740gle Posted June 25, 2009 Share Posted June 25, 2009 My 02' GT started disintegrating, it only has 125Kmiles on it. had to replace oil pump at 80K, Had to replace headgaskets only a month ago, and now transmission is acting up, dealer claims, that all AT fluid lines are rotten, and need complete replacement. Exhaust is rusty, but still OK, .... It started showing rust, and the dual sunroof seems to have a small leak... I like the car, and was hoping to keep it for few more years to get it up ti about 200Kmiles, but wonder if it is possible? What are the next repairs down the line? AWD system? CV joints? ...? What is the most miles on 02' Legacys, or its closest cousins (OBW) that people on this list have? I am wondering whether to keep mine, or start shopping for the newer ones? Coming from the old VOlvos - I am disappointed... Thanks for your inputs, -Michael 02' Legacy GT wagon - 125Kmiles 90' Volvo 740 GLE 201Kmiles 98' Volvo S90 113Kmiles... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idosubaru Posted June 25, 2009 Share Posted June 25, 2009 (edited) you should be fine to 200,000 miles with maybe one more repair between now and then. go for it, 200,000 is very reasonable if the car has been taken care of. the sunroof leak is probably minor - the drains get clogged in all sunroofs. clean out the drain. as for the transmission "acting up" - if it's just the fluid lines then have them replaced. it's cheap and easy to fix. rest assured the quality of the car/assembly isn't to blame, this is rare on Subaru's...well sort of. it's obvious this thing is getting hit by issues of some sort. the clamps rusted badly, which deteriorated the hoses. doesn't usually happen, but the right salt gets in the wrong place and it causes problems. exhaust - all replaceable, again, thanks to the rust belt there. the oil pump should not have been replaced - you got hosed on that deal. blame the mechanic, not the car on that one. at most your old pump only needed resealed - tighten the backing plate screws, replace the oring and seal - 10 dollars in part (plus labor). the headgaskets are a sore spot on the EJ25. they have an extended 100,000 mile warranty on them for your year, looks like you just missed that. i've heard of some folks getting them replaced at just beyond 100,000 but you were probably way off. your timing belt and water pump should have been replaced at 105,000 miles. I assume it was replaced with the oil pump. Most mechanics don't do much more than replace the belt though which is a bit short sighted. with the S90 being rear wheel drive, the subaru probably sees the majority of your winter driving, so it's getting all the hard work. the rougher conditions are harder on the vehicle..particularly a number of the components you're mentioning. Edited June 25, 2009 by grossgary Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
740gle Posted June 25, 2009 Author Share Posted June 25, 2009 Thanks for the encouragement. It was leaking oil at 80K, may be you are right actually, it was few years ago, they may have replaced just the seals then, not the whole pump. I'd have to check my records, but that was mostly labor. And yes, they did replace the TB then. I'll probably keep it, not sure what can I get for it as a trade-in... It may well be better to just keep it and run for a while. How do I get to the sunroof drains? -Michael Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idosubaru Posted June 25, 2009 Share Posted June 25, 2009 You know, I've never had to clean mine yet so I'm not sure. One of my Legacy's sunroofs leaks only when the car is parked nose down at an extreme angle, otherwise it never leaks a drop. I should probably look into that. Oh gotcha on the oil pump, you're right, they probably just replaced the seals. I typically replace them all with any timing belt change. For a few dollars and the labor already done, it's kind of a no brainer to swap out a seal that only costs a couple dollars but requires the timing belt (and all that labor) to get to it again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Patrickjd9 Posted June 26, 2009 Share Posted June 26, 2009 Depends on the sort of driving you've been doing. If your car has 125K miles of rush hour commuting from Northern NJ to Brooklyn, it may be 20K miles from the crusher:eek:. For more normal driving, your car is having mostly middle age repairs. The transmission lines are odd, though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wxman Posted June 26, 2009 Share Posted June 26, 2009 My 2000 Outback (130K) had been flawless for most of its life (only fluids, plugs, brakes & tires), but it has dinged me lately. However, I considered some of the repairs to be normal wear. - Had the water pump, tensioner, and front seals done at 105K with the timing belt. - Both front wheel bearings went bad around 120K. Ride was getting a bit rough so I also had the struts changed at this time. The right side inner CV boot was cracked and the axle was changed too at this time. - PS rack started leaking badly around 122K, so it was replaced along with the outer tie rods. - Head gaskets went at 125k. The engine was pulled for the repair and had a complete reseal. Runs/drives like new now. Hopefully I'm done for a while! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
edrach Posted June 26, 2009 Share Posted June 26, 2009 I bought our '97 Impreza L wagon with 125K on it. It started burning oil shortly thereafter. I had a rebuilt engine put into it and now have 165K on it. I hope to keep it to 250K or more (that's when I usually sell my cars). But I don't have the east coast rust to contend with any longer. As a "junk yard dog" I see lots of early legacies and occasional Imprezas. If the car hasn't been in an accident, 200K to over 300K is not that rare. On the other hand, the cars I see with 150K or less all have significant body damage from some type of accident. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
740gle Posted June 26, 2009 Author Share Posted June 26, 2009 Depends on the sort of driving you've been doing. If your car has 125K miles of rush hour commuting from Northern NJ to Brooklyn, it may be 20K miles from the crusher:eek:. For more normal driving, your car is having mostly middle age repairs. The transmission lines are odd, though. No, mostly commuting west against traffic, and ski trips up North... highway 80-90%. Yes, it started getting rusty lately, and these AT lines just ticked me off. Got to drive the 09' OBW - the most basic version. It has drum brakes, can you believe that...? Otherwise - nice car, although this new AT is even slower, than the one I have now... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vincentmoy Posted June 26, 2009 Share Posted June 26, 2009 No, mostly commuting west against traffic, and ski trips up North... highway 80-90%.Yes, it started getting rusty lately, and these AT lines just ticked me off. Got to drive the 09' OBW - the most basic version. It has drum brakes, can you believe that...? Otherwise - nice car, although this new AT is even slower, than the one I have now... From what I heard, AT in Subarus are a pain. Torque Blind and stuffs. If I am getting another subaru I'll make sure it's a MT. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Patrickjd9 Posted June 26, 2009 Share Posted June 26, 2009 No, mostly commuting west against traffic, and ski trips up North... highway 80-90%. Good thing. About the only thing that survives much over 150K in in the 5 boroughs is the Crown Vic. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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