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Comments
BTW - went to Costco yesterday to get a leak fixed along with rotation and balance. The tire were purchased at Tirerack.com and installed by Costco. No charge for yesterday's service.
Greg
Steve
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Transmission problem 1999 ob by rob309 Dec 29, 2002 (5:47 am)
What does this sound like ?
i start my ob in the morning after being garaged overnight, shift from Park to Reverse, reverse out of the garage, shift from Reverse to Drive, and THEN there is a delay in DRIVE engaging, typically a couple of seconds, somethings between 10-30 seconds , then engages with a thud. BUT it doesnt happen all of the time.
I mentioned the problem to my subaru dealer, and they supposedly couldnt reproduce the problem.
If it was a manual gearbox, id say the clutch was slipping, but im ignorant of auto transmissions.
any views would be appreciated.
Greg
Venting makes you feel better, but calling might yield results, so it's worth a shot.
Keep in mind Subaru has about a million of the 2.5l engines on the road today, so a few gasket failures does not mean it's characteristic of that engine.
Maybe you could share the build date, so we could see if there was a run of bad gaskets (i.e. built at about the same time)? Check the door jamb, if you could.
-juice
So I am considering the switch to the lower octane gas. How low can I go....89 octane....87 octane. I hate to do this to my peppy H6, but this is getting expensive. I don't want to listen to engine knock.
I am sure glad I got rid of my 2002 Bravada that got 15 mpg in the city, although that I6 engine used 87 octane. My Subie has been getting 23-24 mpg city.
I noticed Honda is advertising their H2 fuel cell car.
I would drive a hybrid if everyone else did....but I don't want to get run over by a Lincoln Navigator.
This current episode in our history may be the turning point for the big SUV...no one will be able to pay for gas.
Thanks for listening to me. Your opinion?
I will here about this.
I really do think this is a turning point for the SUV market.
IdahoDoug (still here, just busy for a spell)
DC area dealers charge a lot, too, though. Fitzgerald charges a little over $600 for the 60k.
The H6 can use 87 octane, but it'll retard spark timing and lose about 4 hp. If 208hp is still plenty, it shouldn't do any long term harm to the engine.
-juice
-juice
Steve
Steve
I got the Subaru Gold for my wife's car, 7/100 bumper to bumper. We had a 626 that was reliable for 5 years and then cost us a small fortune ($2500) the last 2 years we had it. And that's a reliable car!
We had AAA and it would have cost $497 for 7 years. Subaru Gold gives you roadside assistance, so we dropped AAA. That pays for about half right there.
Then consider added resale if you sell with even a little bit left on the warranty (for a buyer, it's a safety net). Then add free towing, free loaner for service, red carpet treatment at the dealer, etc.
On a modern car one major repair will more than pay for it. But even if I never use it, I can just about break even if it indeed helps resale. So I had nothing to lose.
-juice
Jim
-juice
Greg
-juice
Greg
Then again it goes away when it's above freezing.
-juice
Greg
There are a number of ways to look at this one. I believe that when a manufacturer offers an extended warranty, they do it to make money, both for them and their dealership franchise partners. But the payback is not necessarily instantaneous to them - some of it is an investment paid over time. Here is the logic:
The extended warranty price has two components - what the manufacturer charges, and the dealer profit. My cousin was the 'business mgr' of a Honda dealer, so I am going to use Honda for this analysis. He is the guy in the back room who twists your arm to buy extra stuff at the close of the deal. That is the real profit center at many dealerships. They can make more profit here than on the car sale itself. For instance, the 7yr / 100k miles / $0 deductible on a Honda Odyssey can be purchased on the internet for $850 - $875. I have heard Honda gets something around $750 of that. Asking price at the dealership? Depending on how gullible they think you are, they might start negotiations at $1500 !! So Honda and the dealer potentially make out well in the beginning, at a bloated price, cash up front on day one.
What happens next? At say an obtainable price of $850, do you win or does Honda? For a period of time their outlay is low - most of the expenses, including usually some level of roadside assistance, is covered by the std mfgr warranty anyhow. But holders of an extended warr are probably more likely to have their car serviced by the dealership long term, and do routine service more often, in order to comply with the terms, and in the hope of getting something for free out of it. So the sale of this plan generates more dealership service traffic. They are much more likely to get your business for a brake or clutch job if you are a regular. And in selling services, they include more genuine Honda parts than if you went to an independent service shop. Pre-emptive service at the dealership tends to lower the overall failure rate, so you win, and so do they. For example, replacing a damaged CV boot that they inspect every 3k miles saves an expensive CV joint from failure.
