Subaru Forester Woes - Keep or Sell? Advice from Subaru Owners

yeah feel great, it doesn't specify Turbo, but also the Forestor year 2012 does show that the engine major and minor are below average and brakes are below average after that 2013-17 are all above average ratings when it comes to trouble spots

 

Subarus are extremely popular here in the PNW. If I had to guess i'd bet its the highest density of Subaru ownership. You see quite a few early 2000's on the road. Also I think that people are more willing to do repairs and keep them going. I think I mentioned earlier that if you look on craigslist for used subarus most will say - "Engine just rebuilt or replaced". I like how Subaru uses a lot of the same parts across the board. Unfortunately if anything major goes wrong with a newer car its so expensive to fix.

 

Owned 4 Subaru's..03 WRX, 2012 legacy, 2013 BRZ and 2015 STi.. Never had any issues with any of them.. I will say however the only one with a CVT was the legacy (just couldn't bear to drive the an automatic) and I only owned it for a couple months before I traded for the BRZ.. I think Subaru does make a good car, they all have their issues. Even Toyota.. I see plenty of 250k+ miles Foresters out there.. CVT issue aside I would say keep it and fix it get many more years out of it.. But I cant speak directly to the CVT issues..

 

Thats good to hear, appreciate the input.

 

Ya the trouble is most of these CVT Models are fairly new, so its hard to say. I go back and forth. If only my wife could drive a manual... then id only have to replace clutches.

 

Most folks seem to be testamenting to the reliability of later model Subaru, in which case you wouldn’t be wrong. Even the 2.5s were reliable after a proper head gasket job was done. But how many of you have actually experienced issues with the CVTs? I have, and to the tune of $8k under warranty (at 16k miles). Your comparison to 90s model Subaru’s with a relatively bulletproof jatco 4 speed auto is like apples to oranges. Subaru has changed, but with more sales and profit, have come more QC issues. I guarantee folks will say they’re great, until they have to spend $10k on a new transmission out of warranty, and install it on a vehicle worth maybe that same amount.

 

The old EJ2.5 runs generally forever if you don’t tune it (ringland failure), but even then they still consume oil like crazy. Oil consumption and a turbo seems like a bad mix, IMO.

I only know about the Outback 2.5 issues based on what the dealers service department told me regarding engine swaps in them and the FA20DIT-based vehicles (15+ WRX and Forester XT). Said they give out a lot of extended warranties for free and do a few swaps a month. There are a ton of them around because of the bipolar weather here, so the numbers at the time didn’t feel insane.

Told my girl that when she’s ready to trade in, I wanna look at a regular, plain Jane V# engine for her or they still make em.

 

Im no subie expert but I've owned 3. I wouldnt say the EJ257 is a forever runner. I only had 30k on mine when I sold it, I had gotten tired of the constant back and forth on stock tune being bad and aftermarket tune being bad. Funniest thing is I had no opinion on either and noticed that there were failures on both sides and they were frequent in a way we will never see here. I hooked up a cobb ots unit and was surprised by the presence of knock, especially under any situation of moderate engine load. People would replace their HGs and they'd fail in as soon as 15k miles if they went cheap. The EJ253 in the imprezas were at least better due to the lack of boost, but HGs are a routine maintenance item just like timing belts either way.

I havent frequented NASIOC much since I sold my WRX, but we currently have a 2018 Crosstrek with the FB. Some of those have excessive oil consumption issues, ours doesnt luckily. Aside from that we received paperwork for an extension on the CVT warranty, I do believe there are some short comings there, the system feels poor in ours and makes quite a bit of noise until warmed up.

We also had a 2007 Impreza, 90k miles, head gasket replaced, of course. All other items were routine and no other issues except the CV boots were getting worn.

I guess what I'm getting at is I drive Toyotas only now, for resale and reliability. My wife drives the subi still. Subies are a great value but for me personally I wouldnt maintain a high mileage one and I do believe them to be less dependable that the Toyotas that I have purchased. I also, more specifically wouldnt bother maintaining a high mileage boosted model. Eventually the turbo will need to be replaced and unless your good to do it yourself you'll probably be trading it in at that time $$$. We are actually trading the Crosstrek for a 4runner later this year. The subie is showing signs of cheaper worksmanship, noises, quirks and such and the 4runner is just so much better.

TLDR; Subies are a great value but I wouldnt recommend maintaining a high mileage one. It can get spendy.

 

I have a '14 Outback, 6 speed, the most bare-bones model they offered at the time. It now has ~40k miles and uses a slight amount of oil, but not enough to be overly concerning. Other than that, it's been as reliable as can be, no major issues so far (I know thats probably not very helpful since it has a manual trans and you want advice on the CVT).

