I want some opinions, please

"wunderwagen wants a longer roof" (wunderwagen) 03/16/2015 at 00:27 • Filed to: wagon

0

34

So, I'm planning to replace my car this summer (06 Dodge Stratus) with a similar year Legacy GT wagon much like the one above. I have so far found that the few that I come across with manuals are somewhat higher mileage (100K-140K) than I would prefer(<100K). They are mostly under $11K and in good condition from what I can tell. Does anyone have experience with these wonderful things? It would be my DD(that I would most likely drive to death) and I would be adding upgrading everything(air intake, suspension, etc) over its life.

If I do get get one that was above 100K, I am thinking of having the motor rebuilt once it was all mine. Good idea, bad idea, waste of money? This is a vehicle I would love to have more than a G8, which I have been looking at for a long time. Let me know what you all think below.

Have some more wagons. Thanks everyone! (P.S. I dislike all of the wheels in these pictures, especially on the Magnum)

Jordan and the Slowrunner, Boomer Intensifies > wunderwagen wants a longer roof 03/16/2015 at 00:40

3

wunderwagen wants a longer roof > Jordan and the Slowrunner, Boomer Intensifies 03/16/2015 at 00:42

1

The Chevelle only looks better as more doors are added.

Dsscats > wunderwagen wants a longer roof 03/16/2015 at 00:44

0

Gib me dis.

wunderwagen wants a longer roof > Dsscats 03/16/2015 at 00:46

1

Is it okay to want all of these in a large garage? And nothing else with fewer that 4 doors and a hatch?

Jordan and the Slowrunner, Boomer Intensifies > wunderwagen wants a longer roof 03/16/2015 at 01:02

2

Nah.

TopSirloin > wunderwagen wants a longer roof 03/16/2015 at 01:09

0

Why would you rebuild the motor if there wasn't some catastrophic failure or something? Or are you thinking of dropping in a WRX long block or something fun like that? Just seems like a waste of time and money otherwise.

Textured Soy Protein > wunderwagen wants a longer roof 03/16/2015 at 01:10

0

I dunno if you'll need the motor full-on rebuilt, but do be prepared to spend some money to get it in nice running shape. It's an almost 10 year old car with 100k+ miles.

I have a 10 year old car with 100k+ miles on it, my tall heavy wagon-shaped SUV Hemi Grand Cherokee, which is my winter car. It hasn't taken any major repairs, but I've dropped a good bit of cash into it since buying it, and that's just since last December.

So now it's gonna chill and not be my DD for a while, and I can take care of the other minor stuff it needs whenever I get the chance.

If you want it to be your DD, just make sure you plan to spend a couple grand in the first year on stuff. You never know what kind of work it might end up needing.

Tohru > wunderwagen wants a longer roof 03/16/2015 at 01:15

1

Man, just about any Subaru wagon will be better than a Stratus.

PS9 > wunderwagen wants a longer roof 03/16/2015 at 01:40

0

PS9 > wunderwagen wants a longer roof 03/16/2015 at 01:41

2

No. Due to unpopularity, there is an extreme shortage of wagons in the US. You are not allowed to horde them.

TheD0k_2many toys 2little time > wunderwagen wants a longer roof 03/16/2015 at 01:58

0

Would DD so hard

wunderwagen wants a longer roof > TopSirloin 03/16/2015 at 02:15

0

Maybe the WRX block at some point, I'm just concerned about the longevity of the stock engine.

wunderwagen wants a longer roof > Textured Soy Protein 03/16/2015 at 02:18

0

That's exactly why I'm considering a full or partial rebuild to nip any power train issues in the bud. This would be my long term DD and I don't want to worry about any major repairs cropping up. I know these motors are generally good but anything can have issues.

wunderwagen wants a longer roof > Tohru 03/16/2015 at 02:19

0

Haha, I'm well aware. My Stratus is a lovely piece of engineering, I love the battery placement.

TopSirloin > wunderwagen wants a longer roof 03/16/2015 at 02:20

1

If I were you, I'd prioritize the examples that have had major services done recently like the timing belt, whether it's the first or the second time, and if it's something you'll need to do soon, it's something that can drop the price. I'd also have money set aside to take care of the stuff that comes up, obviously.. But as long as the major stuff is tended to, you shouldn't need to think about rebuilding anything. Cars don't mind driving 100,000 miles, they just need more attention.

wunderwagen wants a longer roof > PS9 03/16/2015 at 02:27

0

You can't tell me what to do! I'll hoard all the long roof goodness. My precious!

wunderwagen wants a longer roof > TopSirloin 03/16/2015 at 02:31

0

I'm definitely running the paying attention to histories and services. The head gasket and timing belt are the main ones I'm watching, for sure. I'm just a bit nervous about buying something over 100K, even though I know better. It seems from my observations, that Subaru vehicles especially tend to last many hundreds of thousands like troopers. I'll be holding onto my Stratus until I'm sure all issues are addressed on my next vehicle just in case.

Arben72 > wunderwagen wants a longer roof 03/16/2015 at 02:33

1

Find one with a spun bearing and save some money. Drop in forged Pistons/rods/sti crank and a gtx35r, choose if you want e85 or meth and make 450whp "reliably".

wunderwagen wants a longer roof > Arben72 03/16/2015 at 02:34

0

Holy shit. All the yes. How long would the engine last though, haha.

Spoon II > wunderwagen wants a longer roof 03/16/2015 at 02:37

0

I love these cars!

Arben72 > wunderwagen wants a longer roof 03/16/2015 at 02:40

0

With that set up and if you have a good builder for a while. A long while. But don't waste your money on one in perfect running condition when you'll just rebuild her. Also add head studs and arp hardware for the rods. I'm planning something similar if I get a sti next.

