25,000; 55,000; 100,000 Windshield cracks easily (make sure you have total glass coverage on your car insurance).
Wheel bearings 30,000 75,000.
Yokohama Tires 35,000 Using Yokohama Warranty, I called and got brand new tires delivered to my house, but not without a lot of hoopla! I took them to Sears and had them measure the depth of the tread, and they wrote a statement saying that my tires had been rotated. Only after these two items were proven would they send me new tires, but lots of aggravation leading to the point of free tires. Many days on the phone.
Oxygen Sensor 60,000.
80,000 Automatic locks click on and off while driving, and only when raining. This drains the battery! (wire harness corroded and needed to be replaced).
Knock Sensor 80,000.
Head Gasket 80,000 (I had purchased the Subaru Added Security Extended Warranty until 100,000, and both the dealer and Subaru Headquarters still gave me a hard time. I researched and found that this was a recall. It was past the point of adding their "special leak-stopping lubricant". My engine was toast! I ended up with a free short block engine, but after proving that I had my oil changes and maintenance done religiously. I am one of those weird people who keeps every receipt - if I had not, there would've been a problem. They did everything in their power to put the blame on me... They were absolutely horrible, and I had to call several times a day for 3 weeks to get it taken care of. They sent me a $50 gift certificate towards LL Bean for my "troubles", and the certificate was not valid! LL Bean said it had already been redeemed! At that point, all I could do was laugh. The new short bock engine was necessary to make the car driveable again, but the car never ran the same after the new engine was put in. And the windshield cracked while putting the engine in! The dealer was not going to tell me; I noticed it and questioned them. They denied it happened there. I had to call Subaru again and argue to get a new windshield (my dad told me this often happens when getting the old engine out).
Back hatch door seal 80,000 Everything in the back gets wet!
Alternator 100,000.
DON'T USE THE FRONT CUPHOLDERS IN THE 2001! Due to complaints, they changed the cupholder location in the 2002, but in the 2001, the condensation from your drink (the holder in right in front of the heater!), will leak into your heat vent and down into your CD player! The cupholders themselves are even more cheaply made than the plastic visors and will snap easily. This is a definite design flaw.
More backseat leg room in my old Dodge Neon!
In car accident of my friend's 2001, the air bag did not deploy even when the car flipped after impact.
Not a complainer typically, but I HATE this car, except for the winter road handling!
I totally agree as I also own a Subaru Forester, 2001. It is a CHEAPLY made car and NOT worth what I paid (new and ordered from a dealership). I have had to replace 3 of 4 wheel bearings, the front right axle, head gasket... and on and on. The cheap plastic cup holders are a joke for what I paid. What an insult to the buyer. Just because you call the car a 'subaru' doesn't mean you have the right to take advantage of people's trust and expectations of quality. I take excellent care of my car and drive very conservatively. This car is cr*p!
My '01 Forester 5-speed has needed wheel bearings, and a clutch under warranty. I replaced the clutch master cylinder out of my pocket. The clock died so I bought one of those. And the auto-dimming mirror went out, resulting in a new mirror and windshield. Those last two can't be blamed on Subaru.
I think these are excellent cars. Things are not perfect at the factory. But once you get the car broken in it rumbles along stepping over bumps and doing its tricks like a fetch dog who sees your pump fake before you do.
My job has me driving Porsches, Bentleys, and Mercedes. The Forester can show-up each in some important criterion-usually body control, or weight, most definitely reliability.
When you buy the "S" 5-speed you are getting limited slip differentials front and rear with a 50/50 torque split viscous coupling in the middle. It is vastly simpler than other manufacturers and beats them in NVH and effectiveness.
Remember, the Mercedes G-Wagen has cabin adjustable viscous couplings front rear and center. Forester gets awfully close for about a quarter of the price.
The boxer engine needs neither balance shafts nor load bearing oil pans to deliver class-leading four-cylinder refinement without the weight or fuel cost of either. No ribs in the block to shore-up stiffness. To my eye horizontally opposed engines are the height of reciprocating engine technology.
Yes, a Porsche flat six is nicer, but a lot more temperamental. Porches get slapped around by bumps my car wouldn't notice. And being tall I hate the 911 convertible's shoulder belt pulling down on me. The tiny fuel tank is annoying too. A 3.7 liter flat six will drink when you give it the bit.
My car has 95K miles. It's had synthetic lube in the motor and gearbox from new. The dealer was and is a nightmare. The car has immense capability for the price. I trust it in mountains and desert. It always starts. I haven't gotten more than 35K miles out of an H-rated tire on this car.
I don't want to get rid of it. But when the time comes, the first car I'll check out will be a new 5-speed Forester.
Note: A Comments RSS Feed is available. New comments appear in the Members Area before the main site