2005 - 2008 Outback as reliable as my 1995 ?

Hi, just hoping to get some advice. It will soon be time to retire our 95 Legacy Lsi Wagon. This car has been amazing for us. We are now looking to get into one a bit newer. The questions:

 

3.0R Good engine? Looking at a 2005 Outback Car is loaded! MoMo steering wheel, leather etc... 176,000 kilometers

 

2.5 Good?

 

Is one more reliable than the other? Should I be worried about head gaskets on either one? Some years better than others? (05-08)

 

Thanks in advance for any replies !!!

 

PS- These are Canadian models if that matters at all

In order of reliability (4th Gen OB):

1. 3.0R/2.5i

2. 2.5 XT

 

In order of MPG

1. 2.5i

2. 3.0R

3. 2.5XT

 

HG wise the 2.5i is the only one you would need to worry about failing and that would be due to a previous owner that did not routinely flush the coolant system.

 

Overall most OBs aren't the target of the mod crazy owners, with the XT being the target due to the turbo engine.

Thanks for the reply. At this point I am leaning towards the 3.0R Possibly a 2.5i if the HG's have been done and the seller can back it up with receipts. That of course would rule out buying from a dealer, as they don't know or care about the cars history..

I would stick with the 3.0, at this point gaskets failures are really going to start poping up as the 4th gens age even though on some forums the ej25 gasket problem never really went away completely. Service history is a big plus and check for clean coolant, clean mating surface between the head and block, and cv boots tend to fail often on the inner joints in the front of these cars (nasty grease everywhere but not a huge issue). FWIW my wife and I have over 130k miles on our tribeca with 3.0 and it runs beautifully still has great power and is very smooth.