My 2008 Subaru Outback's head gasket blew at 89,000 miles and I just don't get it

I babied that thing, changed the oil every 4,000 miles like clockwork and never missed a coolant flush since I bought it in 2012 in Portland. The dealer told me it was a known issue with the EJ25 engine but they never recalled it or offered to help with the $2,800 repair. Has anyone else had a car where a major part just gave out way too early for no good reason?

2 comments

2 Comments

the_beth23h agoMost Upvoted

My buddy had a 2010 Forester with that same engine and his went at 82,000 miles even though he barely ever drove it... Subaru just told him it was "normal wear" which is ridiculous for less than 100k.

jennifer35818h ago

Did you buy it used with the original timing belt still in there? A lot of those EJ25s had factory coolant passages that were just too narrow, and even perfect maintenance couldn't stop them from clogging up over time. It's a bummer but Subaru never really admitted how bad that design was, they just quietly tweaked it in later years.