bottom & top of stroke, that load can be around 10x that of combustion.

75w90 gl4/gl5, need 4l really if wanted drain & refill, most motor factors have half decent 75w90 in 5l at sensible price

^ you need quality head gaskets such as cosworth, rocker seals, inlet/exhaust gaskets, oil & filters, coolant, head inspection & surfacing, timing belt. £500+ in quality parts/machine-shop for decent effort .

comp ratio can be reset by using thicker head gasket or machining head chamber to set volume correct. amount skim off heads is absolute minimal as it just about refacing/cleaning super smooth and not about correcting warping or pitting issues as HG issue on these is down to HG break down ... I've done a few 2.5 turbos over the years & never done or had bottom end issues from them .

Gerlach germany do alu-steel cat back system for 2.5 & 3.0 outback/legacy for about £120 for the parts (includes gaskets etc). Not bad quality for money as have used them myself (3yr warranty I think). Just buy system yourself & check/measure it looks right & matches what ordered then pop into a decent local independent garage, should be fitted well in under 2hrs .

I have done a fair few 2.5 HG & if it not been used much or leakage minimal then you will be ok just doing the heads, I done a few that way & know they been good as still service & mot them. no idea on state of your lump though as need see & here it to make those decisions ...

i buy all my cars private if possible, normally were best cars are found if you know the basics to avoid major issues. I expect seller did know but chances of proving this in court will be next to zero, seller will state he not knowledgeable & will also push point vehicle was open to any inspection so then it your fault for not inspecting properly. 2.5 lumps a notorious for HG issues . The law is an a55 & I feel your pain, don't go trusting dealers too much as they experts at peddling turds & can play the law as well clued up on it. Main trick when buying a car is test & look at everything, take no notice of sellers/owners & don't rush into things.

You could try the 2008 model online manual: http://jdmfsm.info/Auto/Japan/Subaru/Forester/2008/Forester%202008/index.html As for alarm that does come with its own booklet. Sigma M30 doc link below which has good info inc how reset 4 digit code with just a working remote. https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B7Ub2apq5-pfcjJhSm5XUHNyUzQ/view?usp=sharing

I still have 2 hp dv2500 14" notebooks (over 8 years old) we use with diagnostic software, they run windows 7 32bit with 4gb ram (use 3.5gb), have been fitted with 2.4ghz duo core processors (£20 ebay), improved heat clamping on cpu & gpu & increased fan intake & case venting, fitted decent 128gb ssd drive & rom drive dumped for platter hdd & they boot in under 40 seconds (that to usable desktop inc antivirus-avast running & password) & run way way better than most new laptops plus dirt cheap to fix if parts pop. Most new stuff is junk with nothing but big technical numbers that mean f00k all really. Windows 7 was & still is f00king brilliant, why people want go to 8 or 10 without good reason is beyond me ...

genuine new gaskets won't leak if fitted right & nothing damaged or over tightened . Ideally you want complete cover gasket set, old gaskets can be used with bit of sealer instead of new when supply/time or money an issue . oem gaskets to pattern part gaskets are night & day in quality & fit difference. I only use oem as almost 100% eliminates issues so job jobbed first time & for a long time.

If using new oem gaskets then right sealant is none, just lightly rub them through fingertips with smidge of grease as helps hold in place & bed down to seal. If using old ones or buy cheap tat gasket off ebay then the 5699 would be ok to keep um from weeping ....

Seems you have an android phone you probably best trying a bluetooth obd dongle & torque app as first step as they cheap. A good old cable & notebook with some software is good too. Some links at bottom of linked post may be helpful (torque app, pc software, eBay link). http://uk.subaruownersclub.com/forums/topic/10869-help-forester-diagnostics/#entry63645 other option is a cheapish handheld, they tend have less connection issues to ecu over the china elm327 bt dongle scanners, quality of the china elm327 stuff is bit iffy as newer ones are all about even cheaper manufacture so they have more compatibility problems . http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Autel-Autolink-AL319-OBD-II-EOBD-Code-Reader-/111745966028?hash=item1a04941fcc

http://jdmfsm.info/Auto/Japan/Subaru/Forester/2005/

£45 to push one button (F11) i'm in the wrong trade :-(

^ as above really... ideally want remove lower cover & revisit it as certainly don't look like a decent job .

I think 10 could be a good one but I'll let it sort itself out first & get bugs, more drivers & tweaks developed before I test it.

I use couple of lenovo's, f11 at boot should be one for factory recovery if you have a working recovery partition on the hdd. What I would do is use an iso of windows 7 ultimate & then use windowsloader-v2.2.2 to activate it, as you had valid oem windows 7 on it you will have right bios SLIC & all windowsloader will do is add the cert & key to make it oem activated same as was originally. I'm sticking with current 7 for quite some time as everything running perfect & don't want hassles with workshop computers when running A1 smooth & fast on unbloated 7 from SSD drives .. old is sometimes gold. chasing new os updates is not always best ...

good jap bearings are 30 to 40 £ each set, hub bearing puller tool can be had for snip under £44 & good enough for diy enthusiasm & light trade use. these kits make it real easy & less chance of damaging a bearing during fitting. Hubs & spindle normally ok unless bearing got silly hot or seized & spun. main trick is don't use cheap or non jap bearings & get it fitted by someone who knows what they doing or wheel bearing failure start becoming a monthly problem ...

Good luck Phil ...

yep sigma, you could get the wiring diagram for that & temory cut the feed to indicators which would prove area of fault or eliminate the alarm perhaps. Quite sure I come across similar issue of indicators stuck on & it was sigma module with bad relay for the indicator control, relay was soldered in the module too :-/ Jumping the gun a bit as need some more clues first ...

What alarm is it ? Could be main indicator relay but I would be more inclined think linked to alarm relay for flashers. Try arming disarming alarm & see if sometimes or a t least once they don't stay on .

Possibly ballast or bad wiring. Best bet is a used tested ballast if you find ballast is the fault. they are a pain to get to as you already suggest. As for indicator issue I would think it likely relay in alarm module for indicators I assume if put fuse in with car running indicators will work fine but when arm/disarm alarm you get the issue !? If is alarm a quick fix could be going into alarm setting via keypad (assume you got sigma) and turn off setting for indicator flash & then test. sigma manual below if applicable to you ... https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B7Ub2apq5-pfcjJhSm5XUHNyUzQ/view?usp=sharing EDIT: looks like bleeps is only one selectable in settings & not indicators :-/