NWSubie Posted May 25, 2011 Share Posted May 25, 2011 Sorry if this is in the wrong area of the site. But I currently have an 87 Gl and am now wanting a car with a bit more power and reliability. Im debating on moving on to the a Forester or Outback but i am wondering if there are certain years or models that I should avoid. I really cant afford to buy a car that will have allot of problems obviously any car can have issues but if I can avoid the ones known to have issues then hopefully I can do a better job when lookin for my new one. Thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idosubaru Posted May 25, 2011 Share Posted May 25, 2011 97 and up are all interference - which means extensive engine damage/repairs if the timing belt breaks. i'd plan on a $200-ish timing belt job when you get one - replacing all the pulleys too with one of the importexperts kits (because from subaru it's a $500 or job). i like 95-96 legacy's - early enough that they're non interference but new enough that they're not ugly. IMO of course. EJ25's have headgasket and bearing issues (due to previous overheating due to previous mentioned issue). that being said - it's easy to find a blown EJ25 and repair it for cheap. that's the best option to get an inexpensive and reliable subaru. you can even swap an Ej18 or EJ22 into an EJ25, it's plug and play so it's simple. lots of info here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KaraK Posted May 26, 2011 Share Posted May 26, 2011 After reading the "sticky" about interference vs. non, I think mine is non. (I've been told it's an EZ30something.) I can tell you, I bought my 01 H6 3.0 because it has a timing chain! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NWSubie Posted May 26, 2011 Author Share Posted May 26, 2011 I do like the legacys my dad bought a 92 lego sedan out of a tow yard for $200 and drove it back and forth from work for nearly 5 years. We did the head gauskets once and that was all we ever did to that car. And now its still drivin around the Portland area with 240k on it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ricearu Posted May 26, 2011 Share Posted May 26, 2011 i love my 90 mmmm black... and new enough for me Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1982gl4 Posted May 27, 2011 Share Posted May 27, 2011 i love my 90 mmmm black... and new enough for me ^This IMO the first gen legacys are some of the best Subaru's ever made, I have had two 1992's both with 200k + miles, and used them as daily drives, never had a single issue with one of them, just get in it and drive. I have also gotten pretty good milage with mine 23+ with the auto (vt hills kill mpg) And 25+ now that it's a five speed!!!! (we won't talk about the one I lifted ) I also like the 95-96 but I just prefer the older body style. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ricearu Posted May 27, 2011 Share Posted May 27, 2011 me too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stelcom66 Posted May 27, 2011 Share Posted May 27, 2011 My son has a '95 Legacy S he picked up a few months ago with the 2.2 and about 151k - I love the sound of that engine . Reminds my of the old '92 Legacy and '85 Loyale, I think that was a 1.8. The '95 is great - no rattles, runs well and feels tight. It's the 7th Subaru I've had in my driveway. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
heartless Posted May 28, 2011 Share Posted May 28, 2011 we have 2 of the 1st gen Legacy's here - a sedan, FWD, 5 Spd and an AWD auto wagon - both have over 200K, both run like champs - the sedan is in the 260K range, my wagon is 211K The sedan gets in the low 30's for fuel mileage - 32-33mpg depending on how it is driven the wagon averages around 28 or so (summer - 25-26 winter), have gotten as high as 30 but that was freeway driving with the cruise on. the non-interference 2.2 is about the best Subaru engine you can get, imho - your mileage may vary. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stelcom66 Posted May 28, 2011 Share Posted May 28, 2011 Wow - over 200k, and 260k! My other son bought my mom's '92 Legacy years ago - took it to North Carolina and did get highway mileage in the low 30's. Sold it to his friend because he had to have a Cadillac STS. Blew the headgaskets on that Norstar engine. I should have bought that Legacy back from his friend. I saw a somewhat rare '94 GT AWD wagon with a 5-speed on Craigslist a while back - boy do I wish I bought that. If Subaru needed a bit more of a powerful engine, too bad they couldn't have just worked with the 2.2 design. New isn't always better - I've seen that many times lately with major appliances. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GeneralDisorder Posted May 28, 2011 Share Posted May 28, 2011 The reality is that Subaru went to interferance designs precisely because their belt system (if properly maintained every 105k) is extremely reliable. Buy what you like - avoid the EJ25D unless you plan on swapping in an EJ22, etc. Interferance vs. non shouldn't be a factor - replace the belt/idlers/water pump/seals on whatever you buy immediately. GD Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kwhistle Posted May 28, 2011 Share Posted May 28, 2011 I had a similar question. Looking for a newer car. I have a 98 OBW now, and it's not bad at all for 210K+ car. Amazing handling in bad weather. But it is pretty old, and I'd like something much newer. I'm considering another Subaru, but want something that's fairly roomy and fuel efficient. The thing with Subies, I like the handling/AWD, and the overall quality. Had a huge icicle fall straight on my windshield this winter, and not a scratch. I don't like the interference engine crap, the so-so interior (is it really that difficult to mold plastic to a bit nicer design?), and the lousy fuel efficiency. The reality is that Subaru went to interferance designs precisely because their belt system (if properly maintained every 105k) is extremely reliable. That sounds like one of those marketing gimmicks, "we didn't include this feature for your own benefit". Yeah right! Camry timing belt needs to be changed every 110K and they are non-interference. And the kits are way cheaper. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GeneralDisorder Posted May 29, 2011 Share Posted May 29, 2011 Yeah right! Camry timing belt needs to be changed every 110K and they are non-interference. And the kits are way cheaper. Any cost savings (which is minimal I assure you - I do EJ timing belts all the time and the kits are $120 to $250 depending on year), is entirely eaten by the added labor to change the timing belt on a transverse engine. Newer Toy's (including the Camry I beleive) do have interferance engines. The reality is that they have more effecient combustion chambers. It's a trade off on some level I suppose but if properly maintained (a whopping TWO whole times in the life of the average car!) it's simply not an issue. They don't just break out of the blue. GD Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stelcom66 Posted May 29, 2011 Share Posted May 29, 2011 I had the timing belt replaced on my '02 Outback with 139k, it was only about $350 at the dealership which was less than I expected. They must be easier to replace than in a transverse engine. The dealership called to confirm a few things when it was in the shop, a bit over an hour later it was done. The dealership recommended the headgaskets should be replaced - I knew they had a slight leak years ago. I'd just keep an eye on the coolant, every few months I'd add some. I had the coolant conditioner added once by the dealership in 2006 at around 75k miles, they recommend that procedure every 30k miles. Other than that & the timing belt, the only times the cars was in the shop was twice since I bought it at 49k - for tires and brakes. Recently traded the Outback in for an '02 Forester with just under 100k and a 5 -speed. Both those attributes were rare when searching in the Connecticut area. To finalize the deal the dealership (I hope they really did) replaced the timing belt and water pump in the Forester. I'm very pleased with the Forester - feels great driving a manual transmission again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GeneralDisorder Posted May 29, 2011 Share Posted May 29, 2011 I had the timing belt replaced on my '02 Outback with 139k, it was only about $350 at the dealership which was less than I expected. They didn't replace the idlers, tensioner, or water pump for that price. There's very little chance that you will make it another 105k without one of them failing. The dealership should have reccomended they be replaced. GD Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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