Ranger83

You can register as the new owner with the VIN at subaru.com and it will give you the dealer mantenance done, and any outstanding recalls. They are good cars. Mostly problems get posted here - no one starts a thread to say, "my Subaru has xxx,000 miles and runs perfectly."

- Vince Lombardi, Green Bay Packers

There is precious little extra clearance, and almost no benefit. BTW I bought Michelin HydroEdge for the last replacement set, and they are superb. You get a $40 debit card if you buy a set of 4 this month.

You don't mention the mileage but you can lose a wheel bearing in as little as 60K. Drive train problems are not impossible, but rare. If you go to a parking lot and do slow figure 8's, the clunk will speed up or slow down on one side if it's and axle, CV joint, or bearing. If it's an axle or CV joint, you should hear a metallic click or some sort of noise when stationary and you shift back and forth between 1st and Reverse. If you don't hear anything while stationary, it's more likely to be a wheel bearing. If you don't have it repaired quickly you will trash the brake rotor on that side, and will wind up replacing the front rotors and brake pads along with the wheel bearing. If it's grabbing to one side either the bearing is really far gone or you more likely have some other front suspension problems. Neglecting it will multiply your repair bill.

Is that dark tint legal in CO? In some states cops really go after cars with dark windows, and a speeding ticket becomes a Felony stop because they can't see in the car.

This is a bigger, heavier, more complex car, so, yes. I have a 97 with 143,000 miles. There are a fair number of problems reported with head gaskets here, but keep in mind that's from a population of well over half a million cars. The NHTSA has a total of seven complaints, the last time I checked. Work to date excluding tuneups and oil changes includes: - scheduled tuneups - Front brakes 57,000 miles - new tires 63,000 - new rear brakes about 90,000 - right front wheel bearing at around 93,000, replaced front brakes and rotors at the same time. - cam belt (scheduled) and new camshaft seals and oil pump o-ring and new water pump (not required - pre-emptive) at 106,000 - new tires (Michelin HydroEdge) at exactly 120,000. Old Michelin X Ones still had plenty of tread but I wanted new ones for the winter. - head gaskets (pre-emptive) at 139,000 - Left front xleat 143,000. I used to be an Armored Cavalry Platoon Leader responsible for four main battle tanks and five armored personnel carriers. As having a tank break isa PITA and can also get you dead, I fix things when I think they're going to break instead of replacing them after being dragged in by a tow truck. So I've never been stranded. Even the wheel bearing fails gradually. I should also say that I drive very hard. We live in Boston and in strictly city driving got a little over 20 mpg. Best tank ever is 29.1. Average mpg is 24.5 to 25.5 in mixed driving. Average mpg on highway trips is 26-27 at 75-80 mph.

The odds of the engine blowing up are very, very low. The odds of having to replace the headgaskets in the range of 80 to 150K miles seem to be 1:5 down to 1:3. It's a $1,200 job, roughly. There is the possibility (but not probability) that more engine damage could occur. If it's a good price and the car fits your needs well, go for it. With two newer generation body styles out, the used price should be reasonable, now.

Ticking could be anything from a bad bearing to an out of adjustment valve. Taking a rubber hose and holding one end to your ear and moving it around helps isolate the sound if you don't have an engine stethescope. FWIW my car starts much more quietly with Castrol High Mileage.

Not if you put chalk marks on them....

Please not that while he says the car "feels stronger" he has no before-and-after performance data. Almost any change you make to a car makes it feel faster. When I raced, I was disappointed at how few changes improved the factory equipment, or made any change at all other than making more noise.

If you always wear your seatbelt, then you don't need the chime. But by all means let's expand the discussion to paternalism, maybe throw in 1st Amendment discussions, 2nd Amendment shouldn't be far behind, etc. I really don't care if someone is so dumb that they don't want to wear a motorcycle helmet, or a seatbelt - I just don't want to pay for the emergency or road crews who have to come out and scrape their brains off the pavement. But if you do a search on www.legacygt.com. there is a thread that details what to do. The number of times reported varies from 3 in 15 seconds on up. I can't seem to

Exactly! People who are happy with their cars don't bother venting on this forum. Many of the people who post frequently here have had a lot of problems with their cars, and openly and very emotionally (and often, sarcastically) vent. But if their Subaru is such a terrible car, why don't they unload it?

