vicdeng Posted January 1, 2011 Share Posted January 1, 2011 Hi, the story started with my HG on my 96 LGT blown, i took it to my nearby reputable mechanics that alot of my local subaru fans refer to. While the mechanics finished checking out the car, i was curious about the overall condition of the vehicle since i just purchased the car not long ago. The car has 160k on it. And the mechanics said it's a 14 years old car. Sooner or later, it will start asking for more parts. And he rarely see Subaru that go over 200k miles. . I showed some respect and did not argue with him too much about this. As i saw numbers of legacys here went over that number. And those are just legacys, not including other models So if you have a Subaru, and went over 200k miles, please post your mileage and post the condition of the car. Got another question about HG. I was told that someone had done the HG job in the past on my vehicle. But my question is if the HG has been replaced, why are they failing again at 160k? Didn't Subaru redesign the HG? Or is this just a common symptoms for our gen LGT no matter what kind of HG you replace? I apologized for my long story. Wish you guys Happy New Year and all the good times with your legacys!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
I Donated broknindarkagain Posted January 1, 2011 I Donated Share Posted January 1, 2011 Sooner or later, it will start asking for more parts. And he rarely see Subaru that go over 200k miles. Biggest line of BS I've heard in a long time. Subarus are well known to do 200K+. My first Subaru was just shy of 200K when it got totaled....and was running perfect. Never once had to do any kind of major repairs on it and I drove it back and forth between Texas and Georgia several times. My current Subaru has an unknown amount of miles on it. My odometer read 130345 when I bought the car. And still to this day it reads 130345. I ran a carfax on it not too long ago. Back in 2003 it had 150K on it. Then in 2004 it magically had 130345 on it. So in the first 6 years of its life it got 150K on it. If its been driven about the same the last 7 years, it is over 300K by now. I know that I've personally put on about 60K since I've bought it. So yeah, either way its over 200K and still running strong. The only repair I've had to do besides brakes and normal maintenance has been the clutch. But what can you epxect for a car that is likely over 300K miles? the mechanics said it's a 14 years old car. First sign of an excellent mechanic. They can do math. LMAO -broknindarkagain My Current Project - Click Here COME AND TAKE IT "The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vicdeng Posted January 1, 2011 Author Share Posted January 1, 2011 Thanks for your comment. So you haven't done any HG work on your LGT? On my odometer the mileage reads fine, it's the bottom trip calculator does not work. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
I Donated broknindarkagain Posted January 1, 2011 I Donated Share Posted January 1, 2011 I haven't done the head gaskets myself, but I'm sure that they have been done sometime in the past. For them to go 300K miles without being replaced on the EJ25D is unheard of. So yeah, someone before I owned the car probably did them -broknindarkagain My Current Project - Click Here COME AND TAKE IT "The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
legacydh Posted January 1, 2011 Share Posted January 1, 2011 Mine has 238,XXX. Still runs like a top. It's a 96 Legacy L wagon. I bought the car with 225,000 for $1400. Tiny bit of rust on the rear quarters but nothing major. I had a 93 Leggy wagon with 346,000 before this one. I bought that one for $300. Worth every penny. I had a 'reputable' mechanic give me an inspection and that baby lasted until i couldn't get it passed the next year. I love these wagons. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vicdeng Posted January 1, 2011 Author Share Posted January 1, 2011 Mine has 238,XXX. Still runs like a top. It's a 96 Legacy L wagon. I bought the car with 225,000 for $1400. Tiny bit of rust on the rear quarters but nothing major. I had a 93 Leggy wagon with 346,000 before this one. I bought that one for $300. Worth every penny. I had a 'reputable' mechanic give me an inspection and that baby lasted until i couldn't get it passed the next year. I love these wagons. @legacydh, Did your legacy rust quite abit underneath since you live at the northern state. Mine is rust @ alot of places. I am sure about the mechanics that i deal with is reputable, but he is just not a Subaru fan. Sometimes i feel bad about people that do not appreciate these cars like we do. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daddywagon Posted January 1, 2011 Share Posted January 1, 2011 Im sitting at 214000 on my 96 outback. It had 178000 on it when i got it from my father in law who bought it new. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
I Donated broknindarkagain Posted January 1, 2011 I Donated Share Posted January 1, 2011 I replaced the shift linkage joint on a 5MT Forester several months back. It had about 340,000 miles on it and seemed to still be in good shape. It ran great and cosmetically you would never guess it was 300K+ -broknindarkagain My Current Project - Click Here COME AND TAKE IT "The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
