2013 and earlier-Subaru Legacy Prices Paid and Buying Experience

ateixeira · May 2005

Was after the revised gasket material arrived. In fact our 2002 Legacy L already has the new one.

-juice

fedman98 · May 2005

I checked with Stevens Creek Subaru yesterday on their stock of Obsidian Black Pearl GT limited sedans and they were not too helpful when I asked what the miles were on the vehicles they had in stock. They finally replied with the lowest miles being 167. I definitely passed on this as it has definitely been driven and probably beat. I finally found one exactly how I wanted it for a price of $26,850.00. It includes spoiler, security mirror/compass option and wheels locks. If anyone is looking for a good selection, Ron Price Subaru in South san francisco had a decent selection and they were very competively priced if not better.

fedman98 · May 2005

Be careful with too low of a priced vehicle. A lot of them have a lot of miles, which means they have been driven to the limit (high rpms) or have minor damage. It's not worth saving 200-500 dollars. Prestige Imports in santa rosa had one priced to good to be true and sure enough it had 1001 miles on it and the interior was filthy.

cusafr · May 2005

Thanks. That's the thing I was thinking about.

Jim

sweet_subie · May 2005

once you finalize the price, use the VIN number & check carfax.com report to see any issues with it as well.

roba1 · August 2005

August 17, 2005: What do people think of these prices for a 2005 Legacy 2.5i Limited Wagon in the NYC region  both have about $300 in little odds and ends added to them, it seems. The prices do not include the $2000 cash to customer rebate. A 3% profit over invoice for a standard Limited is approx. $26,324 so after the rebate all these prices will be below invoice.

The prices: $26,458 and $26,997). Now that the 2006 models are in the showroom, should I expect a dealer price at or below invoice, excluding the rebate?

Is buying a 2005 model now that the 2006 models are on the floor essentially giving a good portion of the 1st years depreciation away before I drive it off the lot? For instance, Edmunds 1st year depreciation is $7,509. At Kelly Blue Book, a Legacy 2.5i Limited with 0 miles has an estimated private party value of $24,100.

Rob

mwmosser · August 2005

Here in KC area there are hardly any 2.5i Limited wagons left - I think we got the last one today. We were quoted $22,800 plus got an extended warranty to bump Subaru's normal 3/36 warranty up to 5/60 bumper-to-bumper.

OTD total after taxes and fees and minus $1500 customer cash was $24,630.

We were very happy, to say the least. It's sitting in the garage now.

Michael

mwmosser · August 2005

Forgot to mention, this is the 5-speed manual transmission model. Only installed options (besides the Limited package itself) are the upgraded security system and the auto-dimming compass mirror.

M

raybear · September 2005

Well what happened?

cwbarrett · September 2005

In Connecticut 2006 2.5I Special Edition MTS paid invoice less the $1000 rebate. Looking at their invoice compared to MSRP I think there is more than holdback going back to the dealer. There's not a big enough difference. Pricing is clearing now being set with the expectation that the customer will ask for invoice. Dealer paperwork includes the ad fee. I spoke to 5 Connecticut dealers and all were up front and willing to quote and negotiate over the phone. If I was had at least it was pleasant. BTW I love the car.

raybear · September 2005

Right now we have no incentives to the dealer beyond holdback.

dsattler · September 2005

Isn't Connecticut part of the New England distributioin system? And aren't NE invoices a bit higher than the rest odf the country?

robr2 · September 2005

Isn't Connecticut part of the New England distributioin system? And aren't NE invoices a bit higher than the rest odf the country?

Yes and Yes.

mryeh17 · September 2005

Including rear cargo net and all weather mats, Obsidian black with Taupe interior

$27427 would be the check
VA tax is $836

Does that sound reasonable (it does to me)? I'm taking a test drive tomorrow.

My main reason for considering the wagon is because the rear seats don't fold down. Does anyone own a sedan and regret the seats not folding? If so, how often?

ateixeira · September 2005

Gosh, are they really that cheap? I expected just under $30k...

-juice

cwbarrett · September 2005

Thanks for all the feedback. Margins must be pretty thin. If Patty from Cherry Hill Subaru HQ still monitors these boards she should know that the reason I came back to Subaru was because how she showed Subaru stands behind there product.

cwbarrett · September 2005

I hate seeing stupid typos after you post. S/B "their product"

rob_m · September 2005

Sounds high for a manual wagon. Does this include rebates? These have been running from 1-2k.

