doodleallday

I know you guys warned me against paying $4.9k. I wound up talking the guy down to $4k, but I got it from a consignment dealer, so he took advantage of Kelley Blue Book and my being an inexperienced 21-year old female without a ride. My mechanic said I shouldn't pay over $3.5k, but I was in utter despiration. It's listed as a 1997 Subary Outback Legacy, green with grey cloth interior. (I hate leather.) They replaced the standard am/fm with an am/fm/cd player and the a/c runs perfect. It had 155808 miles when I got it, and the mechanic was saying he doesnt think it'll last me more than another 50-60k. Is this a possibility? I hope it'll last me another 100k! Anyway. It's in good condition, the timing belt was replaced recently, some wires and plugs and stuff were replaced the day they put it up for sale, and I checked it for torque bind. My baby spins in circles without any shaking or rattling or any of that! The same person has owned the car from 1997 to now and the lady kept all of her service records, the Carfax was completely clean, etc. The only down side is that I cannot find whether or not the head gaskets have been replaced. Of course, there's a whole lot of paperwork to dig through... I'll try to post pictures later, once I get the turtle wax I bought today all over 'er. Has anyone had an issue with bass causing the rearview mirror to rattle? Well, not rattle... but make it so that when I look out through it, the stuff behind me is moving all fast with the beat and kinda makes me dizzy. I'm a total idiot when it comes to stereos, but I think I got it turned down enough for it not to make me sick every time I look behind me.

Checked Kelley Blue Book and it has 1997 Subaru Outback Wagon with 155k mileage in Good Condition for $4700. I talked the guy down to $4k. I put down a $250 deposit and am taking it to a mechanic Monday to get it looked at. It has all of the service records, including a timing belt that was replaced at 130k, oil changes every 3k, etc. but nothing about a head gasket replacement. But we'll see what the mechanic says. Thanks for all the help!

Lemme speak to my folks. I'm that 21-year old college kid that people have mentioned in this thread. I have about $5k to buy me a car and groceries for the rest of the semester, and am hoping to save $2k for plane tickets to study abroad in the spring. I am broke as all get-out. But in love with Subaru.

Where should I look for cheaper? I've checked Autotraders.com and Cars.com, as well as the local paper. I cannot find anything cheaper than the 97 Outback for $4900 with 155,808 miles. It's in great condition and all service records are on hand, so I can check to see if the head gaskets have been replaced. But if it's apparent that I can get it cheaper, where should I check? I'm needing wheels this before class Monday, preferably. My Volvo overheated to where smoke billows out from under the hood when I drive it, has an expensive oil leak, and the a/c unit is so old it would cost $2k to replace the entire system just to fix the a/c.

Dang, if you were anywhere near Charlotte, NC I'd come take it off your hands and get the maintenance done myself. I'm looking at a 97 Outback with 155k miles for $4900 and that's the cheapest I've found.

Thanks so much! I had read about the head gaskets being a potential issue for 94-96 subarus, but didn't see that it could be for 96-99 as well. The car salesman told me that the subaru had only been owned by one woman for the past 10 years, that they have all of the service records, and that the owner just spend $750 on new plugs, wires, fuel filter, and fuel injection cleaning. I'm gonna check it out at 3:30 this afternoon and will be certain to test for torque bind and ask about the head gaskets. $4900 is the cheapest I've ever seen a subaru. I've been looking at listings on and off since I fell in love back in May, but they're generally no less than $7-8k. Hopefully I will be able to talk the owner down to $4k, but we'll see. Perhaps trading my 740 GL Volvo would get me down to $4k at least. My Volvo is utter crap now, but I've sworn my life by it as it saved me in a terrible wreck back in 2003. Upon reading that Outbacks have great safety, I decided to give a different Make a chance.

I'm looking into a 97 Subaru Outback with 155,808 miles for $4900. Is this a good deal? I've heard from a friend that Subarus are like Volvos in that they will hold their mileage well for a long time. I plan on getting a new Subaru in the future, once I have a career to afford one. However, being a full-time college student, I'm limited in my spending. Is this generally a decent car? I drove a relatively new Outback Ltd up through the Rockies back in May and fell in love. I just wondered what their safety, gas mileage innercity/highway, repairs, etc. is like. I plan to check Consumer Reports up at the library this afternoon. Any tips/suggestions would be helpful. I'm a complete Subaru noob, and I dont know jack about cars in general. :/ I just know I need an upgrade from my decrepit 1989 Volvo 740 GL that has smoke billowing out from under the hood.