[coman61]

Hi all. I'm new to the forums and also to Subaru. Well not yet actually but hopefully soon. I have been looking at outback's for a couple of months now and as bad as I want one for a winter commuter here in NE Ohio it scares the crap out of me reading the stories about the head gaskets and timing belts. It seems like it is pretty tough to get a low mileage OB around here and if one comes up it is usually gone the same day.
I have been looking at 2 cars one is a 2005 with 135K on it with multiple owners and the other is a 2009 one owner with 146K on it. Both seem to have about the same features and condition is about the same on both. I guess this really comes down to the year. If it were you would you select the older car with less miles or the newer one with slightly higher miles? Also are there any tell tale things I should be looking for?
I would also like to pull a small trailer with a lawn tractor. Should I be looking at H6's only. Gas mileage is not that big of a deal to me.

 

[tuswm]

Hi all. I'm new to the forums and also to Subaru. Well not yet actually but hopefully soon. I have been looking at outback's for a couple of months now and as bad as I want one for a winter commuter here in NE Ohio it scares the crap out of me reading the stories about the head gaskets and timing belts. It seems like it is pretty tough to get a low mileage OB around here and if one comes up it is usually gone the same day.
I have been looking at 2 cars one is a 2005 with 135K on it with multiple owners and the other is a 2009 one owner with 146K on it. Both seem to have about the same features and condition is about the same on both. I guess this really comes down to the year. If it were you would you select the older car with less miles or the newer one with slightly higher miles? Also are there any tell tale things I should be looking for?
I would also like to pull a small trailer with a lawn tractor. Should I be looking at H6's only. Gas mileage is not that big of a deal to me.

They should both pull small trailers. .....this is a great place to find the small differences.

http://www.cars101.com/outback.html


Good luck.

Sent from my SM-G955U using Tapatalk

 

[allwheeldave]

Also visit CarComplaints<dot>com. It has known issues by year, on file with NHTSA at least.

 

[Horsehockey2]

Ideal target: original owner who kept all the service records and the records go with the car. And for the suspenders, spend the $35 to obtain a Carfax report.

And rust. Never forget the rust. Garaged? In theory, the 2009 will buy you more time.

 

[eagleeye]

Hi all. I'm new to the forums and also to Subaru. Well not yet actually but hopefully soon. I have been looking at outback's for a couple of months now and as bad as I want one for a winter commuter here in NE Ohio it scares the crap out of me reading the stories about the head gaskets and timing belts. It seems like it is pretty tough to get a low mileage OB around here and if one comes up it is usually gone the same day.
I have been looking at 2 cars one is a 2005 with 135K on it with multiple owners and the other is a 2009 one owner with 146K on it. Both seem to have about the same features and condition is about the same on both. I guess this really comes down to the year. If it were you would you select the older car with less miles or the newer one with slightly higher miles? Also are there any tell tale things I should be looking for?
I would also like to pull a small trailer with a lawn tractor. Should I be looking at H6's only. Gas mileage is not that big of a deal to me.

2009 is a better car, VDC (stability control) is standard on that,

in 2005 that was only available on some H6 models. (that 2005 has a couple unique parts on it vs. the later 2006-2009 )

_____

any subaru outback can pull a lawn tractor on a small trailer. ohio is mostly flat like a pancake.

_____

but want to skip all the head gasket and timing belt discussion, just pony it up for a H6 model. if someone let one of those melt without collant before you bought it or it has any other odd HG problem on it you just drop in a used JDM engine for $1500 (for the 2005-2009 type)...that is cheaper then paying for head gasket work on a H4.

2001-2009 H6 take high octane gas though.

or if you got it, the best cars used to buy are H6 powered 2010-14, and they run on regular.


______

and it beats me why Ohio has so few subaru anything. getting the right H6 car sometimes requires travel and shipping. (preferably to someplace with less rust).

 

[coman61]

Thanks for the replies. eagleeye good info H6. I have read that both ways. Some have said the H6 does not have the HG TB problems and others say they do. I did not know about which years required premium gas. Yes rust is going to be a problem around here. Probably just going to have to live with that.

 

[johnre]

Some have said the H6 does not have the HG TB problems and others say they do.

While the H6 does have a small incidence rate of HG failure, it is nowhere near the rate of the 2.5i NA. You can look through our failure log here, which of course being self-reported is not a scientific sampling, it's only anecdotal:

http://www.subaruoutback.org/forums...83-hg-failure-log-no-discussion-log-only.html

And there are no timing belt problems on the H6, as the camshafts are chain driven.

 

[coman61]

johnre that's good to know. With that said I think I will hold off for a H6. Newer ones are pretty much out of my price range so I guess Ill be using high test fuel.

 

[Max Capacity]

Having a 05 Legacy GT and a 09 Legacy Spec B, you'll want the 09. A ski friend had a 05 Outback, when that engine seized, she bought a 09 Outback.

09's are much better cars.

 

[miker104]

2005 was the first model year for that generation, the 2009 should have less issues. Definitely have the car looked at on a lift to check rust

 

[coman61]

Pulled the trigger on a 2009 Subaru Outback 2.5i Special Edition. Already has a new HG and TB and also water pump so the engine should be pretty sound. 142k and very little rust. Hope I can get another 100K out of it.