Fourth Generation Purchase Questions

[ItnStln]

I am looking to purchase a car to drive for work, and found three fourth generation Subaru Legacys. They have anywhere from 68,000 to 150,000 miles and their model years are 2005, 2008, and 2009. How to these cars hold up in the long term? Is there a lot of maintenance required as the cars get older? Two of the Legacys are the 2.5GT model and the third is a 2.5i. Does the GT require anything special because of the turbocharger? Thank you in advance!

[travrach]

Hello, if you really don't care about performance stay away from the GT. Does it require anything special, not really just synthetic oil for oil changes....but they can have issues depending on previous maintenance, etc.

FYI- We have a section for these questions and you may find some help info- //legacygt.com/forums/forumdisplay.php/pre-purchase-questions-41.html

[Dujo]

The turbo GTs are awesome to own, but they are not maintenance and expense free to own. They require frequent oil checks since they consume oil. Timing belt is going to be required maintenance around 105k miles. The 05s and 06s are really starting to reach the point where they need their turbos replaced proactively before they blow. If it's replaced after it blows, it can be very bad ... to the tune of needing a new engine. You can get a GT and really enjoy it, but you better be prepared to start reading this forum to learn how to care for these cars and be prepared for the possibility that the car will grenade and be more expensive to fix than it is worth. Also, the GTs (turbo) require 91 or better octane gasoline.

 

The 2.5i will be much more reliable and boring. Enjoy.

[arani rey]

I lucked out and got in to a GT that had been rebuilt professionally by a local I've met before. 130k on the chassis and 22k on the turbo/motor plus all the damn filters have been removed. Here's to 100k more miles!

[MrTris]

I lucked out and got in to a GT that had been rebuild professionally by a local I've met before. 130k on the chassis and 22k on the turbo/motor plus all the damn filters have been removed. Here's to 100k more miles!

 

And if it was done right, you'll see that!

 

OP, if you get the GT, get the one with the lowest miles. And if the dealer is offering ANY kind of aftermarket warranty for either of those cars, walk away --- it means they know there's something wrong with them, and they're gonna get you to pay more for it anyhow. It'll also be money wasted; the warranties will only repair the broken part, not the root cause or the collateral damage, which, in many cases, is the entire motor.

 

Get the 2.5i.

[Merc6]

I'm with the others, if you still proceed with the GT get a tune and turbo for it. Either get an online tune here or local like DPS in Gaithersburg, Maryland. I'm trying to remember how far Annapolis was from me when I was in Burke/Springfield, Virginia a while back when I originally got my GT. I learned the best dealer local to the DMV area was Cherry Hill, New Jersey.

[ItnStln]

Hello, if you really don't care about performance stay away from the GT. Does it require anything special, not really just synthetic oil for oil changes....but they can have issues depending on previous maintenance, etc.

FYI- We have a section for these questions and you may find some help info- //legacygt.com/forums/forumdisplay.php/pre-purchase-questions-41.html

 

Thanks for the tip. I assumed that the section was for new cars purchases, not used. After checking it out I saw that I was wrong!

 

The turbo GTs are awesome to own, but they are not maintenance and expense free to own. They require frequent oil checks since they consume oil. Timing belt is going to be required maintenance around 105k miles. The 05s and 06s are really starting to reach the point where they need their turbos replaced proactively before they blow. If it's replaced after it blows, it can be very bad ... to the tune of needing a new engine. You can get a GT and really enjoy it, but you better be prepared to start reading this forum to learn how to care for these cars and be prepared for the possibility that the car will grenade and be more expensive to fix than it is worth. Also, the GTs (turbo) require 91 or better octane gasoline.

 

The 2.5i will be much more reliable and boring. Enjoy.

 

Are timing belts only on the GT? I was leaning towards the 2.5i because of the lower miles on the car. While the GT is no doubt a nice car, it sounds like it might be a headache later on.

I lucked out and got in to a GT that had been rebuilt professionally by a local I've met before. 130k on the chassis and 22k on the turbo/motor plus all the damn filters have been removed. Here's to 100k more miles!

Hopefully it'll last for you!

 

And if it was done right, you'll see that!

 

OP, if you get the GT, get the one with the lowest miles. And if the dealer is offering ANY kind of aftermarket warranty for either of those cars, walk away --- it means they know there's something wrong with them, and they're gonna get you to pay more for it anyhow. It'll also be money wasted; the warranties will only repair the broken part, not the root cause or the collateral damage, which, in many cases, is the entire motor.

 

Get the 2.5i.

 

Thanks for the advice! Im not looking to spend anything more than necessary!

 

I'm with the others, if you still proceed with the GT get a tune and turbo for it. Either get an online tune here or local like DPS in Gaithersburg, Maryland. I'm trying to remember how far Annapolis was from me when I was in Burke/Springfield, Virginia a while back when I originally got my GT. I learned the best dealer local to the DMV area was Cherry Hill, New Jersey.

 

It sounds like the GT might be a headache down the road. I believe Annapolis is about 30-45 minutes away from Springfield.