Considering a 3.0 Legacy or 2.0XT Forester...

[chris1972]

I've sold my A6 Quattro... sad to see it go, but I'm after a cheaper daily driver and have been considering the above two models for the benefits of AWD. I don't really want to spend more than £3.5k a I have money put aside for other things.

I have heard lots of horror stories about the 3.0i Legacy fuel consumption. I was just wondering what the real life figures are and those of the 2.0 Turbo Forester. I was also considering a X-Type.

Anything to look for in terms of common faults for the Subaru models above?

[Ved]

I bought a 53 plate XT in Feb and it's utterly magnificent. I paid 2.8k for a one owner 100k car and so far I've found the following faults, none of which are serious or will need sorting in the next few years:

o Slight crunching changing to 4th and 5th at high revs. This is hopefully being eased today with some better gearbox oil - Smurfs blood, since you ask!
o Knocking front ARBs. I've bought front and rear Whiteline ARBS, droplinks and mounting blocks so this is fixed and 100% better now.
o Typical Subaru clutch judder on occasions but my 07 STI had this too. Nothing a racing start won't fix.

Aside from that it's in magnificent mechanical condition and with some work on the bodywork and a front bumper to respray it'll be as close to perfect as it'll ever be. One thing to look out for on them is the self leveling suspension on the rear. If it's sagging then budget about £500 for replacements (may as well gat the fronts too).

I'm averaging 28mpg and love the car completely. It has made me put my 08 R32 up for sale to get one myself as this is for the dog and my missus.

I picked up one with full leather, heated seats and a big sunroof so hopefully you'll find something similar.

[74merc]

I also considered a Forester and an Outback, but I just couldn't get past the interior of the Forester. I wanted to like it but it just looked too cheap and plasticky in my opinion. I went for a 3.0 litre Outback instead and the interior is in a different league.
Yes, 3.0 litre is a thirsty motor, in all likelihood you'll be averaging something in the 20's MPG wise. Low 20's for mostly short runs and high 20's for long runs.
Reliability wise the Outback is very good, the only common fault is the Y section of the exhaust which rusts and blows out. I got mine repaired for 70 quid.
All things considered, the Outback is a great all-rounder, comfortable, reliable and discrete but with a fair turn of speed when you need it.

[chris1972]

Thanks for that. How do you spot if its sagging? Also, what are these like on a remap? What mpg are you getting?

[Ved]

Sagging will be obvious as the back of the car will be lower than the front.

I'm averaging 28mpg in mixed driving.

A remap will help but you will need a TD04 turbo as the standard one is too small. After that and a free flowing exhaust you will see 260bhp. I'd start with rollbars and brakes first. I've had whitelines installed front and rear with new drop links and it has transformed the car.

[Stephanie Plum]

24.6mpg in my 3.0RN Legacy Sports Tourer on mixed driving but quite a few long motorway hauls. It sees a track occasionally as the pace car for sighting laps too

[chris1972]

I went to see these today. What a joke. As far as the Forester was concerned, I spoke to the owner yesterday who said it was being kept at his mother's as it was on a SORN. It is supposed to have a full Subaru SH. Arrived today (2hrs drive). His mother appeared with one key (no key fob). Asked for the SH and was told she didn't know where it was. Was about to walk off and then she appeared with 'a' service book. Asked for the accompanying receipts and was told she didn't know where they were as the car was her sons? Asked to see the V5 and the car was registered in her name, apparently for insurance. Still didn't know where receipts were. Looked at the service book and last service was by a specialist in 2009. I was informed that it has been done since, but they had forgotten to stamp the service book!? Walked away. Total waste of time.

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2013...

Went to view the below 3.0 Legacy in Canterbury on my return and what a dog. Stained leather, dirty carpets, dented and scratched body work, scratches, faded paint, curbed wheels, faded plastic. Don't even bother with this one.

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2012...

Not a good start!

[RB Will]

Can happily recommend a Forester or Legacy.
My dad had an 04 3.0 legacy which had no problems in the 70k miles/ 3 years he had it and then moved to a 07 Forester XTen which he still has after 90K which has only had a knackered wheel bearing.
Along with my Imprezas, which have been slightly tempremental but hey when you start fiddling with things its understandable. I have had a 04 Legacy Spec B.
If you are worried about the interior looking a bit dirty and worn then a spec b might be the one to go for as the cream is exchanged for black trim which hides mess much better. If you do go for the Spec B I can only think of a couple of things to be wary off. The Y pipe as mentioned and Bilsteins going. They have a funny habit breaking on the inside so it sounds and feels like the suspension/ bushes are shot but everything looks fine. So if all the bushes look fine but it knocks then its a bloody expensive shock that needs replacing which can only come from Subaru.

[adingley84]

If the money stretches, a 2.5xt (05 onwards) comes with the td04 turbo so just needs remap & decay exhaust for those nice power gains up from 230bhp standard instead of 177 for 2.0Xt. Fuel consumption no different really.

[corvus]

chris1972 said:

Went to view the below 3.0 Legacy in Canterbury on my return and what a dog. Stained leather, dirty carpets, dented and scratched body work, scratches, faded paint, curbed wheels, faded plastic. Don't even bother with this one.

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2012...

Not a good start!

Thanks for that, I was thinking of looking at that one myself. Sounds disappointing. The car's been sat there for months. Maybe that's why. I s'pose it is cheap though.

[chris1972]

I got sick of looking at cars, seen several and nothing like described. Dodgy histories, strange V5's etc. Ended up buying a TDCI Mondeo today. As long as it does me a couple of years I'll be happy. People have mentioned the DMF, but a lot of cars have them these days, so I guess you're taking a chance with anything you buy...

[corvus]

Don't blame you. Even if you're into cars, sifting through all the dross can do your head in. Good luck with the Mondeo.

[P-Jay]

I've been looking at Forrester XT's recently too, I've just changed jobs and my 45mile a day motorway commute has become a 8 mile round-trip on a muddy, twisty, pot holed, mountain road - it's also pretty much free of other traffic so I'm crying out for something 4wd, slightly raised and fun. Glad to hear they're not horror stories.

Oddly, I recently bought a Mondeo TDCI to get me by - hate it and everything about it, but it's reliable, very frugal and very cheap to insure / maintain, just wish there was a single interesting thing about the way it drives.

[chris1972]

P-Jay said:

I've been looking at Forrester XT's recently too, I've just changed jobs and my 45mile a day motorway commute has become a 8 mile round-trip on a muddy, twisty, pot holed, mountain road - it's also pretty much free of other traffic so I'm crying out for something 4wd, slightly raised and fun. Glad to hear they're not horror stories.

Oddly, I recently bought a Mondeo TDCI to get me by - hate it and everything about it, but it's reliable, very frugal and very cheap to insure / maintain, just wish there was a single interesting thing about the way it drives.

Yes I agree. After years of German barges, it feels a little 'light weight' to say the least!