Subaru Outback overheated. Mechanics say head gasket. Other reasons?
I think there is something not quite right with Convenience Auto Subaru
Specialists who have worked on my car for 6 years.
Just put $3k into my 2004 Outback which is in pristine condition, low miles,
and after paying them, 10 days later my car overheats for the first time.
Now they say the car needs a new head gasket and that this new
issue is due to what was "a nearly undetectable oil leak in the gasket."
They said there was "no way we could have detected it" before I sunk 3k into
the car for brakes and general maintenance to keep the car running for another
2 years.
The head gaskets were replaced by Dunning Subaru in 2017 and I have driven
the car 12k miles in 3 years. Very little wear.
What is the issue? I took the car back to the mechanics 10 days after they
performed maintenance, after the temperature
gauge was abnormally high. It was into the red zone and has never
overheated in the past. I was driving doing errands, it was 85F out and nothing
unusual. I have done a couple short 5 mile trips since and no overheating just
to see if this is a fluke. There is no white smoke or exhaust, it is driving fine, no
sounds or knocking. I am not sinking another 3k into it to fix the head gasket.
And I'm not convinced this is a head gasket issue.
What other issue could be causing the overheating and how can I get this
properly diagnosed before selling it "as is" or spending more money?
Help! CH