Need some informed opinions on the following two cars because I have no experience with either brand.
2005 Subaru Outback 3.0 R (6cyl) 72k miles AWD
2007 Jeep Grand Cherokee Laredo v6 75K miles. 4x4
Both similarly equipped. But the subaru is much better appointed in terms of creature comfort.
What I’m wondering is what I can expect from the standpoint of reliability and maintenance expenses. Independent pre-sale inspections have been done and the results are a clean bill of health.
Very small price differential so not a factor.
I hear Subaru has issues with leaking head gaskets which runs $2K to repair. I’m just not sure if that is the 6 cyl or 4 cyl model. Anybody familiar?
What can I expect from the standpoint of reliability and repair costs for the Jeep? Any known problems to be aware of?
The car is not for me. Its for my son and he’s stationed up in Connecticut so the car will have to deal with all 4 seasons. I obviously don’t want to saddle him with a car that he’ll have to constantly take for service/repair.
As a brand, Subaru is substantially more reliable.
These aren’t the most optimal choices -suvs this old are going to be more troublesome. Why these 2? What is the requirement that limits your search to these?
At the risk of being snippy, I’m not interested in litigating why these two among all the rest. Assume for the purposes of this thread that these are the only two cars in the world.
Mechanic availability is not the issue. The issue is that I don’t want to put the mechanic’s kids through college by choosing a car with known and persistent issues.
Insurance cost diff is negligible.
Subaru does get better gas mileage. This is a good point. However, it takes premium while the jeep takes regular. Mileage is within 10% so filling the tank will be close to a wash, on average.
We had a Suburu Outback with the leaking head gasket issue, but it was an older model (circa 1997), with the flat 4 engine.
Other than that, we were always very impressed with the Subaru’s reliability and performance, to the point that several family members and friends bought Subarus based on our positive experience (and all of them, similarly, had very good experiences).
Did they also have issues with the head gasket? Were they 4cyl. as well? It seems the issue is related to the 4’s. Just not sure if that’s the correct conclusion to draw.
My recollection is that at least one of them did have the issue (and all of them had the 4 cylinders, two in Outbacks, one in a Forester – I don’t think they offered a 6 at that time).
I also recall that, for us, it was a matter of being advised by a repair guy that “yes, this should be repaired at some point, but in the meantime, just be vigilant about checking your oil level.” I can’t remember if we actually ever had the gasket repair done, but we got like 120K miles out of it, sold it to a friend, and it was driven for at least another few years without incident.
I would not buy a Daimler-era Grand Cherokee. 2007 was getting close to the worst of the Stuttgart-mandated cost cutting. the seat cushions disintegrate, the moonroof seals disintegrate, the plastic trim fades, etc.
I thought it was all of them but that Subarus got better over time. As was explained to me, the boxer engine cylinders lie flat rather than standing tall. As a result, when parked, oil settles in the cylinder head and bathes roughly half the head gasket in oil while leaving the other half dry. As a result, the head gaskets have very different environments from top to bottom and they would tend to fail over time (I don’t know if it was the wet side or the dry side that gave out). In theory, this would affect all their boxer engines, which is to say all of their engines.
I understand that Subaru tweaked the head gasket material over time to better resist leaking even though the fundamental boxer design of the engine has remained the same. So newer Subarus tend to be better in this regard than older ones.
Subarus seem to grow on trees in my neighborhood. The only person I know who got rid of hers unhappily had a problem with the all wheel drive system. Everyone else loves them. I don’t know anyone who has liked the repair history on their Jeeps, but it’s a much smaller sample for me.
FWIW, from what I’ve heard in general I, too, would have my suspicions about the Jeep’s reliability, although I like them otherwise. Consumer Reports is a good source of reviews including reliability info, but you have to subscribe or ask someone who does (I don’t) to get the info.
But another site does support my intuition that the Subaru would be a more reliable bet, all other things being equal. Unfortunately they only go back to 2007, but a 2007 (not 2005) Subaru Outback has a reliability rating of 4/5, while a 2007 Jeep Grand Cherokee is just 3/5. Note also what jz78817 said above.
But broad generalizations can also be misleading. I’ve had cars with poor theoretical reliability ratings that served me well for a great many years with little more than normal maintenance and occasional minor repairs. Part of the operative factor here is simply that modern cars in general are much more reliable than in decades past.
The Subaru headgasket issue is for the 2.5L boxer engine so you’re good. I have a '99 Legacy Outback, my daughter has a '99 Forester (that I found for her and she’s owned for over ten years–thing looks like new) and neither of us would swap for another make. They’re easy on gas, reliable AF, have high crash test safety ratings, are comfortable and run basically forever if you give them normal maintenance. Parts are cheap, wrecking yards are full of comparable cars if you need body parts, and labor costs for most repairs are definitely on the low end. My car is about to be hitting 250K miles (misleading though, as the engine was swapped out from a $700 parts car and only had 110K on a complete dealer rebuild so I grabbed it) and I bet it’ll go another 100K easy.
The AWD is lovely and I truly appreciate being able to get around sure footedly in snow and ice. I guarantee when Agnes gives up the ghost I’ll just be out shopping for another Subaru to replace her.
That’s my experience as well. If you take care of the car, it is far less likely to leave you stranded at the side of the road. That includes preventative maintenance. But since I’ve never owned either brand, I’ve never taken a deep dive into the kinds of typical problems to expect and plan to avoid.
In the rural, mountainous areas of northwestern Colorado you will find a few Jeeps (stupid Wranglers). Mostly you will find Subaru Outbacks and Foresters. They are fantastic snow cars, and they do well on dry pavement as well. Jeeps are a lot more top heavy and prone to rollover (nothing like the Explorer from what I’ve seen, but I’ve seen Cherokees get upside down and I can’t say the same for the Subaru). An outback with a 6 cyl is probably pretty quick as well. Never did like Jeeps. They seem to ride funny to me.
I don’t believe that premium is required for that year Subi, however it can take advantage of it if it has it for the 6, only required for the turbo 4 IIRC. While the standard 4 can run on premium but won’t make any difference at all. Head gasket is more of a issue on the 4 bangers though not unheard of on the 6. Also the 6 has plenty of power (even with regular gas), scary sometimes for one one who is used to the 4. As for the jeep, I’ve heard stuff, mostly bad, though some people love jeeps, but have no personal experience.
These are 14-year-old cars. That is a known and persistent issue (despite the low mileage). That said, the Jeep is guaranteed to break down while the Subaru is just likely to break down.
While “quick” is subjective, the Subaru can get out of its own way 2 seconds faster than the Jeep on a dash to 60. I think it can stop better too. So yeah, it’s looking like Subaru in the lead on the back straight.
And yeah, a 14 year old car is a pre-existing condition. It’s not a long term commitment. Just something for him to have for the next 5 years. Long as he keeps it shiny side up.
Our primary vehicle is still our 2002 Subaru 6cyl Outback. It’s the most dependable, lowest maintenance car we’ve ever owned in our 50 years as a couple. Also, it’s still the most pleasant car to drive, just feels good on the road. It’s never had any major/expensive problems.