The dealership doesn't get rich off of reimbursements from the mfgr., but they appreciate the increased volume of business. Honda controls expenses rather tightly. Dealerships make far more money when they charge the customer. Honda can refuse to pay if they don't think the repair was required or properly diagnosed, but in most cases, the private individual will pay the entire bill, including all of the 'extras'. So there again is another potential savings - you have a 'watchdog' on your side controlling costs. On visits to the service dept, you are likely to stroll thru the sales floor. And if they have made you happy during this long term relationship, you will more likely be a repeat customer.
So in total, an extended warranty can be a good deal if you:
1) Shop the internet and get it cheap. I think Honda's wholesale price is very favorable for the term of coverage, given the cost of a major (or even 2 or more minor failures) over 7 years.
2) Don't buy the coverage on day 1. I waited for a year on the Honda, almost 1.5 years on the Subaru to be sure I wanted to have a long term commitment with these vehicles. You don't get much in the beginning, and the price may be no higher later. I think Subaru is flat, Honda does have some small adders ($40 ??) at each 12k mile increment.
3) Be judicious in when you go to the dealership and when to your favorite shop for routine stuff. Don't get sucked into excessive dealership visits and end up overpaying. But do the maintainance & keep good records!
4) Transferrable warranties pay back well if you sell the car privately while they are in force.
5) Consider other cost savings (as Juice mentioned - maybe cancel AAA)
6) Treat it like your health insurance policy. While you may not get your money's worth in total, you may make out big time!
Steve
Greg
Jim
Greg
Thanks,
Tom
subaru warranty have good prices though you may be able to match their prices by going to a local dealer and haggling.I got my latest one from them easy as pie, they send you the Subaru paperwork, you sign and send them the dough in their stamped return envelope and Subaru sends you your papers. One local dealer would match their price but insisted I drive 30 mile sto do the paperwork in their offices. The dealer I purchased my latest car from laughed at me when I asked them to match the price!
I have gotten 3 ext warranties for my last 3 Subes, the 92 Legacy never got my money back as I didn't put much mileage on it though I kept it for 10 yrs and everything went wrong after the ext warranty was out!
the 98 Legacy has broken even already after 75K. Stuff like AC, radio after the 36K bumper to bumper can be expensive.The oil leaks started after 60K and the dealer did the timing belt as part of the repair and SOA swallowed the costs. (Another reason to get ext warranty - good dealers do throw you an occ bone!)
My 02 WRX is way too new to tell.
My other ext warranty experience is with the wifes Chevy minivan. After 38K miles we broke even already!I expect to save tons of money on this Detroit piece of junk!
After awful experiences with Audis and Acuras I will never get another car which I intend to keep beyond the factory warranty without an ext warranty!
For those who say invest it, if anyone knows where I can put my money these days and get more than a few % per annum on it with no loss in principal, let me (and the rest of the world) know!
You have to know your own propensity for luck. If you are someone who "rolls sevens", keep your money. I don't seem to be that lucky, so extra insurance and extended warranties seem to pay off. I used to buy them on my new cars, then stopped for a few years. If I had taken them on my last two Toyota's, I would have made out great - probably 2x return. I liked both my Camry and Corolla, but even little thinks were extremely expensive to deal with (like a $350 neutral safety switch - cost of the part alone).
Do what you feel is best. I was just trying to answer someones question.
Steve
We're funny in that one of our Subies has one (wife's) and the other doesn't (my Forester). But we have 3 cars and I'm pretty handy, so I might do certain repairs myself on the Forester, while never being in a hurry because of my spare car.
For her situation, it made sense. She can't lift a wrench and hates surprise repair bills. I don't have time to fix 3 cars. Plus, as I mentioned above, $497 off AAA fees and better resale sweeten the deal.
Final thought - Subaru reimburses dealers for warranty work, but they pay less than a retail customer that just walks in and desperately needs their primary vehicle fixed. So basically Subaru shops for a good price, tacks on a small margin, and sells you the warranty, which could potentially cost about the same as the average for repairs. Their margin makes up for the discounted rates they pay dealers.
-juice
Greg
I gotta get one of those Subaru cards, but that's a whole different thing. I agree it's a good deal. Right now we get just 1% back from a Toys R Us card, but it buys the diapers. 3% would add up to a lot for us.
-juice
Now it is an American Airlines card to help get us to China later this year. 65k miles in the bank and counting....
Steve
-juice
Topic, uhmm, I have the LL Bean "hog mats" in my OB for winter.
Greg
-juice
BTW, I'm driving a 00 OBW 5spd w/4000 mile "new" clutch.
Mark
-juice
On Monday, for the very first time, I smelt it inside the car. I usually don't notice it until I get out of the car in my garage at night. ('02 OB H4 w/auto).
Steve