Spec.B - 2 days, 264 miles, engine goes buh bye.

[05pearl]

Call SOA and tell them about your experience and concerns. If they cannot explain to your satisfaction why you will not have any problems - don't buy.

[Penguin]

 

By the way, I am currently interacting with another board member who happens to also own a 2009 Spec.B and appears to have similar symptoms. Then there's the other member who posted here at 700 miles his '09 spun a rod bearing as well and had the engine replaced.

 

You cannot tell me this is isolated. I will not believe that for a single moment. I did before I started getting PM's from others. Now I'm very concerned.

 

In all honesty, I am beginning to believe that SOA is holding back. There is quite possibly more cars affected than the "range" they mentioned. I also don't believe the issue has to do with non-clean crankshafts from the use of sand paper. At 264 miles, that would not cause rod bearing failure. It would be a long term issue that could pop up after a few thousand miles.

 

I strongly believe there is a more serious problem at hand. Design issue, or materials used for the bearings. There is also the possibility of oil starvation.

 

 

OK, I was wrong to tell you to walk away from this deal. Run. Run away.

 

Companies are not perfect least of all automakers. Subaru has it in it's best interests to keep this quiet if possible and try to avoid large exposure to this problem. The way they do this is to replace vehicles for people to see the extent of the problem. While they will make it right even if it happens again, what is your inconvenience worth? What have they done to compensate you for your current inconvenience? Not much from the sound of it.

 

Ditch this deal and find another brand of car. I had about the same attitude from SOA on my fuel injectors, and headlamps (ate bulbs like candy). That attitude was to keep fixing the symptom of the root problem. Kind of like what Ford did with my dad and his 1995 Contour that ate catalytic converters like they were candy. Just keep on replacing cats... don't try to find what is burning them out.

 

Run.

[05pearl]

Penguin - sounds like I ought to be working at the local subi dealer and you ought to be working across the street at the Toyota lot

 

I give up Let the OP decide for himself. After all, it's his $35K.

[EddieSpecB]

Penguin - sounds like I ought to be working at the local subi dealer and you ought to be working across the street at the Toyota lot

 

I give up Let the OP decide for himself. After all, it's his $35K.

 

I think both of you are keeping me in balance. Seriously.

 

You both represent the two different views/emotions I'm going through at the moment.

 

On the one hand, I've loved Subarus for many years. Have recommended them to friends and family, and in fact a good friend of mine purchased an 08 LGT from the same dealership just the night before after I recommended to him that he checked them out.

 

I want to believe there is a solution to this problem, but the reality is that I need to figure out what the problem is, first. Right now, I think the problem is that our issue is not isolated and if we accept a replacement we're in essence allowing them to keep our voice silent. It would be, in a sense, irresponsible for us to accept that, instead of attempting to figure out how this is affecting other consumers.

 

I'd like to see a conclusion to this that involves any known issues by SOA being admitted to and fixed at the root.

 

Just a quick Google search reveals how many 2008 and 2009 2.5 T owners (WRX/STi/LGT) have had the same problem, and many of them treat it casually as if it were their fault (some since that's all that SOA/dealer allow them to accept as an explanation). This is truly disturbing.

[Penguin]

Penguin - sounds like I ought to be working at the local subi dealer and you ought to be working across the street at the Toyota lot

 

I give up Let the OP decide for himself. After all, it's his $35K.

 

I liked my car and it was fun to drive, but I got to the point where I would wonder what was going to go wrong next. At that point the car was on thin ice. Then I moved to South Dakota and discovered that many good out door areas are not accessible via low ground clearance sedan, and dead deer and antelope tend to stink up the trunk. At that point the car had to go.

 

Before my current career (I think it might actually be a career) I worked in the car business at a Toyota, Lexus, BMW store. One of our sister stores also sold Subaru. I had plenty of exposure to all of them. Toyota cars are reliable, they are an excellent appliance. Unfortunately they are as exciting as your refrigerator to drive.

 

Toyota trucks in my experience are excellent, and now finally with a 5.7L V8 and six speed auto hooked up to a 10.5" rear end with 4.30 gears in the Tundra it is finally a 1/2 ton that can measure up to 1/2 ton standards. The Tacoma is also great but I couldn't get a crew cab with a bed longer than 5' and that was not acceptable. So I now drive a Tundra.

