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TTAC commentator gessvt writes: Sajeev - Looking for some advice on a "to sell or not to sell" situation. A little background: I've been a fairly faithful Blue Oval guy for most of my driving years, with a few brief forays into cheap, reliable imports for college duty, and a recent contract gig that required me to drive The General's products (GMC Sierra 4×4, Saab 9-5 Aero and Chevy Cobalt SS). We also own a trouble free Monterey minivan and a perfect '93 5.0 notchback. My new job has no such requirement, so I made the decision to pay cash for a unique, fun, safe daily driver. I'm outside of Chicago, and with the exception of this year, am usually subjected to significant snowfall and slow-to-react city
plowing service. A friend left his WRX wagon with me last winter so that a local body shop buddy could do a quick bumper respray in order to sell it. We had a blizzard during this time, and the WRX had Blizzaks, so I drove it around and was *hooked*. This car had too many miles and had been subjected to his car-guy wrath, so I searched for the Holy Grail of Subarus: the 2005 Legacy GT 5-speed wagon. After a few months, I found one with 60,000 miles, had the dealer replace the clutch (first warning sign), and paid cash for it. Since then, I've put 20,000 miles on it, and have really enjoyed the car…when something wasn't going wrong with it. In 12 months, the following repairs have occurred: - replaced a hung up front brake caliper and pads/rotors (did both sides to be safe)
- chased down an intermittent cylinder misfire and poor idle (replaced intake manifold gaskets, air fuel sensor and a fuel injector)
- had a wheel bearing replaced under a Subaru TSB.
It sounds like another wheel bearing is getting ready to die, the 3rd gear synchro grinds (something I attributed to the weak clutch before I purchased), and one of the new front calipers got hung up on my drive to work this morning. I'm at the point where I think I should fix the synchro and other misc issues and unload the car. At 80,000 miles, it's still worth about what I paid for it. I love the power, the way it looks and drives and the poor weather performance, but I'm thinking that I've purchased a sorely neglected or problematic car. It may have turned me away from turbo Subarus for good. My question for the B&B: sell it and head back to Ford, or suck it up and drive it? Apologies for the wordy rant.
Sajeev answers: OMG SON! You said "perfect '93 5.0 notchback" and…now that's all I can think about. Mmmmmmmm, Fox Body. (drooling) Well then! I understand your Subie situation and agree with your assessment. Turbo and manual transmission optioned Subarus are a serious threat to your wallet when purchasing on the used car market: they are too fragile for the abuse that might be thrown at them. And it sounds like you are one of the unlucky ones. Not a big deal, since we all know that true Internet Pistonhead street cred comes from owning a wagon with a diesel and a stick. The Internet does not lie, you aren't that cool. I would do the bare minimum to the car for reconditioning, and let your service records do the talking. You obviously loved the car enough to write this well crafted letter to Piston Slap, so I suggest you take all those receipts (that you saved) and put them in a cheapo 3-ring binder. Presentation is everything in selling a niche vehicle like this. If your receipts show you care, the potential buyer will appreciate it…and won't be so mad when stuff breaks on their clock. And since you are a Ford guy, the 5.0 and the Mercury van need a Panther or Ranger 4×4 companion. Obviously! Too bad I can't decide which is better for you! Send your queries to sajeev@thetruthaboutcars.com. Spare no details and ask for a speedy resolution if you're in a hurry.
from The Truth About Cars http://www.thetruthaboutcars.com | 
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