-08 Legacy, some new guy question

[Norway_snow]

Hi all.

 

Have found a very nice Legacy from -08 with only 95678 km, one owner car.

Fabric interior, automatic, 2.0l with 150HP.

 

The car has had all service done at the Subaru dealer, timing belt done @ 55890 km.

 

Yes, I know, it is a 13 year old car, but so what?

I like them.

But, it is one thing it looks and feels ok, any tip on what pit falls I have to ask/look for?

 

Thanks for looking.

Cheers

[MoleMan]

Having lived in Europe for four years I would buy that car here with only 56,000 KMs on it.

 

We don’t have the 2 liter Engines on the 4th gens here in the U.S. But it seems like the former owner did very good maintenance and The can include proof of the timing belt being done I am assuming as well? Even of the timing belt needed to be changed the KMs for the year are very hard to beat.

 

Any major pitfalls would be the timing belt being the major one. And the only other issue I have ever had was the wheel bearings and those failed on both my 06 and 08 4th gen. Other then that the car should really be solid. The only downside is that it’s an Automatic but that’s not a deal breaker at all. I actually prefer my 5 speed more then the Auto in my 4th gen. But the 08 has Si drive so it makes up somewhat. I am curious does the car you are looking at have Si drive by chance? I am unsure what besides the GT and 3 liter came with that feature in the fourth gen.

[Norway_snow]

Hi, thanks for the reply.

Wheel bearings has not been done. Stil original shockers to. Yes, timing belt has been done, with proof from the shop who did the job. Head gasket has not been done.

Is that a pitfall on these?

Front and rear transfer oil was done 9000 km ago. Air and cabin filter at the same time.

Why is automatic a downside? More prone to problems? To me, it is just fine with a auto.

Sadly, no si drive. Did they offer that in 08 on 2.0l?

[MoleMan]

As far as the head gasket I could not tell you. It’s a common issue on the EJ25s. The EJ20 I would assume would have the same issue however if you are not seeing any signs of a head gasket needing to be replaced I would not worry about it right now. At the KMs the car has it’s pretty doubtful it would need a replacement yet. If you do need a replacement in the future the EJ25 head gasket job from a dealer is in the $750 to $900 range and probably cheaper at a independent shop. And that price will vary that’s just in my area.

 

As far as the Manual vs Auto it’s really driver preference. I have both and in the snow I prefer the manual because it’s locked 50/50 all the time unlike the Auto. So it gives a slight edge traction wise. However the Auto does not do bad either. I just prefer manual when I can get it and in the states getting a new or even used manual car is getting very hard to find. On my sixth gen 3.6 Inhad to cave and settle for a CVT which is slow as beans but if you are not racing around it’s ok. As far as problems I would say rare to none of you keep the fluid changed at the proper intervals.

 

As far as SI I have it in my 3.0 but I think it was limited to just the 3.0,GT, and Spec B.

[Norway_snow]

Well, I did get the car.

It is, to me, in a very good condition.

No leaks any where, I did go undertone car, no nothing, it was not washed the day before, so I was able to se the truth. No leaks. So, transfer, engine and gear is ok.

Thanks for the help.

 

Will post photos soon.

Cheers