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I am a first time driver and know pretty much nothing about cars (!) so your advice in this matter would be great. I am planning to drive this car to and from work (it will be fairly local) and also to travel with it (possibly cross-country). Right now I am looking at two cars:
2006 Silver Subaru Outback Sedan LL Bean Edition (with leather interior, heated seats and sunroof which are very nice features)
106,000 miles
or
2007 Red Subaru Forester --
78,000 miles
both cars are the same price $10,800...this is after we talked the dealers down. I haven't seen the red one yet (I will tomorrow) but the silver seemed to be clean of dings and scratches on the outside. Inside looked beautiful. Originally, I was looking for a Forester because I like hatchbacks and I honestly love the way they look! I know it's superficial but I don't love that the Sedan is silver and also has less room for my passengers and stuff in the trunk.
Do you guys know anything in regards to mpg, overall comfort, etc? Also, WHAT QUESTIONS should I be asking the dealer tomorrow? I am literally a person walking into something totally blindfolded...I went with my Mom and she had owned a 2001 Outback that was a total lemon at 120k...hoping these cars will last me a lot longer than hers.
Last edited by flowerfield; 01-04-2013 at 06:35 PM..
Location: East of Seattle since 1992, 615' Elevation, Zone 8b - originally from SF Bay Area
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I agree with the lower mileage and newer Forester, not only because you will get more miles out of it but because the sedans are over-priced due to their popularity used, not nearly as many were made and people hold onto them. Those mid 90s-early 2000 years there were problems with a certain engine, I can't remember which but they were terrible. The newer (and older) ones have been great. You should get 19/26 mpg in the Forester, can't say about the sedan without knowing which one.
I've done some research and found that it was the 2.5 L engine produced in models between 1999 and 2002. Fortunately I am not dealing with cars made within that timeframe. My Mom did and paid dearly!
Forester is the better value unless you require the luxury features found on the uplevel Outback. I have an 04 Forester and I like it quite a bit.
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