Subaru Legacy? worth it?

[oman5]

Had a go in a mate's GT twin turbo legacy, I now have wantage, are they worth the bother? I'm expecting crap fuel consumption but what's the reliability/parts price etc like? thanks

[wuvvum]

If you're expecting crap fuel consumption you won't be disappointed. They like a drink even when being driven gently.

 

They're not too bad reliability-wise, although hard use can take its toll on the bottom end (or the middle end I suppose, being a boxer engine) and they do like frequent oil changes with decent-quality oil. Other than that they have the usual Subaru boxer issues of leaky rocker cover gaskets and a tendency to noisy tappets.

 

I'd say get a manual if you can - due to the engine's slightly odd power delivery, it's useful to be able to choose which gear you want to be in - the autos can often cause the engine to get caught off-boost, especially when using kickdown to overtake. The manuals tend to make a bit more than the autos, but they're still pretty cheap as silly Japanese performance cars go.

[Pete-M]

I'm not 100% on the Legacy, but if it's anything like my Impreza then they seem pretty strong as long as you maintain them properly.

 

Mine's an import and I've not had any real issues getting anything for it. There are a lot of Jap car specialists who seem to be on the ball.

 

I believe the Legacy GT is ok provided it's a manual, the autos have a habit of expensively grenading their gearboxes according to a few folks I know who've had 'em.

 

Fuel consumption will depend on how it's driven, I get 25-35 mpg from the Impreza driving it normally, 22ish being a tit, 28ish on a quick long A-B road blast. I'd expect to get 16-18 in town from a manual Legacy GT, maybe 25 on a run. They only drink super unleaded, my little Scooby is not happy with the regular stuff. Doesn't pink or do anything horrible on the regular stuff - I occasionally chuck it in if the petrol station doesn't have any Super - but it's obviously down on power and a lot less responsive on the regular gear.

 

They're very fussy about oil. Change it every 5-6000 miles with decent quality stuff and it'll be fine. Don't try stretching it much further. Rule of thumb is if the oil pressure light goes out the instant the engine starts then the oil is ok. If it stays on for half a second or so it needs changing. Mine used a bit of oil when I bought it and was in need of a change, once I did that it hasn't used a drop since.

 

Watch for leaking rocker cover gaskets, not the end of the world to change, but inaccessible to say the least. They leak on to of the exhaust manifolds so you'll know about it as soon as it gets warm.

 

Clutch should bite quite low, and be smooth and progressive. Should be easy to pull away at not much more than idle. Synchro isn't hard to beat, but the shift isn't the quickest in 'em anyway. Clutch is around £400 to replace, and worth getting someone who knows what they're doing to do the job. Much easier with all the stands and stuff that gearbox places have. Bloke who did mine did it in three hours from start to finish. I imagine you could be under the thing for a day if you didn't have the right tools. Clutch alone is around £250 just for the bits.

 

Turbos should be quiet, I rarely hear the one on mine, but it can be heard when giving it beans for a while.

 

Power steering pumps can leak. You'll see oil all over the cam belt cover if it is leaking.

 

Cambelt needs doing around 40k, not a hard job but there are seven timing marks that need to be perfect and a cam locking tool is a bloody good idea. I did mine without one and it put the shits up me as you have to be very careful. Genuine belt is around £60. Access is easy once you've removed the cooling fans. All the destructions are online for how to do it.

 

They're mega fussy about wheel alignment. Spend a few quid getting everything pointing in the right direction and you'll enjoy it. When I bought mine it needed a fair few tweaks to bring everything back to spec, but now it has been done it's bloody brilliant.

 

Basically, if you're expecting it to be cheap to run then think again. If, however, you get one that has been looked after properly it'll probably last nigh on forever with just basic TLC.

 

Go for it, what's the worst that could happen?