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Subaru Legacy Liberty / Lancaster / Outback

1998-03

LeGAcy/ LIBeRTy

Great to drive, practical and reliable, till they get old.

Quick Summary

Good, till they get to about


150,000km. See what goes wrong below

How Reliable?

LeGAcy/ LIBeRTy STATION WAGON

Good, but see our safety


summary below
OuTBAck

How Safe?

AND NOTe OuR TRANSMISSION WARNING

ALSO CONSIDER: Something more practical at high mileages, like a Toyota Camry.

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apan is a very conservative society and $2000$8000 exports most of its vehicles to cultures that it does not fully understand. There$500$5000 (for used car dealers add around 30%, inc. GST) fore, changes come slowly and cautiously. Also, Subaru is, and always has been, a small carmaker with very limited budgets, with potential bankruptcy always lurking somewhere in the background. LIBeRTy Before Subaru, four-wheel drive was $5500$14,500 mainly for offroad use and was rarely employed on an everyday car. The Leone $4000$12,500 which offered the option of four-wheel drive motoring for the same price as a conOuTBAck ventional car saved Subaru in the early $7000$18,000 1970s. The Leone model was sold worldwide for an extraordinary 23 years before $5500$16,000 (for used car dealers add around 30%, inc. GST) finally being retired in 1994. However, long before the Leone expired as a model, SUB MODELS: the Legacy and Liberty are its shortcomings were obvious: it was too the same car with different badges. Legacy small, underpowered and unsafe for Westis the international name, Liberty the ern car buyers. Australian name. The Outback is the SUV Thus, the 1989 launch of the Legacy version of the Legacy. The Legacy/Liberty (Liberty in Australia) ushered in a new era was offered as either a four-door sedan or a for Subaru. five-door station wagon. Wagons made up The Legacy was larger, had more power the vast majority of sales, and included: and was far safer than the Leone. However, (Legacy/Liberty) GTB wagons, GX sedan it was still a bit small and a bit gutless for & station wagon, LX station wagon, RSB many Western buyers. This took Subaru a sedans & RX sedan & station wagon long time to grasp: side streets in Japan are (Outback) SUV & Ltd SUV. The Japanese often little more than well-sealed cart tracks; version of the Outback was called the Legacy Lancaster. large cars are heavily taxed and would not fit into many carparking spaces. With time, the message got through and Subarus designers went back to the drawing board once more. They enlarged the existing vehicle, gave the engines more power and made the Legacy a nicer car to drive. As Subarus designers became more
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$5000$10,000

aware and more confident, this process of ongoing improvement continued. Thus, the Legacy, with each generation, grew larger, more powerful, more comfortable and more safe. The 1998 Legacy cemented Subarus reputation as a builder of high quality, affordable, safe four-wheel drive vehicles for city folks. Subarus styling has often been questionable, but you cant fault most of the engineering. The Legacys interior has a designed-by-an-engineer-rather-than-anartist feel about it. The choice of interior plastics appears to have been made by some accountant somewhere; Subaru clearly never consulted any Western carbuyers before they went ahead with production. In reality, we suspect that Subaru had used up so much of its budget designing the mechanical parts of the vehicle that there simply wasnt enough money left to do a decent job on the interior. Not that it matters, to most Subaru owners. Next to Apple Mac owners, Subaru owners are among the most loyal consumers on the planet, coming back for more, generation after generation. They have learned to trust their vehicles, and a budget interior doesnt seem to bother them much. The interior is well built and reasonably nicely thought out, although thanks to the lightweight design and the quality of the plastics squeaks and rattles are common. The Legacys front occupants are welltreated. The seats are comfortable and the driving position is very good for the average driver. However, the steering wheel adjusts for height but not reach, so very short or tall drivers may feel less at home. Rear passengers do okay as long as theyre

