Faults:

Strong smell, as of a burned-out clutch, but clutch was OK. This did not disable the car, but was very embarrassing. Dealer at first thought the problem was a binding Hill Holder clutch, but later said that Subaru had filled the drive-shaft joints with the wrong type of grease at the factory. They cleaned out and replaced grease and fitted new gaiters, but the smell persisted. Another dealer diagnosed a design fault in the drive-shaft joints (how did this get by?) and cured the problem by drilling holes somewhere to allow the grease to move harmlessly back rather than be forced out to burn on the exhaust and make the smell.

Pockets on back of front seats came away from their upper mounts. I glued them back on with Araldite.

Lots of stone chip damage on front surfaces even though we take care to not drive close to vehicles in front. Some old-fashioned rust started in these spots and spread like tiny tentacles under the surrounding paint. This used to happen in the 1960s, but was a surprise in a year 2000 Subaru.

Under-bonnet metal brackets, fixings etc began to corrode and look unsightly quite quickly.

At 35,000 miles a soft squeaking noise developed from the transmission area at idle only. Dealer said the cure was to fit the newly re-designed flywheel that was on its way from Japan. This seemed to be a well known problem and was, like all the above, fixed under warranty.

General Comments:

A smooth, comfortable and under-rated performer, but with high running costs due mainly to the silly 6 monthly servicing schedule which has finally been extended to yearly on more recent cars.

Very high depreciation in the UK. Car cost £24,000 new and worth only £11,500 after 3 years.

Unlike previous Subarus we have had, this one had only "undercoat" in the under bonnet areas. Looked ghastly and penny-pinching, but other manufacturers do the same now. This must save them about £5!

Door inner trims felt horribly fragile and cheap and were easily damaged.

Unlike our previous 2 Subarus (Impreza Turbos), this one had a surprising number of faults some of an engineering design origin. This was odd for a company widely perceived as something of an engineering led outfit with World Rally experience.

Faults:

Rear lights failed (totally!) at 55000.

Clutch failed at 60000, repaired again at 80000 and adjusted again at 90000.

Interior switch lights have started to fail one by one...

General Comments:

Well, I got the car because it did very well in a reliability survey.

So far it has been off the road for two months out of three years.

The clutch just doesn't seem to be able to take the usage, to this day it slips and screeches and this is after a complete new unit and several adjustments.

The handling is excellent and the 4wd makes for a very surefooted drive, performance is great low down, but runs out of go the faster you go, and is distinctly average at motorway speeds compared with cars of a similar price.

The interior is, dull! But you can forgive that when you are moving.

The dealers were the biggest disappointment, I used to have a Toyota and the service was excellent, I have used 4 different main Subaru dealers and without exception they have been slow and unhelpful in comparison.

Faults:

Power steering pump went bad at about 8,888 miles.

General Comments:

I like the way it handles good on the corners.

The all wheel drive sure is nice to have in the winter when the roads are snowy and icy.

The seats are uncomfortable for long trips.

The drivetrain, with a manual transmission, seems to have a lot of play and spring in it. When in first gear and going very slow, touching the gas pedal and then letting up, it really jerks forward then jerks slowing down.

On some mornings, usually after the car has sat for a while and the air may be cool and a little humid, when letting out on the clutch, the car rapidly pulsates as if the clutch is rapidly grabbing and slipping repetitively.

The trunk space is pretty large.