Sampsonite24-Earth's Least Likeliest Hero > wunderwagen wants a longer roof 03/16/2015 at 03:45

0

from the research I've done the manual versions eat clutches like none other

Dusty Ventures > wunderwagen wants a longer roof 03/16/2015 at 07:02

4

I just bought an '08 Outback XT with 134k in November, so I can provide a little direct insight.

First off, the good. It's a quick, fun car, and every time I drive it I know I made the right choice. The leather is better than in my dad's Town Car, the sunroof is massive, the seats are comfortable with good bolstering and fantastic heaters, the ride is smooth, the rear is cavernous, the climate control is scary smart when set on auto mode, it looks fantastic, and I've been getting better fuel economy than I expected (24 highway, 21 combined in a very cold winter. My old n/a Outback couldn't pull that off).

Now straight to the bad: my car threw a code for an engine misfire in February and has been off the road since as I wait for the parts to come in. This, as it turns out, isn't entirely unusual. My understanding, after a ton of forum reading, is that the issue primarily comes down to the factory tune, which is a bit too far on the lean side. In time this can cause bad injectors and/or burnt valves, with the valves of course meaning an entire rebuild is required. Fortunately for me mine is just a bad injector, so I'm just having those replaced and a new tune done. Other common issues include the oil pickup cracking, the banjo bolt filters on the turbo oil line clogging and killing the turbo, the catted up-pipe in the 05-06 models causing trouble for the turbo (the 07-09 models don't have cats in the up-pipe), and like almost any Subaru you need to keep an eye on the wheel bearings. Pretty much all of these problems can be prevented in the aftermarket world. You also have to be diligent on maintenance. Oil changes for example, need to be every 3500 miles at the most, and the oil needs to be full synthetic. The timing belt needs to be replaced every 90,000 miles. Once in the 120-150k mile range you need to keep an eye on the turbo.

Even with the issues and quirks I think they're fantastic cars and definitely recommend one. There's nothing out there I could imagine wanting to replace mine with, and I plan on running it into the ground, resurrecting it, and running it into the ground again. In regards to the 100,000 miles question, how they cared for the car is far more important. If they maintained the service intervals the car should be largely issue free (unless the "lean tune" roulette wheel bites).

MM54 > wunderwagen wants a longer roof 03/16/2015 at 08:26

2

As the owner of a '71 with twice the doors as most (thus twice the fun) I fully agree with this statement.

wunderwagen wants a longer roof > Dusty Ventures 03/16/2015 at 09:48

0

This is what I was hoping to get. from someone. I'm very used to being diligent on oil changes, my Stratus has the motor with the sludge issue. When I'm actually looking at cars in person, I'll definitely be asking about all those issues you raised. Are you having a custom tune done or one that you can buy and flash on to the car's computer system?

Dusty Ventures > wunderwagen wants a longer roof 03/16/2015 at 11:03

0

I'm getting a custom tune. I'm upgrading to aftermarket injectors and intake, so a custom tune is the better way to go in my case. Plus I'm getting a discount because it's being done by one of my main rally driver's sponsors. There are flash tunes that cane take care of the issue though.

wunderwagen wants a longer roof > Dusty Ventures 03/16/2015 at 11:12

0

Which do you think is the way to go for a tune? It's going to be mainly a commuting vehicle that will see some road trips a few times a year, and some fun from time to time. I'm sure there are shops that can do it around where I live but I am unaware of them if I went the custom route.

Dusty Ventures > wunderwagen wants a longer roof 03/16/2015 at 12:29

0

Honestly I don't know. I'm new to this whole "turbo car ownership" thing so I'm still learning myself. I will say the community over at legacygt.com is absolutely fantastic and extremely helpful.

wunderwagen wants a longer roof > Dusty Ventures 03/16/2015 at 12:36

1

I have definitely been lurking through a few threads over there. They seem like a good bunch of folks for sure. Thanks for the info Dusty, I truly appreciate it.

Dusty Ventures > wunderwagen wants a longer roof 03/16/2015 at 12:40

1

No problem. Now get the wagon and become one of us one of us one of us one of us one of us one of us one of us one of us one of us one of us...

wunderwagen wants a longer roof > Dusty Ventures 03/16/2015 at 12:44

1

Haha, that's the plan. I just gotta get a new job by summer in the town I'll be living in. Gotta have the monies for the wagon.

deekster_caddy > wunderwagen wants a longer roof 03/17/2015 at 13:48

0

In general I have no problem with higher milage cars. Why rebuild the engine unless it has a problem? That's not something you do as 'preventative maintenance'... unless you plan on turning it into a competitive track car and are going full-on racing all the time.

Also, a lot of manual shoppers look for manuals because better MPG and higher driving distances, so again the higher milage doesn't scare me. Most you'd be looking at is a clutch. So, the high milage could affect your purchase price (knowing it will need a $2000 clutch job), or not if the clutch was replaced...

Otherwise the only thing I hear about subbies is the head gaskets tend to be untrustworthy. Maybe that was for certain years? Not sure. If it's a turbo, please run premium fuel as a matter of course!

deekster_caddy > Textured Soy Protein 03/17/2015 at 13:51

0

I hope the Hemi engines have less plastics than their Durango counterparts. I still have nightmares about that job.... brittle plastic emissions tubes breaking all over the place. Worst motor ever. (I think it was a 4.7 or something) Went back to the dealership like 3 times to get oddball unobtanium tubes and valves and T fittings and crapola... they had it all in stock too, like they knew what was going to break!

Textured Soy Protein > deekster_caddy 03/17/2015 at 14:08

1

The Hemi is the 5.7. There's also the 4.7 PowerTech which depending on year made either 235, 265 or 310 hp.