not too tall and as long as the front occupants dont move their seats back too far. However, due to the narrowness of the vehicle, theres only really space for two adults in the rear seat. More serious is the fact that the centrerear occupant likely to be a child gets a lap-only seatbelt, known to practically tear the wearer in half during a serious collision, even if the other occupants walk away unscathed. On the road, the Legacys handling is typical of a good four-wheel drive: tenacious grip coupled with mild understeer. On the road, the Legacys handling is typical of a good four-wheel drive: tenacious grip coupled with mild understeer. In English, this means that, although the Legacy will stick to the road like glue, even on loose road surfaces, it will want to keep going in a straight line on corners. You learn to adapt your driving style to suit this reality. However, once your learn how to drive the Legacy, the handling becomes firm and controlled, with a feeling of comfort and security at all speeds. Except... Very late in the piece Subaru released a version with a 3-litre engine. This looked good on paper but wasnt so great in practice. The larger engine meant a far higher price, coupled with far higher fuel consumption and it drinks Premium petrol, not Regular. The heavier weight from the larger engine meant that the suspension had to be beefed up, but Subaru didnt do an especially good job of it, meaning that the 3-litre versions tend to float around instead of staying firmly glued to the road. If that wasnt bad enough, the extra space needed for the 3-litre engine meant that there wasnt enough room for a manual gearbox, and the automatic had trouble

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In fact, this name was something of a handling the larger engines extra power, meaning that many transmissions died con: few Australians ever drove one of these vehicles offroad in the true outback. Nor young. should they; as a car to drive round town and take down dusty roads, the Outback does just fine. You rarely see one crossing the Simpson Desert, which speaks for itself, really. Its not that the Subie cant cope in OuTBAck Like many modern SUVs, the Subaru sand or dirt highways; quite the opposite. Outback is a mostly-urban vehicle with Its a great vehicle for muddy dirt tracks and slight offroad pretentions. It isnt and never dusty backroads. What the Outback cant has been, a genuine offroad vehicle. The cope with is ravines, rocks, logs and rivers. Subaru Outback is a slightly modified ver- In serious offroad situations its common sion of the Legacy wagon. Its natural turf for the water to come right up over the bonis city streets and gravel roads. Other than net of a vehicle during the crossing. Light being slightly higher off the ground, having vehicles can easily get washed downstream. a butch styling combined with a slightly Water can also get sucked into the engine, heavier suspension, the Outback is no dif- wrecking it instantly. Sudden dips can easily mean a vehicle gets stuck in the bottom ferent to a Legacy station wagon. The Outback arose out of Subarus of a V shaped ravine, both ends jammed, desperate need to cash in on the SUV with the wheels spinning hopelessly. Large craze of the 1990s. Subaru was financially- rocks and logs will not only shipwreck a challenged at the time and couldnt afford low vehicle like the Outback, but theyll to build a genuine SUV, so they invented often seriously damage the underside of the vehicle in the process. a pretend one. Serious offroad situations require a seriA large part of this vehicles success arose from Americas extraordinary but brief fas- ous offroader, such as Toyota Land Cruiser cination with rural Australian culture that or Nissan Patrol, which are purpose-built followed the release of the first two Croco to cope with ravines, rocks, logs and rivers. dile Dundee movies in the 1980s. Unsur- Serious offroaders also tend to have winches prisingly, the actor who played Crocodile to pull themselves out of trouble, someDundee Paul Hogan was chosen as thing your rarely see on an Outback. Subarus spokesman in America, and the ve- Still, offroad prowess is rarely relevant to hicle was given a title that spoke of rugged buyers of SUVs. Outbacks are sold and used as city station wagons. This is a task rural Australia the Subaru Outback. they perform well, although their loadcarrying space is not huge. Note also the seatbelt warning above.

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Legacys and Outbacks all versions remind us of one of those Hollywood action heroes good-looking, strong and vigorous. The sort of friend youd like to hang out and be seen in public with. However, when you look back a decade later they dont seem to have aged very well. Perhaps in the Legacys case you can blame the previous owners. Perhaps not. Theres no doubt that if these vehicles have not been maintained carefully then both the engines and transmissions will give grief at an early age. However, even well-maintained cars are not immune to problems. Automatics on these cars were never great, although later versions were a definite improvement. Subaru was forced to upgrade these transmissions time after time, but outside of Japan they would only upgrade the transmission if the owner complained. Typical problems are transmissions that shift abruptly and with a thump or a bang, lack of acceleration and a refusal on the part of the transmission to change down when the vehicle is going between 40-70km/h. Regardless of how well the transmission is serviced, expect it to need a full and expensive overhaul every 100,000km. The rest of the car should be perfectly reliable until about 150,000km. We know of vehicles that have done three times that mileage without problems, but theres no guarantee. Bear in mind also that these vehicles are reasonably complicated and many jobs on the engine require that the whole motor comes out.

