Buying a STi with 200,000km. Good or bad idea?

[MaTTyc107]

Hey, am new around here so please be nice. Am currently looking at buying a 4th gen 2006 liberty gt wagon tuned by sti with 219,000km (5-speed manual). Car has a full log book service history and has been owned by a family its whole life. my issue is I want to modify the car and I'm worried that buying a car with high km like this and trying to get more power will only lead to trouble. so, in short, should I buy this car or shouldn't I and what kinda problems can I expect to see? the big issue is that sti wagons are becoming harder and harder to find in my area (QLD) but i really want a wagon. so what do you guys think even if its been looked after will it go bang or will she last a little longer? any advice is appreciated cheers.

[Yowie]

Enter a "subject to mechanical inspection" conditional contract then get the car checked over by a quality Subaru mechanic (including compression and leak-down test) before you go unconditional and buy the thing.

If you go ahead with modifications, start with reliability and "back to factory spec" type fix-ups like replacing brittle rubber hoses etc.

If/when you turn up the wick on power, bear in mind that more power tends to shorten an engine's life (and the rings are already 220,000kms worn) so if you don't have the budget for a replacement engine if/when something goes catastrophically wrong, perhaps take a "grand tourer" approach to modification where you enjoy subtle & non-extreme improvements for a better driving car (rather than getting dyno graph envy from some of the massive turbo forged engine stuff - daily driving enjoyment for those would be compromised for lack of low-down response anyway).

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Actually scratch all that and send me the Seller's details so I can buy it. Want my Forester for the same money?

[Stifull]

Why not get awrx wagon.. They are a lot easier/cheaper to mod than a Lib and the 2nd hand parts are MUCH easier to get as well. My wife loves her wrx wagon.. it's her second rex wagon..

[Yowie]

Why not get a wrx wagon..

Perhaps MaTTyc107 doesn't vape?

[LibertyTragic]

Why not get awrx wagon.. They are a lot easier/cheaper to mod than a Lib

Not sure you are going to get a lot of support on a liberty forum

I’m a general Subaru fan, so have love for all models, but choice of WRX wagon in the last 15 years is pretty limited. Doesn’t have the same x-factor as the gen4 Tbsti either. It’s even harder to find a good example that hasn’t been abused as well since the demographic is generally younger.

It’s never ideal buying a high km car, although some seek them out as a lot of capital cost can be saved. If you’re handy with a wrench the overall value proposition can be very attractive. There will be increased uncertainty on the cars history and maintenance. Best you can do is make an informed purchase with a proper mechanic check over.

I bought my Lib with 190k on the clock and just accepted the risk of potential extra cost in repairs. The price was sufficiently low to cater, so much that I was happy to not bother with a detailed inspection. Any car that is more than 10 years old, high km or not, will have extra maintenance but this is offset by the lower initial outlay and limited depreciation. Sometimes you don’t have a choice if you are trying to buy a unicorn!

How did mine turn out? In a year of owning it I have:
- Modded it and turned up the wick - no issues with the engine so far
- Spent $3k on an AT valve body
- Replaced brakes, but under mod justification
- Repainted some plastics to get a big improvement in overall presentation (another reason she was cheap)
- Have some usual weeps on rocker covers etc, but will wait until they are necessary to fix
- Enjoyed owning and being in a GT Lib!

If the engine blows up, I’ll plan for an upgrade

[MaTTyc107]

Cheers for all the replies boys you've given me a lot to think about and YES I don't Vape XD, so a WRX wagon was out the question but mainly because here in QLD you can't find them anymore + no tow bar which is a must-have for me. The car im looking at is only cheap and so tbh I think I might just yolo and take the risk. liberty wagons are becoming harder and harder to find especially STI wagons so I reckon this might be one of the last chances I'm gonna get to own one. planning to look at it this weekend if all goes well so ill let you know how it goes

[Yowie]

Good work.

Gen 4 Liberty GT wagons were hard to find in Qld 5 years ago when I was looking. It sounds like the situation hasn't improved.

[bigBADbenny]

Covered well in the comments ^

It depends on your mod goals.
The 2.0t is fairly reliable but no jdm ej207.
The twinscroll headers turbo and dump are limited to stock replacements or the kinugawa td04hla 19 or 20t.
So good for say a safe 180/220wkw respectively iirc with supporting mods & tune.
Another slight downside is the 5mt, but not so much if driven with care plus upgrade power.
So going for higher power than stock tuned is going to get even more expensive and somewhat complex.

But its a special car, worth doing well at any level.

If you want stock tuned details with grands touring emphasis, check out my member profile, bear in mind it’s a postfl

Owner 9 years, still modding and maintaining, Shockworks are sublime

[Boognish]

Covered well in the comments ^

It depends on your mod goals.
The 2.0t is fairly reliable but no jdm ej207.
The twinscroll headers turbo and dump are limited to stock replacements or the kinugawa td04hla 19 or 20t.
So good for say a safe 180/220wkw respectively iirc with supporting mods & tune.
Another slight downside is the 5mt, but not so much if driven with care plus upgrade power.
So going for higher power than stock tuned is going to get even more expensive and somewhat complex.

But its a special car, worth doing well at any level.

If you want stock tuned details with grands touring emphasis, check out my member profile, bear in mind it’s a postfl

Owner 9 years, still modding and maintaining, Shockworks are sublime

Very curious as to why you say the 5mt is a slight downside? I’ve heard someone else say that the 2.0t gen4 TbSTI is better mated with the auto but I’d love to hear your thoughts.

[bigBADbenny]

Its not a downside if you drive sensibly and have moderate engine output.

However the 6mt is simply a joy to use.
Meaning ultimately, the 5mt is a downside in certain aspects.

I’d take either over the autos, but could make do with any of them.
Ultimately its meaningful braking and handling upgrades that make or break a car in my experience.

[Boognish]

Its not a downside if you drive sensibly and have moderate engine output.

However the 6mt is simply a joy to use.
Meaning ultimately, the 5mt is a downside in certain aspects.

I’d take either over the autos, but could make do with any of them.
Ultimately its meaningful braking and handling upgrades that make or break a car in my experience.

Cheers, man!

[bigBADbenny]

One outlier to check on prefl GT’s is oil contamination of the loom via the exhaust cam position sensors.

These have a metal cap on the sensor part that can allow oil to travel all the way past the two engine harness plugs to the ecu.

New sensors and regular cleaning of the loom plugs upstream with eg compressed air and isopropyl alcohol can help the issue.