I paid a tad over $27k for my GT LTD Auto sedan back in May. Invoice was $28.5, I got the dealer $1k under, then took the $500 rebate and 2.9 financing.

Yes, I miss the fold down seats in the sedan. My 99 LGT LTD had them. But I also have an Outback, so I was set on another sedan. Good Luck. Rob M.

mryeh17 · September 2005

Yes, this includes $1500 rebate, which precludes 1.9% financing.

Was the $27k you paid for your sedan out the door, or the vehicle price? The vehicle price I've gotten the dealer to is a couple hundred over $26k.

mryeh17 · September 2005

That's what I've been offered, but it's for last year's model...

wmh2 · September 2005

I just received a price of $27,500 for the 2006 Legacy GT Limited Sedan with 5 speed in New York. This price includes the splash guard set, wheel locks, security system upgrade, armrest extension, auto dimming mirror with compass, all weather floormats, momo shift knob, and subwoofer/amplifier.

Total price after taxes etc is $29,900.

Not sure if I can get this price much lower. Any ideas? Thanks.

rob_m · September 2005

Did you check this number against Edmunds invoice? Are there any rebates on the 06? FWIW, I paid $27.5 for my 05 GT LTD Auto back in May. Rob M.

wmh2 · September 2005

I checked the $27,500 against edmunds which shows a price of $29,228. Unless I am missing something, it appears the edmunds price is before tax and tags in which case my price of $29,900 with all options installed, taxes, etc. seems reasonable.

Rob- is $27,5 what you paid with options and tax? Thanks for the info.

BTW, the incentives being offered right now are some low financing rates and $1,000 off.

kat95 · October 2005

If I were the only one driving the car I would have purchased an Impreza wagon. My husband needs to fit in the car so I purchased a Legacy sedan. I loved the looks of the sedan but not the wagon. Sometimes, I do regret my choice because
I'm limited to what I can put in my car. For me it was all about loving my ride.

era174 · October 2005

Hello from Canada.
I'm going to buy a 2006 Subaru Legacy 2.5i wagon this weekend.
I've done my homework for more than a month. The reasons I chose it instead of its competitors are:

1) all wheel drive :
I got two near-accident experiences with front wheel drive cars in winter.

2) mid-size station wagon :
no more Jetta wagons in 2006. that's too bad. VW Canada is selling 2005 leftover models only.
2006 Passat wagons (V6, 4Motion) will be too expensive (not on the market yet)
I almost decided to buy a 2006 Toyota Matrix (actually small-size), but Toyota Canada refuses to add side airbags and curtain airbags as options; I'm not talking about standard, but OPTIONS!! Bye, Toyota.

3) good standard equipment
Even the lowest 2.5i has 6 airbags (kudos to Subaru, Honda and Hyundai (Sonata)), many power-related options, cruise control, air conditioning, cd player, and surprisingly HEATED front seats (in Canada). Toyota Canada refuses again to add 6 airbags an an option for Camry SE whose MSRP is almost the same as Legacy 2.5i.

4) IIHS report on INJURY, COLLISION & THEFT LOSSES (2002-2004 models)
click here
Legacy/Outback 4WD has a very good rating in the all mid-size category.

5) good reliability and resale value

6) temptation to buy 2006 Honda CRV and 2006 Toyota Rav4?
2006 Toyota Rav4 will be a hot seller this winter considering all the media reports (& hype). Even though the IIHS report used its old models, its rating is very poor. So is Honda CR-V's. And CR-V still has to solve the PPTR problem. Of course those two mini SUVs generate much MORE NOISE than Legacy.

6) Final thought:
I NEVER dreamed of buying a SUBARU car in my whole life. But, Toyota and Honda fail to meet all my requirements within my budget. Passat wagon with 4Motion is an alternative but it'll be way too expensive for me. I'll post more info on my Legacy later. Thanks for all the posts you put on this wonderful web site!

krzyss · October 2005

"1) all wheel drive :
I got two near-accident experiences with front wheel drive cars in winter. "

Were you unable to accelerate?

