In this video, I do a walk-through of a compression test on a 1995 Subaru Legacy. With this, I finally diagnosed my P0302 code. Looks like low compression on…
1995 Subaru Legacy – DIY – compression check
10
Like
Save
){kind=link}
Comments
Write a comment
You must be logged in to post a comment.
Thanks. New cylinder head is being rebuilt for me and should be in my hands
mid-week. I’ll be installing it next weekend.
Sounds like he’s got his work cut out for him. Obviously the car will need
other repairs in order to be in tip top condition like the cooling system,
rear suspension & shift bushings (if he so desires to tackle that) and I’m
sure other stuff as well. But what you described it sounds like it’s still
a pretty decent car with a lot of life left in it.
Well more power to him if he can successfully rebuild this engine! If it
were me, I’d just get another engine. I wouldn’t wanna rebuild it myself
only to find out that it was an ephemeral repair and then have to do and do
the job all over again.
Oh, that? A loose hose connection. Fixed before I got rid of the car. Just
had to tighten a clamp.
What happened with this? I have a 99 Forester with almost the same results
except mine is cyl #1 misfire code and low compression, 65PSI. Was thinking
about just throwing a junkyard head on, don’t want to put a lot of money
into the car. Head gaskets, water pump, and timing belt were just done, so
it isn’t the head gasket.
@MercedesDieselGuy oh I thought you mentioned something was leaking at te
cooling system?
Cooling system? It was (is) in fine shape. Rear suspension? The whole thing
could use a refresh, but is usable as is for a long while yet. But yeah,
the guy who bought it (once again, for just over junkyard price) sees
potential.
If memory serves, it just threads in by hand.
hope you get it fixed and keep it on the road. Let us know how it goes
Agreed. Compression tests are easy enough and VERY informative. Although I
didn’t have a leakdown test done, the compression test told me enough in my
case.
How did you get the compression coupling into the spark plug wells?
So what happened after compression test?
He plans to pull the cylinder head back off and pop out the piston.
Assuming the cylinder itself looks OK, he’s going to re-ring it,
reassemble, and hope for the best. If the internals do NOT look OK, he’s
going to get a used engine.
I think he’s going to disassemble this engine before doing anything. If
something looks way off, he’s probably going to just toss another engine at
it.
I (wrongly) diagnosed the problem as a bad exhaust valve and replaced the
cylinder head. The car ran rough but otherwise asymptomatically from May
through December, when the P0302 code came back. I did another compression
test (low in cylinder 2) and realized that I probably had bad rings or a
bad piston in cylinder 2. I sold the car to someone who is going to rebuild
or replace the engine.
OK, found a passenger side head on ebay and slapped er on, car runs like
brand new. Someone should post this on the Subaru message boards because a
lot of the same problem yet no solutions that I found on there. I started
out reading what they were all posting and ended up chasing expensive
sensors until I did the compression test and leak down. Amazing!
Stuck, burned, whatever. That head’s coming off next weekend.
I’m very curious to see what your coworker does with that engine.
you may have a stuck valve ….
I replaced the cylinder head and the car’s been running great for weeks
now. I haven’t re-run compression on cylinders 2 and 4 yet, but may when
I’m less busy. Not sure what to advise you, but good luck with your
Forester, whatever you decide to do.