 

Lexus products are very well made, very comfortable, and for the most part very boring. The IS sedan is an exception but it is tiny inside.

 

BMW, well a lot of people here hate BMW's. I love them, all around the most fun to drive cars of anything I sold. They just get pricey with a lot of options, and until lately had a bad reputation for reliability problems (thanks to the horrible 2002-2003 7 Series). Their current offerings are by and large pretty good from what I read in Consumer Reports, and from my own observations.

[05pearl]

I knew you worked for Toyota.

 

I have yet to receive my commission check from Subaru

[Penguin]

I knew you worked for Toyota;) I have yet to receive my commission check from Subaru

 

Yeah I did until summer of 2006, then I resigned when I got the offer for my current job. I have no real love for Toyota cars, as they make nothing that is even remotely fun to drive. Their trucks have a reputation for durability and good manners on the road and off road, but they are not fun. I haven't found a "fun" truck yet, nor have I found a "fun" claw hammer. A tool is a tool, just buy quality tools. They last longer.

[05pearl]

My 98 Camry had 50K on it when the trans blew up on me - no kidding

[Penguin]

My 98 Camry had 50K on it when the trans blew up on me - no kidding

 

Go figure.

[EddieSpecB]

I've owned 3 toyotas. not a single problem with any of them. My first had 168k miles when I had to leave it behind due to a big move.

 

I consider the current lineup of Toyota cars to be dull. I think they should work on a true sports Corolla, RWD or AWD platform to spice up theit line up. Or bring back the Supra (not as a Lexus).

 

Subaru cars (their sedans) have a lot of spirit and personality. I also believe they are reliable, in contrast with the majority of the industry and considering their complex drivetrains.

 

I hope I still feel this way in 5 years.

[TSiWRX]

^ My aunt's family is known for their lack of mechanical empathy, as well as complete apathy towards even routine vehicle maintenance.

 

They bought a new Corolla, back in the late 90s, and literally drove the thing to the ground - no oil changes, no tire rotations, nada.

 

The sucker lasted just over 11 years.

 

 

I've always thought of Toyotas as dead-reliable, ultra-low-maintenance vehicles....but even that shocked me.

 

To balance that out, though, my in-law's '06 Camry has been an annoyance. Nothing big going wrong, but just lots of small stuff, requiring ins-and-outs at the dealership.

 

Painful.

 

As with Tommyh, I also believe that much of what's complained about, in general, is simply car-to-car production variances.

 

However:

 

EddieSpecB -

 

So far I've yet to hear reassuring statements from other 2009 owners (or late 2008 models, built during the date range of the stop sales/recall).

 

I do appreciate everyone's point of view, but I think a valid statement would be from someone who's owned one of these specific LGT/LGT.B's for more than 2k miles and still have no symptoms associated with the problem.

 

By the way, I am currently interacting with another board member who happens to also own a 2009 Spec.B and appears to have similar symptoms. Then there's the other member who posted here at 700 miles his '09 spun a rod bearing as well and had the engine replaced.

 

You cannot tell me this is isolated. I will not believe that for a single moment. I did before I started getting PM's from others. Now I'm very concerned.

 

In all honesty, I am beginning to believe that SOA is holding back. There is quite possibly more cars affected than the "range" they mentioned. I also don't believe the issue has to do with non-clean crankshafts from the use of sand paper. At 264 miles, that would not cause rod bearing failure. It would be a long term issue that could pop up after a few thousand miles.

 

I strongly believe there is a more serious problem at hand. Design issue, or materials used for the bearings. There is also the possibility of oil starvation.

 

^ This, I agree with.

 

It's more than just a bit unsettling, it's outright troubling.

[EddieSpecB]

To balance that out, though, my in-law's '06 Camry has been an annoyance. Nothing big going wrong, but just lots of small stuff, requiring ins-and-outs at the dealership.

 

Painful.

 

I bought a 2000 Celica GT-S 6spd back in '99 when they first came out, in fact I pre-ordered it. The car had no mechanical issues whatsoever by the time I got rid of it 3 years later (even though I drove the crap out of it, even drove it from Dallas to Seattle non-stop for 35 hours, except for bio-breaks, gas and food), BUT, I did take it in several times for little things such as rattles and strange CEL's. Toyota is good at having TSB's ready for things of this nature, and generally would have hardware available to their techs to fix the little issues (rattles, for instance, might require replacement gromets or rubber linings, etc). All cars will eventually have these little annoyances, though, and there's lots to be said about a manufacturer who's biggest worries are rubber gromets.

