NickR85

I am going to view a 2005 widetrack on Friday. The car looks to be in great condition however it has 92000 miles. It has extensive service history including both Subaru dealer and Subaru specialists. The car is sensibly priced, I am just worried about the mileage. Is that kind of mileage major issue or should I hold off for a lower mileage example? I will be using it as a daily so the mileage will soon be over 100k which doesn't bother me but would make it very hard to sell on.

wms-racing

As a Subaru engine builder I find most problems happen around 70K-90K, I build in the region of 30-40 engines a year and have done for several years now. I always ask the owners what the milage is and 90% of the time it's around this.
So, my advice would be that as a general rule it's going to need re-building soon.

fat-thomas

iTrader: (4)

Seriously??? An impreza engine is only good for 70k!! Sorry fella I can't believe this I know plenty with well over this on them.

wms-racing

I'm not saying that they all fail at 70K-90K, but in the 11 years i've been building them the majority of builds I do suffer big end bearing problems around that milage. There are of course loads that do more and some alot less.

fat-thomas

iTrader: (4)

But we are reffering to the 2.0 newage sti lump here, I'm not so sure that statement is correct here at all.

Fonzey

iTrader: (5)

I would certainly be budgeting for some engine work on that kind of mileage, whether the statistics say so or otherwise.

There are a lot of Impreza's about, and lots have been garage queens/weekend toys so it's not impossible to find them under 50k (mine was on 32k when I bought it in 2012) so negotiate accordingly.

That said, the 2.0 does seem to be a bit more of a tank - and I've never heard of a mileage threshold in which they become exponentially more likely to blow up!

BBB3

iTrader: (7)

I've seen impreza's with way over 100k, there is one on SC with 170k on orignal engine
2.5 engines I would believe over a 2.0

thenewgalaxy

I think we're missing the point of what the engine builder has said there.

The 2.0 STI engine is generally a reliable unit if run considerately but at a mileage of 90k some cars will be running into problems and it does tend to be bottom ends that go when they do afaik.

A good service history with regular oil changes is essential, and we all know the importance of running these cars on high RON fuel (difficult to ensure that has been done throughout a ten year old car's life).

Ultimately you take your chances on any secondhand car but I would expect owners of stock 2.0 cars running engines with 90k to have less issues during ownership than those running stock 2.5s.

banny sti

iTrader: (68)

Just look at the P1 for example, most of the engine issues occurred around 50-60k miles but some ran for more than this with no issues.

I have the same engine setup in my type r and its currently sitting at 85k ish miles and running sweet at 1.5bar. It will probably run like this for a good long while but I would rather prepare for the worst as that way you can account for it financially.

Luckyscoob

iTrader: (2)

Well put

I would agree with the engine builder further up the thread, stands to reason at 70k-90k you have to expect some wear to start showing itself. As already said, it does depend on how well its been maintained and how its been driven.

I would say if the car has a good history, is clean and rust free and is the right money you shouldn't go far wrong. We can always use the rebuild as a great excuse for a better engine

ditchmyster

iTrader: (7)

110k here on a 2.0L WRX With PPP, no issues thus far, recent browsing on AutoTrader etc would suggest to me that it has another 50k left in it, fingers crossed.

As above though, it really does depend how it's been treated, mine was owned by Subaru for the first 13k then a motor vehicle engineer for the next 80k before I got it, the previous owner knew the importance of using the correct fuel and regular oil changes, as do I.

tarquin crispin

this has been reduced http://www.williamsmotor.co.uk/subar...morgan-3822175

GH80

I met the owner of this car filling up with super a few months back, nice bloke. As far as I am aware it has been looked after by OMA for a good part of it's life. Shouldn't give any bother as I think it has been enthusiast owned previously and the current and previous owners would know whats what about Subaru's and given it the correct fuel and oil.

I have never heard of newage sti's being weak and would expect them to last for a long time when regularly serviced unless there was some failure of another component (thinking oil or fuel starvation), I am sure if you give Michael at OMA a shout he can inform you better than me.

If it doesn't work out for you on Friday and can wait a few months drop me a PM

wms-racing

Ive just had a look through my stack of damaged cranks from the past couple of months. I have 12 with big end failure, 4 x new age sti (2 x JDM) 3 x 2.5 sti and 5 WRX. None of them had done more than 80K. Thats only a snap shop of course, but I know from years of experience that they all suffer the same problems, at the end of the day the big end bearings are probably the narrowest of any 2.0 engine on the market.
The 2.0 new age STI does have the best internals, the crossdrilled crank helps and the pistons are pretty good as std. How the car has been used and looked after will always have a big impact of course, but not always.

t79boy

This thread is making me nervous ! Mine has done 98k I have had it from new so has been well looked after etc . 2.0 widetrack . Going for its 2nd cambelt soon . Waiting for the clear centre section from CDF

Cpt Jack Sparrow

iTrader: (14)

124,000 on a chocolate 2.5 here.....



yes I know...... tick tock and all that

LSherratt

iTrader: (1)

You could say this about any brand of performance car though. Tens of thousands of people own them so what about the thousands that are going beyond 100k which are still out there? It's only a handful of ones that have failed which get logged and recorded by engine builders or the owners themselves that moan and make themselves heard on the forums.

scoobyboy1

iTrader: (16)

"Subaru" or "Ripleys Believe it or not" will want your car in there museum!!

Cpt Jack Sparrow

iTrader: (14)

madscoob

iTrader: (3)

71k in kilometers in mine (new s/h) engine done the cambelt as matter of course but at the same time wipped the oil pump off to check, and guess what 4 of the back plate screws where finger tight, is this possible the reason lack of oil pressure that big ends go, as my old cdb engine did 174000 miles and never let go, but i did do the oil pump at 80.000 and screwlocked all the backing plate screws, 90thousnd miles later and not one of them was loose and engine still sweet as

IanFroggatt

196,000 miles on my WRX.

Beastie

iTrader: (2)

Stop spoiling the doom and gloom for everyone

ditchmyster

iTrader: (7)

One major point to bare in mind is the "modding" history of these cars that let go, I'll wager a large percentage had some dodgy bolt on unmapped mods that affected fueling ie chav trumpet or de-cat and then driven like it was stolen whilst still cold.

It's so important to treat these engines properly, jumping in it and giving it death from cold like you can with something like a corsa is always going to cause major engine wear, along with many of these cars being weekend garage queens not running for 1/2 weeks at a time it's no wonder there are a certain amount that let go.

I used to think low milage was the way forward but these days I prefer a car that's been used regularly with milage commensurate to it's age, regular oil changes is key to engine longevity, it doesn't have to be the best oil on the market as long as it's the correct type and grade and changed every 3/5000 dependant on use. That said I only use motul 300V in my Subaru, all my other vehicles just get what's on offer and branded, for what it cost's it's a no brainer to change it once every 3/4 months, just did my Rover 214 last week for 30 quid which is £20 less than a tank of fuel and that's just gone over 101k.