Subarus

[lederhosen]

We're considering getting a Subaru, and I know a few of you drive them - any recommendations/things to watch out for?

Comments

[remus-shepherd.livejournal.com]

I have a Subaru. The main selling point of this car is the all-wheel drive transmission, which gives it very good handling on ice, snow, and gravel -- three things of which my area has in quantity. I don't see you needing all-wheel drive in your area.

If you feel you do, don't worry about getting the 'advanced transmission' -- the 'standard' model balances power from front to back wheels, while the advanced will also balance it from side to side. There are a couple situations (mostly involving three-foot deep snow) where the advanced transmission might have gotten me out of a jam, but the standard version is fine for almost all purposes.

In any event I love my Forester, but I have regular maintenance. There is a tendency for the alignment to go out, so I get the alignment fixed with almost every oil change. Other than that and a buzzy speaker system, no complaints. Mine is six years old, but I've heard that they're reliable for ten years after manufacture. Not sure how many miles that translates to -- at least 100,000 I think.

Test drive the car before you buy it, and get it over 60 mph if you can. That's when vibration due to the alignment problems will show up if they're present.

[lederhosen.livejournal.com]

I don't see you needing all-wheel drive in your area.

We do holiday in the bush occasionally, which is why we were looking at a Subi - something that can deal with rough terrain but isn't as obnoxious or expensive as the bigger 4WDs. 'Advanced' transmission would be overkill, I suspect.