 

However:

 

EddieSpecB -

 

 

 

^ This, I agree with.

 

It's more than just a bit unsettling, it's outright troubling.

Many of these "affected" cars were built at the beginning of this year, meaning that most didn't see showroom floors until after April or so. If this issue has a tendency of being random, at its catastrophic fail point, we may not see more cars going into the dealers until possibly the 10k to 15k miles average. I am hoping this is just a pesimistic guesstimate, but it is a very plaussible notion.

 

Like with most things in life, we'll just have to wait and see, and hope for the best while we're at it.

[tjcarst]

Update!!!!

 

They are ordering us a new '09 Spec.B SWP!!!! :-D

 

So, the issue was... spun rod bearing!

 

And, here's more info on the issue:

 

http://www.autoblog.com/2008/04/07/subaru-issues-stop-sale-on-all-models-equipped-with-turbod-2/

 

So, the VIN is: 4S3BL696493211241

 

The dealrship is Chaplin's Automotive Group in Bellevue, WA. They were extremely apologetic and gave us the option of a quartz silver, the dark metallic one, or order an SWP (the other two are available in the region).

 

My wife wants SWP again.

 

The sucky part? I'm stuck with the loaner Outback base model until we get it...

 

Sorry to hear about your problems with your new car, but glad you are getting another one.

 

FWIW - I have heard nothing but good about Chaplin VW Subaru. I have ordered parts from Jamie and she has always been most helpful. I am very happy that they are taking care of you, and would be suprised if they didn't.

[leggtnut]

Glad that Chaplins is taken care of you. I have had mixed results from their service department. Carter has treated me extreamly well.

 

Hope to see you around when I am up at christmas, and you better be in that 09 spec B by then. I know it takes a while to order a car from SOA, from exeriance. It took My GT 3 months to get built and delivered to my dealier in Santa Cruz, CA.

[TSiWRX]

BUT, I did take it in several times for little things such as rattles and strange CEL's. Toyota is good at having TSB's ready for things of this nature, and generally would have hardware available to their techs to fix the little issues (rattles, for instance, might require replacement gromets or rubber linings, etc). All cars will eventually have these little annoyances, though, and there's lots to be said about a manufacturer who's biggest worries are rubber gromets.

 

I completely agree.

 

However, to me, it's not just the big problems that are a problem - the little ones are to me, too, as I'm one of those people who value their time more than, well, just about anything.

 

To me, *anything* that requires attention or a trip to the shop is a negative.

 

Certainly, there's a differentiation between "big trouble" and "small trouble," but the overall trouble of having to take the vehicle in for service, that's what gets me.

 

My parents' first car here in the US was a '85 Chevy. That thing was plagued with little issues here and there. Their next car was a '91 Lexus, which had near-perfect build-quality, never requiring any time in the shop, but at one point in its life suffered a TCU failure. To me, even though, overall, the Chevy was much more "trouble free" (she ran 'till I killed her, in an accident), the Lexus was, in my view, the better of the two, as the time which she spent in the shop - about a day to address the TCU - was, in retrospect, much, much less than the combined time in-shop that the Chevy saw as "down time" for our family.

 

For a modern vehicle which prides itself on durability and reliability - such as that of the Toyota, Honda, and Subaru brands - I think that their vehicles should not only be free of MAJOR mechanical trouble (such as with your initial Subaru experience), but also of the pesky little build-inconsistencies that have their new owners making return trips to the dealer, not only in the first months, but throughout at least the first 3 to 5 years of their service life.

 

Many of these "affected" cars were built at the beginning of this year, meaning that most didn't see showroom floors until after April or so. If this issue has a tendency of being random, at its catastrophic fail point, we may not see more cars going into the dealers until possibly the 10k to 15k miles average. I am hoping this is just a pesimistic guesstimate, but it is a very plaussible notion.

 

Like with most things in life, we'll just have to wait and see, and hope for the best while we're at it.

 

+1.

