Looking at 05GT but turbo...

Hey guys. I am looking at an 05 legacy gt with 100k KMs on it. Before the test drive I popped the hood to check the oils etc, and noticed it had a new turbo on it. I am not saying brand new but less than 5000km easy. The turbo had not even got dirty yet. Anyways on my test drive with it, I was going up a hill at 35% throttle about 70km/h than it lost all power, a CEL came on and the cruise light began flashing. It also made a loud whistling noise whenever you gave it enough throttle to boost up the turbo.

 

I am fairly certain that when the ecu detects certain codes it will also flash the cruise light to tell you not to use cruise control because there is a problem. I think.

 

After the dealership head tech looked at it they got back to me three hours later saying that the turbo was shot. I was not suprised because of the sounds it was making but I am wondering why would this motor go through two turbos so quickly. I read on this excellent site that there are filters in the turbo banjo bolts that when clogged could definitely cause this.

 

Basically they are asking 20k for the car down to 17,999 Cad. I was going to try and get him down to ~15k + taxes before the turbo went. I am just worried that something else may be causing this, or if the oil passage is blocked that too much oil pressure could cause pre-mature oil seal blowout or other problems down the road? I am open to any and all suggestions + comments.

 

Thanks so much for your time and the space here guys.

Your site is fantastic!

 

Trevor

that seems like way too much money for an 05 lgt with that kind of mileage

That is too much for that car. I paid $19k for my 05 with 19k miles on it in April of 06.

 

Find an auto parts store in your area which will read the OBD2 codes for you as a free service to determine what happened. The dealer should also be able to do this for you. Run the VIN for more information.

Sounds like a spookey car to me ...run away.

Check The cars For Sale fourm... I just saw a 05 GT Limited auto, one owner, auto for 12,900 US dollars.

A one owner commuter special.

Ya but price point aside what sort of other things could cause turbo failures like that, and should I be worried. I am fairly certain I can get a very nice price on it as it sits. Up here in Canada these cars are not too cheap

I payed $14k and the car had 46*** miles on it. Keep looking. Don't settle. It tool me a year to find mine.

I baught my 05 lgt mt obp last august. Dealer was asking $17500 CAD, I talked them down to 16000. They even painted my front bumper, threw in a 3m kit (clear bra) , 2 brand new tires, and did a lot of work to it. It was in VERY nice condition at 113000km. And that was like 6 months ago ... You should easily be able to pay 15 for it. 18 is nuts

Once a turbo goes the second one won't be far behind (ask me how I know). It's a good possibility that it was due to clogged filters. Some members have had the second turbo fail when they arrived to pick up the "repaired" car at the dealership. It doesn't mean there's anything inherently wrong with the car.

i'd skip that car... just keep on looking, you'll find one. good luck.

Will he feel any better when he's the first one to blow the turbo on another car?

 

It's very much like the rule people follow about not buying already-modded cars. They want a pristine, bone stock car that they can mod the crap out of. Their own mods are "carefully thought out" and the car is driven "responsibly" whereas any modded car is "ragged out" and "put away wet" by default.

Holy shit the responses here are unlike any other site I have used. You guys are incredible.

 

Sorry I should have been a little more specific as well. The car was stickered at 19,999 for 6-8 months and has been at *special* 17,999 for a few weeks. I would not pick up the car unless it was for ~15.5k Cad. I was planning on offering them ~ 13.5 or 14k as it sits, it would be super simple to change the turbo, check/remove the filter while im there. And im fairly certain some exhaust components would be replaced at the same time. It is in immaculate condition. This is coming from a mechanic (myself) as well.

 

Basically I am thinking that since it was only run for maybe .5km after the metal on metal noise there *shouldn't* hopefully be that much metal in the oil. The noise only happened twice and when it did happen I turned the car around, accelerated slowly and coasted back in neutral. The only other thing that worries me is maybe when the first turbo blew how long the engine ran and if it threw and metal into the system and if the pass side head/ camshaft recieved any damage as well.

 

I guess buying a higher milage one it is hard to say if the turbo blew already, or is about to blow, which doesnt really worry me. The only thing that worries me is what kind of potential internal engine damage may have been done already that I am unaware of. I guess checking to see if the turbo looks new is a good indicator but at the same time the owner could have independantly swapped in an old used one that is dirty as well so it is hard to tell.

DO NOT BUY THAT CAR! Way too much money AND why pay that to have a car with a potential damaged engine or turbo. It sucks but keep looking I looked for a good 9 months before I found mine. I am in Massachusetts got my 05 LGT non limited 5 speed with 60k miles on it for 13k. Look for a large subaru dealership, you may have to travel for it but in order to get what you want u may have to do this I traveled almost 100 miles from my house for mine. GOOD LUCK!

Holy shit the responses here are unlike any other site I have used. You guys are incredible.

 

What in the world is that supposed to mean?

 

Anyways, after something that crazy happened to a car you're in the process of buying, I have no idea what would tell you to stay interested, I would have stopped looking as soon as I saw the mileage, but that's obviously opinionated, but if the turbo blew during a test drive?! There should be no possible reasoning to still looking into buying the car unless they will sell it to you for just dirt cheap.

My opinion? If you drive it and it has issues even before you buy it, walk away. Who ever is selling it obiviously is dumping it because of issues.

Never be afraid to walk away from a car even if you want it really bad. An impulse buy can turn out to be a headache. See my avaitar? Do that and find another:lol:.

 

BTW, welcome to the site!

I would look for something else unless they were practically giving it away. When I was a kid, my mom bought a car where the fuel pump died on a test drive. They towed it back, did some work to it, knocked a few bucks off the price and she bought it with a warranty. That thing was constantly back in for repair. Of course it was a Lincoln so YMMV...

What in the world is that supposed to mean?

 

 

Ah ha ha just the speed of the responses and general activity here

walk away from it. sounds like a disaster waiting to happen. you'll be lucky if it's just the turbo and not the motor. and those are certainly not cheap. and how did you know the turbo was new? did it not have a heat shield? if it didn't then you know it was certainly modded.

If you looked under the engine cover at the right angle you could see in intake side of the turbo, the grey casting looked new.