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Comments
I dunno, VW had half a million bad ignition coils out there, while Subaru has maybe a handful of bad gaskets. Doesn't add up if you ask me.
-juice
Ed
Point is, no car is perfect. It's a bit absurd to expect that, and then change to a historically far less reliable brand expecting perfection.
Buy a Lexus or an Acura to improve your odds, or just get an extended warranty. Those strategies make more sense to me.
-juice
PS One bad coil can strand you. With a leaky head gasket odds are you'll make it home.
Anyway, I learned how to drive a manual transmission on a '68 Beetle, moved up to a '74 Super Bug and then got my own 1980 Rabbit Diesel, followed by an '84 Rabbit Diesel. We didn't know how many miles the '68 Beetle accummulated because the speedometer had a habit of not working! It was bought new and lasted until 1987. I racked up 175,000 on the '84 Rabbit before trading it in in 1991. The only problems that I had with those Rabbits were in the struts -- I seemed like I had to replace them all the time (oh, and the a/c didn't work too well, either).
Sounds like the mechanic was exaggerating.
Any how, 99k miles are a lot, by that time it's a crap shoot with any car.
What about an extended warranty next time around? That's really the only guarantee you could get. The 4Motion costs a few grand more, so you could easily afford an extended warranty and still come out ahead.
We got a 7/100 Subaru Gold warranty because my wife's last car, a 626, was rated reliable and still cost us $2500 in 5 break downs before it hit 80k miles. Now *that* is unreliable.
Any how, if you feel up to it, call 800-SUBARU3 and tell them what happened. They might be able to cut you a break on the parts costs, or maybe sell a warranty retroactively.
I know that's a stretch, but it's worth asking. Good luck.
-juice
Keep in mind it's not really fair to compare a previous generation '97 with 90k miles to a brand-spankin' new '03 that costs probably $10 grand more than you paid originally.
In other words, I bet you'd feel the same way about a new Outback VDC. Or, from the opposite point of view, let's see how you like your Passat after 90k miles of abuse.
shad12: I haven't forgotten, it's just that our regular Subaru rep is on disability leave. She actually had neck surgery that was pretty serious. She cannot "work" because it's against her insurance company's disability leave policy.
Go ahead and call 800-SUBARU3 to register your call. If they see a pattern, that's when they issue TSBs to dealers. That's basically what happened with VW's ignition coils, except I'm sure the problem was far more widespread because it got a lot of bad press (mentioned 3 times in Autoweek alone). Also some of the VeeDubs were brand-new, not with 90 or 100k miles.
-juice
I wonder if the seat in the Legacy GT would be a better fit for you?
Subaru just put the H6 in a cloth "base" model Outback. Interestingly, it's $3200 less than the LL Bean, so the H6 is now at available at a much lower price point.
The Forester is getting a turbo, as will the Baja, and some of us expect the 2004 Legacy GT to get a turbo too, with plenty of HP. They're talking about the next generation Legacy STi getting a whopping 350hp, yowsah! S4 hunting, anyone?
-juice
PS Edit: just had another thought, doesn't a sub woofer option fit under the driver seat? If so that would require it be mounted higher.
You'd probably have to be might friendly with a dealer for a 48 hour loaner. Either making a big purchase or a repeat customer on an expensive model.
Be happy to get a service loaner.
-juice
-juice
-juice
Ralph
Forester was tied for 1st most reliable small SUV, Legacy/Outback was 3rd most reliable mid-sizer, but very close to the best.
As a manufacturer Subaru was also near the top.
-juice
He took a loss on the deal, having paid $19,600 for the OB in September and selling it to me for $18,600. A trivial amount, though, to please the better half.
--K9Leader
Bob
-juice
I actually prefer the OB now that I have it - my wife says the Passat was too "yuppie car of the moment" for us anyway (we like to hike, backpack, snowshoe & XC ski - plus she is an environmental engineer). The only thing I really miss from the Passat is the front seat and leg room - so comfy for a big guy like me. Anyway, I have had more fun in OB this winter than in any other car!