There are a lot of "glass half full" types on this forum. Some of the most negative people on this forum 1. still own them, and 2. are a minority who believes the cramped, slow, odd-looking older Subarus are the epitome of Subaru development. They think the more powerful 2.5 l engines are the Devil. I'm not sure why they continue to own these cars if they're so unhappy. I have a '97 and recently had the head gaskets done at 140,000 miles because I think everything else will go 200K and it's still my best choice. The fact is that Subarus remain one of the most all-around useful and reliable vehicles on the market, especially if you live in the snow belt. A certain percentage of the 2.5 engines have trouble with head gaskets, probably around 1/3rd and usually over 100,000 miles. If you want AWD and don't want a gas-guzzler, Subarus are the primary used choice. One plus is that they have a five year 60,000 mile powertrain warranty, so you won't get singed anytime soon even if you have some problem. They're not as big inside as the old Volvo wagons but are quite close in capacity to the newer ones - they're substantially narrower, but higher. Ride and handling are quite good, and I think the Outback ride height and suspension are great - you can load them to the gills, and rough dirt roads fully loaded are no problem. They really are quite good in snow. The used price is subject to local market conditions, equipment mileage and age. The Limited version seems to sell for a lot more relative to the standard Outback so that's the first place to look if you want to economize. The most useful feature in the Outback for cold climates - block heater and heated side mirrors and sets - was available as the Cold Weather package option. You can take a look at cars.com and see what others are available in your area. Three year old off-lease cars are usually pretty available, and a lot of people lease at the beginning of a model year so you're entering the season.

Is it only the newer Legacys that had the Alternator recall? They would not charge at high engine speed, so people would drive down the highway, get low voltage readings, pull off, alternator would function normally, they'd get back on the highway, etc. We never experienced the symptoms but one friend did on a '98 OBW and a mechanic replaced the alternator. Subaru later reimbursed him. You're the guy that had a radio and a bunch of emergency lights, right? Maybe now is the time to go to a higher output alternator. I thought you'd purchased an AGM battery, so it should still be on warranty?

I posted a message here weeks ago for Manchester, NH with no response. Took a look at the Mechan-X files on cartalk.com and there were a number of well-recommended garages. I can't imagine there are many garages in New England that haven't worked on plenty of Subrarus. http://www.cartalk.com/content/mechx/

Summary: leasing is often the least expensive way to drive a new car you can't otherwise afford. It makes sense for businesses that can write off the monthly payment as an expense rather than having to depreciate the car over five years. Businesses get to pay with pre-tax dollarsPrivate individuals do not. I leased one truck at work: the only advantage was not having to sell it, and I wound up buying it out of the lease and selling it, anyway. I've bought them outright, since. Otherwise you'll have paid a significant portion of the new price, while ending the lease without any asset. And still paying all the insurance (high for a new vehicle) and maintenance costs (low for a new vehicle). And incur significant additional costs if you go over the mileage or have anything beyond minimal wear and tear. Also beware that some of these lease deals are no bargain at all. I usually bring a financial calculator with me to any such negotiation. The guy trying to lease the stuff often doesn't even know what the imputed interest rate is - I've seen it as high as 15%! Most people don't bother to do the math on lease payments, they just take the path of least resistance. Subaru has some lease specials on manual shift 05's, I think. But you can also get low interest rates on leftover '04's and even on the '05's - often much lower than a used car. And as any discount or tradein counts towards the downpayment, even the up front cash outlay to buy new may be the same or less. Some excerpts from CR:

Consumer Reports tests cars on a 150 mile loop. The Forester got 25 mpg on their test. Their don't seem to be any actual tests of the Volvo, yet. A Ford Explorer is EPA rated for 15 mpg city, so they must get 25 mpg in the RW as well?

