96 2.5 Twin Cam Engine Durability

[captapd]

I have a 96 Legacy 2.5GT Wagon with the twin cam, premium fuel engine. The car now has 110,000 miles on it. The last 3 years using it to commute 4 days a week 130 miles round trip. This is pretty much its only usage, freeway miles 75-80 mph in the morning with no traffic, 60-65 mph in the evening with about 10 miles of stop and go. In the winter I tend to warm the car up for 10-15 minutes on cold mornings before taking off. I’ve been running synthetic oil since break in. I’m thinking of keeping the car for 200,000 miles or more. This is my first Subaru and I have been a little disappointed in the durability to date. The power steering went out under warranty. I lost an A/C compressor just after the warranty ran out, had the the timing belt and water pump go at 70,000 miles. Now the front crank seal is leaking badly and I have seepage around the valve covers. The twin cam engine was only built in 96 and I’m wondering if that is an issue.

 

Any opinions on the relative durability of this engine? and whether or not it is a practical cost effective goal to take the car to 200,000 or more. What is the cost of engine/transmission replacement with a new or used unit? We have two small children and money is tight these days, so I’m trying to gauge whether or not to keep the car for the long haul.

 

Thanks!

[99obw]

The Phase I DOHC was manufactured up until '99. It is a good engine with chronic head gasket problems. 200k should be no problem, in fact I am hoping for 300k with ours. Some others have higher mileage on the Phase I than we do, so perhaps they can comment.

[Dinero]

The major problem with the Phase I engine is a high incidence of head gasket failure. That your engine has attained over 100,000 miles without head gasket failure is probably a good sign. How bad is the oil leakage? If it's not too bad, you may want to just check the oil level regularly.

Other questions. How much could you sell your Subaru for in its' present condition? What would you replace it with? Could you be assured that the repalcement vehicle would have fewer problems than the Subaru? Your 96 probably has marginal resale value. I would try to run your Subaru for as long as possible, as cheaply as possible.