Tools needed for smooth Subaru head gasket job

Question

I'm about to start replacing the head gaskets on a 1998 Subaru Legacy Outback according to the procedures described here:

• http://www.subaruforester.org/vbulletin/f66/how-replace-ej25-head-gaskets-without-removing-engine-57335/
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yakX-GAV9uE

and I'm wondering if I should buy some additional tools before I get started. My existing toolbox is pretty much just wrenches (including torque wrench), breaker bars, screwdrivers, a cheap jack, and various specialty tools not related to this job. I think at the very least I need one or more good jack stands, one to tilt the engine to get at the heads on each side, and possibly also a couple to raise the vehicle. Is there anything else I should think about getting for the job?

Answer 1

Being that I'm mostly done with the job, here are some additional tools that have come in handy, beyond what I originally mentioned:

• Adjustable (or large, maybe 1-inch) wrenches to grab the hex on the cams and lock in place to break the cam sprocket bolts.
• 17mm open-end wrench (other people say screwdriver, but the wrench works much better!) to wedge in the flywheel while breaking the crankshaft pulley bolt.
• 1/2-inch drive wrench (I broke my 3/8 trying to break the crankshaft pulley bolt loose) and 22mm sockets (had to buy new; much larger than anything I had in my existing set).
• Locking pliers (aka vise grips) for removing a damaged dowel pin/straight pin (see What to do with damaged alignment dowels in block?)
• Feeler gauges - breaking loose the head bolts made the exhaust valve lifters (I think that's what they're called) drop out of the heads, and I lost track of which one goes on which valve, so now I need to play with swapping them around until the clearances are right.
• C clamp, needed for compressing the timing belt tensioner; without this it's impossible to get the timing belt back on (or, in my case, install a new one).

And would have been nice, but I didn't have:

• Special cam sprocket tool (basically a huge near-flat hex wrench with a big opening in it, possibly Subaru-specific).
• Flat ratcheting wrenches, mainly for the valve cover bolts (one is almost impossible to access).
• Extended/angled hose clamp pliers, for some hard-to-reach hoses.
• Multiple 17mm non-ratcheting wrenches, for holding cam sprockets while getting the timing belt in place.
• Torque wrench that goes up to 130 ft-lbs (for the crankshaft pulley); I'll either just do it to 80 ft-lbs with my torque wrench then turn it another 30-45 degrees or so, or borrow one.

Answer 2

No, you've got everything you'll need. A head gasket replacement isn't a job that requires lots of specialist equipment. It's mainly a set of wrenches (including a torque wrench) and something to scrape the old gasket off. But it's a long and tedious job. And I can't stress that last bit enough, especially if it's the first time you do it.

If you want to make the job as smooth as possible, I would suggest taking the engine out of the car completely so that you have lots of elbow room. but that's a big job in itself. For that you'll need a winch and a crane (or whatever the thing is called in English). I remember getting extremely annoyed at the fact that I couldn't adjust the second waste-gate actuator nut on my turbo because there is no angle at which you could get at it even with the shortest #9 wrench on the market. Instead of it being a 2 minute job, I spent a good hour on it and had to cut a wrench in two in the process. The alternative was to remove the entire exhaust manifold heat shield (to get to one tiny little nut!). It's unexpected difficulties like that that trip you up. But if the guy in the video can do it, so can you. Just take whatever number of hours you think it'll take and multiply by 2.5.

And next time buy a car with all the cylinders in one straight line. It cuts the time in half;)

And take 2 minutes to block each and every hose you removed. If you drop something into e.g. the pipe going to the intercooler, you're going to spend hours trying to get it out again.