great little car that can!
Pros:
Wagon (one of few available now), AWD, mostly bullet-proof drivetrain, great towing
Cons:
Fuel economy is relatively poor (well, AWD). Dealerships are jokes down here in south.
The Bottom Line:
Wery impressed by overall versality/utility and towing performance. If you like that, subaru may be your answer.
If you have no use for AWD, skip subaru (MPG penalty).
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Overall Rating:
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Author's Review
OK, i will chime in on my car. It is a white legacy wagon, and still is beatiful even though not pristine anymore due to hard work.
The other reviewers covered all the bases including the beaty of AWD and so.
I will add that it is a great towing car. I bought a boat in 2003 and thought I would need a bigger car to tow. Not so! Subby does the job. The total weight of the loaded boat and the trailer is 2500 lbs, so, I invested in tranny cooler, AT temp gauge, synthetic fluids, and brakes on the trailer. The 4-banger is more than willing to rev up (I use up to 3th gear for towing, AT) and pull happily. If you put the gear in 1st, the is no wheel slip whatsoever in the boat slip (no pun intended) or my hilly, grassy backyard.
Some of the reviewers above said that sub was underpowered. Let me tell you, sometimes I pull from traffic light faster with my boat than a dude in BMW or similar "well-powered" car. The problem is, people here in US demand 200+ HP in a car only to use no more than 50 HP in daily driving. I got my 167 HP worth from this car.
Some people had problems with headgasket in 1997-1999 subs but mine is fine so far and reliable save for some minor problems.
The major drowback of owning subaru is to have to deal with relatively few and mostly incompetent dealerships (at least in some parts of the country).
The other negative is MPG lower than expected. It's EPA rated 22/27 MPG but it can go as low as 16 MPG in short trip city driving and disappointing 25 MPG on hwy. BTW, it is 14 MPG with the boat and fully loaded car FYI.
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