2005 Subaru Impreza 2.5 RS 2.5 Gas
Summary:
Unreliable
Faults:
Blown head gasket at 98000 kms, and no help from Subaru for repairs.
General Comments:
I've had this car for about five years, and had purchased it used from a older couple with only 12,000 Kms.
Earlier this year, my wife told me that the temp gauge had been spiking, and she was worried about it. I had a look underneath the car, and discovered that the head gaskets are leaking, and coolant is slowly dripping from the block. Brought it into the Subaru dealer, and had them look at it; the service manager confirmed that I had a leaky head gasket. The car was out of warranty for about 3 months with 97,000kms on it, so I was told to contact Subaru of Canada. A few days later, they denied my claim, even though there are countless of Subaru's with this engine that have developed blown head gaskets. I will never buy a Subaru again.
Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? No
Review Date: 30th October, 2010
9th Jun 2011, 22:54
Agree. Our 2005 Impreza 2.5 Wagon had heating issues from the 2nd year of ownership. It over-heated at highway speeds at that time, and all Subaru would cover was a $25 radiator cap.
As soon as the five year warranty period was up, it turned out to be a $1,600 head gasket job. Pathetic.
I'm moving on to a new car company.
8th Jan 2011, 23:26
Regarding Subaru's head gasket issue:
Our 2000 Outback blew the left gasket at 101,000 kms, no warranty and thus $1100 to fix.
Our 2002 Forester blew both gaskets at 86,000 kms, but after five years, so again no warranty and a $2400 bill in total (including car rental for 5 days).
More recently, my sister's 2005 Impreza, a car we bought because all reports indicated the head gasket problem solved in 2004, has also blown its left gasket, at 59,000 kms (and again, no warranty as the five years has expired). It turns out that her 2005 Impreza was really manufactured in May of 2004, and so quite possibly a 2004 with a 2005 VIN.
Does anyone out there have a Subie built as early as the 5th month of the previous model year? I thought most automakers don't start production for the upcoming year until around August, and I've looked at dozens of manufacture dates, and haven't seen one as early as ours. Consumer Reports indicates a LOT of problems with the '04s, but very, very few with the '05 (the '04s receive the worst rating for engine major, the '05s receive the second highest, so quite a contrast).
Needless to say, we are thoroughly done with Subaru, and went from being the ideal Subaru "poster family" to very serious ambassadors of ill-will (and we've owned 7 Subarus total since 1980). I bet we will cost Subaru many, many times in lost sales vs what they've cost us in blown head gasket repairs, by the time we are finished telling everyone we can of our experiences.
We were okay with the first gasket on the Outback, peeved at the second, but enraged at the third.