legacydh Posted January 1, 2011 Share Posted January 1, 2011 The 93 was rotted thru. A lot of that body was bondo. But the 96 has surface rust at the worst. Pretty goddamned good shape for a northeast car. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lookatmyrust Posted January 1, 2011 Share Posted January 1, 2011 336,xxx. under 100k on the motor.. and alot of rust.. tranny still runs fine.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fatboy1214 Posted January 1, 2011 Share Posted January 1, 2011 i just rolled over 220,000 on my 2.5 legacy outback and runs like a champ and we have another one in the yard that needs a HG right now with 190,000 in great condition and i (literally) just sold my SVX with 140,000 that people say wont last very long but it drove like a champ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baddog Posted January 1, 2011 Share Posted January 1, 2011 @ 171k had it since 143k a little over a year ago. She runs better then she ever has. I have no doubt I will break 200k. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
98-lgt Posted January 1, 2011 Share Posted January 1, 2011 202,xxx. Car runs like a top! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vicdeng Posted January 2, 2011 Author Share Posted January 2, 2011 "Got another question about HG. I was told that someone had done the HG job in the past on my vehicle. But my question is if the HG has been replaced, why are they failing again at 160k? Didn't Subaru redesign the HG? Or is this just a common symptoms for our gen LGT no matter what kind of HG you replace?" Did someone has an answer for the question above? thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
soloz2 Posted January 2, 2011 Share Posted January 2, 2011 I got a 98 outback with 205k on it over the summer... It's nearly ready to click over to 215k next time it gets driven. Runs good, wasn't running well when we got it, but better now w/o any major work. Current: 16 Crosstrek Premium w/ Eyesight & 05 Outback XT 5MT Past Subies: 14 FXT Premium, 14 WRX hatch, 06 Legacy 2.5i SE 5MT, 98 Outback wagon Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kaz98gt Posted January 2, 2011 Share Posted January 2, 2011 Sitting at 157k right now, got it at 141k a year and a half ago. Needed a little bit of work, but running very strong as she stands now. Unless it throws a rod or something, I'm expecting over 200k at some point. Road trips this summer should help Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stang70Fastback Posted January 2, 2011 Share Posted January 2, 2011 Well, I just passed the 243,000 mile mark with my 1998 Legacy Outback Limited, and for all intents and purposes the vehicle is in fantastic shape. This has always been a Jersey car and the body has NO rust. The undercarriage has rust (mostly just surface rust) but nothing out of the ordinary. The body has its share of dings and scratches but overall the car looks to be in great shape (photos below). The car was never repainted or anything. Just car washes and an OCCASIONAL noob-style wax (the last time I did that was a few years ago now). Inside, the car is in pristine shape. A few odds'n'ends with some scrapes or broken parts (my sister liked to rest her feet on the rear cupholder, so... it is no more), but I have many, MANY people get into the car and remark at how nice and clean and in good shape it is (and this is BEFORE I tell them how many miles it has.) Most importantly, the mechanics: I'll start by saying that this is the limited, so it has ALL the options: Heated mirrors, heated wipers, heated seats, heated rear window, front tilting sunroof and a SEPARATE rear sliding moonroof. EVERY mechanical part on the car still works. There is NOTHING offhand that I can think of with issues other than that the rear wiper SPRAYER motor hasn't worked in YEARS (and the power antenna is broken but that is not the car's fault .) The biggest annoyance I have at the moment is that one of the bulbs behind the HVAC unit is burned out, along with one behind the temp gauge on the dash. I can see them both at night, but they are dim. The subwoofer under the driver's seat went a few months ago (coincidentally right when I added a bunch of Benni Benassi to my playlist, so that might also have been my doing - I got a bit carried away.) Now, remember the car has 243,000 miles. This is still the ORIGINAL transmission. It is NOT rebuilt, and NOTHING has been replaced other than the center clutch pack that splits power front/rear (and that's just because it wore out - no other way to put it.) The transmission shifts a little hard from 1st to second but works fine. In fact, mechanically, the car is original MOST stuff. The front CV joints went out a while back, so the axles are new, as are the tie-rod ends (just worn out.) The engine also experienced a head gasket failure at 170,000 miles. We take good care of our cars, but at the time we were literally BROKE, so (and this is a good indication of endurance) the car was driven for close to a year with the problem. The temperature gauge was regularly pegged, with the intention to simply replace the engine when everything finally went to hell. Turns out the block was fine, as well as the heads, and a new gasket, pump and thermostat later and I'm rolling right along. In fact, in the past 20-30k, I have had NO mechanical issues with the car whatsoever, which is pretty miraculous, if not scary. I'm a car guy, so I stick up for the old girl when other car kids in college make fun of my driving what they refer to as a lesbian's car, but I love this car to death. And make no mistake, I take good care of it, but it has been through some tough stuff. Every SINGLE snowstorm for the past few years I've burned through entire tanks of gas drifting all over town. I've forded flooded roads with water up to the doorsills and taken her offroading too. It also regularly makes the 450 mile drive to Virginia and