ALL VeRSIONS

Even owners who have maintained their vehicles to the highest of standards have sometimes discovered, the hard way, this fact: like Hollywood action heroes, these vehicles are best enjoyed while theyre young and vigorous. Often, old age isnt kind to them. See also our general comments on Turo chargers in the links page that follows this re view & on Suaru at the end of this review.

Fuel system problems


Legacy models built between 15 May 1998 & 14 December 2000 A problem with the charcoal canister may cause fuel tank to crack and leak. VIN numbers @ dogandlemon.com Search dogandlemon.com RJ-0729-0

engine problems

These engines require that the antifreeze gets changed religiously, or the interior of the motor will be eaten away by corrosion. Rattly engines which leak oil probably warn that the end is nigh. EJ20 two litre Subaru engines (and some others) are rapidly developing a bad reputation for premature big end bearing failure. Subaru is claiming that the problem is lack of maintenance, but we know of a number of cases where the buyer was careful and thorough and it still occurred. The problem is worst on the twin turbo versions: these engines are equipped with the short skirt pistons which also wear badly. The symptom of the big end problem is a distinct knocking when you start the car from cold and the symptom of the piston wear is a rattle when cold. The above two problems seem to strike at around 150,000km. Overheating can destroy your engine! See our article Keeping it Cool in the links page that fol lows this review. EJ25 2.5 litre DOHC engines are well known

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for blowing head gaskets. See our general head gasket warning at the end of this review. Timing belts and belt tensioners need replacing every 100,000km (or five years, whichever comes first) or they may break, causing severe engine damage. Timing belt replacement can be expensive. See our article A Question of Timing in the links page that follows this review. The 3.0 engine uses a timing chain, not a timing belt. A noisy chain probably indicates a tired or badly maintained engine. We have a few reports of these chains breaking, causing massive engine damage. Turbochargers rarely last as long as the engine they are bolted to, and they aint cheap to fix The crankshaft oil seal leaks The crankshaft pulley nut strips out, causing crankshaft damage. This is a very common problem and generally occurs not long after the vehicle has had its timing belt replaced. Some engine shops can repair the crankshaft in place, but if theres not one nearby the whole engine will have to come out. Fuel pumps die with age, and are VERY expensive to fix.
Legacy models built between 8 December 1999 & 22 march 2003 The cruise control cable may become dislodged and jam the throttle partially open. VIN numbers: BH5-002031 & BHE-019341 BHE-023064 Search dogandlemon.com RJ-1052-0

erately expensive repair. Clutches are the weakest link in the power transmission chain . Try accelerating hard after changing from first to second while driving uphill. If the car doesnt speed up but the revs keep rising, theres a problem. Manual gearboxes are prone to problems from around 150,000km onwards. Symptoms of impending doom include jumping out of second gear and crunching when changing in and out of third. Difficulties shifting may also be worn shifter bushings. AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSIONS ARE A MAJOR SOURCE OF GRIEF ON THESE VEHICLES. Any transmission that has done 100,000km is at the end of its life and will probably need a full (and expensive) overhaul soon. See our general automatic transmission warning at the end of this review. The differentials on these cars will quickly seize if the vehicle is run with tyres of different heights. Rear differentials blow and are very expensive to fix Four-wheel drive solenoids die with age
Automatic Legacy & Outback models built between 1 June 2001 & 26 July 2002 The automatic transmission may not hold the vehicle when park is selected. If this problem has been fixed in Japan there will be black paint on the transmission case, on the back of the diff oil gauge. VIN numbers: (Outback) not known; (Legacy) @ dogandlemon.com Search dogandlemon.com KJ-0216-0

Gearbox & drivetrain problems

Constant velocity (CV) joints are prone to wear. Drive the car in a tight left, then righthand circle and listen for the telltale knockknock-knock sound. Also check behind the wheel for split CV boots and grease leakage. If the boot is split, CV failure is not far behind, and this CV is a mod-

Steering & suspension problems

STEERING RACkS AND pUMpS ARE pRONE TO FAILURE AT VERy HIGH MILEAGES. Especially watch out for oil leaks from the steering rack, because this not only signals that the unit needs rebuilding, it may cause it to fail a safety check Suspension bushes are prone to wear Suspension struts are prone to wear Check for uneven tyre wear. It may mean that this car has clipped a curb while parking, or there may be hidden accident damage. If

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theres uneven tyre wear, insist on a four-wheel alignment before proceeding. The rear springs are prone to sagging if the vehicle has been overloaded.

wiring will not stand much more powerful upgrades, so beware.

