Well, I was changing my oil today and opened the hood to find white spots of something all over the front of my engine bay. I am not quite sure what it is. There are pools of something forming on my skid plate. I thought it could be a radiator leak, but the coolant levels look completely normal. My car is not over heating either... Could it be an AC leak? I don't know if this is true because my AC doesn't work anyways. What does a radiator leak look like? Any help much appreciated!
My guess is coolant. Doesn't it dry white? There is nothing else under the hood that would do that. Maybe you drove through a puddle of milk?
Your radiator is toast. It is ineviteable that the seam on the top will let loose. The repair is very common now that the cars are starting to show their age. The next thing to go on your car will be the pulley on the belt tensioner for the ac.
ouch... that cant be what he wanted to hear. Sorry man, I was hoping for the puddle of milk theory for you as well..
Same thing just happened to my 02 last month. Exact same symptoms. The good news is I upgraded to a Mishimotto and won't have to worry about it again. Zen motors hooked me up with a very good deal it was affordable.
How hard is this thing to change? Would it be worth it to change it proactively? I have heard of several recently going. I am worrying about my '02.
Yeah they are easy if you know what you're doing and have an area to work on your car. It's also very easy to make matters worse if you do not know what you're doing especially if you need your car as a DD. If you know what you're doing I would cost out radiators get yourself some Subaru coolant and additive and do it, before you find yourself on the side of the road having to call a tow truck. If not call a shop that you trust and get it done. I chose Zen because they gave me the best quote and got me in and out with hardly any down time on short notice. Maybe folks on here that feel it's an easy fix may help you out. Either way I would do it if you're starting to see dried coolant in your motor, or make sure you have triple A........................ I have an 02 with 80k. Over the past six months, I fixed about 5 boost leaks on stock hoses that went bad, AC compressor "O" rings, stock radiator and hoses, stock Bov, turbo actuator, stock rear rotors, stock clutch, my stock struts were starting to go (did coilovers), stock wind shield wiper linkage. My car is mildly modified and I drive allot but I do not push it mostly out of fear of breaking things. A few other things to look out for are: CV joints, wheel bearings, Your stock 5sp depending on how you drive, front or mid diff. I was actually unaware of the pulley letting go that Liquid Force mentioned so I will add this to the list. In other words either learn how to work on these cars or get ready to grow some deeper pockets. This year of Subaru at this age is not exactly what I would call dependable, definitely fun, but hey break............allot
I'm pretty sure I can install it. I have a 1000 sq ft shop at my disposal and a friend with a turbo'd accord that has installed a few.
OK, been reading some threads here about the mishimoto radiator. I read something about the radiator caps. The new one has a cap on the radiator. Can I use the cap that comes with the radiator? Any advice on installing it will really help me.
Yeah you can use the cap on that radiator. The 04+ has the cap on the radiator. Install is easy. Drain the fluid (there is a wing nut on the bottom of the radiator on the passenger side. Undo the 2 hoses (one on top and one on the bottom) undo the little hard line on top of the radiator and 2 bolts/caps on top of radiator. Unplug both fans and pull up. That's it. I may miss something or missay something but that is the jist of it and you will see how simple it really is when you get into there.
Also when you install the new radiator.....leave the top hose off and fill the radiator with water. Crank the car and keep pouring water in the radiator while car is running. You will see all the antifreeze come out and you want to keep doing the 'flush' until all the water coming out the top hose is clear. Then drain that and attach the top hose. Fill with Subaru brand antifreeze and burp the system really well. Just the draining and burping can take up to 1 hr but you should be done in 20 mins or so.
I've noticed a small problem. There isn't a Subaru dealership within 200 miles so I can't get Subaru antifreeze. Am I OK to use anything else?
WJM says no but I know a lot of people using other brands. I'm the type to play it safe so I use the OEM stuff.
The oem stuff and the subaru additive were really important to use with the old composite head gaskets but not so important with the multi layer steel gaskets. I run craptastic off the shelf coolant in my car and have had the engine apart enough times and have never seen any build up or other issues related to the coolant.
Make sure you trim your upper radiator hose if your using the stock one with the Mishimotto. The radiator has a thicker circumference it will relocate the elbow of your upper hose into your radiator fan and you will need a new hose. Mounting it backwards may also work. I got mine to fit this way without trimming. Just flip it around the apposite way when you mount. Either way good luck.
Is this the hose that is on top of the radiator in the middle of it? About 2 inch diameter or so? The red circle: ?
^^What he said. It sits between the front of the motor and the radiator, on the passenger side towards the top.
OK. Thanks for all the help guys! Got it installed and runnin' like a champ now. Install was pretty simple. Got coolant everywhere, but whatever. Anything I need to check frequently besides the coolant?
Just make sure you top off the coolant at the reservoir by the turbo. Top it off with the motor running and the AC running on high you should see some air bubbles as any excess air comes out. If you already did this then never mind. Glad it worked out for you, those are great radiators!
So is it AC or the heat that I should have running when I fill it? I have heard the heat on full blast, but not AC...
Yeah it could be the heat, I ran the defroster which seemed to work. I think it's just a way to ensure 100% no air left, so you are probably fine if you have been running it. You may want to keep an eye on the "O" ring for the drain plug on the Mishimotto on the lower passenger side of the radiator. Just shine a flashlight down there in a couple of days. If you see coolant seeping the "O"ring might be bad. Mine is leaking slightly, it's no big deal at all, Mishimotto will send you a new "O" ring if it does it and it's a 2 second fix. Only reason I mentioned it is because it's a very specific "O" ring if you try to wing it like I did and guess the size it will continue to leak. Here is the "O" ring size just in case: m16 thread size. .06inches .047inch long.
Bump for any bugeyes with the higher miles.This exact same thing happened to me today while driving to work. Glad this thread was around to help out. Picked up a Mishimoto from Zen for a good price. +1 for Zen motors