piperfection

Fairfax???? Fairtax!!! Yes!!

Thanks Fairfax and dj. Yes, you're right. While there does not APPEAR to be water damage (dirt, stains, mud, smells,etc.), the Carfax DID mention water damage, so somehow I think that has to be it. Just need to get the BUI replaced, and I guess the proprietary tech means I have to go with a local dealer on this one.

Got this car from private party back east and drove it out to CA. 30k miles on it. Generally very good condition. Before I left I had Subaru dealer check it out. Weird dashboard lights stuck on -- tire pressure, hill assist -- and backup lights permanently on. Tech there was great, spent a lot of time checking it out and running tests. He was able to turn off backup lights and said I'd be okay driving it but that the body integrated unit needs to be replaced. I have a local independent mechanic who is great, but he says a Select Monitor System is needed to have security code access to program the unit and it's a proprietary Subaru item. Apparently there are some independents that have that, but they are very rare -- in most cases your only choice is Subaru dealer. Subaru dealers in my area (Sacramento) generally have poor Yelp reviews. I called Maita and, to keep it short, their comments inspired zero confidence that they would take responsibility for the problem. If anyone knows of a good independent mechanic who can handle this that would be great. Otherwise I will try to get a sense of the best Subaru dealer within an hour or so and take the plunge.