1998 Subaru Forester Engine Problems

While driving, you heard a loud noise from the engine, pulled over to check the vehicle, and found it was on fire. You had replaced the knock sensor about a month before this happened.

Your car accelerated on its own while parked, causing it to break through a fence and hit some brush. You noticed smoke coming from the engine and had smelled something burning two weeks earlier. Your heater also wasn't working properly. The dealership replaced the thermostat, but the underlying cause of the unintended acceleration may require further diagnosis of the engine control system and fuel delivery components.

Your engine failed completely at 72,000 miles due to a crack in the cylinder wall. The crack occurred where the cylinder was bored to accommodate engine bolts, and similar boring was done on all four cylinders to varying degrees. You followed Subaru's recommended maintenance schedule and had no warning signs before the failure, which could have been dangerous if it happened on the highway.

Your engine is overheating and you smell burning antifreeze coming from the exhaust, which indicates a failing head gasket. This allows coolant to leak into the combustion chamber, causing overheating and the burning smell you're experiencing. The head gasket will need to be replaced, which is a major engine repair involving removing the cylinder head.

Your engine is leaking oil from the front seals, and the oil is dripping onto your hot exhaust system. This creates a burning smell and potential fire hazard. The front engine seals will need to be replaced to stop the leak.

Your engine's head gaskets failed, which are seals that prevent fluid leaks between the engine block and cylinder heads. The cylinder heads were able to be saved, but the top half of your engine had to be rebuilt to fix the problem. This repair likely involved disassembling the upper engine, replacing the gaskets, and reassembling the components.

Your engine has been overheating periodically, and the head gasket failed, causing the coolant to boil over and white steam to pour from under the hood. The temperature gauge spiked dangerously during this failure. Your dealer repaired the head gasket for $1,800, though Subaru of America denied acknowledging any widespread problem with this engine despite similar reports. Fixing this issue involves replacing the head gasket, which requires removing the cylinder head and reassembling the engine.

Your engine's oil pump is leaking, causing oil to drip onto the plastic splash pan under your engine. The oil then gets blown back onto the hot exhaust pipes and catalytic converter, creating a burning oil smell and potential fire hazard. Subaru has a repair kit available, but this is a serious issue since the oil pump shouldn't fail at only 54,400 miles. The fix will involve replacing the oil pump seals or the pump itself, along with new gaskets and seals to stop the leak.

Your check engine light came on and your engine started revving up and down on its own. You have to accelerate the vehicle to get the revving to stop. A mechanic suspects the problem could be either a faulty oxygen sensor or a failing catalytic converter. The fix will likely involve diagnosing which component is causing the issue and replacing the faulty part.

DEALER RESEALED OIL PUMP DUE TO AN OIL LEAK, CONSUMER WAS LATER INFORMED THAT ENGINE WAS IN BEGINNING STAGES OF POSSIBLE FAILURE. *YH

DEALER RESEALED OIL PUMP DUE TO AN OIL LEAK, CONSUMER WAS LATER INFORMED THAT ENGINE WAS IN BEGINNING STAGES OF POSSIBLE FAILURE. *YH

DEALER RESEALED FRONT OF ENGINE, OIL PUMP ASSEMBLY LEAKED. *SLC

THE CLUTCH DOES NOT ENGAGE PROPERLY WHEN THE ENGINE IS COLD AND FOR EXTENDED PERIODS IN COLD WEATHER. CLUTCH "CHATTERS" MAKING IT DIFFICULT TO START UP FROM REST WITHOUT HESITATION AND/OR STALLING. POTENTIALLY DANGEROUS IN TRAFFIC. CLUTCH SEEMS NOT STRONG ENOUGH TO HANDLE THE TORQUE OF THE ENGINE. *AK

SNOW AND ICE BUILD UP IN MODEST SNOW CAUSED THE ENGINE COOLING SYSTEM TO FAIL. IT WAS THE OPINON OF THE MECHANIC WHO REPAIRED THE CAR THAT THE FRONT GRILL OF THE WAS OF POOR DESIGN THAT CAUSED THE ICE AND SNOW TO BUILD. THERE WAS ONLY 4-6 INCHES OF SNOW THE DAY BEFORE. A MODEST AMOUNT TO CAUSE SUCH A SEVER PROBLEM. THE DESIGN OF THE FRONT GRILL TRAPPED THE SNOW. THIS DOES NOT HAPPEN TO OTHER CARS IN THIS SNOW CONDITION. *AK OPINI

VEHICLE DRIPPING OIL/GREASE ONTO THE CATALYTIC COVERTER, CAUSING A BURNING SMELL. DEALER NOTIFIED. *AK

GREASE AND OIL DRIPPING ONTO THE CATALYTIC CONVERTER STARTS SMELLING. DEALER CANNOT DUPLICATE THE PROBLEM, BUT IS AWARE OF THE PROBLEM. *AKTHEY DOUBLED THE VISCOSITY OF THE DRIVELINE GREASE. FROM 90 TO 150 WEIGHT. TTHERE ONLY ONE PROBLEM WITH THIS.THE FUMES COMING OFF THE EXHAUST WERE MAKING ME SICK.THE LAEKAGE WAS BAD ENOUGH THAT I THOUGHT THE CAR WAS STARTING ON FIRE- FIRE HAZARD. *ADJ