1999 Subaru Outback Ltd review from North America

SEPTEMBER 2003: I had my oil changed, hooked up a U-Haul trailer to the Subaru and drove my son off to college from Fort Collins, Colorado to Boston, Massachusetts. We only got a couple of hundred miles when the car started overheating badly. It was out of oil! What? I just had it changed! Filled up, got back on the road. Had to re-fill the oil several times on the trip and finally figured I'd better get it looked at in Connecticut on the way back from Boston. The dealer said the people who had done the oil change hadn't replaced the seal, but my brother-in-law (who is a mechanic) doesn't think that's true for some reason. At any rate, the invoice says "Failure coming from front crank shaft seal. Removed timing belt cover and found seal had walked out of position. Also found timing belt with oil on it. Replaced front crank seal, cam seals and timing belt. Cost: 341.18.

December 2004: Started having the exact same problem: overheating and oil leaking. Took it to my "regular" mechanic who replaced the thermostat and a gasket, added antifreeze, oil and a new oil filter. Cost: 150.41.

December 2004: Problem not solved by "regular" mechanic. Took it to Subaru dealer. Invoice says: Cylinder head gaskets leaking compression into the cooling system. Spark plugs worn. Timing belt and accessory belts cracked. (And the timing belt was only 15 months old.) Replaced head gaskets. Inspected heads and block for warpage. Replaced spark plugs. Adjusted valve clearance. Replaced timing belt. Replaced both accessory belts and filled with new coolant. Cost: 1315.83.

March 2005: Replaced stabilizer bar and arm. Cost: 277.69 (This was caused by a very poorly designed, too-deep drainage gutter being placed diagonally in the main feeder lane of a parking lot. One front wheel went into it while the other remained out and the height difference between the two wheels was so great it snapped with a horrifyingly loud sound that made several people look my way!)

December 2005: Front and rear brakes replaced and rotors turned; lube & tune-up. Cost: 541.59.

June 2007: Replaced right CV Axle, wheel bearing and hub. Cost: $675.

Also need to replace right front ABS sensor. The part costs $162 and I will have my brother-in-law install it.

Traded the car in today on a used Lexus RX300. I'm tired of constant and relatively expensive car problems.

Aside from all the repairs that had to be done, I loved this car. It was incredibly peppy for a 4-cylinder and handled well in adverse conditions. The seating was very comfortable for me and I was able to haul some pretty amazing stuff in it!

The gas mileage wasn't bad. New, it was supposed to give 27 on the highway. The only time I actually got that was when I took a road-trip to Chicago right after dropping $200 bucks at Grease Monkey for the super-duper package (oil, air filter, pcv valve, overdrive service, fuel injection cleaner, rear differential/final drive and transmission drain/fill). Normally I got about 22 on the highway.