PetrolHeadKid

All,
Would someone drop me a reply to let me know what the service schedule is for the above please?
I haven't seen the car (in the flesh) that I am thinking of buying, but I have had him send me details of when the car was serviced as follows:

20/05/04 1044 miles
07/12/04 10469 miles
17/06/05 20211 miles
20/03/07 39169 miles
12/03/08 41817 miles
10/05/09 51637 miles
29/10/08 49919 miles
27/04/10 62717 miles
07/01/11 66112 miles

Does the above look right? Would this be classed as Full Service History?

Many thanks,

PHK.

scoobyman.matt

20 k between services 05-07 seems a while for a scoob but then im really **** with when my oil gets changed.

rossyboy

iTrader: (8)

Agreed thats really long. Its done 27k miles since then, but you can never tell what extra wear may have occured.

PetrolHeadKid

So, does that mean that it actually missed a service then?

What I mean to ask is, are Subaru's serviced in the same way that, say, Audi's are (the Car itself informs the owner when a service is due, so the intervals are variable), or is it something more like every 12 months or 10,000 miles (whichever is sooner)?

PHK.

rossyboy

iTrader: (8)

That particular car is 10,000 miles or 12 months.

Classics are more frequently than that, certainly in mileage terms.

BlobEyedRex

Here's the service log and info page for my 05 Blob - it's not just done on mileage it also works on months as well, just had to do my 50k cambelt change as i exceeded the 60 months recommended period





Oil changes every 12 mnths as i use fully synthetic and having pressure gauge i can see the pressure drops off between 8-12 months compared to when it's just been done

PetrolHeadKid

Thanks for all the replies (and the scanned images as they help loads).

So, it does look like the car missed a service in 2006 at around 30,000 miles and so 20,000 miles is a long time to go without a service!

I too am a bit OTT about oil changes. When I had my EVO I changed the oil about every 3,000 miles and likewise with my last car (a Rover 25 GTI (quite a come-down I know, but my financial situation changed)) I changed the oil and filter every year my self and it only cost around £30 (semi-synthetic), so it isn't worth trying to save money when it comes to oil changes!

I'll get back in touch with the guy and see if perhaps he just missed that one when he Emailed me all the details (he is selling the car as Full Service History).

I'll let you know how I get on...

PHK.

Pink_Floyd

Ah the old "Full service history" story.........

Loads of people claim their car has one, but the vast majority simply don't when you look closely.

BlobEyedRex

on the mileages you shown it missed it's 50k cambelt service by 2000 miles if it was done at the 52k service, casually ask him if he's changed that yet, sounds like he was running this on a shoestring. my oil changes are 12 month as I only be doing 2000 miles per year and been taking it easy on the abuse front.

Also ask what garage he had the servicing done at, if subaru then it'll be on their computers

just saw 29/10/08 49919 miles was listed after 52k so that I'd expect to be the 50k service, still would ask above ? tho.

PetrolHeadKid

Yes, the cambelt was done at 49919 and this service plus all those that follow were NOT done at a Subaru dealership.

I have (as I asked for) the number of the garage that did the latest service so that I can call them and inquire further to see if they have anything on their system about the car...

PHK.

BlobEyedRex

well it's still worth going to see it in the flesh (buyers market) - if it's been looked after then bodywork & interior will be clean.

Blobeye front ends do catch stones though so to be expected & really only a cosmetic problem but good to bring up to get discount.

Test drive will tell as well, check brake discs for bad wear & how suspension feels, gear shifting etc. also condition of wheels and tyres

when I got my WRX the dealer had 2 STi's 1 hawkeye and 1 same year blobeye but both had much higher miles and looked and felt abused on test drive compared to the WRX so decided to get that and have the PPP fitted.

PetrolHeadKid

Thank you all for your input so far :-)

I have one more question...

I have located the nearest Subaru Service agent to where the guy lives. Would it be worth me paying them to check it over thoroughly (just as if they were taking the car in in part exchange or something) as they would know what to check and also will be able to tell me if everything looks as it should (with regard to both the servicing that hasn't been done by Subaru)?

Does this sound like a good idea?

PHK.

Pink_Floyd

Yes 100% the right thing to do.

BlobEyedRex

+1 that as well

Mine as I said came from subaru dealer and they have a multi point/check thing the car had to meet before they could sell it to me and was pretty comprehensive,

these days, mechanical and finance checks a must

PetrolHeadKid

All,
The seller found the missing service:

2.3.2006 at 30032 miles

Clearly I will check to service book when I go.

I have just one (I hope) last question for anyone out there. Is it a problem that not all of the Service history is Subaru (or even a Scooby specialist)? I guess that I am asking both from a buyer's point of view and a future seller's point of view too.

