nrpvd Posted August 19, 2016 Share Posted August 19, 2016 I have a manual 2005 Legacy wagon I bought last year for $2,000 which currently has 280,000 miles. The check engine for the catalytic converter has been on for a few months and just last week the exhaust pipe broke free from the muffler. The new catalytic converter plus the exhaust fix is looking to be at least $2000. My mechanic seems skeptical about putting that much money into it. My question is - does this seem like a worth wile investment? My initial response was to go ahead with the repair since the car is in otherwise great shape, no leaky head gasket, engine sounds good, etc. Any input will be appreciated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rhitter Posted August 19, 2016 Share Posted August 19, 2016 I can't tell you for sure, but that seems unreasonably expensive for those repairs. Can't you just pull the exhaust from a junkyard Legacy and bolt it up? I assume this isn't a GT? My OBXT build Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Max Capacity Posted August 19, 2016 Share Posted August 19, 2016 Junkyard...that's was my first thought too. www.car-part.com or something like that. 305,600miles 5/2012 ej257 short block, 8/2011 installed VF52 turbo, @20.8psi, 280whp, 300ftlbs. (SOLD). CHECK your oil, these cars use it. Engine Build - Click Here Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JmP6889928 Posted August 19, 2016 Share Posted August 19, 2016 Junkyard for sure but new aftermarket parts from turbo back can be bought for less than half of that price. Look for used aftermarket in FS forums for even less than new. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tvsubaru Posted August 19, 2016 Share Posted August 19, 2016 That does seem a little high to me as well. You can also purchase pre-made replacement exhaust parts that you could bolt on yourself. I did some looking on rock auto and you can get the replacement pieces of exhaust for between $600-965 in parts with shipping. I would either plan to do the work yourself or find a different shop. How many miles are on the car would also decide how much money it would be worth putting into it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Max Capacity Posted August 19, 2016 Share Posted August 19, 2016 Any local auto parts store can sell you the right parts and you are also supporting a local business. If you have a problem you can talk to them face to face, try that with rock auto. 305,600miles 5/2012 ej257 short block, 8/2011 installed VF52 turbo, @20.8psi, 280whp, 300ftlbs. (SOLD). CHECK your oil, these cars use it. Engine Build - Click Here Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ehsnils Posted August 19, 2016 Share Posted August 19, 2016 I think that a better way to decide if a job is worth it or not is how good the car is otherwise. If the amount of rust is low and it's not having other kind of problems like a bad engine then it may be worth to continue fixing it. The purchase price doesn't really say much if it's worth to fix or not. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nrpvd Posted August 20, 2016 Author Share Posted August 20, 2016 Correct, its not a GT. The $2000 quote was for the catalytic converter as well. Thanks fore the responses, I'm going to go ahead and pay for the repair. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jayrex Posted August 21, 2016 Share Posted August 21, 2016 OMG, don't pay for $2000 for an exhaust job. That is straight robbery. $700 installed MAX. Go somewhere else, your mech is a cheating liar who lies. I don't care how nice he is. Run. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dispatch20 Posted August 21, 2016 Share Posted August 21, 2016 You guys must not live in NY or CA. The 04/05 2.5i Pzev exhaust with cats is super expensive. It's illegal to sell a used cat in these states, and no aftermarket cats for the 04/05 Legacy years are CARB certified for use in NY or CA. This means no garages will sell or install one for you. And online people won't sell them here either, typically. So basically, there are 3 cats in this model and 6 02 sensors. The pipe that has the two cats (driver side headers down to midpipe) has two cats, and your only option is the Subaru OE header, which is like $1600. It's crazy, but not a lot of options. No salvage yards will sell you a used cat. And private part outs of those specific years are hard to find. And using generic CARB certified cats into a custom exhaust is not any cheaper. The EPA warranty on pzev cats was something like 10 year, 150k miles but don't quote me on it. OP is far beyond that, though. Not sure if OP is pzev, either. But that may explain why he got such a high quote to repair it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jayrex Posted August 21, 2016 Share Posted August 21, 2016 I live in NY. But true, CA emissions are crazy. At least we don't have an actual emissions sniff test here. I guess you would need to make sure it is all up to spec then. Maybe it is more out there. $2000 does seem crazy though. I run a high-flow cat in the Cobb DP. I'm sure I would not pass in CA. It smells almost catless lol. Cobb DP - $550 Borla cat-back - $550 Install - $0 Subie Rumble - Priceless Good luck with your fix. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dispatch20 Posted August 21, 2016 Share Posted August 21, 2016 ^ I couldn't believe it either until I tried to help the guy that bought my old 04 Legacy (ej259). That's when I learned how awful the NA was those years in terms of exhaust options. The turbos were much easier! Tons of options (even if not CARB certified) that keep your CEL off. The NAs of those early years (some 04, 05) were not so lucky. It's just a bad situation that zero aftermarket CA spec options were made for those years. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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