Where do you live? Here in MA and the Northeast old Subarus are rusted to bits. They're cramped, slow, rough riding, and odd looking to boot. I told the folks buying one of our 97 OBW about every conceivable problem they could have. Their answer, "It's still our best choice." They also own an Audi A4 and Subaru maintenance is cheap in contrast and the Sub is mch better in snow on their 1/4 long hilly, curvy driveway. I've owned two VW's and an Audi and yes they drive well and yes, they still have the same electrical problems they've had since the 70's. And head gasket failures or not, they still don't last as long as the Subaru four - one of mine needed a valve job at 74,000 and another needed valves and rings at not much over 100K. In five years everyone here is going to be talking about how expensive and complex the new Subs are (and what great performance they have) while others are lamenting the simple, reliable 95-99 OB. "All cars break down. A good car breaks down conveniently."

I have been searching both of our 1997 Outback Wagons and it seems there are no pots of gold hidden anywhere! I've also asked my friends to check theirs - ditto. It appears that Subarus actually cost money to maintain. And actually require some maintenance to go 200,000 miles. Of course, they still cost less to maintain than virtually any other AWD vehicle, and still last longer than virtually any other AWD vehicle, but I'm going back to 2WD land and moving inside a domed stadium so it won't snow anymore! (sorry, couldn't resist)

Well, at least you haven't lost your sense of humor!

The service record will be adequate, IF they record the problem as you describe. My mom's car had the 3.8 Ford V6 which was notorious for overheating. There was a "secret warranty" on the engine if certain conditions were met. When she brought in the car for overheating, the service writer wrote "Bad water pump" and we had to appeal the case to the Attorney General's office to get action. In that case, the dealership, Regan Ford of Salisbury, MA, was completely on our side and went to bat against Ford to have it fixed. Caveat.

Personally, I'd mail them a letter detailing the condition so that there's a history to refer to.

Known as Screw Extractors or "Easy Outs" there are hardened, tapered, left-hand thread bits with flats on the top so you can put a wrench on them. You drill a hole in the shaft and insert one of these, to back out the shaft.

Depends on the car, tire size, and tire. I don't get into religious arguments about it - I experiment and stick with what works. He's not likely to be pushing the cornering limits of the tire in a minivan, and other than a very hard ride he's probably not doing much. If he's showing excessive wear in the center tread, that's too high, for sure. No. As witnessed by your realtive who has overinflated his tires by 25%.These pressures aren't all that high - the D load rated tires on our cargo van are rated for something like 70 PSI. It takes a good 2,000 lbs to make the ride reasonable. We usually run them around 40 psi. Big trucks are even higher - as much as 100 psi. As they say, your mileage may vary, so max out your tires, drive down your favorite curvy, bumpy road, then let out two psi and try again until the ride/handling mix feels good.

You're not a drag racer - you don't have an immensely powerful car and you don't only drive in straight lines. Braking isn't worse with higher pressure (within normal operating range) than lower pressure. Handling isn't worse, because the higher pressure prevents the contact patch from rolling over. Rather than be argumentative, I simply suggested that you search more websites for a comprehensive view.... Try this. Take your Subaru to an autocross - it's a handling competition set up at an airport or parking lot, laid out with pylons. Or just spend some time cornering hard on your local roads - obeying all traffic laws, of course..... Look at the front tire sidewalls. You'll see scuff marks well up the sidewall of the tire. Increasing the pressure will stiffen the tire, keeping the tread on the ground. If you're the precise type, you can even take a white tire market and mark the sidewalls so you can see just how far up you go. This is also useful when buying a used performance car when you want to see how hard it has been driven. Most SUV's, especially those with beam axles, cannot generate enough cornering power to do this - they roll over, instead.... Any fundamental racing text will cover this in detail. http://auto.howstuffworks.com/tire4.htm http://www.geocities.com/motorcity/downs/3837/autoxfun.html http://www.miata.net/sport/Physics/10-GripAngle.html