I was recently given a 2010 Subaru legacy 2.5i premium (naturally aspirated sohc), 128,000 miles. It seems to be in good working shape so far, but I've heard the horror stories about Subarus blowing head gaskets and what not. I need this car to last as long as possible, anything I should be worried about with this model/issues to look out for?
Yea Subaru's are known to do that but that's usually the turbo'd ones that make more HP. You got a nice car keep up with the maintenance and fluid changes and stuff on and it should last you a while. Grats on the new ride
Do not push the engine too hard.
Is it manual or automatic? If it is automatic, be more careful with it.
Actually it is the turbo models that don't typically have head gasket problems. Better head gaskets were used on those models.
A 2010 Subaru with 4-cylinder normally-aspirated engine is definitely in the range of affected models. What you want to do is keep the coolant changed regularly, and use Subaru "coolant conditioner" or equivalent. (It's really a Bar's Leak type product. You could probably also use the silver Bar's Leak that Scotty recommends in his videos.) Then keep an eye out for external coolant drips. Typically the gaskets will leak externally before they fail internally, so you have some warning that they need to be replaced.
Also don't forget to change timing belts on schedule!
