Quote:
Originally Posted by WouldLoveTo
Sometime in the past 2 years I read a post from someone who itemized all the engines and the major problems they had by year (or block of years) and when each problem was fixed. This was not in the Subaru forum but in one of the general auto forums. It seemed to be from someone who had worked on them for a long time.
ie 2001-2005 6 cyl known for head gasket issues by 75k (<---- totally made that up as an example)
It was truly an amazing list which I thought I saved because I will likely end up in a used Subaru at some point down the road.
If someone could point me to such a list I would make sure I save it this time!
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Subaru of America had basically three generations of engines. The EA engines are mosly under 100 hp and start with he first Subaru's sold in America in 1968 up until the last ones on the Subaru Loyale whose last model year was 1994. Unless you are skilled at fixing vehicles by yourself you are very unlikely to purchase a Subaru with an EA engine.
The EJ engines were introduced in 1989 when Subaru began operating it's plant in Indiana. They are the EJ15, EJ16, EJ20, EJ22, and EJ25 where the last two digits indicate displacement in liters (i.e. 25 means 2.5 liters in displacement). By far the most common one engine was the EJ25 which was in most Subaru models sold in the United States.
They were used up through MY2011 for the Impreza, and Legacy and Outback through MY 2012. Check the engine plate for Foresters. They have a chronic problem in that they can develop head gasket leaks. A head gasket is not a very expensive part but it requires hours of labor to get to as the 500 lb engine must be removed from the vehicle and hung on chains. It can easily cost $3000 at a dealer's labor rates.
I would basically stick with the third generation of engins. The naturally aspirated engines are FB20 and FB25 and are on Subaru. The Subaru Impreza and Crosstrek uses the FB20 from 2012 and on, wile the Forester uses the FB25 from 2011 and on, while the Legacy and Outback started in 2013. There are itemized lists of some model years where the FB25 is more reliable than others, but as the are all over ten years old I would simply not take a chance with any of them.
The turbocharged engines are designated FA24 and are available as an option for Legacy and Outback plus the WRX and Ascent. Turbocharged engines are in general more expensive to maintain.
Talking with a Subaru mechanic for over 20 years, he really doesn't like the 6 cylinder engines on the Legacy, Outback and the rarely seen Tribeca. He considers them tempermental and difficult to fix. I would go with his opinion.
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