Average time before problems

[rjundi]

I have always had it in my mind that problems really crop with vehicles at the 8yr or 150,000 miles mark.

Unfortunately for our 2005 Legacy turbo wagon 5mt it is coming true with 149,000 miles.

The last few thousand miles which turned into about $1000 in repairs:

1) Alternator
2) leaky valve cover gasket(dripped onto exhaust making stench and smoke show)
3) failed spark plug coil
4) Starter(not failed) but grindy

When do you folks think the average time is before things start going?

 

[Darren270]

It all depends on the make and model.

 

[Quattro Pete]

Originally Posted By: Darren270
It all depends on the make and model.

Yeah, seriously. With my 530i, problems started before 40K miles and 5 years.

 

[cmorr]

Think it varies by make/model and usage but honestly that list doesn't look bad if the car has been reliable so far. My wife's minivan it truly the Mom taxi and does allot of short trips and is used hard. Your list matches closely

 

[JAM25]

Wow over $1000 on 4 issues? Did you take it to a shop? I say it because in my Galant i had bad ignition coils, alternator, engine mounts, radiator cracked, valve cover gasket went bad, and starter died in winter. And it was all around 250. I got the items myself and installed them with my dad. Im not sure if maybe your legacy has more valueable parts but imo 1000 seems to high for 4 repairs. But then again almost at 150000 its understandable. But i believe is the parts that go bad simply for bad quality.

 

[rjundi]

I went to shop but labor rate is relatively low $60/hr but I think mechanic uses quality parts(Bosch) or Subaru OEM quality as we plan on keeping this for another 5yrs/75k-100k miles if possible.

 

[Kool1]

When a starter grinds, it is a bad sign. The starter drive gears usually eats the flywheel ring gear which means removal of the transmission to get to the flywheel. This is a rather large expense.

 

[rationull]

Originally Posted By: Kool1
When a starter grinds, it is a bad sign. The starter drive gears usually eats the flywheel ring gear which means removal of the transmission to get to the flywheel. This is a rather large expense.


Although at 150k miles, it might also just be a convenient excuse to replace the clutch/flywheel, release bearing, etc. assuming it's still on the originals and they might be near end of life.

EDIT: Does the Legacy have a dual mass flywheel?

 

[Vikas]

I too thought it was little bit high but when you add good quality alternator and starter, $500 for parts alone is not out of question. Depending upon engine layout, getting to valve cover gasket or plugs/coil could involve lot of work and then another $500 is understandable. However, on a typical grocery getter 4-cyl engine, the later two items should be trivial. I am not sure if OP's Subaru falls in to that or not.

 

[jimbrewer]

Based on the pricing of the factory warranty I bought: at the 100K mark. (Big increase in price between 100k and 125K). Much earlier for the GPS electronic doo-dads and electric windows.

 

[rjundi]

Originally Posted By: rationull
....

Although at 150k miles, it might also just be a convenient excuse to replace the clutch/flywheel, release bearing, etc. assuming it's still on the originals and they might be near end of life.

EDIT: Does the Legacy have a dual mass flywheel?


This Legacy due to turbo motor has a dual mass flywheel but regular ones I don't think.

We actually had a clutch problem at 110k miles. The throw out bearing failed. After the mechanic stated the flywheel was stupid expensive and clutch not worn a lot(wife great clutch driver). We simply replaced the throwout bearing for $400 including parts since I was employed for 1 year at the time and money dwindling then.

 

[meep]

a NA subbie is very easy to service. alt is staring you in the face when you pop the hood. VCs are pretty reasonable.

but his is a turbo. the alt may be reasonable to access, maybe. IIRC the valve covers will be awful. last time i open the hood of a turbo 'ru, it was just a wall of plumbing staring you in the face.

 

[sciphi]

With good maintenance, about 10 years or 100k miles. Although my little fleet is rapidly approaching that mileage, so we'll see.

 

[KrisZ]

Those are trivial issues and definitely not a sign to trade in.
$1000 is about 2-3 months worth of payments on a new car, but that thousand dollars will probably get you another few years before needing a similar expense.
Another option is to start DIYing and save a ton of money. None of the work your indy did, could not be done in the driveway.

 

[MCompact]

Originally Posted By: KrisZ
Those are trivial issues and definitely not a sign to trade in.
$1000 is about 2-3 months worth of payments on a new car, but that thousand dollars will probably get you another few years before needing a similar expense.
Another option is to start DIYing and save a ton of money. None of the work your indy did, could not be done in the driveway.


That's essentially my philosophy. I allocate $500 per month for maintenance and repairs on all of the vehicles in my garage. With no car payment(s) to budget for it is a negligible expense, all things considered.

 

[KitaCam]

I typically buy used cars @ 50k miles and run them @ 15k miles/yr to 180-200...and have no payments after 100k miles so repairs are my monthly nut...

I anticipate maintenance @ $300/yr to 100k, $600/yr 100k-150k, $1000/yr after 150k miles...$1200/yr is only 100 a month to maintain a car...and then it's time to consider getting another used car...

Which I did this year...got a 100k used car that I expect to run 10k/yr and that should meet the above cost rates...the "new" car (see below) will cost $800/yr in net-payments (after MPG savings) until 150k, but the additional $500/yr ($2000 over 4 years) for a "new" car is worth it to me....just my belief that THIS car will cost less than $1000/yr after 150k miles, based on its current condition and my reduced driving.

 

[lovcom]

My 6 year old Yaris is coming up on 153,000 miles, and so far I've spent $0.00 on repairs, and still have the original factory brake pads. Burns no descernable oil. All I do is preventative maintenance.

The most important thing to get the longest longevity in a car is to buy the right make and model. Maintain it by the book too, and your chances of having problems before 300,000 miles is fairly slim.

 

[KitaCam]

AAA has new survey results out re: maintenance costs for sedans:
...now 5¢/mile for the 1st 75k miles/5years or $750/yr @ 15k/yr
(including labor, parts, and extended warranties)

 

[rjundi]

We are trying to budget for newer vehicle latter and also for repair fund for this car.

It seems like $100-$200/month would be a reasonable amount to save to keep this car going each year.

The repairs listed just happened over two months for around $1000 with nothing for 2 years prior except oil changes. We did recently put new tires for $550 on the vehicle also.