2011 Outback Premium 3.6R Purchase

[sunny5280]

On Wednesday I purchased a 2011 Outback Premium 3.6R for $4,900 + tax. It is a high mileage car with 207K ticks on the clock. Single owner, Colorado car. Only issues I noted were a couple of small dings in the passenger door and some wear on the drivers side carpeting.

 

At $4,900 I thought it was too good to be true so I called them up to confirm, which he did. Seller said he suspects the high mileage was keeping people away despite the excellent condition of the car (he is a mechanic who primarily wrenches on Subaru vehicles and has a side business as a dealer selling small quantities of vehicles). I set up an appointment to see the car the next morning (it was 5:30pm and they closed at 6:00 and I am an hour away). In the meantime I did research, research, research...including on the sellers business. All reviews I read were positive which made me feel even better about the car.

 

The next morning I stopped by my Subaru mechanic to ask him his opinion on a 2011 six cylinder with 2011 miles. He said he had no overall concerns with a Subaru having that many miles but it would all depend on the condition. Appropriately he recommended a PPI.

 

I drove down, saw the car and discovered it was, at least cosmetically, in as good a condition as the pictures showed. I asked if he would mind if I drove the hour long trip back to Denver to have a PPI performed to which he did not object. A good sign. So I jump in the car and take it for a local test drive (why drive an hour if there is something obviously wrong?) Wow! Was I pleased. The car drove like new. Upon returning I asked if he could put it on a lift so I could inspect the underside of the car. He had no objection and did so. Underside was clean, clean, clean. I'm no mechanic but I do know cars and certain things to look for. All looked in great shape. Even the tires were like new (we measured and they were at 9/32", new tread depth is 10/32")

 

At this point I decided I am jumping on the deal, no need for a PPI. I wrote the check and was out the door (literally for $4,900 + taxes, no fees of any kind). They even warranty the engine and transmission for 60 days (no mileage limit). I was surprised they would do so but they say they stand behind what they sell.

 

I got the car on Thursday and decided to have my mechanic perform the now post purchase inspection. Yeah, the right time to do an inspection is before you buy a car but I was very pleased with the condition of this car. Just picked it up an hour ago and it received the all clear. Some minor issues to address but nothing of significance. Wow, was I pleased. Generally when I buy a used car I expect it's going to need a few things here and there. The worst thing on the list was the serpentine belt was starting to show cracks. Otherwise they recommended a coolant flush and the 60K maintenance recommendations.

 

So why am I posting this? Very excited about the purchase and happy to return to the Subaru family. I feel this is one of those purchases that doesn't come around too often. Also, this place is quiet so I thought I would post something to slightly liven it up.

Edited January 9, 2021 by sunny5280

[ehsnils]

Seems like you got a decent deal. Bearings, brake pads are wear items that might be popping up but that's not unexpected for any car at that mileage.

 

 

Only other thing that could be worth keeping an eye out for is headgaskets, just watch the coolant and oil often and you'll catch it if that happens. If it's a lot of salt on the roads a fluid film could be a good option, even if it was done before.

[sunny5280]

Seems like you got a decent deal. Bearings, brake pads are wear items that might be popping up but that's not unexpected for any car at that mileage.

 

Only other thing that could be worth keeping an eye out for is headgaskets, just watch the coolant and oil often and you'll catch it if that happens. If it's a lot of salt on the roads a fluid film could be a good option, even if it was done before.

 

I am very happy with the deal. I just returned from a trip into the mountains where snow fell and the car was exceptional (as if a Subaru would be anything but). Drove on the highway smooth and straight, plenty of power, and the heat rocks.

 

I will have some of the maintenance work that was suggested performed in the upcoming weeks. One of the recommendations was to replace the green coolant with the Subaru blue coolant. If I remember correctly the blue coolant is supposed to help with the head gasket issue. However, it's my understanding that this generation did not suffer from head gasket failures as did the previous generations. Further it is my understanding the head gasket failures were a problem only for the normally aspirated four cylinder engines on those previous generations (the turbo and H6 models did not suffer from the problem). I'll have my mechanic keep his eye out when I bring it in for oil changes but there seems to be reason to believe this should not be a problem. Or is there something I am missing?

 

Next will be to add an OEM remote starter as I've gotten too used to that with my Volt. I see they're available for sale, I assume they can be installed post sale without much difficulty?

[ehsnils]

Just make sure that you get out all the air when you replace coolant - that is a bigger culprit for cooling problems than the type of coolant.

 

 

As far as I know a remote starter will require you to have a key hidden to get around the immobilizer. That key in turn could cause interference with another key with immobilizer so that if you go that route you might want to cut a "clean" key without the immobilizer chip to use for normal starting.

[sunny5280]

Just make sure that you get out all the air when you replace coolant - that is a bigger culprit for cooling problems than the type of coolant.

 

As far as I know a remote starter will require you to have a key hidden to get around the immobilizer. That key in turn could cause interference with another key with immobilizer so that if you go that route you might want to cut a "clean" key without the immobilizer chip to use for normal starting.

My Subaru mechanic will be performing the coolant system flush. I've reached a point in my life where I can afford to pay someone else to do this type of work

 

 

The OEM remote starter requires my to hide a key? That seems odd, I'll have to speak to my mechanic to see if he has familiarity with adding it. Thanks for the heads up.