JamesSubaru Posted April 24, 2014 Share Posted April 24, 2014 Hi, all. I'm a current student and would like to know if a Subaru 1999 GT 30th Anniversary, Sedan, is a good first car? Is it reliable? It has 185k miles, Leather Interior, Clean inside & out. It looks as if it has been maintained very good. The guy is asking $2700 OBO ........ This would be my 2nd car, i just sold my first car it was a Buick Regal 1998 and it was VERY boring so I'm looking to subarus. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
belaircarguy Posted April 24, 2014 Share Posted April 24, 2014 Subaru's are very good cars, but when you get to high mileage you want to make sure what was and was not maintained. As a GT it has the turbo engine. Important to check is the timing belt. Normally, need to be changed at about 100,000 miles. With 185,000 I would assume the timing belt was changed, but it would be due again about 200,000 miles. To change the timing belt, water pump, pullys etc is about $1100 or so. Also with a turbo, the main thing is frequent oil changes. Need to change about every 4000 miles and use synthetic oil. Go to AMSOIL web page and you can look up the car and their recommendations. AMSOIL is excellent synthetic oil, but only available at repair shops or the dealer, not at a retail outlet. Excellent oil, which I have used in all my cars for years and never had any oil related issue, no matter what the car. With a turbo,make sure it sounds smooth and does not rattle or make any wobble sounds. That would show signs of wear and would probably need replacement. Head gaskets can be an issue on this engine, so check carefully as that is an expensive repair (probably $1000), but cheaper than if the head gaskets blow and cause engine damage. Then you are looking as several thousands in repair. Probably the best advice is to take the car to your favorite shop or even a Subaru dealer and have it inspected before you purchase it. It may cost you $50 - $100 for the inspection,but you will know what is OK, what needs repair, and most importantly what may be a safety issue that requires repair right away. You will most enjoy a Subaru, just make sure you know about maintenance that will be needed and costs, before you buy! Bel Air Car Guy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hellaGT Posted April 25, 2014 Share Posted April 25, 2014 The 1999 Legacy 2.5GT does not have a turbo in America but still retained the hood scoop though it is non-functional. I owned one for about 4 years. Purchased when it had 120,000 and sold when it had 190,000 in 2009 and overall it was a good car. I would have kept it if I didn't have the itch for a new car and I actually just saw it posted on a local craigslist ad with 230,000 miles on it! Here is what issues I had that you can check if they have been replaced or fixed already: 1. As stated above - headgaskets... mine went at 130,000 and I replaced it with a used engine from Japan that had the waterpump and headgaskets replaced so the 230,000 miles its at now was with the replacement. 2. AC - it started to not blow as cold around 150,000 3. Driver's side wheel bearing 4. Climate control fan direction - buttons no longer worked to change fan directions 5. Clutch hose leak - A tiny hole formed in the clutch fluid line from master cylinder to slave. looked like the stream a tiny hole in a water balloon makes when I pushed in the clutch eventually draining the reservoir. These are the only major things that went wrong with it. It's still on the road today. http://i57.photobucket.com/albums/g207/tevo867/DSC03210.jpg Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JamesSubaru Posted April 25, 2014 Author Share Posted April 25, 2014 Ugh I need to know where I can find one of these things to buy!!! Your tempting me ^^^^!!! What's a good place too look for Subaru Legacy's? I'm on craigslist, Seattle right now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrTris Posted April 25, 2014 Share Posted April 25, 2014 Subaru's are very good cars, but when you get to high mileage you want to make sure what was and was not maintained. As a GT it has the turbo engine. Important to check is the timing belt. Normally, need to be changed at about 100,000 miles. With 185,000 I would assume the timing belt was changed, but it would be due again about 200,000 miles. To change the timing belt, water pump, pullys etc is about $1100 or so. Also with a turbo, the main thing is frequent oil changes. Need to change about every 4000 miles and use synthetic oil. Go to AMSOIL web page and you can look up the car and their recommendations. AMSOIL is excellent synthetic oil, but only available at repair shops or the dealer, not at a retail outlet. Excellent oil, which I have used in all my cars for years and never had any oil related issue, no matter what the car. With a turbo,make sure it sounds smooth and does not rattle or make any wobble sounds. That would show signs of wear and would probably need replacement. Head gaskets can be an issue on this engine, so check carefully as that is an expensive repair (probably $1000), but cheaper than if the head gaskets blow and cause engine damage. Then you are looking as several thousands in repair. Probably the best advice is to take the car to your favorite shop or even a Subaru dealer and have it inspected before you purchase it. It may cost you $50 - $100 for the inspection,but you will know what is OK, what needs repair, and most importantly what may be a safety issue that requires repair right away. You will most enjoy a Subaru, just make sure you know about maintenance that will be needed and costs, before you buy! Bel Air Car Guy Less than half of this is factual, accurate, or good advice. Second gen Legacy GTs had uprated Bilstein suspension and nicer trim. Other than that, they're identical to all the others. No turbos were produced in USDM format from 94-'04. Timing belt jobs vary, but $1100 is on the high side, no matter which Legacy you're dealing with. Oil change intervals are 3500 or less, depending on driving and operating conditions. Amsoil is made for NASCAR cars, and Camrys. You can put it in your Subaru if you want, but I think Mr BelAir here is about the only one who runs it, as I've never heard of anyone else putting it in their engines. By all means, take your car anywhere you like -- its a free country. But remember, you're responsible for the consequences when the mechanic you picked out doesn't maintain your car properly. Never, ever, ever take your car to the dealership. Bad idea all the way around. Head gaskets are an issue with that particular model year. The repair isn't quite as terrible as BelAir would have you believe, and, should catastrophic failure occur (highly unlikely), you can very easily find another engine for a very reasonable price. I will PM you with more details about where to get a good prepurchase inspection locally. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JamesSubaru Posted April 26, 2014 Author Share Posted April 26, 2014 just wanted to let you guys know the transmission was failing on the car, i saw it a few hours ago. wouldn't shift to drive. The guy felt really bad, thank god it wasnt working when i test drove it.. it would have went out on me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.