I'm looking for a used Subaru Outback and the only ones I'm finding for sale at the moment have high mileage or really high mileage. I don't really know anything about Subaru's (this would be my first) except the head-gasket issues that I've read about.
The cleanest looking one I've found is a 2006 2.5i Limited with 245,000 miles on it for $4200. I'm I crazy for even considering a car with this many miles, or do these things just (run forever) like I've heard? The guy admits that its got a slow oil and coolant leak, that he said it's had since he bought it over 30,000 miles earlier. Is this a good price? I'm just concerned that if I buy it I'll just have to turn around and put $1500 into it for head gasket repair. Thoughts?
Oil/coolant leak is very likely the head gasket- if the first set was replaced w/o removing the engine, they could be due again. I just passed on a fairly clean 05 limited with 112k for 5000. 4200 strikes me as high for a car with that mileage, unless it's spotless.
It was not an outback but i bought a Legacy SS that had 289k, WITH ALL SERVICE RECORDS. I sold it with 310k (Hard miles and 4 rallyx events and this is the 1 year of the sale), and its still going the new owner i checked in with said its at 324K and going strong. Long story short, if it has records and everything is honest, I wouldn't really worry, gone are the days of 100k and the car is a money pit. Also another factor is if it was city miles or highway. One of my buddies that just got here came from MD, but lived in Pennsylvania had a subaru, but over 250k on that bad boy.
When I read high miles, I expected like 120k or so. When I was looking I was having a hard time finding any 3rd Gen's with less than 100k on them. I ended up finding mine '09 with just under 90k on it. After I bought it another one popped up for sale an 06 looks to be a limited or LL Bean with less than 80k. Still happy with mine(as it's a manual).
I would say that $4200 is a little high, especially with the leaks.
A few years ago I bought my Forester for $3500 cash with 166k on it. It was spotless cosmetically and had a vanilla folder with full records from two adult owners. I'd say that guy wants too much, as obviously the HGs are toast. Keep looking. It's that time of year when owners get itchy to make a move and this a good time to find something.
To add to my post above, I just bought an 05 3.0 LL Bean wagon with 199k on it. Carfax shows it as one owner, with all services done by the dealer. It was driven 22k/yr for 9 years, so all highway miles. It'll want brakes and a rear wheel bearing, but it's solid and runs and drives beautifully. I'm coming out of an 03 with 165k, and I have no worries about this car with 200k on it. It's rust-free, and I plan to drive it another 100k at least. Gave 4300 for it, BTW.
My 2005 Outback 2.5i I just bought has 277,395 Km's on it but it is a local car with all maintenance receipts since the warranty expired. Recent work includes head gaskets, timing belt, wheel bearings and steering box replacement amongst other things. I'm hoping it'll make another 100,000 kms. It has some rock chips but no rust that I can find. Drivers seat has a seam that is coming apart and the interior is generally in a 'tired' condition. I paid $4200 Cdn for it. I drove it the 135 miles home and it averaged 7.4 L/100kms which is 37 MPG imperial. I don't thing this is bad for a high miler.
I was debating whether that's too high of a price or not for that year/mileage.
That was before I saw that it has headgaskets leaking.
I wouldn't recommend anyone buying that.
I'd find another one that is leaking at the headgaskets and then have it properly repaired under your watch.
1. resurface the heads
2. use Subaru Turbo EJ25 headgaskets.
That is a great way to get into a used Subaru. An immaculate one owner, all service records is nice....but hard to find and often pricey.
Doing what I suggested you likely get it cheaper and have higher quality head gaskets.
I just bought a 98 legacy outback a week ago. It has 176k miles on it and is running strong. Guess how much I paid? $2700 cash. since then i have spent about $200 make it nice i still need to install a new stereo and steering wheel other then that no issues. Little rust but not so much on the undercarriage's. I looked at about 4 before I got this one, 1 1998 2 2004 and 2009. Two of them were sold within a week or looking at them. They go fast and depending on your budget you can get a great one for under 10k easy. I wouldn't buy one with more than 200k miles and a clean title and good service history, Hope I helped.
