hello. my mechanic who is a family friend who i trust is looking to sell me a 2001 Subaru Forester. its got a 4 cylinder engine with 220k miles. he just bought it off of some guy for 700 and he rebuilt the engine (it had a blown head gasket) and hes reselling it to me for 2500 bucks. this car has no issues and no rust (surprising for it being here in upstate new york) do i pull the trigger on this?
I'd pass. It is old, has a lot of miles, and if it wasn't rebuilt right you'll have nothing but headaches with it.
i mean my mechanic has been working on cars for over 30 years im sure he knows how to rebuild engines XD
Accidents can happen to anyone. But if you are confident in his work, why are you here and not out buying it? It's your money.
I would pass on that.
Not worth 2500
Those things have a cult following. TMK, the only problem major with those cars is the head gasket. And assuming the work was done right, it may be a decent car. This is judging from one of my friend who has a the same generation Forester and absolutely loves it, and relatively little issues with it. His biggest gripe was changing the spark plugs, because unlike other makes where you can change it from the top, you have to jack up the engine to access the the plugs on the sides.
I recommend doing comps in your area for the $2500 price, to see if it is a fair deal. Maybe showing him some (lower) comps, can get him to budge a little on the price.
i appreciate the input! yea i did do some comps and it really is a fair deal. its about 500 bucks less then the market is going for. and he does use the MLS version gaskets for them as well
Does it come with any kind of warranty from your mechanic?
If we cant trust a family friend, then yikes, or Ive been lucky with family. Sounds like a good deal. Nice about checking comps (it may be tough to negotiate with a family friend and mechanic, a good mechanic is gold). Scotty has mentioned the automatic transmissions of Subarus are the weakness. Great question about the warranty. Although it is a hard ask. Can see a warranty on the engine for a few miles, or months. AWD in the North is great to have. The risk is emotional here, what happens if the car fall apart (no fault of the mechanic), will the relationship be soured?
What happens if something (doesn’t have to be the engine/head gasket) goes wrong with the car & it leaves you stranded?
Are you willing to ruin the relationship you have with your mechanic? For this reason alone, I’d pass.
Never buy a car from close friends/family, especially when you don’t know it’s full history. That’s a sure shot way to ruin decade old relationships & trust.
Look, it’s your mechanic, your family friend. You trust him, … so, just get the car if you like it, … if you need it! Period.
After all, we cyber-space experts are just that, your cyber-space experts. Go get that car if you like it, … go!
F.S.
