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Comments
-mike
Don't know if this is the place to ask this but here goes....
I've been reading these posts for months (fascinating stuff) and I'm done procrastinating (I hope) and will be buying either a new 2003 Forester X or a new 2002 Forester L within the month. Depends on the cost.
I live in New York's Lower Hudson Valley but work
in Manhattan.
Anyone have any advice/experience with the Service provided by Feder's of Middletown or Ramsey Suburu. Appreciate any input.
Thanks!
Hi and welcome, Marty.
paisan knows of a dealer in the region. If you come down to MD check out fitzmall.com and look at their no-haggle prices. 2002s are mostly out of stock, you may have to get lucky to even find one.
2003s got lots of improvements and I've seen them starting at right around $20k, a good value.
-juice
Mark
BTW-they have no 2002 Foresters.
Alex
I bought my 2 Sube's from Skip Bower at Mid-City on the northwest side. Skip is a straight shooter but I'm not impressed with the service dept.
Ron
Alex
How many days in a row can a new vehicle sit without being driven, before it could end up with problems? I'd hate for the car to have future problems as a result of just not being driven for too long.
I am considering buying a Subaru this month to take advantage of the new special financing offers, but would have to leave the vehicle to go on a 14-day trip.
Or, I guess I could try to find someone trustworthy to car-sit for me- not an easy task.
Any suggestions or shared experiences would be appreciated.
My $0.02.
Jim
Or just disconnect the negative battery terminal so it doesn't drain while you're gone.
-juice
My third car, the horrible H, sits for more than two weeks at a time and starts for me with no problem. I can't stand driving it compared to my Legacy, so it only goes for overnight parking at the airport.
Jim
-juice
Harry
You can still use cruise. Just remember to vary your speed.
-Dennis
My mileage steadily improved until about 20k miles, where it hit a plateau. The good news it you can look foward to a 2mpg or so improvement. I average 25mpg now, so you should, too.
-juice
Ed
-mike
Must have been a nOOb. I noticed that two of the more senior guys weren't there that day.
Call service and ask for Diane Barry, the service manager.
-Dennis
Ed
-juice
Before you guys tell me again about worse service - I've had it, at Fred Beans - let me remind you that Flemington service advisor Carlo Stravato told me on Monday 9/9 that they would send the lock out to me THAT AFTERNOON. So he lied, plain and simple.
Diane Barry also told me that their techs "never use customer lug locks, they supply their own." Even more reason for it not to be gone.
I have my doubts as to whether I'll go back to Flemington for service; I can get indifferent service much closer to home. I expected better from a stand-alone Subaru dealership.
Ed
I plan to stick with them, even though I have about 4 dealers that are closer.
-Dennis
-juice
It's just that I travel a lot for work and don't want to be stuck without it if I get a flat. Guess I should dig up the original paperwork and order a spare from McGard or whoever provided the OEM lock.
Ed
One time I changed the oil on our 626, and when I put the new filter on, I had failed to remove the rubber gasket from the old oil filter. OOPS! That wasn't fun. Left a nice trail of an oil leak all the way home, and it was raining so you saw a series of rainbows in my tracks.
I torque every bolt to specification, but even then I'll make the occasional human error.
-juice
-mike
-juice
Ed
You're absolutely right and you're a perfect example. By not following through on their promise to make it right, Flemington has lost you as a customer. Unfortunately, It's been my experience that mediocre to poor customer service is the norm in most businesses these days and the automotive industry is no exception. (Except for Patti of course :-)
-Frank P.
-juice
I ran across a 1988 XT6 4WD 5-spd manual with 116k mi on it. They're asking $3k. It's charcoal with a black interior. Paint is a little faded on the hood, but it started right up on a cold morning. It still has the automatic-leveling pnuematic suspension. Its been smoked in quite a bit. Seller claims about $2k investment in engine repairs and maintenance recently (haven't asked to see invoices or driven it yet).
Looked up the TMV on it and private party is $1568 in Average condition, $2073 in good condition. It definitely needs detailing.
WDYT? Is it worth taking the plunge for a backup commuter car? Or is the suspension going to be a royal headache?
Opinions welcome,
Theo
Even then it's a risk.
-juice
PS Rack and Pump Leaks
Oil Leaks from the seals (main engine, valve covers)
Tell the seller to leave it overnight and check it first thing in the AM items to check first thing in the AM: See if any corner is down this would indicate a leak in the Air-suspension, check for valve tapping.
They do make great commuter cars and are easy to work on if you do need to make repairs. The air suspension isn't so bad to re-do, I've done it on both my XT6s.
-mike
Theo
-mike
They basically give you a dual moonroof and nice 16" alloys and V-rated tires for under a grand. You are virtually forced to buy it, in fact dealers are not ordering base L models without the SE package. You would have to special order one from the factory if you didn't want the moonroof.
The base OB costs a little more than an L/SE and gives up that moonroof, but you do get the extra ground clearance, the two tone, map pockets, lit key ring, and a lot of little extras, I think weatherband too. But I think the L/SE is a better value.
The OB Ltd is pretty nice, my dad has one. You don't actually spend 3.5k more for it, street price has a smaller difference.
-juice
-mike
My dad bought his Limited for $25 grand, IIRC it's a 2001. The Legacy line usually carries an incentive of $750, and then $1200 at the end of the year.
The Impreza line only gets a $500 incentive, and less often, plus later in the model year. This varies, of course.
The 2.5GT is nice, but maybe a little overpriced. Keep in mind that it has two moonroofs and shiftronic manual shifting for the automatic, while the WRX has neither. It also has heated leather, vs. cloth. It also has a much longer wheelbase and much more passenger and cargo space, payload, etc.
Hard to compare those. An aftermarket moonroof in a WRX would cost $900, maybe $1400 for heated leather, that would give you a higher final price.
But I'd also choose the power and value over those cosmetic goodies, and end up with a WRX or an L/SE.
-juice
Impreza:
TS = 18012 (auto, 5 speed would be cheaper)
OBS = 18165
RS = 18335
WRX wagon = 22116
WRX sedan = 23451
RS and WRX get flared fenders, wider track, fatter sway bar, so wagons cost less. It's a little counter-intuitive. The WRX sedan had lots of options, usually they for for $1000 less. The TS goes for $700 or so less with a 5 speed.
Legacy
L/SE = 18790 (screaming bargain w/moonroof)
OB = 20838 (has heated seats now, rear LSD, little extras)
2.5 GT = 22642 (cheaper than their WRX sedan even with heated leather and moonroofs)
2.5 GT wagon = 23541 (2 roofs, heated leather)
OB Ltd = 24356 (auto, heated leather, loaded)
If you don't think there's value in the OB Ltd, simple, get the base Outback. If you don't like the 2.5 GT, get the L/SE. In both cases you are primarily giving up heated leather, which it seems like you don't want anyway.
Of course you'd expect the bigger Legacy line to cost more than the Impreza, and it does, no surprise there.
-juice
Mike
PS They served great food!
-juice
lonewulf70
I'm looking at buying one right now, and it seems to me that it might be advantageous to wait untill january for new incentives/promotions from subaru. Something tells me there are better financing deals coming...
texan