LPA Posted July 13, 2006 Share Posted July 13, 2006 Hello, I am thinking about buying a 2006 Outback wagon (either the 2.5i or the 2.5i XT) and had a few questions about repairs related to these models and Subaru in general. Are Subaru's considerably more expensive to repair than more common makes (i.e. Ford, Toyota, Chevy)? Since Subarus are not as common as other makes, is it difficult to find a mechanic (other than the dealer) that can work on a Subaru? Again, because Subarus are not as common as many other makes, is it difficult to find parts and do they seem expensive relative to those of more common vehicles? How about maintenance? Is is it difficult or costly to perform routine maintenance (oil changes, lubrication, etc)? Are these cars designed in such a way that maintenance is difficult or costly? Any thoughts and feedback will be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance. LPA Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
86subaru Posted July 13, 2006 Share Posted July 13, 2006 i guess it all depends on where you live, around here the dealer is 45 min away , as far as regular stuff , oil changes plugs, wires , cost about the same , but remember you will have AWD , as far as mechanics there are a few around here that are pretty good, Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nipper Posted July 13, 2006 Share Posted July 13, 2006 SUbarus are still fairly basic cars (no power sun visor or automatic glove box closers). They do need the fluids serviced at regular intervals, and are very sensative to mis matched tires (dont do it). Otherwise they are reliable cars. nipper Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idosubaru Posted July 13, 2006 Share Posted July 13, 2006 Subaru's aren't the weirdo mobiles that they may appear to be. it's an engine and transmission that mechanics will gladly work on if you like paying the bills on it. parts are not hard to find. the 2.5 motor has been around in various forms since 1996 so there are plenty of parts and manufacturers that supply stuff for them. for 100,000 miles and 5 years none of this should be an issue really as most newer cars don't have problems getting to that mileage with minimal to no repair costs outside of maintenance items. really depends more on the mechanic than the vehicle. subaru's are not special, but good/honest mechanics are. i see $1,000 repair estimates all the time from subaru dealers and mechanics on friends and family vehicles that i end up doing for next to nothing or isn't needed. is that subaru's fault..no the mechanic. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
seattlelegacy Posted July 13, 2006 Share Posted July 13, 2006 It may also be worth mentioning here that they are very easy to work on if you know the basics of turning a wrench. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gnuman Posted July 13, 2006 Share Posted July 13, 2006 It may also be worth mentioning here that they are very easy to work on if you know the basics of turning a wrench. I have to add my voice to this as well. my 92 Legacy is the first Subaru I have ever owned. I fell in love with the car the first time I opened the hood (I am a mechanic, and seeing how well laid out the engine bay is really got me hooked). Then I drove it, and fell in love all over again. Then I got underneath to have a look there. At that point there was no question that I would never own any other brand of car. The routine maintainance items (engine oil, gear oil for the transmission, thermostat and coolant access, and the like) were so easy to get at that I was amazed. On top of that, the car is way over-engineered. The transmission, for example, looks like it should be mounted in a truck, not in a small wagon. Actually, the transmission on my old minivan was smaller. . . That to say that Subarus are engineered to be highly maintainable, and to last forever (or a lot closer to it than any other car I have seen) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
porcupine73 Posted July 13, 2006 Share Posted July 13, 2006 Dude I wouldn't hesitate to buy a new Subaru. [new Baja turbo...mmmmm, excuse my drooling] Or even a used as it a big money saver. I've owned all Ford's in the past as my dad was a Ford employee and got the discount, but those vehicles were pure JUNK! I would've saved money buying Subaru's from the start. So many repairs on the Fords and they were hard to work on yourself. Have two used Subaru's now, only a couple of sensor problems, and SOOO easy to work on! Plenty of room! Plus the AWD is awesome if you get snow in the winter or like a little off-road action and still gets good gas mileage. Parts availablity is no issue, I order online out of SD at less than list price. Local dealer doubles the list price on walk-in parts sales. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LPA Posted July 14, 2006 Author Share Posted July 14, 2006 Thank you all for responding. Just wanted to get some feedback from current Subaru owners. I went to look at an Outback this afternoon and was really impressed. My only knock on the car is that the clutch and brake pedals seem a little too close to each other (at least compared to my 97 Maxima). Other than that, I really liked the car. One additional question. If I end up going for the turbo XT, the brochure recommends using premium unleaded. Would any of you consider using mid-grade or regular unleaded instead? I am curious as to why two cars with the same (or at least I think so) base engine require different fuels. As far as I know, the only difference is a turbo. Any thoughts and recommended links on the premium vs regular subject will be greatly appreciated. Again, thank you all for the responses and efforts. LPA Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unobtainium Posted July 14, 2006 Share Posted July 14, 2006 Remember that the turbo's job is to -stuff- the cylinder with way more burnable mixture than you can get into it with a normally aspirated (n/a) engine. That's the reason they specify premium fuel. Octane number is a measure of the fuel's ***resistance*** to burning off. You want the mixture to burn off reliably and progressively when the spark happens, and you especially do not want it burning off for other reasons like hot internal components or because the mixture is hot to begin with (which it is when it comes through the turbocharger). The turbo engines will try to save themselves by retarding the spark when they detect knock - which is poorly controlled burning of the mixture in the cylinder. That means the power goes down. In other words, if you want 250 hp from 2.5 liters, you have to pay to play. My EJ22 ('93) Legacy runs fine on regular, it delivers something like 130 HP. The Legacy GT takes premium. It is definitely more expensive to have the turbo car and it is worth fretting about until you push the accelerator down, that's when the smiles trump the cash flow worries. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nipper Posted July 14, 2006 Share Posted July 14, 2006 Thank you all for responding. Just wanted to get some feedback from current Subaru owners. I went to look at an Outback this afternoon and was really impressed. My only knock on the car is that the clutch and brake pedals seem a little too close to each other (at least compared to my 97 Maxima). Other than that, I really liked the car. One additional question. If I end up going for the turbo XT, the brochure recommends using premium unleaded. Would any of you consider using mid-grade or regular unleaded instead? I am curious as to why two cars with the same (or at least I think so) base engine require different fuels. As far as I know, the only difference is a turbo. Any thoughts and recommended links on the premium vs regular subject will be greatly appreciated. Again, thank you all for the responses and efforts. LPA the only differnce is aturb? thats the understatement of the year.. thats like saying the only differnce between a justy and a ferrari is few more cylinders. A turbo gets more air into the cylinder then a normally aspirated engine does. By doing this it raises the compression pressures. Knock is when you get auto ignition without the spark plug, due to high compression. This is a bad thing. Higher octane fuel can deal with higher combustion pressures without auto igniting. In a turbo, premium may be recmonded, but it is really mandatory. In a non turbo where premium is recomnded, you can experimnet to see if you can get away with it. http://auto.howstuffworks.com/turbo.htm nipper Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dpoppeli Posted July 14, 2006 Share Posted July 14, 2006 May be related to the uncomfortable seats. Things seem to be designed for a slightly smaller average person. Perhaps we ought to get use to it though - I can't see the continued use of gas to hall all that extra sheet-metal around. "My only knock on the car is that the clutch and brake pedals seem a little too close to each other (at least compared to my 97 Maxima). Other than that, I really liked the car. " Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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