Coming back to Subes

[wae]

The red text at the top of my screen asking me to make my first post today has finally convinced me. =)

 

Over the weekend, I sealed a deal on a '96 Legacy L wagon (AWD, of course!) and I get to trek up to Cleveland tomorrow to drive her home. I had been looking, initially, for a 97-99 OBW, but all the headgasket talk sort of scared me away from that -- I have enough 'project' cars in my life! This wagon, though, is a real young'n at about 104k on its 2.2's clock, so it should edge out my current "best car I've ever driven": an '86 GL 4WD wagon that met its demise (structural, not mechanical failure), strangely enough, in the end of '96. At the time, I was going to replace the GL with a Brighton wagon, but I sort of got into a whizzing contest with the local Sube dealer and bought a Saturn instead. I've been regretting that decision for the last 177000 miles!

 

When my old Sube died, the 1.8 had about 198k on the clock and was still running strong with no leaks, the clutch and tranny were smooth, and it was starting to rust away. The hillholder was leaking brake fluid like all get-out, and I had just had the oil pump o-rings done to get rid of the infernal ticking noise. The thing was glued to the road and, considering that it was a wagon, could really get out of its own way. The 4WD system worked great, too -- I had it buried in river mud up to all four hubs and 4-Lo got me out with no problems.

 

I know the '96 is AWD, so no low-range, and it's a newer, larger motor, but what sorts of things do I need to look out for? If I understand right, it's a non-interference engine so if the timing belt goes, it's a pain, but not fatal. Based on what I've read here (and elsewhere) the 2.2 from that era is quite reliable. How about the hillholder? Does it still function primarily as a brake fluid drain, or has that been shored up? There's no rust visible on the sheetmetal, but are there some common spots to look for on these wagons? What sorts of sube-quirks should I be looking for on this wagon?

[northguy]

Depending on how well it was maintained, you should be buying a good car. Timing belt changes, maybe brake rotors, maybe alternator(?), nothing else comes to mind. Good luck and welcome to the board.