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AWD wagon, oldish - Subaru? Audi? Other?

post #1 of 61
12/21/08 at 6:11am
Thread Starter 
I need a more utilitarian vehicle, and I've been looking at AWD wagons from Subaru and Audi among others. I'm looking in the late 90s - 2001ish range because I don't want to spend a lot ($4-5k max if possible). Does anyone have any experience with, say, the 1999 Legacy wagon or the A4 Avant? Mostly in terms of reliability, livability, maintenance costs, repair frequency etc. Also any other suggestions of what to look at would be appreciated. Thanks.
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post #2 of 61
12/21/08 at 6:24am
Maintaining an Audi in that price range is going to be spendy. Subarus, no matter how uncool, are pretty much bombproof in my experience.
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post #3 of 61
12/21/08 at 12:37pm
Thread Starter 
Yeah, I'm definitely leaning toward the Subarus. Does anyone have any experience with the Toyota RAV-4? I'm not a fan of the looks so much, but it would fulfill my needs quite well, and maybe with some nerf bars and rally lights it wouldn't look so lame. It also gets better MPG than the Subarus.
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post #4 of 61
12/21/08 at 12:38pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by j View Post
Does anyone have any experience with the Toyota RAV-4?
And perhaps you could get a matching vulva
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post #5 of 61
12/21/08 at 12:41pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by m@T View Post
And perhaps you could get a matching vulva

LMAO. The RAV is fairly popular here, no?
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post #6 of 61
12/21/08 at 12:51pm
Get an old Legacy with the SOHC 2.2l. Those are the bombproofiest.
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post #7 of 61
12/21/08 at 1:08pm
Looking at the prices of used cars I'd go with the A4 wagon and forget about the Rav4.

Look at how cheap this one is:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Audi-...fCarsQ5fTrucks

Remove the wood trim and you have a perfect car for the price of an ugly and cheap car (rav4).

Same thing about X3s and FX35s. Can be had for ~15-16K.
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post #8 of 61
12/21/08 at 1:12pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Hany View Post
Can be had for ~15-16K.

maybe you missed this...

Quote:
Originally Posted by j View Post
($4-5k max if possible)
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post #9 of 61
12/21/08 at 1:15pm
The one issue that Subarus of that age with the 2.5L engine have is headgaskets. And with the boxer engine headgasket swaps aren't the easiest thing. Definitely do some research on the matter. Of course you'll find a disproportionately high number of failure stories on the Internet but it will at least outline some of the issues out there. You may also be able to find one thats already had the headgaskets done. Its not like there are a shortage of Subarus in Seattle.
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post #10 of 61
12/21/08 at 1:18pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by m@T View Post
maybe you missed this...
maybe or maybe not. lol

The idea is that for a little more you can get a great bargain. The difference between a toyota and a bimmer is more than just price. It is like night and day in terms of driving, comfort and overall enjoyment. So for a little more I suggest to get a great car to be used throughout the year while performing great in the winter.
But then again I never look at a price range and see what I can buy, I look at what is available and judge what is best for my money.
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post #11 of 61
12/21/08 at 1:25pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Hany View Post
a little more you can get a great bargain

if by "a little more" you mean four times the price, then sure...
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post #12 of 61
12/21/08 at 1:27pm
BTW there are good deals to be had on the A6 Avants which are selling in your price range. Probably less popular than the A4 which is great because they are better overall IMO.
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post #13 of 61
12/21/08 at 1:30pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by m@T View Post
if by "a little more" you mean four times the price, then sure...
I looked at ebay. 2001 Rav4s selling for $10,000. Searched X3s. Found 2004 fully loaded X3 w/ 3.0L selling for $16,000.
My own personal conclusion: $6K more gets you an infinitely better car.
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post #14 of 61
12/21/08 at 1:55pm
I have had many Subarus, and they've held up ok. An Audi would probably last more miles. I had one Subaru's engine die around 125,000 miles. I'm around 140,000 on an Outback currently that's holding up ok, but I was a little sad that the other Outback didn't last much more than 100,000. I also have a WRX wagon that has about 80,000 miles that is running just fine.
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post #15 of 61
12/21/08 at 1:59pm
Other cars not mentioned but worth looking at:
Nissan:
-Xterra
-Pathfinder
Honda:
-CRV
-Element AWD

Good luck in your quest.
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