then back again as that's where I go to college. The car is a model of reliability - so much so that I SINCERELY feel as though I owe it to Subaru to buy another one of their vehicles, because if this car had been any more problematic, I would NOT have been able to afford the repairs. This has turned into quite a long and probably useless post, but it all stems from your mechanic saying that Subarus rarely last past 200k. I don't know where he comes off saying this but I can tell you for a fact that it isn't true - and I am not basing that at all off of my experience, but from these past few encounters: 1. Riding in a different car that got rear ended when a dump truck behind us accelerated (anticipating a green light) not realizing that a car had squeezed in between him and us in his blind spot. Was chatting with him on the side of the road, and we got onto how my car has 230k miles and he said, and I quote, "Ah, that's nothing. Those things are tanks. They will run forever." 2. My dad has an Audi which lost the fuel pressure sensor a few weeks back and had to be towed. When the tow operator went to get the mileage he saw that it was up to 120k and he looked at my dad and said, "You've got 120k miles on this thing?!" as if he was crazy to still own the car. I told him, "That's not a lot. I've got 240 on my car!" expecting to impress him but his answer, WORD FOR WORD, was "Well, Subarus are tanks. I made my wife get one. You'll hit 300k easy if you try." 3. Various other experiences where I've TRIED to impress people with my high mileage, only to have them state that it's nothing special for a Subaru. I've heard people refer to Subarus with the SAME word, all the time. Apparently, Subaru builds tanks! Got another question about HG. I was told that someone had done the HG job in the past on my vehicle. But my question is if the HG has been replaced, why are they failing again at 160k? Didn't Subaru redesign the HG? Or is this just a common symptoms for our gen LGT no matter what kind of HG you replace? With regards to your question, it is my understanding that if the head gaskets are replaced with the upgraded gasket kit, the problem is not masked but SOLVED (well it IS masking the problem, but it's the last repair you should have to do.) I could have sworn that the guy who did this car a few years ago didn't use the upgraded kit because he simply said he could not guarantee how long the new gasket would last (reassuring.) Needless to say I've done 65k miles since then and haven't had any issues yet! I think that since it is the one fault with these cars, and that it can be an expensive repair, it is quite possible that the guy lied about them having been replaced earlier because he wanted the car sold. http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2719/4285283697_44804fd3b0_z.jpg Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
subikid90 Posted January 2, 2011 Share Posted January 2, 2011 "Got another question about HG. I was told that someone had done the HG job in the past on my vehicle. But my question is if the HG has been replaced, why are they failing again at 160k? Didn't Subaru redesign the HG? Or is this just a common symptoms for our gen LGT no matter what kind of HG you replace?" Did someone has an answer for the question above? thanks Subaru updated the headgaskets for our cars, once replaced they are not known to go again. I am not saying it couldnt happen again but I have a feeling someone is pulling your leg by saying the gaskets have been done before. Unless somehow when replaced they were replaced with the old style gaskets early on in the cars life. -Subikid90 1997 Legacy GT 5spd & EJ251 w/EJ25D heads ~10.5CR 1998 Legacy GT Limited waiting for EJ22T hybrid swap Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vicdeng Posted January 2, 2011 Author Share Posted January 2, 2011 But if you do a HG job right now, and order HG from Subaru. I am assuming is the new HG gasket style right? There shouldn't still be any old style floating around. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
carnumber19 Posted January 2, 2011 Share Posted January 2, 2011 If the PO didn't have the block and head machined it could be the reason of the premature failure of the second set of headgaskets, even if they were the updated version Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vicdeng Posted January 2, 2011 Author Share Posted January 2, 2011 If the PO didn't have the block and head machined it could be the reason of the premature failure of the second set of headgaskets, even if they were the updated version Yeah, my mechanic said the previous person who did the HG put silicon spray on the HG which is ..... But it seems this mechanic knows what he is doing, my head was already in machine shop last Fri. Hopefully, i could get my car out this coming Thur. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
subikid90 Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 But if you do a HG job right now, and order HG from Subaru. I am assuming is the new HG gasket style right? There shouldn't still be any old style floating around. Yes you will get the updated gaskets. Also I have used Fe-Pro headgasket set with 25k of good results so far. If the PO didn't have the block and head machined it could be the reason of the premature failure of the second set of headgaskets, even if they were the updated version This is very true also. -Subikid90 1997 Legacy GT 5spd & EJ251 w/EJ25D heads ~10.5CR 1998 Legacy GT Limited waiting for EJ22T hybrid swap Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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