# The Subaru Files



## backcountry (May 19, 2016)

I've noticed a certain "passion" for Subaru Outbacks on this site. I'm normally an iconoclast but I thought it would be fun to go with the excitement of the mainstream this time.

We are heading to the forum's beloved California so I'm going to start documenting our new vehicles adventures. Nothing like our nation's most free state for an inaugural for our car.

The big news is getting 32 mph while carrying 3 people, a hitch cargo box and all our gear. Let's just say I don't miss driving a truck with these gas prices.

My daughter got to see the Sierra for the first, play in Tahoe and tomorrow she gets to see her first ocean.

I'm sure everyone agrees here: Long Live Subaru!

(File #1)


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## Critter (Mar 20, 2010)

I'll admit that I drove a Subaru for a number of years. I picked it up used, did some work to it and put 180,000 miles on it driving it back and forth to work getting 26 mpg doing so. That was 180,000 miles that I didn't put on my truck. In all those miles I did 2 head gaskets, and 3 timing belts and associated parts, that car never left me stranded and the only time that it didn't start was when I had a windshield replaced and the door was left ajar enough that it killed the battery. 

To keep it on the hunting side I even hauled out a elk in it once. It was cut up but I hauled it.

Long live Subies...


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## TPrawitt91 (Sep 1, 2015)

About 10 years ago I picked up a 94 Subaru Outback with 280,XXX miles on it. It had the engine replaced with a 100,XXX mile engine at around 230,XXX miles. I paid $2,000 for the car and drove it for 4 years, fixing absolutely nothing at all, and sold it for $2,000 to the next owner lol. When I sold it the car had 340,XXX miles. Leaked oil but that's it as far as issues. Just kept a quart of oil in the hatch to top it off


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## twinkielk15 (Jan 17, 2011)

I bought a '97 Legacy several years ago and had the same story. Drove it to and from work for about six years. Bought it for $1000 and sold it for $1000. Did a timing belt. Always started, always ran, always got good mileage. I didn't go anywhere in style, but I went everywhere I wanted to go. I'd buy another one in a heartbeat.


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## Catherder (Aug 2, 2008)

I've never owned one, but friends who have have liked theirs. 

Just like owning a truck, it isn't the car that will elicit the reaction, but which stickers you put on it. If you put on a Bernie sticker, a Protect Wild Utah one, a few from trendy travel locales, and a couple with preachy moral imperatives, then you might have a REAL Subaru.  

Dont know if I've seen too many tooling around flying a Trump flag.


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## MrShane (Jul 21, 2019)

Catherder said:


> I've never owned one, but friends who have have liked theirs.
> 
> Just like owning a truck, it isn't the car that will elicit the reaction, but which stickers you put on it. If you put on a Bernie sticker, a Protect Wild Utah one, a few from trendy travel locales, and a couple with preachy moral imperatives, then you might have a REAL Subaru.
> 
> Dont know if I've seen too many tooling around flying a Trump flag.


If you place a “Happiness is a Gut Pile” bumper sticker on your Subaru it qualifies as a UWN certified Subaru.
Extra Soob cred if the sticker has the steaming gut pile on it.


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## Al Hansen (Sep 7, 2007)

If your getting 32 MPH it's going to take you a he77 of a long time to get to that Ocean. LOL I'm sure you mean 32 MPG.


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## Critter (Mar 20, 2010)

Al Hansen said:


> If your getting 32 MPH it's going to take you a he77 of a long time to get to that Ocean. LOL I'm sure you mean 32 MPG.


That's why he gets that kind of mileage, driving at 32mph will give everyone better mileage 

Sent from my SM-A426U using Tapatalk


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## Airborne (May 29, 2009)

Not to derail the thread but I can brag on my Silverado with the 6 cylinder mini duramax diesel engine--if I keep the truck at 73 mph on flat ground I can get 29 miles per gallon all day. If I'm coming off a mountain I can get better. From Loa down to Utah county through Gunnison I average 36 MPG. It can still tow decent as well. I'm liking it.


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## colorcountrygunner (Oct 6, 2009)

I just took out a loan that is the equivalent of my parent's first mortgage on a 2020 Ram Laramie. My wife and I drove it to Estes Park, Colorado and back a few weeks ago averaging 17 mph. I'm not sure if I'm trying to flex, or drive home the point that I'm retarded. It's definitely one or the other.


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## Clarq (Jul 21, 2011)

colorcountrygunner said:


> I just took out a loan that is the equivalent of my parent's first mortgage on a 2020 Ram Laramie. My wife and I drove it to Estes Park, Colorado and back a few weeks ago averaging 17 mph. I'm not sure if I'm trying to flex, or drive home the point that I'm retarded. It's definitely one or the other.


Not sure why you would flex about the fact that you were driving 17 miles per hour on average...


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## Catherder (Aug 2, 2008)

colorcountrygunner said:


> My wife and I drove it to Estes Park, Colorado and back a few weeks ago averaging 17 mph. I'm not sure if I'm trying to flex, or drive home the point that I'm retarded. It's definitely one or the other.


