By accessing this website, you acknowledge that Edmunds and its third party business partners may use cookies, pixels, and similar technologies to collect information about you and your interactions with the website as described in our
Privacy Statement, and you agree that your use of the website is subject to our
Visitor Agreement.
Comments
-juice
I find the front end a bit busy, but it could grow on me. Haven't seen a picture of the wagon, yet.
Bonus feature - what are you talking about?
- D
http://www.timouth.com/newyorker.html
I also like the standard oval '02-03 WRX lights over the JDM projectors or the WRC style. Those make the car look like an odd insect. I can see where detractors of the new car would compare it to a Corolla or call it cross-eyed, though. So what?
Ed
Both nice but not as roomy as the Forester. At 6'3+" and 235 pounds I like roominess. I made the right choice.
Steve
Host
SUVs, Vans and Aftermarket & Accessories Message Boards
We're sorry, the Subaru Crew chat room is now closed.
We're sorry, the Subaru Crew Owner's Club Chat is now closed. Please join us every Thursday: 9-10pm EST / 6-7pm PST
Press BACK in your browser to return to your previous location.
What gives?
Ed >:(
Steve
Host
SUVs, Vans and Aftermarket & Accessories Message Boards
When I purchased my Forester in '98, I was surprised that my insurance, including collision and comprehensive, was only about 20% higher than the 9 year old base model Saab 900 that it replaced. In upstate New York, with 100/300/50 ocverage, it is now about $460 per year with State Farm. It helps that my driving record is clean and that I have other insurance with them and the accident prevention workshop discount, but no multi-car discount. The ABS and airbag discounts also help.
I keep getting solicitations from other insurance companies claiming that they can beat my present rates. But one of them that advertises everywhere and claims to beat State Farm in most places, quoted me almost twice as much.
It pays to shop around. I know someone with a horrendous driving record, who was able to reduce his premium by 20% through a reputable company by shopping, even though some other companies would not even consider insuring him. Different companies use different rating techniques and these seem to change from time to time.
In my 2002 Subaru Forester S, I was attempting to turn left onto a very busy road last night
from a gas station. I was very near the intersection, but there wasn't traffic coming through the green light, so I tried to turn and then get into the left turning lane at the light.
Unfortunately, a $%#!ant BMW hotshot coming from the right -- from nearly two (2) blocks
away -- sped up to thwart what should have been a relatively simple, safe left turn. I stopped in deference to the uber-speeder but lost my chance with traffic coming through the intersection from the left.
So, I backed up the driveway into the gas station parking lot...without looking. DOH! My wife
saw it happening before I did. The lady behind me, whom I had noted mentally while pumping gas -- "Lady -- you need to friggin' learn to park that car of yours." -- lurched forward thinking that I wasn't coming back into the parking lot.
BOOM! Bumper meets bumper, and I have to park the car and see what the damage is.
Sure enough, her car is fine, and she's asking me, "Did you have to do that?" All I can say is, "Yeah, lady. Kind of had to, since I was cut off from my left turn and sticking out in the middle of oncoming traffic." I didn't mention that -- OOPS! -- I should have looked back before backing up. Anyway, she pulls her early 90s era crap-mobile Acura Legend, revealing a completely crushed in right rear bumper corner on my poor Forester.
POOF! Crushed bumper gone in a matter of 2-3 seconds. What the hell?!
The darn thing fixed itself after a second or two. A minor paint scrape (barely visible), and no
shift in the lines of the bumper with the back of the car.
I thanked the car gods and made my way to Pep Boys to get what I was out driving for
anyway -- wiper blades for my wife's car.
Thank you Subaru for the "Christine-Like-Possessed-Car-That-Repairs-Crushed-Bumpers"
feature on my Forester! That wasn't in the manual! WOOHOO!
burnsmr4
Rear diffy in the rear
-mike
Len
Thank you all
Dave
I'm considering a new Forester' 03. Just getting my trade-in in better condition.
Frank
I've used both points paisan describes, they get each axle off the ground (both front or both rear).
I've also placed a peice of treated 2"x4" wood running from one jacking point to the other (to spread the load), and placed the jack between the two, to get one side of the vehicle off the ground.
Yet another Dave! You'll fit right in, there are more Daves than any other name in Subaru-dom.
-juice
Mileage: averaging around 25 in mixed driving. Lowest was just over 21; best was over 30. I even got 404 miles on one tank. That was almost all highway, some high elevation two lane, some Interstate. The Low Fuel Light does make frequent appearances.
