Faults:

Had four coils replaced ($800).

Spark plugs replaced.

Air filter replaced.

Fuel pump replaced.

General Comments:

The first thing I noticed about this car was its road handling ability. Take it out to country side road on a nice hot day and be prepared to scare yourself.

Mine has hard lowered springs topped off with some bilstein shocks. There is absolutely no body roll.

The power comes on smoothly. The first turbo is just a taste of whats to come. Leave your right foot on the floor, wait for the flat spot and the second turbo will push you back in your seat leaving a smile on your face.

Subaru Legacy's have a boxer engine which makes a unique sound. I highly recommend to anyone that owns a turbo legacy to stick a 2.5" big bore exhaust system on with a phat tip. It sounds awesome, improves performance and of course, makes everyone turn their head.

Faults:

A "lukewarm" running fault has never been resolved despite many visits to the dealer and incorrect "fixes" (2 months in garage last time).

5 full diagnostic checks done so far.

All disc rotors replaced 100,000 miles (NZ$1000). Previous first refacing put the original rotors undersized. Pads also replaced.

Transmission rebuilt twice.

4 wheel drive solenoids replaced 4 times.

Front struts replaced.

Driveshaft replaced (NZ$1500!). Incorrectly diagnosed as centre bearing failure by dealer.

Primary turbocharger rebuilt.

Engine has developed a cold idle "knock".

Batteries lasting only 2 years.

Alternator replaced.

Alarm system now does not unlock doors (but locks them).

15mm "factory" deflection in rear suspension.

Front suspension bushings replaced.

Climate air conditioning does not function correctly and has an annoying "gurgle" when operating. Flushed twice.

Erratic performance.

Apparent need to replace airbags after 10 years.

General Comments:

Nicely appointed, lots of gadgets, comfortable to ride in, looks pretty sharp.

Good performance for a family stationwagon and quite good road holding. Without a speed governor I gather these do 250 kmh. It runs to 190 kmh with no trouble at all. High 14's to low 15's in the 1/4.

Gas guzzler if you press on. Best cruise is 25 mpg UK, usually 18 mpg UK.

These cars have a reputation for being unreliable with very expensive parts. I have found very poor dealer support. Poor service and a bad attitude toward customers. These guys only want to sell new cars.

It is annoying that I cannot repair anything on it at home and have to rely on the dealers.

The value has plummeted since I bought it and I have had no enquiries at all to numerous advertisements. I have lost good money on this car. I will be buying an "old school" low tech non-turbo car I can work on next. Just like I had in the good old days.

Faults:

Nothing really.

CD player has died.

Air Vents are stiff.

Steering wheel center stitching shrunk.

General Comments:

It's a good looking car, but s bit of a sleeper, it doesn't look as fast as it is. However for those in the know the inter-cooler scoop on the bonnet is a giveaway.

I think the car looks better from the side or rear. The factory fitted 15inch alloys look good.

The car has a sequential twin turbo setup. The primary turbo smoothly comes on line around 2000 rpm and gives a lot of low down torque. The secondary turbo comes on line around 4000 rpm. However it's not a smooth power power curve, more a rush of power.

This rush of top end power is highly entertaining and will force you back into your seat.

There is a bit of a flat spot in acceleration before the secondary turbo is fully spooled up. It's more noticeable at say 100km/h than at lower speeds.

This power however does cost a bit in fuel when both turbo's are running. The car comes with a 45Lt fuel tank and does about 10Lt per 100km.

Overall a fun car to drive ~ you'll take the long way home.

Faults:

Oil has started to leak.

Dashboard has a lot of rattles.

Transmission is starting to jump.

General Comments:

Very good performance, but is very thirsty (expected that though)

Would like to see harder suspension as still feel as though too much body-roll, much better than most Jap cars (performance and Handling)

Temperature control panel is impossible to see in daylight (bad design)

Faults:

Started to drop boost under load, fixed with a simple ECU reset.

General Comments:

Hauls hard and reliably, admittedly at the cost of fuel economy.

Will leave V8's for dead on the straights, and even more so on the windy stuff.

Makes music even at idle, especially with a big bore.