Krzys

ateixeira · October 2005

Put simply, you slip when torque > traction available. FWD is doubling the first number, so the chances you'll slip are much higher. I like how this site describes it:

http://www.4x4abc.com/4WD101/tractionuse2.html

vs.

http://www.4x4abc.com/4WD101/tractionuse4.html

This mostly applies going up hill, but the reserve of traction is there for any slippery situation.

It was funny, my sister was shopping Camry vs. Forester, but she test drove the Camry on a rainy day.

Guess which one she bought?

-juice

robr2 · October 2005

I'll be the Forester. But I'll bet you applied a touch of pressure.

ateixeira · October 2005

I didn't go with her, actually. I'm sure my experience with my own Forester had some influence, but she went with my dad to go car shopping.

Once she had made the decision, I got her to qualify for the VIP pricing program.

-juice

era174 · October 2005

Actually i tried to stop. The first car span around twice and stopped right before another car (probably on black ice). The second one skidded into a valley side on a mountain road (snow plowed already and clean) and stopped a few meters away from the valley. I'm a very cautious driver and I was driving very slowly in those two cases. No more front wheel cars for me.

dwynne · October 2005

AWD does nothing to help you stop - a common mistake 4x4 and AWD drivers make. They go flying past you on a icy or snowy day and then down the road you pass them as they sit in the ditch.

ABS and stability control combined with good snow or snow/ice tires does a lot more for you than AWD does.

That said, I have an older ('96) Legacy wagon I use just snow days, ABS, AWD, and four snow/ice tires make it a "mountain goat". No DSC offered on that old of a car, however.

Dennis

era174 · October 2005

Thanks for your info, dwynne. The salesperson I met today opened the hood and showed me the FOUR cables for ABS. He said Subaru AWD is all the better because it has all wheel ABS while front wheel ABS has just two wheel ABS (?) or something like that. I hope he's correct on that point.

kyfdx · October 2005

Nope.... just sales talk... Some pickup trucks have rear-wheel ABS only, but I'm pretty sure that every car with ABS is on all four wheels..

Stop over to this discussion..
Subaru Crew: 2005+ Subaru Legacy/Outback

for everything you ever wanted to know about the Subaru Legacy

ateixeira · October 2005

He may have pointed out the 4 channels and 4 sensors that make up every ABS system in Subarus. Some manufacturers use 3 channel ABS (1 channel for both rear wheels) to cut costs. Honda, for instance.

The ABS still works on all 4 wheels, though. It's 3 channel ABS, though.

2 wheel ABS has been used on some cheaper pickups because the rear brakes tend to skid when the bed is empty.

boogie95 · October 2005

in Tennessee paid $29,163 after incentives. Was part of the Subie VIP program through my wife's work. Price included extras: equipment group 1E - the compass mirror with Homelink and all-weather mats.

krzyss · October 2005

Thanks for reply.
This is what I suspected. You are buying AWD because of wrong reasons.

The single (really quadruple) most important item that helps breaking in low traction environments is...
the tire.

If you can test drive Subaru Impreza WRX STI, with the most advanced AWD that Subaru makes, in the snow you will find that its summer high performance tires provide almost no traction and you have All Wheel Slide not Drive. Put some nice All Seasons or even better Winter tires and the story changes.

If you had better tires on current vehicle you would enjoy better control.

It brings me to another question.

What kind of tires did you have when you experienced these hair raising adventures?

Krzys

dwynne · October 2005

I agree that they got AWD for the wrong reason.

But I always recommend summer tires and snow tires on spare wheels. "All season" tires are jack of all trades, master of NONE. Summer tread tires are better in the dry and wet than all season and snow or snow/ice tires are MUCH better in winter driving. If you are lucky, you can get cheap steel wheels to fit your car and keep the snow tires mounted up and just swap the wheels w/tires 2x per year. TireRack or DiscountTireDirect are good places to check for winter wheel/tire combos. Add in 4 channel ABS and AWD with 4 snow tires and you will LOVE driving in the snow

Dennis

ateixeira · October 2005

That works if the change of seasons happens in a clear manner. But DC's weather is unpredictable. We have years with no snow at all, and then we have blizzards in March. Late March.

You'd be mounting/dismounting your tires 8-10 times per year to have the ideal tire at all times.