Anyone's opinion would be gratefully received...

PHK.

GREGGYG

iTrader: (2)

Hi PHK,

In my own experience of owning several Subaru Impreza's over the past 8 years, and having had servicing carried out by Subaru main dealers and specialists, here are my comments:

Firstly, they all vary in degrees of knowledge and standards of service. I would certainly encourage you to not adopt the thinking of 'main dealer servicing is best', as many main dealer staff work there on the basis that it's a job they have which pays their bills, etc, and that's it.
(some may of course be enthusiasts, but not many are), whereas a Subaru specialist is highly likely to be an enthusiast, to be more meticulous, and to treat you car with more passion than many main dealers would, resulting in a more 'attention to detail' personal and knowledgable, service. A really professional example of an excellent main dealer was Cheam Motors, who sadly no longer exist.

Once you buy the car, I'm sure there will be people on here who will recommend a specialist not too far away from you, although in my experieince this has always involved (a very worthwhile) drive to reach the specialist!

Greg

BlobEyedRex

+1 to Cheam as they were my local's did hear a few of them then went to Croydon but that is now too far for me.

I now use MKG3000 in Twickenham for all the major stuff and the guy who seems to work on mine does a top job as i always check afterwards, as 1 thing that really annoys me is when clips for the undertray etc. are left out etc. which so far has not been the case with these guys. The parts guy also has massive knowledge of subaru and saved me a fortune on parts when i've been trying to diagnose a problem, they could have easily just sold me the bits but instead told me take a look at this or that and so far he's been right in his diagnosis

MKG also race MX5's. and it's the guys in the Subaru garage who seem to work on them as well, checking them out they always seem to be built to very high standard.

PetrolHeadKid

I've just phoned up the closet Subaru dealer and they are willing to do a multi-point inspection (including a test drive) for £40.80, so that's not bad :-)

Downside - They need about two weeks notice! :-(

PHK.

BlobEyedRex

Price is good, AA etc all do it, but Subaru dealer would be my choice as I don't think 3rd parties would test drive - peace of mind & remember to do a history finance check, lots of stolen/write offs getting back on the streets these days

PetrolHeadKid

Yeah, I have noticed quite a chunk of the Scoobies on Ebay are Cat D and even Cat C - My take (and this only my personal opinion) is that is a Cat C car is bought for say 2k less as a result, then it will probably sell for 2K less down the line.
Equally a car that has not been in an accident may cost 2k more to buy but will probably sell for 2k more, so (and this is my theory), unless a person really can't afford the extra 2k outlay, there isn't really an advantage (apart from 2k to do something else with) in buying a car that has been in a accident, and actually, if it hasn't been repaired properly, one might end up buying a car that won't drive quite right or may be more prone to faults and failures, or could be downright dangerous to drive!

I am hoping to 'strike a deal' this coming week :-)

PHK.

BlobEyedRex

Good luck , & personally with modern cars I'd never touch anything that's been stacked & repaired due to cars being wot they are with crumple zones etc. Some welds up in wrong place and so crumple zone either doesn't take impact as it should you could end up with parts of the body or engine entering the cabin, flesh & metal - metal wins everytime or repair cracks when your giving some, loose control & it's not good. Older cars were far easier to repair, today's motors better to scrap but someone always see's a profit

During mid 90's I got myself a brand new Clio Williams (my 1st new car) after a month of having it I was going driving through a crossroads & some old boy didn't see red lights went through and hit me side on, now car took impact & did it's job, Iived but had busted spine, so car was a mess, well about 3 months later got a call from a guy asking for the spare keys & radio front panel, my father took the call & asked him why he wanted them & guy replied that he'd bought the car from the insurance and fixed it, my father told him to f off as it was a complete write off, as he saw what was left of it while the fire brigade were cutting me out. So people will go to any length to make a profit & couldn't care less about the health or safety of the person buying and then using car afterwards

PetrolHeadKid

Wow, a busted spine! Are you fully recovered?

I watched a program about cars that found their way back onto the roads after an accident (and these were mostly Cat D repairs) and on one of them, where normally there are rubber or dense foam padding brackets behind the front bumper to both help to keep it in place and absorb some of the impact, some 'cowboy' had instead welded in metal plates (because they were cheap) behind the bumper - I bet that they would be nice digging into people's legs on an impact! - The government really should ensure that any repaired car is checked before it can 'registered' to be sold again.

Don't worry, I always pay for a HPI check before I part with any money...

PHK.

