1997 Subaru Outback Legacy Down
 

My sons 97 Subaru (2.5L) blew a cam shaft seal and he lost all the oil in a matter of seconds while driving earlier this week. As it sits now we have good compression on all cylinders but when trying to start the valves get hung up so I feel we need to pull the engine and get into it more by taking off the heads. Just doing a little research shows that we could be putting 1K into parts and machine work to get it back to running with no guaranty that some internal parts have been compromised. When replacing the oil and checking for metal i could not find any flakes but that does not mean we are safe.

So looking for input and also any other resources that you guys may know of? Which forums are good to search for options? IF we just do a swap any suggestions on where to buy the engine? If we lived back east or up north this would be easier as there seems to be lots of yards with subie engines. SoCal not so much.

Thanks

I've found this good for info and parts. Subaru Outback - Subaru Outback Forums

What do you mean the valves get hung up? Did the belt jump, and the vehicle go out of time? I know on the two cam motors, that the valves can collide with each other when the belt is off. I have had a few come in with a broken timing belt, that lived with no valve collision .
If it ran out of oil, and was driven for more than a minute or so, I would be worried about rods, and mains .

If oil from the camshaft seal soaked the timing belt, chances are that it may have jumped or slipped a tooth causing valve bends. The valves in that motor are tiny and very delicate. Did the car stop running or just puke oil?
Call Justin at All Wheel Drive Auto All Wheel Drive Auto: Independent Seattle Subaru Repair & Service. They are a tremendous resource for Suby parts and repair. Very knowledgeable and friendly.

How long did he run it before he realized he had lost all the oil? If it was long at all I think if it was my car, I'd find another engine and move on. I don't think you can drop $1000 in the top end and take the chance that there might be damage to the mains.

Thanks for the replies.

Craig, that site was one of the few that seemed pretty good thanks for the recommendation.

Fred, The car puked all its oil in about a minute or less. He literally pulled into my office for work after school and turned off the car. I asked when it started smoking and he said at the off ramp of the freeway, maybe a 100 yards from our lot. The complete under carriage was cover in oil. Oil light never came on. We checked the oil level and it was empty. We pushed it down the alley to a tire shop and got it up on a lift. We put fresh oil in it and started it up and found the rear cam shaft seal on the drivers side was puking the oil. We ran it for maybe a minute with no tapping sounds or misfiring. The belt was covered in oil also. Took the front parts off, water pump and all to get to the cam shaft seals all four. Replaced those. Buttoned everything back up and checked compression, between 172 and 175 on all 4. Now when we try and start it wont fire. Rechecked the timing and it looks correct, checked compression and still the same. did the oil change again to check for material in the oil and it seems clean. check compression again and now #1 is low. Still no start.

Trying to decide if its worth the effort to rebuild, swap or sell as is and put that money towards something newer with less miles as this car has over 250k on the clock.

Max, we will try and call that place on Monday.
Thanks to all

My experience is cam seals do not just blow out or fail suddenly as they are simply a barrier between low pressure splash liquid. If the seal was actually blown out of it's seated position then some incredible pressure (that would not normally occur) was suddenly present. This can happen when a piston fails with a surface hole or compression rings breaking / collapsing while running at high rpm.

From a rudimentary standpoint, whatever happened or failed is likely to be in excess cost of a good used replacement engine unless you have the time and resources to remove the existing engine and do a partial tear down / CSI and post pics here.

250k on a nearly 20 year old subie...Id consider it pretty much all used up. I'd hesitate to put more than $500 into it. One option if you have storage space is to find another one on Craigslist (they are basically the same car until 2003) and keep the current one as a parts car.

I would think it would start even if low on compression no? Another good site that I belong to is NASIOC It's more an Impreza forum but there is a spot for the Legacy too.

BTW, no way I'd rebuild. You should be able to find a decent 2.5L for 600 to 800. If the body is good and the trans isn't causing any grief, I'd drop in a used engine and drive it.

At 250k I wouldn't waste any more time even thinking about that motor. What if you spend $1000 rebuilding the top end and spin a bearing next week? I would consider it to be totally used up.

If the car is in good condition otherwise, a junkyard engine would be an idea. If the car is otherwise worn out, sell it for scrap and invest the $1000 towards something with lower miles and better condition.

We have a place here that sells motors with low km from Japan. Torontojdm.com. I purchased a motor for my engine conversion into my Westfalia for $600 complete with all accessories. Engine was perfect . They export as well.

A 95-98 2.2 motor will also bolt right in.

I think the electrical is different on the 2.2 ECM and other things that wouldn't match up.
I'd stick with a 2.5, change the Timing Belt on the one you buy and pop it in the car. The other possibility is, Go out and find another 1998 for $2500-$3500 and move on.

I was checking in on this thread, because I thought I may have a running long block for you needing head gaskets, but it is way newer ( 2008), and you are 3000 miles away, so I guess it is a no starter.
the above funny made me think of this .
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