 

A fellow local Scooby enthusiast also bought a FI Outback at the time of this "outbreak."

 

We're all, I think, collectively crossing our fingers, and hoping that, just as you said, yourself, that such guesses are pessimistic.

 

You have the link to the Stop-Sale order discussion thread here on LGT.com, right? If not:

 

http://www.legacygt.com/forums/showthread.php?t=85483&highlight=stop+sale

 

I must confess, I never tracked this issue fully on NASIOC, so I may lack proper big-picture understanding of the full extent/ramifications of this concern.....

 

Frankly, I was - and remain - troubled about how they tested for the problem.

[EddieSpecB]

+1.

 

A fellow local Scooby enthusiast also bought a FI Outback at the time of this "outbreak."

 

We're all, I think, collectively crossing our fingers, and hoping that, just as you said, yourself, that such guesses are pessimistic.

 

You have the link to the Stop-Sale order discussion thread here on LGT.com, right? If not:

 

http://www.legacygt.com/forums/showthread.php?t=85483&highlight=stop+sale

 

I must confess, I never tracked this issue fully on NASIOC, so I may lack proper big-picture understanding of the full extent/ramifications of this concern.....

 

Frankly, I was - and remain - troubled about how they tested for the problem.

 

I hope I don't get shot for posting on that old thread.

 

It's your fault for linking me to it...

 

So, I received a call from Chaplin's today. They have located a SWP Spec.B in the region and are shipping it over here this week.

 

The car has the short-throw shifter already installed, but they're not charging us for it. SOA is eating the difference.

[leggtnut]

Glad to hear you will have your wheels soon

[EddieSpecB]

Glad to hear you will have your wheels soon

 

Oh, me too! My wife and I are both missing the heck out of that sucker.

 

Keep me posted when you're in town. I'm on the east-side often, lots of friends there and I work in Seattle. I live down south, though, just south-east of Tacoma.

 

We have a Subaru dealer very close to our house, but a single visit told us we needed to make the 50 mile drive up to Chaplin's, who had done all the maint. on my SVX for years. I am so glad we did.

[leggtnut]

I think I know of the dealier you are speaking of. had to go home and take a shower after visiting that one. But that was a LONG time ago.

 

You now have my 2 favorite cars of all time, and yes I am a bit jealous of that SVX.

 

When I was in Kirkland, I had the worst Subaru dealier near me, so I know that going the extra bit, can make a big differance, though Carter and Chaplins was not as far from where I was compaired to you. But they are worth the extra.

[EddieSpecB]

I think I know of the dealier you are speaking of. had to go home and take a shower after visiting that one. But that was a LONG time ago.

 

You now have my 2 favorite cars of all time, and yes I am a bit jealous of that SVX.

 

When I was in Kirkland, I had the worst Subaru dealier near me, so I know that going the extra bit, can make a big differance, though Carter and Chaplins was not as far from where I was compaired to you. But they are worth the extra.

 

The SVX is awaiting a future transmission transplant.

 

It's expensive so it'll have to wait until we have taken care of other priorities around the house.

 

I wish Subaru would release a new Alcyone line coupe... This time with a 3.6L H6 Twin Turbo. Can we say GT-R's nemesis?

 

We all know Subaru AWD > Nissan AWD :-D

[leggtnut]

Couldn't agree more

[EddieSpecB]

I guess the car is arriving tonight.... I'm thinking about not telling my wife and then swapping cars at her work before she's off tonight... She'd freak out. It would be great.

[TSiWRX]

^ That's *such* a cool idea. YouTube it for us, will you?

[DukeTrout]

That would be especially cool if you could manage to switch out the keys without her noticing. *beep-beep* "Huh?"

[EddieSpecB]

That would be especially cool if you could manage to switch out the keys without her noticing. *beep-beep* "Huh?"

 

lol.... good point. I actually thought of that yesterday. I'm sure I could have found a way. I could always bribe one of her coworkers to switch the keys from her purse when she's not looking.

 

The car wasn't in/ready last night, so we're waiting for a callback today. My wife already knows, since we both have to go in to resign all the paperwork.

 

Oh well, it's the thought that counts, right? Or something like that...

 

I am sooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo ready to stop driving this damn Outback. I fear for my life everytime I attempt to pass someone. How do people with slow cars survive for this long?