Faults:

Approx. every 15,000 miles the engine on this car would blow up. The number one rod bearing would give out. They would rebuild the engine the first time, then 15 K miles later it happened again. I kept telling them that the car was using 2 quarts of oil every 1,500 miles, but they told me I was a "idiot" and didn't know how to read the dipstick.

After the 3rd time the engine blew at 48,000 miles, I took the car back to the dealer again and it was the same problem as all the other times, #1 rod bearing again. I am not the only person who has had this happen to me, I know of 2 others within the last 6 months that this happened to. They each sold their car as soon as it happened after hearing what happened to mine as well. I wish I would have after the first time. I will never buy another Subaru again. Especially after they refused to warranty the engine again and replace it, even though I got the extended warranty with the car.

General Comments:

Car is great if you need AWD like where I live out in the sticks. Great for corners and in the snow, but other than that I wouldn't recommend a Subaru.

Faults:

Before I bought it, they had to replace the center arm rest extension, dye a scrape in the driver's seat, and replace some fuses. I haven't had it a long time but I like what I see so far.

General Comments:

The cabin is on the small end for a 4-door sedan. Right now it's just me and my wife so it works for now, when we have kids and they get older we might need to get a different car.

The Limited is nicely appointed. I can turn on the heated seats, plug in my iPod, and go.

The handling is suburb. I live in the Pacific Northwest and have to cross the mountains a couple of times every winter, now I'm looking forward to it.

Faults:

First day of ownership, I had to call the salesman to bring the vehicle back the next day because of extremely noticeable vibration during braking.

There was an extremely loud kettle like whistle coming from the sunroof.

General Comments:

After months of research and thoughts about practicality and reliability, not to mention safety, I finally decided which vehicle I would purchase. Subaru. Great idea right!?

In April of 2007 I purchased my first brand new car. A 2007 Subaru Legacy 2.5i Special Edition Wagon. I selected the beautiful Newport blue exterior with a right out of a magazine ivory interior. Awesome! However, appearance is NOT everything.

Anxious to show my Subaru to my family, I was stuck on what I had accomplished as a youth. I had dreamed of this moment for years and it was better than I could have imagined. At my mothers request she wanted to go for a ride. I was more than OK with that. While pointing out all the features, I noticed that my vehicle's brakes were more than just slightly vibrating. Was it me being too picky? Not after my mother told me she felt the vibration too. Confirmed - it wasn't just in MY head. Upon my return I made a full fledged run to the telephone and spoke to my sales rep. Oh wait, I called him on my cell while in my car. Did he actually suggest that it was my ABS? I must clearly be an idiot. Oh right, my head bobbling motion as result of my vehicles brakes must be normal! Yeah, uh-ha. After being placed on hold so my sales rep. could speak with service, I was reassured that I could bring my vehicle in the next morning before work, and if it was assumed it would take longer than an hour, I would willingly be given a loaner and be on my way.

Do I really need to tell you what happened next? Predictable right? It wasn't to me. Brought the car in half hour before opening at 6:30am and relayed everything my salesperson told me to say. I left the Subaru Dealer to get to work by 1pm. My work is only a half hour away and did I mention I'm supposed to be in at 8am. Was there anger? Yes. Fury? You bet. I won't even describe the bad taste left in my mouth. I don't think this site allows for the words I'd like to use.

The motivation behind the purchase of this vehicle was due to my fear of flying. I drive EVERYWHERE. Why not get something safe and enjoyable? You'd imagine my disappointment while driving to Atlanta from New York I discovered there was a kettle in my car - yes - a kettle! I know, many enjoy a relaxing cup of tea in a comfortable warm place - I do too. If I'm going to have a kettle in my car, I'd better have the hot water and the kettle itself to go along, not just the whistle. I tell you this in all seriousness with no exaggeration. The loudest kettle you can find on the market, was inside my car. While driving down the highway at highway speeds that kettle was furious. I would open my sunroof and the noise would go away. But to choose between wind noise and the kettle. I want my money back! All 2,000 miles travelled to discover (by service) the noise was being caused by my roof racks' cross bars - pure insanity! Every Subaru I have seen has roof racks. In fact, that should be Subaru's logo - roof racks with cross bars. Do they actually wind tunnel test these vehicles without the cross bars? And I'm the fool?

That's my journey thus far. And believe me, I'm leaving things out. The reality of the matter is I like my car. It gets a 75% grade average. It would be higher If I liked the service. I didn't get what I paid for. Nor did I get what I deserved. I'm also so happy to have this site to vent my anger. Who else would let me talk for so long? But I don't want to conclude with out telling you what ever happened to Mr. "Sales Rep." He disappeared in my times of trouble. Never returning my phone calls and I was very polite when I left messages - really, I was. Oh wait... he did call me back. In fact, he left a message for me on my voice mail. He wanted positive feedback for his survey. He's just so sweet.