Expected life

Thinking of buying a used 2010 Legacy. Currently have a '00 Acura TL with 233,000 but when the transmission fails again, I don't think I want to fix it.

Anyone know how long the CVT in the Legacy is expected to last?
Will the 5th gen Legacy will last up to 250,000 without major maintenance?
Any major issues that I need to be aware of like head gaskets?

Thanks!

Head gasket issues have been most likely resolved from earlier generations. As an example, this version of the 2.5i has improved the cooling circuit in the heads. There is critical routine maintenance, including keeping up with oil changes and changing the timing belt as scheduled, that will impact longevity. There is not a lot of data on the 2,5i. However, the CVT has been down scaled and lightened up for the newer Impreza and possibly even the newer Legacy. In Japan, they have taken the CVT and mated it with a 2.0 DI turbo charged engine, putting out close to 300HP. This would seem to be good news that the 2010-2012+ CVT has got some beef to it. What's not clear is the CVT fluid maintenance cycle. There is info for harsh conditions and towing, but it's weak on normal driving.

Recommend oil changes be done less than 5K miles with a 2.5i. Over that, the gas mileage decreases and idles rough.

Bottom line, it would be good to understand how a previous owner maintained the car.

Any car will last that long are long as someone performs basic maintenance and is willing to sink money into them when they break. Even the "perfect Honda products" the Honda snobs think they can just drive and not take care of.

I read somewhere that the CVT expected life is somewhere around 180K and does not need fluid changes. Of course, anyone can type anything. On the Acura, I've done most of the maintenance myself including the timing belt/water pump dance. I'd expect to do the same with a sooby. Are the subaru's easy to work on?

boxer layout is fairly easy to work on. things like ac compressor, power steering pump and alternator are much easyer as they are right up top. things like spark plugs are a little harder as they are down low, and split half on the right side, and half on the left side. If you can wrench on your TL, You shouldnt have trouble wrenching on a subaru. as aready posted up top, these cars are very sensitive to oil changes and oil levels. the CVT's reliability is still unknown. However I think the transmission will be leaps and bounds more reliable then the auto in your TL.

Do your maint use decent parts/materials you will be golden.

Ive beaten the snot out of a good few Scoobys on the track with way,way more Hp/Tq then stock units and the motors are more robust then people give credit.

You have a 5 year on CVT, Im planning on tracking mine during warranty period ;-)

You will be fine if you look after your puppy.

How long these Aisin built, chain drive CVTs will last is anyone's guess at this point. I would guess that they'll be as good, if not better than your average too many speed conventional automatic.

The EJ253 2.5i has been around forever. There's a zillion of them on the road. I don't know of any major advances in the cylinder heads and/or head gaskets on them like minuccims stated. I'm hoping head gaskets will last longer than on years past, but even the 'bad ones' typically lasted well beyond 100K miles before you had major leakage. It ain't cheap to have this fixed, since the engine basically has to come out if you want to do the job right.

Joel