Performance: it's hard to quantify acceleration, cornering, or ride. On all of those, it definitely outperforms my Civic, which was roughly 1/2 the HP and 2/3 the weight. Has enough accelaration for even the truly impatient. That's odd, actually, because the Subie is so comfortable that I've actually gotten more patient. Feels very stable in tight turns or in highway cruising. I know it gets some comments on noise, but I haven't found it to be noisy.
Cargo: easily holds my mountain bike in the back. Also handles other bulky items easily.
Constructive Criticism: Only negative I have is the bug deflector. It decided to cut loose at 70 M.P.H. one day. Tried reinstalling, same problem later on the trip. Some minor damage to the paint from where it was flopping. Dealer's supposed to fix all that later this week.
Buy Again? Currently I'd consider another Forester, but I usually keep my vehicles for a long time and many miles. A six speed manual and variable valve timing are improvements that would make me start thinking about a new one, but I doubt those will be around anytime soon. That's OK, since I'm not in a hurry. Looking forward to many good years with this Forester.
and I thought my Self-Fixing bumper was a fluke
GMC Jimmy backed up and reversed the corner of my front right bumper. Stayed that way for about 30 sec. and like you'd said 'POOF'. Except for half dozen of gouges, you won't noticed it had caved in.
Ken
Subaru has variable valve timing in Japan, they call is AVCS. I'd like to see it here, too, though it adds more precise emissions control rather than brute power.
A 6 speed? Maybe with the turbo? Or a limited edition STi? Hopefully.
-juice
I'm the owner of the '02 Subaru Forester S with the self-repairing bumper. I'm less than 500 miles away from my next oil change -- around 12,000 miles (I changed it late at the 7500 mile service). And I've already got a case of Castrol Syntec to make the switch from regular to synthetic oil.
Is this the way to go? I've seen so many people recommend switching even before getting this many miles on their cars. I assume it will be good for the engine in the long run.
Oddly enough, there wasn't a difference in 6-quart case prices between the different brands, at least at PepBoys. Mobil 1 was the same price as the Castrol Syntec. Go figure. It's a scam, I tell ya! ;-)
Comments are welcome.
burnsmr4
But on the other hand my father was practical and so am I. No spirit of adventure there. What the hey do what you think is right.
Mind you, I'm still on dino oil, but I have shortened my intervals.
-juice
I also own an RX300 that had sludge problems (had the engine replaced at 32K miles under warranty) and have switched over to synthetic there as well.
FWIW, a co-worker with an 02 Mercedes just got a letter in the mail from Mercedes saying due to some sludge issues they were seeing that they were going to be switching over ALL Mercedes that get serviced at the dealership to synthetic and that new cars were going to come off the line with synthetic.
Drew
I think all Bimmers already use synthetic. Maybe not all, but at least some models do.
-juice
I have also been tracking the mileage for the past 2K and it has been pretty poor (average = 18-19mpg).
Any thoughts what my problem(s) might be? Could it be a bad O2 sensor, problem with the cat?
Thanks,
Ron
The only other thing I can think of is condensation (water) in the gas line. I think Kate tried a bottle of Dry Gas and it solved a similar problem for her.
18-19 mpg is highly unusual, though. My worst ever was 20.7mpg, and that's when I was on the beach, literally, parked on sand for 7 days.
That's an issue for a dealer to check out though. It could be spark timing (ECU controlled I believe), a bad knock sensor, or a bad 02 sensor sending the wrong signals. I'm sort of surprised you don't have a CEL as well.
-juice
If it was parked for 7 days, how exactly did you calculate the mileage? ;-)
tidester
Host
SUVs; Aftermarket & Accessories
-juice
tidester
Host
SUVs; Aftermarket & Accessories
Is the pinging (marbles) that I hear pre-ignition detonation ? Is that something that the dealer can remedy?
Also, CEL has never popped on.
Thanks again,
Ron
My Miata will make that sound if I'm in too low a gear (i.e. starting in 2nd). My timing is adjusted manually, and I've advanced mine 4 degrees. This is risky - when the engine is under load it can ping.
The Subie boxer is more modern, and has a knock sensor that will automatically retard ignition timing. You can't adjust this manually - the ECU takes care of that.
That's why I suspect your ECU or knock sensor could be malfunctioning.
-juice
I'll cross my fingers and maybe try a bottle of Dry Gas in the next tankfull. What the heck, its a cheap solution if it works.
Ron
2014 Mini Cooper (stick shift of course), 2016 Camry hybrid, 2009 Outback Sport 5-spd (keeping the stick alive)
The rotten-egg smell may not be a faulty cat, but just the brand of gasoline you use. I've had that happen in the winter time once or twice. Usually changing the brand of gas will make it go away.