Brake & safety problems

See our general airbag and ABS warning at the end of this review. Heavy disc wear is common, especially at the rear. REAR DISCS ARE BOTH DIFFICULT AND EXPENSIVE TO REPLACE See our general airbag and ABS warning at the end of this review.
Liberty & Outback models built in 1998 The seatbelt pretensioners may fail or may start a fire. VIN numbers: JF#BD####WG029001 WG035883; JF#BG####WG038000 WG050254; (# = Variable)

In actual road smashes the driver of a smaller (lighter) car is far more likely to die than the driver of a larger (heavier) vehicle it collides with. (A Daihatsu Move weighs about 815kg and a Range Rover weighs about 2500kg. This vehicle weighs about 12001400kg, depending on the model). See also our general comments on Fourwheel drives & Safety in the Safety section (see the links page that follows this review).

ANCAp crash tests, Australia

Body problems

Many Legacies have been pranged, and not always fixed properly. You should always have the vehicle professionally checked, but also check for uneven tyre wear, wheel wobble when driving and especially watch for a tugging towards one side of the road as you drive Many Legacies have been used to tow boats, so a check for rust underneath is essential, especially in the front crossmember, around the wheel wells and in the front of the bonnet
Liberty wagon & Outback models built between 1998 & 1999 The towbar may break off if fitted with Hayman Reese towbars, type SA900 & SA901.

The centre-rear seat occupant likely to be a child gets a lap-only seatbelt, known to practically tear the wearer in half during a serious collision, even if the other occupants walk away unscathed. See our article A tragic lack of restraint in the safety section of the links pages that fol lows this review.

VIN PLATE LOCATION: Right inner guard behind wheel arch ENGINE TypE & SIZE: 2.2 EJ22 HO 2212cc OHC MPI, some turbo 2.5 EJ25 HO 2457cc DOHC MPI 3.0 EZ30 HO 2999cc DOHC MPI RECOMMENDED FUEL/S: 2.2 Regular 2.5 Regular 3.0 Premium HOW MUCH FUEL?: Realistic urban averages: 2.2 12.3 litres/100km 8.1 km/litre 23 mpg 2.5 12.8 litres/100km 7.8 km/litre 22 mpg 3.0 15.6 litres/100km 6.4 km/litre 18 mpg

Interior problems

Air conditioning is often dead & may be uneconomic to fix Electric windows die with age Central locking dies with age. The key remotes are also prone to dying of old age. Make sure that they work and make sure you get the spare as well, or budget for its replacement.

electrical problems

The headlights are not very strong, but the

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pRETENSIONING SEATBELTS: Yes WEBBING-GRABBER SEATBELTS: No ANTISkID BRAkING (ABS): LEGACY all models except (previous) 2.2 LX wagon OUTBACK standard all models AIRBAGS: (previous) LEGACY GX & RX dual standard GTB & RSB driver only LX wagon not available OUTBACK Ltd dual standard SUV not available (late models) dual standard all models SIDEINTRUSION BEAMS: Yes.

Safety

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making sense of this review

1) We suggest you read this page carefully if youre having trouble understanding the review. If youre frantic and need a quick confirmation that youre making the right car-buying decision, go straight to the Quick Summary section on the front page of your review. Heres the Quick Summary section on the front page of your review.

2) The rest of the review is there to explain why we make our recommendation in the Quick Summary section. Dont be surprised if we make a negative recommendation: we try and steer buyers away from vehicle purchases that are likely to end in tears. 3) Buying a car is a complex and confusing process. For this reason we recommend that you calm down and read our supporting articles as well as the review itself, so that you can see where were coming from. 4) We especially recommend you click on the blue link below to read our article: How to Use These Reviews. 5) If youre buying secondhand, we recommend you watch our free video: The Five Minute Car Check. 6) There are a number of really useful supporting articles available free from our website. You can access these by simply clicking on the name of the article on the links page that follows the review. 7) If youre still horribly confused: contact us, but please have some compassion for our overworked support staff: most of the answers you need are already supplied within this review and the free articles on our website.