Matt
I guess Piech decided that VW would chase luxury while Audi chased the sport segment. It'll be interesting to see how it works out.
But given the Passat is designed to be sold at $40 grand (W8), a base 1.8T 5 speed for about half that seems like a bargain IMO.
-juice
Eric
--K9Leader
I find my wife's Legacy has enough legroom for my 30" inseam. In fact I don't even have the seat all the way back.
-juice
You mentioned you got a seat rail modification that gives your outback's seat(s) 2 more inches of travel. Who makes it? How do I get one? How much does it cost? We had (sadly) written off the Legacy line because the seats won't go back quite far enough.
Scott
The drivers side is fairly easy. It just requires pulling the seat out of the car, removing 4 bolts that hold the seat rails together, drill a couple new holes in the rails about 2" further back, and then reassemble to the new position. No $ spent, just a 1/2 day of your time.
I gave a more detailed description about a year ago, probably in the Outback or modifications thread. If you can't find it with the search function and need more details, let me know.
Eric
-juice
I find myself having that same internal debate. I've admitted to myself that I don't ever do any real offroading, and don't need a true SUV, but there's part of me that just kinda hates to admit that I am a yuppie (a lawyer with two kids who lives in a zip code that was featured in National Geographic as the embodiment of American Suburbia). I like to get to the mountains whenever I can, but that's really not more than a couple times a year. My heart yearns to be an Outback person, but my head tells me I fit the Passat description a lot more closely. What's a yuppie in denial to do?
Ultimately, we test drove both the Outback VDC and Passat 4Mo wagons for an extended period. We chose the vehicle that we felt most comfortable in, and went with the dealer that provided the best sales experience. The VW won easily in both categories. We also like to get out of town for camping, hiking, and skiing adventures. So far this winter, the Passat has easily taken us everywhere our '89 Subaru 4WD wagon used to, up and over snow-covered passes to our favorite ski destinations.
Granted, if we hadn't liked the feel of the Passat as much, the VW dealer hadn't been so pleasant, and/or the Subaru dealer hadn't been such a..., well unpleasant, we could just as easily have chosen a new Subie.
Now, after almost three months of ownership of the Passat I would comment that the Monsoon radio tuner provides rather "boomy" sound while the in-dash CD player provides much better sound. When listening to the radio I just make sure I turn down the bass and increase the treble.
Good luck with your decision.
Get the H6 Outback with cloth. It's a new model. On the surface it's decidedly unpretentious, but underneath you sort of get it all.
I cracked up when Lucien said he thought the Passat interior was "too nice" for hauling his mountain bikes around.
-juice
Gary
- D.
'04 Outbacks are expected to be the same as '03; maybe minor cosmetic changes. I saw an '04 LL Bean at the NY autoshow and the only differences that I saw was silver badging (Outback & AWD) instead of gold and Baja wheels versus the H6 gold wheels. However, there could have been a revised H6 under the hood. :-)
DaveM
Looks good, too.
-juice
"Believe it or not, the Monsoon stereo in the VW Passat is manufactured by Delphi, a division of Delco Electronics. Even more amazing: It sounds really good. Volkswagen takes a somewhat different approach to audio in all its vehicles, which is evident throughout the product line, from the Passat on down to the Golf. Rather than mounting large 6-by-9s on the back deck, the VW folks opt for 6.5-inch drivers in all four doors. The doors act as speaker enclosures, accentuating bass response and smoothing out the rough edges. Top this off with an elegant pair of front-mounted tweeters, and you have a recipe for good sound."
Hope this answers your question.
Gary
I had a deer run into the side of a K-car I rented a long time ago, it was bizarre. It stunned him, we stopped, then he got up and ran off!
Would an Outback be more deer proof? LOL. Well, it is a little taller, so you might have a small advantage there.
-juice