joybell

I lost coolant in my 03 Forester during extremely cold days this winter. I took it to the dealer and they found faulty coolant hose clamps. The contraction that takes place during very cold temperatures was enough to have the coolant leak.

I think you are better off to sell it for whatever you can and buy an older model with a 2.2L engine.

I think Subaru should "give" an extended warranty with the purchase of each new car with the 2.5L engine. It sure would inspire confidence if Subaru would go out on a limb a little, and not the consumer. Owners of 2000-2002 models are being given the 8 year / 100,000 mile warranty when adding the coolant conditioner. New cars with basically the exact same engine should have the same warranty.

But isn't the EJ255 exactly the same engine as what's in the 2001, with maybe the coolant additive put in at the factory? Or has it been modified? Still, an engine with such a poor reliability rating should be discontinued. Check out this chart: http://autos.msn.com/research/vip/reviews.aspx?modelid=9667&trimid=-1&src=ratings&tab=4#rel Even if there are modifications, the engine has a bad reputation and I cannot see how anyone that has internet access, and even if he/she is a Subie fan, can purchase a new car with this engine in it. Why not bring back the 2.2L engine?

Gosh Amanda, isn't yours a 2003 Forester?

I think I'll take it to a different dealer this time.

My Forester 2003 2.5x MT is 9 months old. When it was about 2 months old I had problems with it. It idled roughly (rpms going up and down), and also occassionally but not always stalled on startup. The dealer "cleaned the idle valve" and told me that I wasn't driving it enough. It had 2,200kms at that time. Now it has almost 7,000kms and it's starting all over again. How many times will the dealer "fix" this problem under warranty? Can I expect this problem every 6 months?

I had a 93 Loyale wagon until last year when the rust ate too much of it away. I never had any issues with it, no trips to the dealer for warranty fixes ever. I can't say the same about my new Forester though. I wish Subaru would have kept making that wagon. I really wanted a new one exactly the same, except with maybe a 2.2L engine instead of the 1.8L. My brother in law has a 92 Loyale wagon, which he fixed up with some parts of my mine (hood, headlights, rear wiper motor..brass parts btw) before it went to the junk yard. It has about 250,000kms on it and no problems except rust. You can't kill them mechanically. I think Subaru got their repution from the Loyale and will lose it with the new Legacy.

However, what if the dealer puts the additive in "on the sly" on my next visit?

I am wondering if anyone has had that "coolant conditioner" added to their 2003 or 2004 Subaru and automatically got the warranty extension to 8 years or 100K as have the owners of 99-02 2.5L engines.

Well, you could get an extended warranty, and trade it in before that expires. Maybe by then Subaru will have seen the light and brought back the 2.2L engine. That's what I'm hoping for.

Read this thread on the head gasket leak on a 2003 Forester with 46,000 miles, and Subaru put stop leak conditioner in the coolant instead of fixing it: http://www.ultimatesubaru.org/forum/showthread.php?t=13950

Yes but lately VW (like the "bug") reliability is even worse than that of older Foresters with the Phase 1 engine. I have also heard that the head gasket failure rate is somewhere around 20% for those Phase 1 engines.... try a search on this board because I think this is where I read that. I also could have had a very good cash deal on a 1998 Forester as well, but when I took it to an independant garage to have a $100 checkup on it they found too much wrong and I backed out and bought a new Forester, and make payments. Was your purchase agreement conditional on inspection? Otherwise, I suggest a 1998 Impreza wagon with the problem-free 2.2L engine. That would be a much better buy.

Then it should have been sold with hubcaps.

Well, here is a pic of my 9 month old Forester's wheels. Is this normal?