Between you and Backcountry, you all are really keep down the speed. All I will say on that is excessively slow drivers are infinitely more annoying on the freeway than those with vehicles adorned with stickers one doesn't agree with. 

Oh, and while we are at it, my 21' Taco gets a solid 30 mpG on the freeway, even in some stretches that have some hills.


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## colorcountrygunner (Oct 6, 2009)

Apparently I don't even know the difference between mpg and mph, so it probably wasn't the flex that I was after.


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## Wire (Nov 2, 2017)

Catherder said:


> Between you and Backcountry, you all are really keep down the speed. All I will say on that is excessively slow drivers are infinitely more annoying on the freeway than those with vehicles adorned with stickers one doesn't agree with.
> 
> Oh, and while we are at it, my 21' Taco gets a solid 30 mpG on the freeway, even in some stretches that have some hills.


How does the 21' "taco" ride??? Bet it streches out at 30 mpg.

I do agree that slow drivers doing under the speed limit are very irritating.


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## johnnycake (Jul 19, 2011)

colorcountrygunner said:


> Apparently I don't even know the difference between mpg and mph, so it probably wasn't the flex that I was after.


You did give us another option...


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## colorcountrygunner (Oct 6, 2009)

johnnycake said:


> You did give us another option...


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## backcountry (May 19, 2016)

Al Hansen said:


> If your getting 32 MPH it's going to take you a he77 of a long time to get to that Ocean. LOL I'm sure you mean 32 MPG.


Nothing like fat fingers and spell check.

People are getting 30 mpg average on a 21' Yota? That's like 30% better than they advertise.

These new computers really gamify efficiency. I was getting 36-38 average in NV but couldn't keep that up without upsetting family caravanning behind us.

This is our first ever new car. The tech has come along way since 2006 (year of our truck). The other thing I realize is I don't miss stick shift. Ours has an optional paddle shift on the steering wheel that is occasionally handy but after almost 3 decades of driving manual I'm sold on automatic.

Our bank account really appreciated the gas refills on the Outback compared to our 06' Frontier. That 18 mpg average was killing our road trips.


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## Catherder (Aug 2, 2008)

backcountry said:


> People are getting 30 mpg average on a 21' Yota? That's like 30% better than they advertise.


That's what the onboard computer tells me, and fillup time doesn't seem to dispute it. 🤷‍♂️ Obviously, city driving is a good bit less. It does way better at the pump than my 4 Runner did, for which I am grateful during this inflationary period. 

The ride is great.


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## johnnycake (Jul 19, 2011)

These new vehicles are like spaceships I swear.


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## twinkielk15 (Jan 17, 2011)

All I own are guzzlers. My Suburban and 15-passenger Express are both closer to listing efficiency in gallons per mile than miles per gallon...


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## colorcountrygunner (Oct 6, 2009)

twinkielk15 said:


> All I own are guzzlers. My Suburban and 15-passenger Express are both closer to listing efficiency in gallons per mile than miles per gallon...


Prior to the new truck I just purchased I always owned beaters where you would occasionally check the gas and fill the oil.


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## colorcountrygunner (Oct 6, 2009)

This thread calls for some memes:


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## johnnycake (Jul 19, 2011)

Careful CCG, that trail on the bottom right of the last pic doesn't need any more hotspotting. The ptarmy bastages used to be thick another couple miles back there but now I have to go at least 3-4 miles thanks to all the danmed Subie Squatters


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## colorcountrygunner (Oct 6, 2009)

johnnycake said:


> Careful CCG, that trail on the bottom right of the last pic doesn't need any more hotspotting. The ptarmy bastages used to be thick another couple miles back there but now I have to go at least 3-4 miles thanks to all the danmed Subie Squatters


It can be our little secret, daddycake.


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## backcountry (May 19, 2016)

Catherder said:


> Between you and Backcountry, you all are really keep down the speed. All I will say on that is excessively slow drivers are infinitely more annoying on the freeway than those with vehicles adorned with stickers one doesn't agree with.
> 
> Oh, and while we are at it, my 21' Taco gets a solid 30 mpG on the freeway, even in some stretches that have some hills.


If you are running the mileage to gas consumed and getting 30 mpg that's truly impressive. I like the onboard display on our new car but it's normally off by 1-2 mpg (overly optimistic). Sounds like they are notoriously bad across the board, coming in at 5% too high all the way up to 15% too high depending on the test group. 

Some people just drive with better fuel efficiency habits. But for the Tacoma (and even Frontier) most reports I've read over the years the real world averages tend to be even below the reported. Good on ya if you got lucky on the truck engine and have such great driving habits. Jealous. Our older Frontier got 21 mpg when new but has lot some effeciency with a quarter million miles on it.


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## colorcountrygunner (Oct 6, 2009)

backcountry said:


> Good on ya if you got lucky on the truck engine and have such great driving habits.


Based on catheter's previous posts in this thread, I don't get the idea that he is a light on the gas pedal kinda guy. I agree with him though, slowpokes on the freeway suck.