You're not crazy to consider a car with that many miles, but a Subaru OB that is leaking oil and coolant for $4200 is a ripoff IMO. In fact, any Subaru with that many miles is a real gamble. Subies are durable, and they can run quite a while with enough mechanical repairs, but their long term quality just average. Honda/Toyota and their luxury brands Acura/Lexus rule the long term quality world.
I'll agree on the price of that with those problems. Way too much.
I'd have to say a lot of it depends on how it was maintained. I usually take a "study" with a grain of salt, as they're usually always in a controlled environment.
I'll put it this way... my '01 Outback VDC was much more solid, reliable and durable at 245,000 miles than my '11 Mazda 3 with 200,000 LESS miles... and my '12 Sonata SE... and my NEW '14 Elantra GT... and my '05 Passat GLS 4Motion with 100k... and I could go on.
I drove the Outback on a 2,500 mile trip without batting an eye. I wouldn't leave town in the Passat.
Subie-newbie here... GF is interested in getting an Outback to replace her aging 98 Camry with 220K on it. So, local guy has an 07 Outback with 165K miles on it. HGs and TB have been just done. $5500 Pics show it to be in excellent cosmetic condition. I'm a bit concerned about the high mileage as I'm not familiar with what all else might be about to go wrong. How are the auto transmissions in these? Suspension? Other areas to take a hard look at? I'm in favor of keeping the Camry which runs great and has had plenty of maintenance on it. But, things like AC are getting weak, etc.
I see lots of OBs with around 100K on them but, from what I hear, I would be looking at head gaskets real soon with those. Prices on those run in the 10K range.
The transmissions last mostly forever if maintained. Rear suspension is a weak spot in those cars. Budget for new struts and read the 3rd generation suspension thread, at least a little of it.
Honestly, comparing a Camry with 220k and an outback with 165k seems like a sideways step. Subarus are generally good for a lot of miles, but toyotas are one of the few cars that are often better that late in the game. I don't think I would make that trade unless I had a pressing need for something about the outback- wagon size, ground clearance, AWD etc.
The only other thing I'd consider is that an '07 Outback was built to beat a much more stringent crash test than a '98 Anything.
Thanks for the info rasterman! Yeah, my gut also says that the Subie with 165K isn't going to be a real step up from the Camry with 220K. So, gonna pass on that one. Maybe see what comes up in an Outback with under 100K on it at a reasonable price with new headgaskets ;-) Thanks again!
Oh, and also agree about the crash protection... one other reason for seeking a replacement for the old Camry.
Okay, so I missed the 2.5i with really high mileage. Now I have another issue. It seems everyone is trying to get rid of there Outback XT turbo's, because that's about all that I'm seeing at the moment. Of course they are charging a HUGE premium because its the XT. I've got 3 of them and all are at least $2000 above KBB. They are all 2005 models and all between 120,000 - 150,000 miles.
I went and test drove one. I was really interested in it. I liked the way it drove and the power from the turbo was nice. right when I set off on the test drive I got a nasty noise coming from right behind me, growling (I'm thinking wheel barring). It was so load I couldn't even really hear anything else. Anyway, besides that we found a bit of an oil leak, and the brake warning light came on right after we set off and didn't go out. The guy was asking $7500 for 120,000 mile car and wouldn't even consider moving more than around $300 for all these issues. The other 2 outback XT's are basically priced the same (I think they are just looking at what others are pricing at). One of them seams like he isn't going to move much on price either, but one looks promising and may be willing to negotiate. He is a Subaru tech and just "Acquired" a 2005 with a blown turbo that he has replaced along with some other things in the front steering joints. My problem is what is the best way for me to find out if there was engine damage from the first turbo failure (he said it was checked over at the dealer he works and there was none)? After reading here about the 2005 XT should I even be considering a XT turbo? Is it worth it? I take pretty good care of my cars and can do the required 3750 oil change.
The market for them is weird. Dead-engine hulks are worth $2k-3k, totally cherry low miles examples are still getting $20k+.