Ken
Does this ring any bells?
Steve
Host
SUVs, Vans and Aftermarket & Accessories Message Boards
My 98 forester clutch is starting to chatter big time again.
This is the 2nd clutch since having the first replaced at 25k or so. Present mileage is 60k.
I am dreading the thought of going to the dealer and hearing the same bs I did the last time "It must be the way I drive and they never heard of a clutch problem before with Foresters"
Does anyone know if they have changed their tune and are there any tech bulletins on the problem out there?
Thanks
Ron Weiss
In our case, it's usually a faulty dog.
Bob
They fixed it last time under warranty after checking to see if the clutch disk was glazed. It was glazed unevenly, which they said was a result of a defect, so they fixed it for free. Otherwise it would have cost over $700. Now it doesn't matter since it is out of warranty, so I will have to pay if it gets worse.
I stopped using the Mobil 1 in that car when, after several years of using it, I drove on a long trip and had to constantly stop and add oil as the oil warning light kept coming on. By the end of the trip, I had done a complete oil change to regular oil. There was no sign of a leak. It had been very hot, temperatures in the 90s, road speeds were in the 60s to 70s, and the Mobil 5W30 (the only formulation available then) had become so thin, and was apparently so slippery, that it had leaked past the rings and burned.
Now, regular oils have additives that are designed to increase mileage. So, when I tried synthetic in my last Saab for several changes, there was no noticeable mileage improvement. So, I went back to regular oil.
That car went 125,000 miles before its timing chain snapped (a typical problem with that engine). I had the opportunity to inspect the inside of the engine when it was torn down and found that there was no visible residue (carbon or otherwise). in fact, the engine looked brand new after 125k on regular 10W30 oil.
I don't know about the carbon problem in Toyotas, but it could be because of poor design or unusual operating conditions. Anyway, I am now convinced that synthetics are not worth the extra cost.
Back in late May - early June I posted some information on Subie clutch disks and pressure plates regarding when they've been updated.
If I recall correctly, there have been 4 updates to the clutch disk, and one to the pressure plate since 1998 - the most recent change was to the pressure plate for MY 03, I think.
As it was described to me by a friendly Subaru tech, the biggest problem seems to be the material used in the clutch disk. Earlier versions were more sensitive to moisture and would chatter under humid conditions right after start up until they warmed up. This is often associated with cold weather due to condensation.
If your clutch disk was replaced some time ago, as it seems from your post, then there's probably a better version out there by now.
I've experienced very occasional chatter, nothing serious. It usually happens after I've been working out, so I tend to attribute it to poor footwork on my part. I think my pedal may be touchy.
Considering that we tow a fair-sized pop-top camper, I'm not expecting my clutch to last forever. I had it checked at the beginning of this season, and my tech thought it was only worn about 20%, which would translate to a life-expectancy of 125k miles. That would be good :-).
By the way, per Subaru.com, the clutch disk warranty for MY '01 Foresters was extended to 3/36 from 1/12. At the time I purchased, I took this to mean the factory had this problem licked.
Sorry to hear of your problem. Time to get Patty involved ?
Hth,
-brianV
I think this is your first clutch disk post in here:
bsvoller Jun 3, 2002 2:59pm
Steve
Host
SUVs, Vans and Aftermarket & Accessories Message Boards
If it turns out you have to pay for it yourself, I'd consider an ACT clutch. It's about $300 for parts, and that's an upgraded one made for people that autocross and otherwise drive hard.
-juice
I have to admit, I didn't bother to try the search based on previous experience...
Looks like you guys have a very important upgrade in the works. Way to go !
-brianV
Ron
I've owned exactly one automatic in my entire life.
Granted, I pride myself in a smooth take-off and transitions between gears. My feeling is that you shouldn't really feel a shift, only hear the engine sing.
I also don't ride the clutch pedal when accelerating, and I don't engine brake when cornering as a rule. Brake pads are infinitely cheaper and easier to get at than clutch disks !
YMMV
-brianV
-mike
Denver is actually a lot worse now than, say, 10 years ago when we first moved here.
Some of it is planning, you know. We "arrange our lives" so to speak, in such a way that we don't have a horrible commute.
When I worked downtown (7 yrs), I rode the bus. Now that I'm working in the burbs, we bought a house close by. I know guys who commute 1.5 hrs each way, but it's not for me.
I will not spend 10-15 hrs a week of my life sitting in traffic.
Life's too short, even in a Subie.