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## Catherder (Aug 2, 2008)

backcountry said:


> If you are running the mileage to gas consumed and getting 30 mpg that's truly impressive. I like the onboard display on our new car but it's normally off by 1-2 mpg (overly optimistic). Sounds like they are notoriously bad across the board, coming in at 5% too high all the way up to 15% too high depending on the test group.


I would not be the least bit surprised if the onboard computer is incorrect. It surprised me when the computer kept telling me that as I got used to the truck. Most of my "tanks of gas" consists of a hodgepodge of city and freeway driving, so it could be problematic to precisely figure out the sustained mileage comparison using pen and paper with the computer. That said, I do know that my gas consumption has gone way down since I bought it compared to my 4 Runner (which wasn't terrible on fuel), so thats part of what I meant by saying that the computer may not be off much. 



colorcountrygunner said:


> Based on catheter's previous posts in this thread, I don't get the idea that he is a light on the gas pedal kinda guy. I agree with him though, slowpokes on the freeway suck.


 Uh, um, yeah, you are correct. 😔


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## Catherder (Aug 2, 2008)

Here is the last part of my evening commute. The far left line represents me going after being at a light. The next 2 lines (30 mpg) are me going through south Provo (State Street) and the low one is me stopped at a light at the intersection where the "Juvie" facility is located. The rest is me going to and through Springville. (Had good luck on the lights there.) So even on a not ideal "freeway" scenario, I am at or near 30 if I am going steady and not stopping.


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## stripey22 (Oct 12, 2009)

colorcountrygunner said:


> Based on catheter's previous posts in this thread, I don't get the idea that he is a light on the gas pedal kinda guy. I agree with him though, slowpokes on the freeway suck.


Oh the difference just one letter can make))))


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## colorcountrygunner (Oct 6, 2009)

stripey22 said:


> Oh the difference just one letter can make))))


Actually more than one letter. I thought catheter was a fun variation of catherder. I haven't seen him post much here lately, but there's a guy on these forums that goes by swbuckmaster. One time somebody called him buttmaster and I thought that was great. That may have actually been over on monster muleys where everybody is a buttmaster.


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## NH Hunter (Feb 4, 2008)

I had a 98 Legacy GT wagon that was kind of problematic. That version of the 2.5 DOHC suffered head gasket problems for many years that Subaru refused to deal with. The factory fix was Bars Leaks. They should have had a recall. I think they finally fixed the issue in 2005 or thereabouts. The first time it crapped out was a timing belt idler pulley. Belt had been changed by the PO but they didn't replace all of the pulleys. That required a bunch of work because the EJ25 is an interference engine. Valve meet piston, piston meet valve. I used all Subaru factory parts and the repair was around $1800 for the repairs, valves, machine work to make sure the head was flat, etc. Not technically the car's fault, just poor workmanship and corner cutting by whoever did the work.

It went about another 10,000 miles before the head gasket blew again. That was about it for that car and I sent it to the junkyard when we moved. When my boy's graduated from college we bought them each a Subaru, one a Crosstrek and the other an Imprezza hatch. Both were bare bones base models. Both were nice cars. Once lives in the front range in CO and the other in Verona, WI so both see a fair amount of snow. So far, so good. Neither can fix their own stuff so I figured a new car will get them far enough along so they can pay for their own repairs.

I should buy another one for the wife. She's in a 97 Saab 9000 with 225K on it and it's starting to show it's age.


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## Vanilla (Dec 11, 2009)

Catherder said:


> the low one is me stopped at a light at the intersection where the "Juvie" facility is located.


Worked there for 5 years before post-graduate studies started. It’s how I paid for my undergrad degree and all the law school applications I sent out. Oooooh the stories one could tell…

Nothing wrong with Suubies, per se. It is usually the people driving them that are the problem. This thread only goes to confirm that! Just kidding fellers.


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## backcountry (May 19, 2016)

I thought of you Vanilla when we decided to limit the Patagonia bumper stickers to 5. Anymore than that just seems excessive.

45 mph crosswinds and steady uphill home really killed gas mileage. This early storm sucks but we need the precip.


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## Vanilla (Dec 11, 2009)

I'm fine with a Suuby, they are solid vehicles. But I do have morals on stickers...


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## backcountry (May 19, 2016)

I've never understood bumper stickers. Why should I pay to advertise for someone else? Plus it's a bullseye for theft. I always laugh when I see the apple logo on a car; might as well say "Pick me, I like expensive stuff".


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## Catherder (Aug 2, 2008)

backcountry said:


> 45 mph crosswinds and steady uphill home really killed gas mileage. This early storm sucks but we need the precip.


The 5 standard issue "Coexist" stickers that come with purchase will reduce aerodynamic drag and improve the mileage. Have you applied them yet?


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## bthewilde (Feb 8, 2018)

I personally want to get (in the next 5 years) a Sabubaru Outback again, and outfit it as my upland rig. I drove one for years through college before getting a midsized truck and I do miss it a lot of the time. Plenty of nights spent in the back, good gas mileage (not great..), and it would always surprise people when I pulled up at a hunting camp lol


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## Critter (Mar 20, 2010)




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## bowgy (Oct 10, 2007)

This is my favorite thread, how did I miss it?


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