-juice

era174 · October 2005

thanks for your info, krzyss.
i've learned a lot from you and other members.
this forum is great!

fyi, i just had all season tires.
i'll be sure to have snow tires on my legacy.
snow tires + awd + 4 channel abs = wow!

era174 · October 2005

i told you about my salesperson who insisted canadian legacy/outback is manufactured in japan. when i taught him how to read subaru VIN (4S3 means the indiana factory, usa), he said all the major parts are made in japan and they're assembled in usa. he's a nice guy, so i didn't wanna argue more. anyway, i' just learned he's been working for subaru just for ONE MONTH! i guess subaru canada has to educate their new sales crew thoroughly (maybe some exit exam after training sessions). anyway, i hope he'll learn more when i need his service.

my legacy is 2.5i wagon automatic. i paid C$1,000 less than mrsp. canadian mrsp is high, C$ 30,695 (U$ 26,081 / usa mrsp is U$ 23,695). considering it has heated front seats and automatic seat adjustment (options for american models, say around C$ 700), it's still C$ 2,000 (U$ 1,700) more than the usa equivalent.

fyi, honda cr-v (2.4l, 5a) and accord ex (2.4l, 5a) have almost the same mrsp as legacy 2.5i wagon automatic in usa. they're also around C$ 2,000 more in canada.

the 2006 canadian version has minor upgrades: yokohama advan a82a tires (p205/50r17 88v), 17" x 7" aluminum alloy and engine immobilizer system.

i just drove 50 kilometers. i found acceleration quite impressive compared to civic, beetle and mazda3 i used to drive. so far so good. i'll post more on 2005+ legacy/outback forum.

ateixeira · October 2005

Congrats!

Join the Subaru Crew threads, under owners clubs, come introduce yourself. We're a fun bunch.

We also host a chat every Thursday night.

-juice

dwynne · November 2005

You'd be mounting/dismounting your tires 8-10 times per year to have the ideal tire at all times.

I always have spare wheels, so I don't mount the tires (on the wheels) but I do mount the spare wheels on the tires. When I only had one car, I would put the snows on and leave them until I though it was safe to take them off. So I would drive too much on the snows, which wears them out too fast and while are decent in the rain and terrible on dry roads. Now that I have a dedicated snow day car, I just put them on in the winter and leave them and drive another car on non-snow days.

Dennis

mstein · November 2005

Just curious to know what kind of deals (price below MSRP) add ons, upgrades etc I should realistically try to get. I've been quoted $23760 for a 06 Lagacy Limited and $27980 for the 06 Limited GT. Does anyone have any feedback regarding these quotes. Im torn between the Limited and Limited GT. I put on approx 30K miles a year and am worried about the added cost of turbo and gas. Can anyone give any thoughts to justify the GT other then "the fun of driving"

Thanks,

Mike

dwynne · November 2005

I always check prices at carsdirect.com and here at Edmunds "what others are paying". The carsdirect price represents what you could actually buy the car for today from a dealer - so if you can beat that price you usually have a decent deal. I will use my ZIP code, but also the ZIP codes of other close by large cities (3-4 hour drive) when looking for the best price. The dealers locally usually can't compete with dealers in some other cities.

If I drove 30k per year and had to pay for my own gas, I might have to look for something REALLY efficient and maybe not get a Legacy at all. If I were going to get a new Legacy it would have to be the GT

Dennis

cwbarrett · November 2005

I bought a 2006 special edition sedan almost 2 months ago. I paid invoice less the $1,000 Subaru incentive. Edmunds doesn't calculate in the additional Northeast dealer costs on this site so the invoice is a little higher than posted here. Its a manual so on back roads it's fun but a little underpowered on the highway. MPG according to the computer is about 30 in a mix of both city and highway. I calculated it on a couple of tanks the old fashioned way and was getting around 27. I also drive quite a bit, wanted the GT but premium and lower mileage scared me off. If you do a lot of highway driving the GT will be more comfortable sliding into the passing lanes.

wrxrallyer · November 2005

Greetings, all!
Posted this over at the Outback/Legacy thread, probably should have put it here!

Anywho, just traded in my 02 WRX wagon yesteday, and will be picking up my new ride tomorrow. Local dealer had an '05 GT Ltd auto, red garnet w/ the taupe interior. Apparently, they've discontinued that choice for '06. It'll probably get trashed by the kids, but i was tired of a black interior, so we'll see. Any suggestions on how to protect the seats? (other than not let the kids in???)