I do really like that it's kind of a Swiss army knife of vehicles. We most often take it on long trips, so mostly highway miles, but I have had it on forest roads a few times and recently installed a hitch and hauled my small fishing boat (1100 lbs or so) to the ramp. It handles great due to the low center of gravity despite having roughly 8 inches of ground clearance. We average about 30 mpg (not hauling), which is amazing to me for such a heavy car with AWD.

 

I have a 2014 Subaru Outback with 89000 miles. Purchased the car new. The CVT transmission is solid no problems so far but it has an oil consumption problem. You half to add about a half quart per week. So I played Subaru’s game and started the oil consumption test. I took the car in they changed the oil and said bring it back in 1000 miles so before I left I pulled the dipstick it was well over full at least a half quart over full. At that point I new there test was rigged and there is no way it would come out in my favor your car has to fail the oil test 3 times to get anything done about it. I don’t have a problem a mechanical issue with the car all cars have them but when a manufacturer won’t stand behind there product when it is still within warranty and I have to prove it to them 3 times to get anything done. This was my first and last Subaru.

 

I never really hear of manufacturers really being honorable with warranties. That said, Subaru is one of the worst. Basically if you buy the WRX it might as well come with no coverage as they most always use the abuse line. I remember people buying the extended warranties and asking if it was a mistake. I felt bad for them with all the people getting denied with 8-10k on the clock. Basically spent an extra couple grand thats as usefully as the standard non warranty.

 

I’d say in my limited experience that I trust the ancient EJ25 more than the FA20DIT. I could feel feedback on the stock FA20DIT tune, so I got a Cobb AP with the MAPerformance and Cobb OTS tunes. They ranged from 300-250WHP, and from stock to tunes, knock events were insane. Some of the registered values were to the point I expected imminent failure, but that’s just Subie life I guess. I didn’t get the warm fuzzies from owning a car that could throw a piston at any point.

I always giggle by the Subaru dealer using ‘acceptable oil consumption’ as a phrase when talking about lifespan concerns. I’m sorry, but if oil is vanishing from my engine at any rate like they do in a Subaru, I’m getting rid of it. That’s unacceptable to me because the line between acceptable consumption and warranty claim could be the time period your warranty ends and you’re up shit creek.

I’ll 100% agree on the workmanship of Subaru. They definitely market a safe car for the elements, and when you have a good one you have a great one, but the quality of the interior is very lacking. I’ve been in WRXs, STIs, Imprezas, Crosstreks, and Outbacks. All meh to okay. My Tacoma is luxury in comparison.

 

Lol, it is, sadly.

 

We have a 2010 XT and it runs like a champ. My family has about a dozen Subaru's and only one needed a replacement engine due to a teenage nephew... Now, I don't have any experience with the CVT transmissions so I can't comment on that. They are just as good or bad as any other vehicle. Just look at Tacoma's air injection system or ADD or transfer case motor for example.

 

30 mpg is really good. It seems like overall I hear better things about the Outback than other Subaru models. I really wish I trusted the brand better because honestly a regular hatchback impreza would suit us perfectly. Plenty of cargo room, AWD and the new ones get really good gas mileage.

 

If I were in the AWD turbo market, I’d get a Golf R 6MT (much cheaper than the DSG..) every day if the week.

I’m planing the T4R / Golf R seed in her head in the event she decides to ditch her Outback.

 

Subarus are five year cars, if you get five years out of one with no major issues or repairs you are lucky.

 

I appreciate everyones responses and input on this. I finally was able to get the wheel bearing off and replaced after a lot of frustration. It was rusted in there really bad. I ended up having to bolt on the old front caliper backwards so I could have more torque when I beat on it with the 10 lb hammer. Finally it came out. As I was cleaning out the engine bay this weekend I noticed some dirt stuck to the engine block near the valve cover. I assume oil might be slightly leaking out of the gasket. I dont even want to drive the car, as ive convinced myself its made of glass.

We decided to get it all cleaned up this weekend and I ended up posting it on craigslist. If it doesnt sell I will just end up trading it in. The wife and I have decided on a newer Mazda 3 hatch (15-18). From what I read its a very reliable car. I like how its a higher displacement 4 cylinder with a regular 6 speed automatic. It also seems like a lot of value for the price especially compared to other similar cars. Also supposedly gets good gas mileage (29-37 mpg). We only need enough cargo room to fit the 60 lb aussie in the back and groceries or whatever. Anyone have any reasons not to get a Mazda 3?

 

My buddy had a Speed3 and loved it. I was only in it once or twice and he couldn’t drive a stick shift to save his life, so I have no idea how it really was.

 

Golf R is definitely the most sophisticated and grown up of the hot hatches $$ keep planting that seed. Although I don’t hate the look of the new voloster.

I am definitely out of the turbo market though.