hey everyone

im currently trying to decide if a 98 Subaru Impreza 2.5 RS with 98000 miles for $9000 is a good buy. The car is for my little brother, who just got his license a couple of weeks ago. Being the nice older brother i am, i taught him how to drive stick and i let him take out my S2k. He's 17 yrs old, so i dont think buying him a fancy new car would be appropriate. Financially i can buy or lease him a new car, but because he's 17 i dont want to spoil him.

the potential seller let me test drive the car, and i must say that everything seems to be ok. I was just wondering if anyone could give me some advice on this matter. My brother seems to like the car, but im still worried because of the mileage.
im not sure that this car will last that much longer but having no knowledge of subaru cars, im just wondering if the average subaru lasts over 100,000 miles.

Also, if someone can tell me the cost to rebuild a engine. and if its a good decision to get it rebuilt.

 

Subies usually last a long time. Make sure you have the driveline checked out, especially the suspension and CV boots. A common failure point on some of the older Subarus was caused by lack of maintenance to the 4-wheel drive system. If the boots fail, you get dirt in the drive system and that can cause expensive repairs.

There are plenty of Subarus in my area, some with well over 100k miles. If you go up to Vermont or New Hampshire you see some really old ones knocking around.

 

Well, there's a club, so I'm guessing there's a few: http://www.subaruhighmileageclub.com/

 

I think every kid needs to have driven an Accord to understand mediocrity. I drove a 92 Accord for 5 years, then switched to a 03 Accord, then to my 06 S. I know understand difference in class and money. Next up, understanding luxury with a BMW.

By the way, I'm just a 21 year old college kid, so I have many years of driving to come.

 

that's alot of miles and could be alot of headaches for his first car.

i'd go with a '00 or up celica even if it's not a gts.
looks better that the subu imo and i'm pretty sure it's more reliable.

i would also look at tubiron, good looking car for reasonable money in the used market.

 

I would nt do it.

 

Don't do it. That's too much for that many miles. I've got a Subbie Foreseter with 75k miles, it's solid but you definitely feel that it has that many miles. With that many miles, I'd stay away from used 4wd cars and go with a similar mileage Honda/Toyota/Mazda.

 

The 1998 RS models were unique in that they were DOHC. They also have a unique common head gasket failure problem that is difficult to diagnose and very expensive to repair.
http://users.sisna.com/ignatius/subaru/hg.html

$9000 is too much money for a 98 with that kind of mileage IMHO.

Andrew

 

98K is functional for milage but $9k is high.

before you buy look at kbb.com, edmonds.com and nada.com to get an idea of value is a fair price.

get the vin number then get a car fax.

if he does good on his first car buy him a better in a year or so

 

Or don't buy him anything and let him make his own way through life He'll be pissed now, but better prepared for life in the long run.