BlobEyedRex

Yeah pretty good now, but took 10 years to get to were I am now, + 3 of the cv's in my lower cracked and leaked the fluid which in turn put pressure on the left side spinal cord. If impact was head on would've been fine, but guy hit me they Wrecken at 35 so my head violently snapped to the left & right on impact. But 1 thing now even if its my right of way at junctions always check that traffic has stopped, don't want to go through again

PetrolHeadKid

All,
I am looking at a few cars atm (will need to make a decision next week). This one has the following Service schedule:

1K 07/04/03 1882 Beechdale
10k 23/02/04 10460 TSL motorsport
20k 08/03/05 18757 TSL motorsport
30k 11/02/06 22443 TSL Motorsport
40k 05/07/07 34358 Scooby clinic
50k 13/01/09 47252 Myself
60k 07/09/10 61101 Myself

The current owner used to be a Subaru Mechanic and has all the receipts for the parts for the two services that he has done himself.

There seems to be an 18 month gap (and 13,000 miles) between the 40 & 50k services.

Could this be classed as Full Service History?

Thanks again :-)

PHK.

BlobEyedRex

Well the 50k happened a year outside 60 months for timing belt change - did the 50k show receipts for timing belts etc, as that should have been done during 2008, but on mileage was still under. It looks like car had light use to begin with then it slowly increased.

what you need to do is look at the service log i posted earlier comparing what actually gets replaced at those intervals and if that then matches - it's as good as, as even for me I was 6 months late with my 60 months (50k service) cambelt change but then I'd only done 3200 miles from last service at 40k mark

PetrolHeadKid

Thanks for your reply :-)

The owner changed the cambelt himself when he did the 50k service. I have asked him to confirm that he has the receipt for the cambelt (obviously there will be no invoice).

I am happy if he has all the receipts and before I travel to see the car, I will specifically check with him that what should have been done at each service that he did was done using what you have kindly supplied above :-)

Thanks again :-)

PHK.

BlobEyedRex

good luck & seeing the car & owner in person is always best, as even cars with full service history from dealers can still be wrecks and abused and you'll soon be able to tell that when you see it in the flesh

PetrolHeadKid

I have 'struck' a deal with the guy with the '04 plate, but there are a couple of potential problems!

1) As with another one that I was going to see, this one is in a secure location, but has no insurance, so I have told the owner that he'll have to get something sorted out by next Thursday, otherwise no one will be able to drive it anywhere (including the local Subaru Dealer for the Multi-point check)!
2) I have been able to track down and speak to the garage that did the 60k service. They have no record of the car having been serviced at their garage (either by date, or by Reg No.). However, they did say that they had had problems with their systems and that it might have been one that was not logged and that all the details would have been written on the invoice.
The seller is currently in the North Sea and won't be back until next Tuesday eve (I am due to go to see the car on Thursday morning).
According to the garage, if it has just had a full service, this would have included oil/oil filter, fuel filter, air filter, pollen filter and spark plugs.
However, I notice from what BlobeyedRex put on this thread that the 60k service also included: Engine coolant, transmission fluid, clutch fluid and brake fluid changes.
The garage said that if these were also done that they would be written in on the invoice on top of the 'full service', so I will find out next Wednesday if they have been done.
After all this, my question is, does anyone have any idea how much the 'missing' parts of the 60k service would cost to get done (Engine coolant, transmission fluid, clutch fluid and brake fluid changes) since, if it turns out that they haven't been done (or at least the seller can't confirm that they have), I will have to either reconsider or 'barter' a bit more (even though he has said that he wouldn't go even a penny power that the figure we agreed (clearly that was for a car with Full Service History)).

Is there a need for any special tools to do the above bits that might be missing, or is it something that any decent garage could do?

Any ideas / costs would be gratefully received.

PHK.

BlobEyedRex

well is sounding like the FSH, was just to get a sale, unusual for main dealer to not have record of doing this, it's in their interest to keep record in case of any legal issues crop up, was car only taken to them once?

Also letting the insurance to lap is a problem as you've noted and i don't think he just get it for a test drive but might be wrong as you can get 1 day cover.

I was looking on autotrader earlier and a fair few scoobs on there at the moment, so might be worth taking a look at them instead.

to get the missing service items done, well it's gonna cost some, gearbox is prob. £100 & break and clutch prob. another £100, any decent garage even the service center places can do it, so be worth a call as prices vary a lot depending where you live.

PetrolHeadKid

it wasn't done at a Subaru dealership (it was done at a garage called Car-Tricity in Purley (London)).

If it does turn out that there is a question mark over it, I will find the number of a good independent Scoobie specialist and get them to quote. If the seller won't budge, then I will have to pull out of the sale, since I am not willing to pay potentially £100s of pounds for something that I was led to believe had already been done!

I'll have to wait until next Wednesday to find out....

Thanks again for the reply :-)

PHK.