Quitting while Im ahead?

Long story short, I have had a LOT of older NA scoobs. I love never having to work on them and how reliable they are.

 

I bought a 05 LGT 5EAT wagon about 4 months ago without doing a whole lot of research. Nice car with 48k on it, auto trans. It did have a couple of issues with torn axle boot and a blown rear strut. Car was bone stock.

 

I then bought a couple of mods-

Prodrive cans-installed

Bilstein HDs/Swift Springs -not installed

AP- not installed

 

After having it a while and spending time here Im just not sure if its for me. All of the tales of blown motors, turbos and bad A/Ts have me worried its gonna be a huge moneypit. Im already having to replace the PS pump at 53k.

 

Anyone else feel this way after coming from NA scoobs? Im fairly convinced I should sell it and buy a NA Outback or another BG or GF Wagon. That or just install the AP flash to stage 1, The suspension setup and get some nice wheels and quit messing with it and hope it wont kill itself.

 

 

Its super nice though and I love the color and the full black NON leather interior. This pic is from when I first got it before I had new tires installed.

http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c91/cusco-awd/Ebay/IMAG0430.jpg

its probably an o ring on your powersteering pump

50 cent fix .

 

if you like it keep it.. if you don't get rid of it

Already did the O ring, not it. Leaking from the main seal behind pulley.

do you go into boost when ever your sad ?

You can buy that seal or take it apart and just rtv that seal. At 53k its very low mileage. I would check the turbo oil inlet screen and make sure it is removed, do 3k mile oil changes with oem blue subaru filters and have fun! I had a n/a a VERY long time ago. Turbo is more costly (gas!!), but if you like the power keep it!

Non limited GRP wagon is about as rare as they come. Looks very clean. I have a friend with a 05 AT and he is awful with service but has had no real problems. Do your OCI's Evey 3000 and don't "beat" on her and she should last a long time.

Just fix the problem and keep it. That's why you bought it, isn't. For the power? Just don't be reading about issues from other owners. Every owner is different. Some take care of the car, some don't and think everything is suppose to last forever. All there is to worry about on a turbo vehicle is..... There isn't. You do regular maintenance like a NA vehicle and you don't rev it when it's still cold like a NA vehicle. There isn't anything different. There isn't anything to worry about. Just fix it and drive it and do the normal maintenance like you've been doing.

My 05 has 148,000 miles, still love the car. There are other here with much more mileage then mine.

 

The car looks great.

You're right these cars are very problem prone. Nothing but a ticking time bomb if you ask me.

 

However if you are thinking of driving your car, please read this first: http://legacygt.com/forums/showthread.php/am-thinking-driving-my-car-good-ideai-108079.html

Wife is at 125k with a throw out bearing failure ($800 fix including new clutch) and an alternator $400 as repairs.

 

I consider it reliable.

 

We have changed the oil every 3k miles and did those 30k services at local mechanic.

i say its crapp get rid of it by giving it to meeeeeee:wub:

Just be sure to service the muffler bearings regularly.

The 5eat is a fine transmission. Problems occur when:

1) People don't keep the ATF fresh so it gets old and icky, which is most people.

2) People swap on performance parts (your prodrive cans don't count) and then tune up the power considerably without modifying the trans to accommodate the extra torque.

3) Rare instances of bad luck when otherwise doing everything right with it, which are RARE.

 

As for blown engines, most of that is most likely due to knock-induced piston failure, though everyone appears to be special and have a perfect tune and perfect tuner and no knock, just exceptionally bad luck . If you get a good tune from a good tuner, the motor should be pretty safe, perhaps safer than the stock tune. Your preloaded Cobb maps do NOT count as good tunes.

 

As for blown turbos, yes do what preventative work you can, and keep the oil synthetic and changed often. If you are one of the unlucky minority who has a turbo die, drive directly to shop (or better yet get it towed via flatbed), and DO NOT TURN THE ENGINE ON AGAIN AFTER IT SITS AND COOLS DOWN, OR YOUR OIL FILTER BYPASS WILL OPEN AT STARTUP AND YOU MAY THUS LOSE THE ENGINE. Pull the battery if you have to, mechanics can be lazy and don't want to push your damn car from the parking lot into the shop, even if it means turning on a car that has bits of turbo in the oil.

 

In summary, be smart, be careful where warranted, and you will most likely be just fine.

 

Welcome and have fun.

banjo bolt

I have 99k on my car right now, and I've done the maintenance at the required intervals. I'm stage 2 on my 5EAT with minimal issues. I agree with ClimberD that doing the required maintenance is a must. The last service department also gave me the same advice and looked at me strangely when I brought up turbo issues (I actually trust their advice since they actually saved me a lot of money on repairs).

 

It sounds like your bigger issue is preference. Does the NA Subaru provide enough power for you or do you crack a smile when you hit the open road?

Misfire problem here. Car is stock with 56k miles. $2k later it runs good again.

Hit or miss.

Honestly I think I just prefer the lightness feel of the older cars. I'm gonna take car of the issues and give it a shot, I doubt I will have trouble selling it if I'm still not liking it.

So it sounds like we have convinced you to keep it. Good for you.

 

As we have said give it some TLC and it will give you lots of enjoyment. It's kind of special driving a wagon with the HP these things can put out.

I had 2 NA subarus before this and my 05 Lgt thus far (still at less than 50k miles). Has been much more reliable than my 99 Forester was. With the Forester, had the head gasket go, rear wheel bearings (twice), and oil leaks. So far just had to deal with a lot of bulbs burning out with the lgt.

all cars have problems

Despite people having issues with things, the cars are solid. I came from the RS world myself and have a Legacy now. There is some preventative maintenance that can save you some problems down the road (banjo bolt screens, turbo noise, good oc habits etc). Honestly do an UP to get rid of the cat in there, fix whatever needs to be fixed and enjoy it. We have seen numerous stage 1 and 2 cars last way over 150K. So a few mods aren't going to kill the car.

 

As for suspension Koni/Bilsteins and a good spring will do wonders. Enjoy the car and feel free to PM us if you have any questions.

 

-Jake

 

http://www.pbase.com/paisan/image/91072632.jpg http://www.pbase.com/paisan/image/133406601.jpg http://upload.pbase.com/image/137566671.jpg Call directly for your best Whiteline Price! | We also carry almost every manufacturer now, so before you buy parts call us.

AIM: AZP Installs | E-mail: sales@azpinstalls.com | 725 Fairfield Ave | Kenilworth, NJ 07033 | 908.248.AZP1 (2971) | T-1 Certified Amsoil Direct Jobber

"Race Tested, Enthusiast Approved!"

Replacing the rear sway bar may give it the feel your looking for. It was a night and day difference for me.