At this point, nothing is more valuable than a continuous history record of the car. The biggest problem is that after a turbo goes, it is not practical to disassemble the rest of the engine to determine additional damage. You can do it, but it's an insane amount of work. So you have to clean a few things, replace a few accessories, apply everything you remember about the turbo death event itself and hope for the best. If you weren't around to witness the turbo dying, you're really flying blind.
If you don't know the history, make sure you keep a large cash reserve after the purchase, just in case. If that doesn't work for your finances, look for something other than an XT.
Thanks, the guy that bought the car is just trying to get a quick resell so I hope I can get a good deal on it. I guess the turbo just went out, so I'm going to try and get the previous owners information and see if he can give me the details of exactly how it failed and what the service department told him (because whatever they told him he decided to get rid of the car rather than get it fixed) that's how the current owner ended up buying it from him.
So I've test driven three 2005 XT's now and they have all been junk. There was something wrong with everyone of them. This latest one I just got back test driving had the radiator blow on the test drive and the check engine light comes up on the dash. The code come up as something to do with the wastgate solenoid, and the turbo had just been replaced. I'm really not having any luck finding an Outback!
Take your time. You don't want to be buying a money pit and it seems you're doing a good job of avoiding one so far. Does seem like you're experiencing during test drives what others have only immediately after purchase. And many of those purchased without warranties.
If you want one it will happen. Just wait for the right one.
What could the radiator cracking on the test drive mean? The turbo did just go out, he said it was exhaust side. There was also a check engine light for a wastgate solenoid (I wouldn't think you should get that with a brand new turbo installed)? He also said that oil pan was dropped and it was checked for metal and the engine checked out. These turbos especially one where it has gone out scar the crap out of me. Since I really have know way of knowing the circumstances surrounding the failure and if it had caused damage to the engine (no way am I prepared to drop a new engine in a car). I'm wondering if I can call the dealer that serviced to car last and get some information on what they diagnosed was wrong and in need of repair after the turbo failed.
I know this is an old post but was reading it via a search and am hoping for some input. My 2010 Outback has 196,000 miles on it. I had it since 50k. Ive changed the oil religiously and had the timing belt changed at 105k. I have zero leaks of any sort and I havent changed any other fluids other than oil and antifreeze.
I would like to keep this car another year and not put too much money into it. Any suggestions on what I really should do now as a precaution?
Thanks.
Maybe the water pump as well while doing the timing belt. Also the diff fluids if they have not been changed for a long time. 196k miles and no cvt fluid change ? that is good.
I ended up buying a mint 2011 with 98,000 miles on her. She sat around for a year until I turned my lease 2013 Chevy Volt and then it was my daily for a year until last May when I bought my new 2017 Volt and now she sits under the car port again most days. I switched to a high mileage full synthetic about a year ago and had to get some Subaru coolant to top it off, but that's all I've done to it with 120,000 mile on her now. I need to do the timing belt on mine. I'd say just keep changing the oil and keep your fingers crossed. So far mine hasn't had any leaks and the only issue I have is the **** idle with the HVAC system on keeps throwing the check engine, brake, traction control, and cruse flashing warning lights, but they go off if I leave the air con off for 2 or 3 runs. Gotta take it into the dealer (for the first time since I bought it) because it's starting to bug me.
Thanks for the great info. Just one last question. Is the cvt like a regular trans mission where if you don't change it in a long time, it may cause a problem to change it now?
I think there's an XT thread on here somewhere that describes the responsibilities of an XT owner. IIRC if you need a daily driver and aren't continuously fastidious about scheduled maintenance, don't get one. My 2.5i sounds like a sewing machine and can hardly get out of it's own way getting on the freeway, but it's adequate for what I need it to do. If (God forbid) I ever decide to get a different OB it'll be a six-banger.
Thanks. Maybe I should just get rid of it at 205K before the belt goes (hopefully) and not incur any more costs. I'm confused but I will figure something out. Thanks for the great info and points!
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