ookamiONE Posted December 31, 2015 Share Posted December 31, 2015 Hello legacygt.com! I have a $100 deposit on this Subaru Legacy 2.5 GT Nice 08' with 60k miles and not a scratch on it (not that I found at least). It also has some options and a (Borla?) performance exhaust. Sounded WRXey. I just took it for a test drive today. It being the first car with a turbo I have ever driven. Sadly it is an automatic but at least it has the paddle shifters on the steering wheel column. I am trading in my 09' Jeep Wrangler Unlimited Saraha with 104k miles almost straight up for it. They dropped the price of the car to 15k (where it should be according to cargurus) and offered me 14.5k for my Wrangler (which is about right, damaged driver fender) There are a few things that I noticed when driving it. 1st I had issues getting it to go through the gears smoothly, including moving over the the "Manual" shifter mode. After I got back to the dealership I kept running it through the gears. I was listening to the transmission with a door open and it was doing the gentle clicks going through the gears. After a few times back and forth it seemed to work itself out and I could easily set them into all the gears. Was it cause it has been a while since someone has test drove it maybe? Or that it was 30 degrees outside? 2nd thing that caught my attention is that when I was speeding up the ramp to merge onto the highway, it took long for one of the gears to go to the next gear. It might have been that I wasn't keeping my feet at a constant position, or what else would cause it to delay that I can have them check out? 3rd is the airbag light was on, on the dash. They said that seems to be a common problem with the Legacy GT, true or false? and 4th is a options question. I would love to have navigation and bluetooth for hands free calling. Would finding a Subaru Legacy navigation unit be the best way to go? Or would something aftermarket be better for it. As well.....where the hell would it go? The stock stereo system looked like it was attached to the heating system. I am going back tomorrow for an extended test drive. I am used to driving my Wrangler Unlimited and my wifes 14' Outback Premium. Felt a little small to me and I've never driven a sedan before. It comes with a 2,500 mile 60 day warranty. It would be going straight to our mechanic to search for anything bad or broken. It seems like it was extremely well maintained though update I am waiting on the extended test drive until Monday where I will have our mechanic run through the whole thing. I want to be positive it is a good car. Even through the body and interior is perfect, I want all of my answers. Will keep you posted as it goes. Also checked the History Report, clean car 2 owners Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
c-lo Posted December 31, 2015 Share Posted December 31, 2015 here's my thing. when in doubt, walk away. it's not worth the hassle and depending on the dealer, they maybe hiding something. the fact that the airbag light is on and it's not fixed before being put on the lot for sale says a lot to me. test drove a vw wagon a year ago and the tire pressure light was on and a rear wheel bearing was bad. sales guy said the tire pressure light would go off during the drive (never did) and the noise I was hearing was common to the wagons. bullshit. walk away. find another I say. good luck! 258k miles - Stock engine/minor suspension upgrades/original shocks/rear struts replaced at 222k/4 passenger side wheel bearings/3 clutches/1 radiator/3 turbos Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ookamiONE Posted December 31, 2015 Author Share Posted December 31, 2015 here's my thing. when in doubt, walk away. it's not worth the hassle and depending on the dealer, they maybe hiding something. the fact that the airbag light is on and it's not fixed before being put on the lot for sale says a lot to me. test drove a vw wagon a year ago and the tire pressure light was on and a rear wheel bearing was bad. sales guy said the tire pressure light would go off during the drive (never did) and the noise I was hearing was common to the wagons. bullshit. walk away. find another I say. good luck! Not necessarily in doubt, just not sure what to expect. Do you regret your purchase? VIN should be in shortly for the carfax report Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dispatch20 Posted December 31, 2015 Share Posted December 31, 2015 The air bag light is pretty common on 4th Gen (2005-2009) Subaru Legacys, but I'd be suprised if a generic car dealer would know about it. All 3 of my Legacys had an issue with it, which required a very minor repair that cost me 0$. However, there is no guarantee that the airbag light in your car is the common minor issue that most of us see. I do think it's strange the dealer wouldn't fix it prior to sale. See here for the issue I'm referring to: http://legacygt.com/forums/showthread.php/airbag-light-sometimes-console-problemi-149073.html The factory Subaru Nav in the 05-09 is terrible. You would definitely want to go aftermarket. It's a bit of work to do, but you can replace your stereo/climate control interface with the Japanese unit, which allows for a double-din size Nav unit to be installed there. Search "JDM Double din" for details. The whole upgrade might set you back $500 or more if you get a really nice nav/stereo head unit. That car has the same 5-speed auto tranny that my 2008 3.0R has. The shifting can tend to be pretty slow and hang a bit at mid-throttle, but it's hard to say for sure if what you are seeing is normal. The tranny will act a bit different in I, S, and S# modes (the SI-drive dial knob near the ebrake). Overall, I find the 5-speed auto to be a pretty "blah" transmission compared to others I've driven. Good luck with your purchase! I'd have to drive it myself to be able to recommend it or not. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ookamiONE Posted December 31, 2015 Author Share Posted December 31, 2015 The air bag light is pretty common on 4th Gen (2005-2009) Subaru Legacys, but I'd be suprised if a generic car dealer would know about it. All 3 of my Legacys had an issue with it, which required a very minor repair that cost me 0$. However, there is no guarantee that the airbag light in your car is the common minor issue that most of us see. I do think it's strange the dealer wouldn't fix it prior to sale. See here for the issue I'm referring to: http://legacygt.com/forums/showthread.php/airbag-light-sometimes-console-problemi-149073.html The factory Subaru Nav in the 05-09 is terrible. You would definitely want to go aftermarket. It's a bit of work to do, but you can replace your stereo/climate control interface with the Japanese unit, which allows for a double-din size Nav unit to be installed there. Search "JDM Double din" for details. The whole upgrade might set you back $500 or more if you get a really nice nav/stereo head unit. That car has the same 5-speed auto tranny that my 2008 3.0R has. The shifting can tend to be pretty slow and hang a bit at mid-throttle, but it's hard to say for sure if what you are seeing is normal. The tranny will act a bit different in I, S, and S# modes (the SI-drive dial knob near the ebrake). Overall, I find the 5-speed auto to be a pretty "blah" transmission compared to others I've driven. Good luck with your purchase! I'd have to drive it myself to be able to recommend it or not. Awesome thanks for getting back to me. Is the harness under the seat easily accessible? If so I can just reach under and make sure it is connected. The passenger seat one was reading just fine it seemed. I feel like most autos are blah, but my wife refuses to learn a standard (and there isn't many options locally for it). Thanks for a heads up on the double din! I'm going to take it for a half hour test drive today instead of a quick loop i did last night. I want to be certain I am comfortable with the car if I cam going to get it. If it doesn't feel right. I won't get it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dispatch20 Posted December 31, 2015 Share Posted December 31, 2015 Awesome thanks for getting back to me. Is the harness under the seat easily accessible? If so I can just reach under and make sure it is connected. The passenger seat one was reading just fine it seemed. I feel like most autos are blah, but my wife refuses to learn a standard (and there isn't many options locally for it). Thanks for a heads up on the double din! I'm going to take it for a half hour test drive today instead of a quick loop i did last night. I want to be certain I am comfortable with the car if I cam going to get it. If it doesn't feel right. I won't get it The main airbag issue involves the dome light assembly. There are LEDs that indicate whether the passenger airbag is enabled, and poor solder joints crack after 5+ years and cause the airbag dash light to illuminate. It's unrelated to any connectors under the seats. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
c-lo Posted December 31, 2015 Share Posted December 31, 2015 Not necessarily in doubt, just not sure what to expect. Do you regret your purchase? VIN should be in shortly for the carfax report i walked away from two vehicles. the vw wagon was one looked at crosstrek recently as well. bad wheel bearing and rough steering. dealer played dumb. it had less mileage on it than the crosstrek I ended up with...I'm happy with the one I have now. my previous car which I'm about to sell is an 05 lgt wagon. 270k on it. love it. gonna be hard to let it go 258k miles - Stock engine/minor suspension upgrades/original shocks/rear struts replaced at 222k/4 passenger side wheel bearings/3 clutches/1 radiator/3 turbos Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ookamiONE Posted January 4, 2016 Author Share Posted January 4, 2016 UPDATE, did extended test drive down to my mechanic. He couldn't find anything major wrong with it. Airbag is Code 26 so looks like it might be that overhead resistor that needs re-soldering. As well the 2 back shocks have some leaking so they will need replacing. Now to just decide if A. it is worth it. and B. being 6'3" if it will get old very fast getting in a car that low Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scontivt Posted January 4, 2016 Share Posted January 4, 2016 I'm 6'4" and loved my LGT, but you are right about height and getting in and out. I had to take a two step approach to getting into my 05 LGT lol. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gilbertvillarreal Posted January 4, 2016 Share Posted January 4, 2016 I have a subaru lecagy gt 2005 and it does the same thing with the gears, however, I noticed that it only happens when the car is cold. Eventually it goes away. Sent from my SM-N915T using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jongrom Posted January 5, 2016 Share Posted January 5, 2016 My 2c. $15k WAY too much for a 4th gen, even if it's clean. & I would never buy a car from a stealer... I searched for three years before I bought my LGT, one owner, meticulous records, dealer maintenance and stock engine. Keep the Jeep (: I still have my 96 XJ w 260k mi & still red lining all the way up any dune or hill in the desert! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.