Considering a Legacy to Forrester change
Discussion
Hi All,
As above really, I have a 2004 Legacy 3.0Rn Auto saloon that has been great (and hugely reliable); but am considering either a private sale of the Legacy, or a part-ex against a Forester, ideally an automatic turbo.
Can anyone provide insight into what to look out for? I'm thinking about 54/05/55 plate models, and have read about issues with the 2.5 turbocharged engine.
What are they like to live with day-to-day? I'm hoping that the knowledgeable folk on this part of PH can share any experiences. Mileage will be between 5-7K miles PA, mixture of A and B roads, with occasional motorway work.
Edit: Mods, can someone change my auto-correct blunder in the title?
As above really, I have a 2004 Legacy 3.0Rn Auto saloon that has been great (and hugely reliable); but am considering either a private sale of the Legacy, or a part-ex against a Forester, ideally an automatic turbo.
Can anyone provide insight into what to look out for? I'm thinking about 54/05/55 plate models, and have read about issues with the 2.5 turbocharged engine.
What are they like to live with day-to-day? I'm hoping that the knowledgeable folk on this part of PH can share any experiences. Mileage will be between 5-7K miles PA, mixture of A and B roads, with occasional motorway work.
Edit: Mods, can someone change my auto-correct blunder in the title?
Edited by SVX on Saturday 8th March 00:29
My wife had a 55 plate 2.5XT and we loved it, only changed (to a 2011 outback) because it was a bit on the small side. I'm 6'4" and needed the seat so far back my kids couldn't fit in their car seats.
I have actually been considering one as a winter commuter to keep my p1 off salty roads. I'd like a litchfield sti though!
Couple of niggles:
1. The secondary air pump packed in and was £700 for a replacement so we remapped the car and threw the pump away.
2. The self-levelling headlight adjustment arm rusted through and was a real b
d to sort. The plugs had rusted and subaru said the only way to fix it was by replacing the loom! Subaru quoted £3500 for the complete repair! Tried loads of breakers and spoke to two subaru specialists and several auto-electricians but no-one came up with a cure so we hard wired it, bodied a physical repair with a long bolt welded to the mechanism and broke the warning light on the dash.
I have actually been considering one as a winter commuter to keep my p1 off salty roads. I'd like a litchfield sti though!
Couple of niggles:
1. The secondary air pump packed in and was £700 for a replacement so we remapped the car and threw the pump away.
2. The self-levelling headlight adjustment arm rusted through and was a real b
d to sort. The plugs had rusted and subaru said the only way to fix it was by replacing the loom! Subaru quoted £3500 for the complete repair! Tried loads of breakers and spoke to two subaru specialists and several auto-electricians but no-one came up with a cure so we hard wired it, bodied a physical repair with a long bolt welded to the mechanism and broke the warning light on the dash.There is a well-documented issue wth the chocolate pistons in the 2.5. Ideally you would want to rebuild it with forged rods/pistons but it means spending a fair bit of cash. Rods and pistons would be in the region of £1000 and maybe 20 hours of labour? Alternatively, try to find an sti that's already been done.
I recently had 2.5 built for my p1 and it was a lot more than that but I changed pretty much everything to build an engine good for 500bhp.
I recently had 2.5 built for my p1 and it was a lot more than that but I changed pretty much everything to build an engine good for 500bhp.
Where do all these stories about the "chocolate pistons" come from? It gets mentioned in most threads regarding the 2.5 but I've never seen any reference to an actual failure, just the same received wisdom that they're dodgy.
Anyone got any first hand experience or further detail, what is it that fails? What makes them fail? Do the STi engines suffer the same way - I thought I'd read somewhere that they were different? Is it a particular batch of engines? Is it running them on cheap fuel?
Anyone got any first hand experience or further detail, what is it that fails? What makes them fail? Do the STi engines suffer the same way - I thought I'd read somewhere that they were different? Is it a particular batch of engines? Is it running them on cheap fuel?
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