Faults:

I bought 2001 outback used with 82,00 miles, dealer says, " these cars go 300,000 miles". After the first year, I had a blown head gasket, replaced a timing belt, spent $1700.00. A year later, the engine overheated, no warning, no increase on the temp indicator, just started making noise, blown engine. $2500.00 later, I'm trading it for a toyota.

Faults:

Leaky A/C compressor.

General Comments:

I love this car! Have not had it very long, but know my way around cars and this one is very nice!

I was impressed with the power of the small 2.5L motor, but being a gear head I'm sure I'll be changing the pulley and adding a better air intake in the future. It has good get-up-and-go, although a little unresponsive in the mid-range once you get past that "flat spot" it runs like a champ.

The stock stereo is great, and I don't even have the McIntosh unit. Comfortable, love the ground clearance and looks, fun to drive.

I read all of these reviews before I bought the car, and a lot of the problems seem to be typical wear issues that you would expect to have problems on any vehicle...tires, brakes, clutch, etc. I think people don't realize that cars do wear out, and wear out more quickly if ridden hard and put up wet.

My only complaint would be that the brakes do tend to be undersized for the car, and it requires some familiarity to use them effectively. I think a lot of drivers out there don't put the brakes on until they are about 10 feet from the stop, which overheats the rotors, causes them to warp, etc. I will probably replace my rotors with slotted/cross-drilled ones shortly to try to help with heat dissipation.

Faults:

Engine ticks when it is cold. This is due to a design defect of the pistons. This seems to be very common in the 2001 engines and is known as piston slap. Contacted the dealer and they replaced the timing belt tensioner - just as another person on the web said they would do. However, the noise is still there. This winter I will have them listen for the noise again and demand them to replace the small engine block with better engineered pistons. Since it is still under warranty I will insist they do this this year.

General Comments:

This car rides great. Smooths out even the most nasty bumps. Acceleration could be better especially when compared to the 2005 Legacy GT wagons or the H6. However, once you get up to 100km\h it has good mid-range power.

The cruise control works fabulously on this vehicle. Had the car loaded with two bikes on the roof rack and the inside with camping gear. Drove from Toronto to Cape Breton, Nova Scotia and was very impressed with the cruise control.

The tires that come with the vehicle are not very good in the winter.