slim_slc

awesome, thanks for all the help. So now I am looking for a 96-99 legacy, or a 95-96 OBW 5-spd. I'll let you know how my search goes and what I end up with. Peace out.

thanks for all the advice so far. keep it coming! yeah, I know subarus are a dime a dozen here in salt lake...and that gives me lots of opportunity to shop around and take my time. I am currently driving a toyota 4x4 that I have had since 1995 and sad to see it go. It has been wholly reliable and affordable to own and I am hoping that the Subaru will be the same, and have room for my growing family. I am leaning toward the Legacy L rather than the outback. It seems like 1 inch of ground clearance isn't really worth the extra cost, and the added risk of HG failure with the 2.5L engine. Is it true that the outback came out in 1995 with the 2.2L? Concerning transmissions...I am not leaning one way or the other on that one. An automatic would be fine, as would a manual. I will probably try to drive a few of each and get a feel for what works better for me. I know people have a preference for one or the other, but is it purely opinion, or is one regarded to be superior? I found a 97 legacy L with 64k miles for $5900...so I am confident that the good deals are out there...especially in utah where you can't look out the window without seeing 10 subarus. Please keep the advice coming.

I am in the market for a subaru wagon. I have had a lot of friends have great experience with them and I have narrowed down my search. I am interested in a either a legacy, or outback wagon, probably between 1995 and 1999, (yes I know the outback came out in 1996). In doing research it seems there have been massive numbers of head gasket failures in the 2.5 liter engine. This scares me, so I am probably looking for a 2.2 unless someone can convince me otherwise. What years of legacy had the 2.2 liter engine...I understand that the outback had the 2.5 from the beginning and in 2000 they addressed the issues and made the engine better, but that from 96-99 they are not a very good engine. I'm not being very clear here, I fear. Basically I'm looking for a good reliable car. Is the manual or the automatic generally looked at more favorably in regards to reliability? are there certain years that are known as lemons? certain years that are better? any advice? words of warning? thanks for the help in advance!