Love. It's what makes a subaru a subaru. I get it now.

[eilishp]

After one day driving my new Outback. I get it. I have never driven a car like that I LOVED before. I find myself wondering why anyone would drive anything else.

[jesseP]

Originally Posted by eilishp

After one day driving my new Outback. I get it. I have never driven a car like that I LOVED before. I find myself wondering why anyone would drive anything else.

I recently got mine too and have enjoyed it so far. But I must admit that I'm scared to death with every other thing I read being about them having nothing but problems. I'll reserve my ultimate judgement on Subaru when I get more experience. But my fiance's parents had an older Forester and it had a million and one problems as well. And it didn't have but 150K miles on it when they junked it for a Prius.

[TxTony]

I am only a year into the Subie thing..coming from a Jeep Wrangler I still am not into the whole Subie thing yet like the Jeep thing..I am kind of with JesseP on this..the more I read it seems like there are a lot of problems mentioned and unhappy people..along with happy owners as well...I know there is no perfect car and my last Jeep had the infamous stall issue that eventually got sorted out...I can say from the year that I have had a Subaru I do enjoy the vehicle and the versatility of it a lot..it is kind of strange seeing a lot of the negative stuff posted about them..I can deal with little quirky things that go wrong occasionally..part of owning a car or anything else..I guess us new Subie owners will have to wait and see with time

[jesseP]

I think part of my issue is that I'm reading too much. I've bought old cars, brand new cars, 2 year old cars... you name it. But one thing I've never done til now is look all over for reviews on the car. I hope that all my worries are nothing but a few bad examples making a lot of noise.

[TxTony]

Originally Posted by jesseP

I think part of my issue is that I'm reading too much. I've bought old cars, brand new cars, 2 year old cars... you name it. But one thing I've never done til now is look all over for reviews on the car. I hope that all my worries are nothing but a few bad examples making a lot of noise.

Same here...I never belonged to any Honda forums. I did belong to some Jeep Owners Forums. The main reason was to see what dudes where doing with suspension and lifts and motor mods. I remember when they went to the JK model...I never read so many complaints and grips about a vehicle...seems the JK has done pretty well and I would not hesitate getting another one someday..I say we just drive our Subies and enjoy them!

[cardoc]

I enjoy mine.

Super Charged Outback VDC Build Slide - YouTube

Super Charged Outback VDC Build Slide - YouTube

[vr4Legacy]

Originally Posted by jesseP

I think part of my issue is that I'm reading too much. I've bought old cars, brand new cars, 2 year old cars... you name it. But one thing I've never done til now is look all over for reviews on the car. I hope that all my worries are nothing but a few bad examples making a lot of noise.

You hit the nail on the head.

IMO, the biggest thing to look at is sales volume and increase in sales volume. Subaru has had steadily increasing sales numbers for a few years now. There is a reason for it. If they churned out unreliable, cheap products, their sales would show. GM comes to mind...

[mcbrew]

Every car forum is filled with horror stories. The bad stories get all the attention, and usually aren't even as bad as they sound. People complaining that their brake bass wore out at 50,000 miles and such. Also, a lot of the thread names are ominous sounding, like "CVT problem?", which leads you to believe that someone had a messed up transmission, but turns out that what they are experiencing is normal. The VW TDI forum is full of threads with names like "Blown turbo" and it turns out that it was just a loose airbox or a dry rotted vacuum hose. People don't read the whole 30 page thread to find out that it wasn't a blown turbo.

Anyway, Subaru is considered one of the most reliable manufacturers. Also, people like the cars enough to keep up on the maintenance and fix the little things that pop up from time to time. You find a lot of people dumping other brands when it needs a head gasket, trans service, timing belt, or other expensive work. Just about everyone I know who drives a Subaru has more than 150,000 miles and loves it.

[Sequoia225]

Originally Posted by jesseP

I recently got mine too and have enjoyed it so far. But I must admit that I'm scared to death with every other thing I read being about them having nothing but problems. I'll reserve my ultimate judgement on Subaru when I get more experience. But my fiance's parents had an older Forester and it had a million and one problems as well. And it didn't have but 150K miles on it when they junked it for a Prius.

Im not nor have ever been a "car guy". I drove Toyotas, had about 3 used and one new (Tercels and Celicas) when I noticed the outback in about 2001. LOVED it. When I was ready to buy at the end of 2002, I had looked at many reviews. All I learned was the car I loved was actually a GOOD car that rated high in safety and reliability. I bought and for the 240K its driven, I have said consistently that it is the first car I ever felt I "loved", and through owning it, and still now that its about dead - I only want another to replace it.

Thing is, if you look on a forum like this, the MAJORITY of people you get are going to be people with problems, or people with questions about things they dont like. This is a SMALL section of people compared to those that own outbacks/Subarus.

Most that own a Subaru (or any car), and have no issues, dont feel any need to say anything online anywhere.

Also, it depends on how the owner drives and takes care of the car.
Foresters are KNOWN to be reliable cars- so one story of someone with problems isnt exactly proof otherwise. I know someone who has a 2003 Forester and its approaching 200K and hasnt had anything major wrong.
But again, that alone isnt proof its a great reliable car.
The end user has a LOT to do with how well the car does, also, the climate the car is in has a bit to do with it too.

So take what you read as info but not as THE end word.

[El Guapo]

I love my 2012 Subaru Outback. However, after only 6k they are replacing the CVT transmission. It's a testament to the vehicle that even though I got the short straw on the transmission, I still miss the heck out of it. No manufacturer will be 100%. It's the way they handle the imperfect ones that matters to me. In that regard Subaru beats the snot out of Mazda of which I owned 3 previously. Mazda service was terrible and I'll never consider a Mazda again in my life.