MSRP was $31,620, i got them down to $26,875, including the $2k back from Subaru. Also had them toss in the subwoofer. Gave me $6875 for my WRX, which considering it has 91k miles and needs new brakes, tires, and probably some front-end work (making a funky creaking sound in the right front), guess i can't complain! Oh, it had also gotten rear-ended 3mos into it and had a crappy repair job done to it (paint flaking off the bumper, hatch cover falls off, etc.)

So, how'd i do on the price?? Also, is the break-in process the same as before - varied RPMs under 4k (or at least try to!) for the first 1k miles?

Take care all!
Oliver

red927 · November 2005

This was originally posted on the Dealers' Tricks discussion.

I have to replace my wife's 03 Subaru Legacy GT since the lease is up at the end of December. Upon the recommendation of a friend, I went to Freehold Subaru (NJ) to get a price. I had done a great deal of research before and even got information from Car_man about the money factor and residual. I spoke to a sales person and explained what I was looking for and my time frame. He was very shocked that I did not want to test drive a car but he brought one around to look at.

The car he brought had equipment that I did not want (spoiler) and was not the proper color. I asked him about ordering from the factory (not swapping) and he said that I would have to give him a $1000 deposit and had to take the car.

I then asked him for some figures. He leaves and goes to see his manager who then calls me over. He enters some figures into his computer and tells me that he will lease me the car at absolutely NO PROFIT! He also states that I had to do this by 5:00 or the deal would go away. He also said that there were no 36 month leases from Subaru and I would have to go for a 39 month lease and that I would be able to return the car after 36 months to him, without having to worry about the remaining payments (?????). I kept telling him that I wasn't interested in that type of deal and besides his figures were off. The residual was too low and the money factor was also off. He said that thats what it was and I had to do it today. I thanked him and left as fast as I could.

I then went to the dealer I had gotten my previous Subarus from (Nitti) and got a 36 month lease, with the proper money factor and residual value. The price was $20/month less and the whole thing took maybe 10 minutes. What a difference!

Sorry to be so long winded, but I wanted to let people know to stay away from Freehold Subaru. Their tactics are from the dark ages.

Phil :mad:

marclj · November 2005

I've learned a lot about Subaru's from this forum and I know that someone out there will be able to help me.

I'm in the market for a sport wagon and have been doing a lot of research. I've narrowed my selection down to Subaru, but there's so many different types, I have to admit to a bit of confusion. Legacy, Forrester, Outback and Impreza all come in wagons and each model has like four different versions.

Does anyone know of a website that does a compare/contrast of all of them or what the major differences are between them? The Legacy seems to be the 'luxury' version, the Outback the 'rugged outdoors' one and the Forrester is the 'economy' one. The Impreza would be the 'sport' one? Have I got that right?

Thanks in advance for any guidance you can offer.

krzyss · November 2005

You can use edmunds to compare any vehicles, including Subarus to other Subarus but I think You got it right.
Just one note:
Outback is not 'rugged outdoors' but more of Legacy with high ground clearance or as rugged as most SUV owners would ever need ;-)
The same is true for Outback Sport and Forester.

Krzys

ateixeira · November 2005

I'm not sure I agree with your list.

Legacy is actually lesser-equipped compared to an Outback, plus some Outbacks have more insulation and a softer ride. It's arguably more luxurious.

The Legacy 2.5i is more basic, the GT is more sporty. Both are lower to the ground.

The Impreza 2.5i is their entry-level car, and isn't really that sporty. The WRX is, however. So I guess it depends on which model you refer to.

The Forester competes with small SUVs like the RAV4. It's the most upright, and has a lot more clearance than an Impreza, plus a square shape for really good cargo carrying capability.

Try this - first decide if you want small (Impreza), medium (Forester), large (Legacy/Outbcak), or extra large (Tribeca). I realize that overstates their sizes, but pick which size fits your need best.

Then decide if you need the extra ground clearance. That would push me towards a Forester, Outback, or Tribeca.

Then, finally, choose your price range, and see what you can afford in that range.

Test drive a few, they feel a lot different, even though they may look similar on paper.

-juice

2013 and earlier-Subaru Legacy Prices Paid and Buying Experience

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