2000-2004 Subaru Legacy Outback-thoughts,other suggestions? (vehicle, auto, gasket, SUV)

[oz in SC]

Looking to get something to replace out Trailblazer,need something that is similar as far as carrying capacity(seating four adults and room for two dogs) and would like AWD/4wd.

We also want something that gets better highway fuel economy than the Trailblazer(20mpg-ish) and use regular fuel.

So from looking at various Station wagon type vehicles Subaru seems to fit our requirements.

Now to some questions.
How many miles is too many?
Seems Subaru owners drive the crap out of their cars.

What are the trouble spots?

Automatic or manual?

Thanks.

[TheViking85]

As far as fuel mileage goes, I'd opt for a manual, that said you're not likely to see any more than 30 Mpg at most, highway.

Subarus are generally well built, so mileage isn't much of an issue if the car has a full maintenance history.

Some engines have had head gasket issues, this has now been rectified, but it's an expensive fix if the car is out of warranty.

Parts can be expensive, when they go, and having work done can be costly, because it can take some time working on them.

That being said, you shouldn't experience many issues if it has all maintenance and you follow the maintenance schedule. And don't cheap out on the oil, Subarus don't like that.

[oz in SC]

Originally Posted by TheViking85

As far as fuel mileage goes, I'd opt for a manual, that said you're not likely to see any more than 30 Mpg at most, highway.

30 mpg is much better then 20mpg.Remember,this is the USA,not Europe....

Subarus are generally well built, so mileage isn't much of an issue if the car has a full maintenance history.

Well mileage can be WAY up there,like close to 200,000 miles...of course the price is much lower when it is that high but still...

Some engines have had head gasket issues, this has now been rectified, but it's an expensive fix if the car is out of warranty.

Was just reading about this,seems it was the 4 cylinder engines,and oddly enough the 6 cylinder is pretty close to the same mpg on the highway.

Parts can be expensive, when they go, and having work done can be costly, because it can take some time working on them.

Well,we seem to live close to Subaru heaven(Western North Carolina-especially Asheville) so hopefully that will help in that department.

That being said, you shouldn't experience many issues if it has all maintenance and you follow the maintenance schedule. And don't cheap out on the oil, Subarus don't like that.

Good to know and thanks.

Can you think of any other vehicle that would fit our criteria?

[eofelis]

I'm on my 3rd Subaru, which it a 2001 Outback wagon. Previous I had two 1991 Legacy wagons.

I got it in 2007 from a private seller. It had 109k on it. It's a Colorado car, no rust. It has about 135k on it now (I don't drive every day - ride bicycle a lot).

It has been a reliable car and I plan to keep it for a long time. It starts and runs very well. Previous owners replaced the clutch at 70k. I'm pretty easy on clutches so it may last the life of the car. I haven't had to do brakes since I had it (with manual trans can coast to slow down a lot, saves brakes). I get 25-30mpg. I have a big Yakima bike rack on top, affects mileage probably.

I know a few people with auto trans Subarus from 00-04 that have had the trans fail and had to replace it. Interestingly, I have had some issues with my manual trans. I've never heard of a manual trans Suby having problems. I call it a quirk. In reverse it makes a noise and sometimes the shift lever gets stuck in R momentarily. I decided to live with it for now though.

Subarus often trip check engine lights. Often it's an O2 sensor.
Cam seals and valve cover gaskets often leak with age. Check for that.
This age of Outbacks can have pinprick size leaks in head gasket. Mine has been ok so far. Earlier Outbacks had catastrophic hg failures.
Struts are an expensive thing to replace when they wear out. I did them on my older Subarus ($700+). Haven't replaced them on this Outback yet.

Some of these Outbacks had bad factory paint jobs. I got mine super cheap b/c the dark blue paint has fine crackling all over it. Looks fine from 3 feet away.

Do a web search, there is a good Subaru Outback forum out there.

Right now someone is driving around in the next Subaru I will buy in about 7 years

[TheViking85]

Originally Posted by oz in SC

30 mpg is much better then 20mpg.Remember,this is the USA,not Europe....

Well mileage can be WAY up there,like close to 200,000 miles...of course the price is much lower when it is that high but still...

Was just reading about this,seems it was the 4 cylinder engines,and oddly enough the 6 cylinder is pretty close to the same mpg on the highway.

Well,we seem to live close to Subaru heaven(Western North Carolina-especially Asheville) so hopefully that will help in that department.

Good to know and thanks.

Can you think of any other vehicle that would fit our criteria?

Lol, I suppose it is the US. But yeah, I get up to 32 Mpg highway in my Impreza, the Legacy is a little heavier so I'd expect that number to drop a little bit.

200k miles does not actually have to be a problem on these cars, but any car near or over 200k has had a long life, and there's bound to be a little bit more maintenance on one.

When I bought my 06 Impreza it was in the mid 40k miles. I don't know your budget or the avg miles per year you cover. If you don't drive that much, a higher mileage car would be fine, if you drive over average you might want to look for one with less miles on it.

The problem with the head gasket was for some specific model years and on the 2.5l 4 cylinder only.

As far as other vehicles... depends on your budget really, but the Forester springs to mind.

EDIT: For research on any Subaru btw, go to NASIOC, the combined knowledge is immense. Make sure to check out the for sale section too, cars sold there will generally have been taken good care of.

[oz in SC]

We like the Outback wagon more than the Forester,the latter seems to be much more boxy.

Wife currently drive 600+ miles a week...so we need something reliable.Almost all is interstate.

What about other makes?

[TheViking85]

Originally Posted by oz in SC

We like the Outback wagon more than the Forester,the latter seems to be much more boxy.

Wife currently drive 600+ miles a week...so we need something reliable.Almost all is interstate.

What about other makes?

Budget?

[oz in SC]

Originally Posted by TheViking85

Budget?

Well...we want to pay cash so at the most $7500 or so.That is why we are looking at older ones or newer ones with more miles.

[M3 Mitch]

You could go older and cheaper and still get a good car - we have a 92 with 4-cylinder and automatic, have had no real issues with it, has 250K miles, still runs great.

I would go with a stickshift by preference. The older 4-bangers before 97 are non-interference engines so if you break a cam belt you don't have engine damage.

With you being in non-rust country, you can find good older subies.

Provided the maintenance has been kept up, hard to say how many miles is too much, it would be a lot though.

For $7500 you should be able to get a very serviceable subie.

[TheViking85]

Originally Posted by oz in SC

Well...we want to pay cash so at the most $7500 or so.That is why we are looking at older ones or newer ones with more miles.

Look for the regular Legacy stv. as well, they generally go a little cheaper than the outback, if I'm not mistaken.

They're solid cars.

As for other brands... Honestly I'm slightly at a loss. It's a bit sad that the SUV has completely taken over the market of the station wagon here in the US. Back in Europe I could've given you at least 20 different models who would all supply 30 mpg +, here I actually don't know.

Personally I like the BMW estates, but that's a whole different price range.

Good luck either way.