Headgasket Sealer

[The Critic]

My parents' 2010 Altima V6 with 56K miles has some external headgasket seepage. Apparently the VQ35's around the 2010 era had some issues with their headgaskets.

As evident by the mileage, my parents do not drive very much nowadays and the car only sees between 1-3k/yr. I have no interest in pulling the engine and fixing the head gasket and upper oil pan leaks, so I'm hoping to at least keep the Head Gasket seepage under control with a sealer.

Subaru used to (and still) recommends this product to be added during normal maintenance:

I assume that this product is safe for heater cores. Does anyone have a better alternative?

 

[bdcardinal]

O man, where's GHT when you need him?

 

[Nick1994]

O man, where's GHT when you need him?

Turkey baster as an applicator?

 

[Lubener]

Just a temporary measure if it works which I doubt. It's a conditioner which doesn't mean it's a sealer. Probably just adds some anti corrosive additives.

 

[LazyDog]

Why not bypass the heater core for few months and than add the head gasket sealer.

 

[Trav]

Subaru coolant conditioner??

I have never owned a subaru before , but our 2002 honda CRV was in an accident and totaled last fall so in Oct 2016 I bought a 2010 Forester with a 2.5 and a 4EAT. Had pretty detailed service records kept by the previous owner, though lots of maintenance was done at a quick lube Shell station...

bobistheoilguy.com

 

[atikovi]

My parents' 2010 Altima V6 with 56K miles has some external headgasket seepage. Apparently the VQ35's around the 2010 era had some issues with their headgaskets.

If it's external and just seepage, leave it alone. It's a 12 year old car and pretty much all engines will have some seepage at that age.

 

[JHZR2]

So Im assuming it is coolant seepage, not oil seepage....

Oil seepage (to coolant) is something I have had to deal with in my 1991 350SD, and my mother had happen overboard on her 97 Plymouth Breeze 2.0.

If it was coolant, and is not an issue where poor bolting patterns cause head lift (my Cummins 5.9 has that, under high boost, high compresion, and it is a known weak spot), I might try a conditioner and/or the walnut/ginger pellets as PM. Not the recommended doses (especially of the ginger), just a small amount.

The issue that can happen if it seeps under the right conditions is that the hot coolant car erode the block where it is coming out, and then you need to get that smooth to fix it. That has happened to some of the Cummins folks who have let it seep for 100k miles before fixing. Something tells me your parents wont have that issue...

 

[slacktide_bitog]

Bars Leaks Head Gasket Sealer HG-1
or
Blue Devil Pour-N-Go head gasket sealer

I can vouch for the Bars Leaks, as it seems to have fixed the gasket on my EJ25D. A few videos on YT with the same engine have used Blue Devil with success. The EJ25D leaks internally, which is actually worse. These stop leak products are designed to react with hydrocarbons that push the coolant out.

There's also the ChrisFix video where he used Bars Leaks for 2 years.

It's possible that the ginger Holts might work better for an external leak like the EJ251/253 has

 

[HankHill]

I have never met a Subaru that hasn't had the head gasket replaced, or was in need of it. Seems like between 90k-110k they all fail.

 

[t1snwrbrdr12]

I’ve had the Subaru stuff in my Sienna. I had crusted build up from a (once active) head gasket leak on it. Installed the “conditioner” which has sediment in it that seeks the leak and plugs it up. It has been working a year or so for me.

I’ve also seen it seal up a pitted and leaking timing cover on an old 5.9 Jeep.

Never seen it fix a Subaru, but I think it’s bc the area I worked it. We let a customer know their HG were leaking, no matter the extent, they’d just fix it. Not sure how these people could justify the job, but we did tons of customer pay HG jobs on Subarus.

I don’t like relying on something like this as a fix, and I don’t like the potential of clogging the heater core or any passage, but I figured as much as we used it at the dealership (literally every Subaru coolant service) without issue, it was safe as could be.

 

[53' Stude]

O man, where's GHT when you need him?

 

[Exhaustgases]

The old 2.0's and 2.2's never had head gasket trouble, at least the ones we have had.

 

[Bailes1992]

That is most certainly a re-badged bottle of Holts Radweld.

Radweld Radiator Cooling System | Holts

Holts Radweld is an easy to use radiator cooling system leak repair. Simply pour and go to fix leaks in car radiators and hoses.

www.holtsauto.com