Pinchcliff

Sorted now thanks.

UPDATE: well never buy did buy another engine, PXed the car against another outback, a 2.5 and a few years newer, lost a fair few quid but got a decent deal on the 2.5 Outback, drove it home, over 220 miles, runs like a dream, guess I'll just put the H6 down to experience, the dealer wasn't bothered about the noise, I'm guessing he made his money when he took the car in, he says he'll just punt the H6 through the auction, I got £450 for it against the new car (well a 2004 model), all in all I'm pleased with the way things have worked out even if I have lost a few quid.

I have the engine type number and I've checked with the local main dealer, it will fit however to update, the person from the scrapyard hasn't turned in to work today??? so nobody else seems to know anything about, very annoying!

Had the car in the garage and he disconnected the plugs on each cylinder to establish top or bottom end, definitely a top end problem, he thinks it may be something "sticking" but he couldn't commit without removing the engine, I've bought a complete engine so doing a swap over.

I'm removing my 3.0 H6 engine in a week or so due to a noisy top end, the car has covered around 150K miles and apart from the noise it runs well and pulls like a train. the car is a 2002 outback and it has a complete service history so the engine should be repairable by someone handy (not me I'm afraid). I would welcome any potential buyer to come and listen to the engine and you're welcome to drive the car. In terms of price I was hoping for around £150, let me know if I'm being ambitious with this. The engine will be removed on 15th June by my local garage (Newcastle). Jeff. 07745383362

Heading up to Glasgow tomorrow to listen to the H6 engine Mart found on Ebay, if all's well it should be fitted by the end of next week. I'll report back then. Jeff.

Mart, being giving some thought to your views, approached my local garage but still waiting for a price for an engine swap. this may yet be a good option, thanks again.

Hi Mart, thanks for your reply and thanks for the hyperlink to ebay, in terms of taking the head covers off I was advised that they could do this but anything other than re-shimming would require engine removal, the noise is far to much to be a valve clearance out of tolerance so his advice (unless I wanted to spend a fortune) was to just run it. Whilst a replacement engine would be an option (and I do appreciate the thought) I've kind of decided to run it until I can find a better car then just sell as is, I realise this may not be the most cost effective solution but £350 on an engine plus another few hundred for fitting just doesn't seem worth it to me. Maybe the new owner (if I can find one) may want to go down that route. Jeff.

Thanks.

Hi, I'm looking for a good Outback H6, preferably a 1 owner car with a good history, it must be very presentable (at least) not LPG, ideally green over silver (although this is less important than overall condition). My maximum budget is £1500 which I understand is only going to buy an older car but history and condition are the main things, don't mind travelling. feel free to give me a call if you have anything that might suit. Jeff. 07745383362 P.S. If it has a tow bar even better.

The garage diagnosis was inconclusive, he's established it's definitely top end but without further invasive (engine removal) work it's impossible to say with any accuracy. He did speculate the car would most probably run on and on with the noise without too much of a problem, so my decision is to start looking for another and just run this as is for now, I did get him to change the oil and filter so basically all's well for now. I'm now looking for that most elusive of things, a 1 owner, full history, H6 Outback, my max budget is £1500 which I realise is probably only going to buy an older car but I don't mind that as long as it's a good one. Anyone know of one?? Jeff.

again thanks for the input, to be honest Sheffield is around 2.3 hrs from me so a bit of a drive, as has been suggested I'm going to wait for the diagnosis from Autolink and make a decision then. My honest thoughts are that I'll sell this one and buy another, it's all about how much of a loss I'll make, hasn't put me of though, definitely going to buy another 3.0 H6 Outback.

In the style of a pessimist I expect the garage to suggest further investigative work, I would not expect anything less as I don't think it's possible to accurately diagnose the problem from listening (happy to be proved wrong). I paid £800 for the car, which I realise is cheap for an 02' Outback..

Not wishing to pre-empt the outcome of the inspection on Monday does anyone have a view on how much an Outback would be worth with a top end noise, the car is in good nick, has 12 months mot and all the toys work, I would want to sell being up front and honest about the problem, does the car have any value at all? I realise it's a difficult question to answer but once again thought and opinions would be gratefully received. Jeff. P.S. I'm an eternal pessimist so I assume the worst and hope for the best.

Thanks Mart, fully agree, which is why I assume the garage will take the head covers off and check the clearances, having said that, smallest to largest gives a difference of .87mm, which I don't think would cause the noise I hear. I guess I'm an eternal pessimist but my expectations aren't high.

Going Autolink in Sandyford (Newcastle), they seem to know their stuff so fingers crossed. I've found an article online which seems to replicate my problem, the outcome of it was a complete strip down which concluded nothing was wrong with the engine and the original noise was put down to some kind of blockage. Not very conclusive. Equally I've discovered the engine does not have to be removed to check the valve gear so I assume the garage will suggest an exploratory peek under the head cover.

Once again thanks for the thoughts and opinion, my view is it's more than a slightly oversize valve clearance, generally speaking valve clearances wear tight (my experience is with motorbike engines so I may be wrong), the noise suggests a very wide clearance so either the valve isn't returning properly, the shim has somehow become displaced (had this once on a bike engine) or the camshaft lobes or cap bearing. are worn, I can't really think of an alternative. I've found a garage in Newcastle that's meant to be good with Subaru's, arranged to meet with the boss on Monday morning to get an insight as to what may be wrong and some options for repair. I guess it'll be all down to cost as to whether I get rid cheap or invest in further engine work. I'll post again on Monday and once again thanks for your helpful advice. Jeff.

Thanks for all the top tips chaps, however it would appear I may have bought a pup! When I inspected the car it had an obvious tappet noise from the front left (as you look at the engine), the seller convinced me it was a stuck hydraulic tappet, subsequent research has identified that the H6 engine is shim over bucket so no hydraulic tappets, I've spoken to a local mechanic who suggests it's an engine out job, which I assume will be very pricey. I bought the car at a cheap price, it would appear that it may be a false economy. Having said that it drives superb and performs very well, once again any thoughts or tips would be greatly appreciated, equally any advice on a good local (to Newcastle) Subaru independent mechanic. It's such a shame as I love the car.

Hi, I'm picking up my 2002 H6 Outback tomorrow from Scotland, it looks fine, has a decent service history, 148K, are there any particular areas that I should be considering for attention? Been researching these for a while and seem to remember seeing somewhere that the can chain tensioners need replacing at around 150K. Is this a big / expensive job? Also heard some slightly frightening tales about exhaust replacement costs. Any help, tips and advice wold be very gratefully received. Most reviews seem to suggest these are great cars (MPG aside) so looking forward to driving back tomorrow. Jeff.