Enjoy!

ubaru is the car division of Fuji Heavy Industries Ltd. Fuji also manufactures aircraft, trains & ships, among other things. Started in 1917 as the Nakajiama Aircraft Co, the company changed its name to Fuji Sangyo Ltd in 1945, when the American occupying forces split the group into twelve independent companies. Six of these were later to regroup as Fuji Heavy industries Ltd. and gradually diversified into manufacturing such things as motor-scooters, bus bodywork & gasoline engines.

mythology Pleiades. Subarus logo of six stars comes from the Taurus constellation and is also a reference to the six companies of the Fuji group. Subarus first big break came with the four-wheel drive

Leone in 1974, which suddenly made four-wheel drive available for the everyday motorist. Subaru also did well with small cars & vans and its performance models. Early 80s Subarus had bad rust problems, and Subaru small cars a n d v a n s w e re deathtraps. In the early 90s Subaru really got its act together on both fronts. Most modern Subarus give excellent crashtest results and rarely rust. Subarus rally cars like the WRX have made the brand famous among petrolheads. However, much of the technology that goes into Subarus racing vehicles is also present in its everyday cars. Subarus do not age as gracefully as their Toyota equivalent; a ten year old Toyota is often still in its prime; a ten year old Subaru is nearing the end of its trouble-free life. While theyre new, Subarus are among the most trustworthy cars available

SUBARU
Official name: Subaru Division, Fuji Heavy Industries Ltd Owned by: Mainly Fuji Heavy Industries Ltd and Toyota (16.5%). Formerly owned by: General Motors (20%). Current situation: On the positive side, Subaru vehicles have an excellent reputation for performance, handling, reliability and safety. However, like the giant Panda, Subaru has become too specialised and is endangered by a changing environment. Subaru has a limited model range and is currently losing money; its a small fish in a hostile and overpopulated sea. Chances of survival: okay. Subarus alliance with Toyota will improve its chances considerably. In the end, Subaru may end up like Daihatsu simply one of Toyotas specialist brands

Subarus first car was a Fiat Bambina lookalike, the 360, in 1958. More conventional cars started with the FF1 of 1966, formed after a co-operation agreement with Nissan. The trademark Subaru (correct Japanese pronunciation is Soo bar roo, not soo er ROO) is a Japanese reference to the character from Greek

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Blown head gasket warning


Modern engines work hard. Because of this, they tend to get hot and frequently blow their top, especially if the engine has been overheated or run without fresh antifreeze. Head gaskets may be very expensive to fix and if left unfixed youll probably end up broken down at the side of the road. Worse, blown head gaskets sometimes lead to total engine failure. The symptoms of a blown head gasket are mysterious coolant loss, sometimes accompanied by rough running and overheating, clouds of white steam coming from the exhaust, oil in the water, water in the oil, and/or white goo under the oil filler cap (see picture opposite). You should also lift out the oil dipstick. If the oil is the colour of the white goo in the middle of the oil filler cap in the picture, you have a cracked cylinder head and/or blown head gasket. You should also be suspicious about any vehicle with a heater that leaks coolant into the interior of the car. A leaking heater is sometimes a symptom of a head gasket problem. So is a blown or leaking radiator or its hoses.

ABS & airbag warning


Both the ABS (anti-skid braking) and airbag warning lights should go on and then off when you first start the vehicle. If this does not happen, the vehicle may require a major, extremely expensive repair immediately (if either the ABS or airbag warning lights do not go on at all, someones probably disconnected them to hide the fact that the ABS or airbag system is faulty). If either warning light comes on while you are driving, this may mean a serious malfunction in the vehicles safety systems, and the vehicle should not be driven, let alone purchased.

Automatic transmission warning


Automatic transmissions that do not shift smoothly during a test drive are probably not long of this earth. Also, with the vehicle at normal operating temperature (so that the engine is not idling too fast) put the handbrake on and try switching the gear selector between forward and reverse this should happen quickly and smoothly without any clunk if not, suspect big repair bills in the near future. Note: the advice below may not apply on some modern cars, because there may be no dipstick to check. For further information, see our articles on automatic transmis sions and CVT transmissions in the links page (one page ack). With the transmission in neutral and the engine running at normal operating temperature, lift out the transmission dipstick, wipe it clean, put it back in and then remove it again. The automatic transmission fluid should be a happy cherry red colour & should be within the marked area on the transmission dipstick if its not, abuse and/or neglect is pretty likely and the vehicle should be avoided!

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