suberdoberman

What should I say when the wife says, "OK. You want to buy a commuter car that has 150K and gets 21-22 mpg ? Are you an idiot?" I need a good come back. John

Thanks everyone for your advice so far. I just talked to the owner--here's some more info. 1) He's selling it 'cause he just bought an '02 Impreza Outback. 2) No torque bind (assuming he knows what he's talking about--he seemed familiar with the term at least) 3) No rust 4) No torn CVs or axle boots Price is $3K Bad part: his estimated mpg is 21-22. He gets 240--260 per tank, fiills up at 11 o 12 gal. point, doesn't believe running tank to when light comes on. My wife is still against it; she just can't get her head around the 150K and the bad mileage. She'd like me to get this 98 Corolla that is starting at $4K with 90K mileage. I don't know if the Corolla guy would even come down. She'd also like to see me with 96 Jetta with 60K original miles at $3650. Now, we've owned 2 MKIII Jettas and had no problems with them while I have owned 2 80s Subs and they were replete with probs. My spending limit is exactly $3K and the Outback owner is pretty firm at that price. I'm paralyzed on what my next move should be. John

Thx for the replies. I'm suddenly a little scared about pulling the trigger on this. Seems like a lot of things to look for and that could go wrong at any time. Of course, that's the case with any high mileage car. But I guess things will be more expensive with the AWD thrown in? Are Outbacks easy to fix in the driveway? My neighbor, who is a mechanic, cringed and said, "Don't buy a Subaru. Hate them" when I mentioned this '96. He'd reather see me with the 96 Jetta--easier to fix, less complicated, etc. But I lOVE Sub Wagons..! I'm in a quandary.

Hello Subaru Gods! I’m looking at this 1996 Subaru Outback Wagon with 150K miles as a commuter car, probably will only put 8-9K miles on it a year. I wanted to get everyone’s opinion on this (I’ve been a lurker for a few months—I used to own an 85 and 92 Loyale wagons respectively—and love to read about the old Subs. This would be my first new gen). The car’s details: The seller is the 2nd owner, has had the car for over 5 years. Brand New Inspection and new brakes and rotors. Recent timing belt and water pump. Bridgestone Tires are nearly new (maybe 5000 miles on them). 5 speed manual Transmission. Air Conditioning is ice cold. This car looks and runs great!! Obviously, no one can predict the future, but here are my Qs/concerns: 1) Would this have the potential to last another 100K, or given what you guys all know, would the repairs start piling up exponentially as it got older? 2) I’m not sure, but I’m assuming it’s the 2.2L engine. Not prone to HG failure, but if it was, would it have probably been fixed already at this high mileage? 3) Does “torque bind” affect manual trans? 4) Assuming no or minimal rust on this body (I haven’t yet looked at it), could the body last another 100k? 5) What else can go wrong at the car’s current mileage that I should try to catch before buying? 6) Could the AWD system start failing soon? 7) Could there be strut/axle issue with these models and with this mileage? 8) Will the car self-destruct if I don’t keep the tires at optimum air pressure at all times (I’m joking here, but it seems like this is an issue with AWD and Subarus). My wife is against buying a Subaru, plus one that has 150K on it but I just have this love for them. My other candidate is a 1996 VW Jetta with low miles. This will get better mileage and won’t have AWD potential repair problems, but it just doesn’t grab the emotions like a Sub. Thanks for any input. John