Best used Subaru model for me?

I currently own a Mazda Protege sedan. Great car except cant haul ANYTHING in it. Good for carrying people only

I'm gonna sell my Protege to my 21 yr old nephew who is in college. It will make a good car for him.

having said that I've been thinking abt what my next car should be.

I think id like a station wagon style car. Something that hauls cargo as well as people. Something I could sleep in back of if needed while on road trip.

I live in north Missouri where it snows. But I don't "need" all wheel drive but do want at least front wheel drive

And.... good gas mileage is a plus. Maybe 27 mpg overall.

Want to buy used as well. Maybe a 2003?

Given all that info what Subaru model would be a good fit for me? never owned a Subaru and know little abt them so if you can advise me before I start hitting the dealers I sure would be appreciative. Thanks!

Reply to
me
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There are two platforms on which all Subarus are built. The Impreza and the Forrester are one. The Legacy and Outback and B9 Tribeca are the other. I might have left out some models.

The Legacy is a little longer. I don't think you could sleep comfortably in the back of an Impreza.

They all get worse mileage than you wish for. My 2000 Legacy L wagon with the 2.5 liter engine gets less than 24 mpg, and I do mostly highway miles. I believe the newer models are even less efficient, since the market has been demanding higher power engines.

Tom

Reply to
Tom Reingold

Well are there any other Outback-like vehicles on market made by other makers that get better gas mileage?

Reply to
me

Probably a Ford Focus. I believe they're fairly inexpensive.

Another Mazda would be great, too.

Honda stopped making the Civic hatchback! What a shame!

I had three Saab hatchbacks. They are really really big, bigger than they look. But they are expensive to run.

Reply to
Tom Reingold

There is an awd Civic on stilts (for some reason renamed to CRV). I would imagine aftermarket Civic suspension bits may fit. I'm not a big Honda fan [yet] so I'm not 100% sure.

Well, I made the same mistake you did and missed a short window of opportunity to get Protege 5. Ended up with the sedan but saved 6.5 grand (US).

Some might argue that it's an Impreza in the worst state of detune (one look at the cambers in the chassis repair manual is very enlightening). But if you read STI vs Evo comparisons patiently you'd notice that STI has the same numb feeling to it compared to Evo. According to the reviews that is. My wife has commented that she also gets a numb feeling in the Outback Sport. The connection to the road is just nonexistent. I don't know how much fun to drive factor is important to you but for me its a dealbreaker. The car would probably last a long time though. I'll get rid of it as soon as something worth my while such as Mazda Kabura surfaces in the US. Not an option for you as it's not a cargo hauler. CX-7 perhaps? If you're into heavy irons. If you want something lighter save yourself some trouble with the Impreza and try a baseline and GT version of Legacy. Dunno how much it was bastardized in the last 14 years though. I suspect quite a lot.

Reply to
Body Roll

Yes, but the mileage isn't that bad for a car that size and the legacy/outback platform is built like a rock. We've bought 2 used Legacies and 1 Forrester for the kids in the last 7 years and haven't regretted one of them.

My step-daughter was rear ended by an 18-wheeler in her legacy sedan and walked away unhurt. Back and front of car crushed but the passenger compartment untouched. Made a believer out of me.

Jon

Reply to
Zeppo

How come you didn't go with the Mazda 5?

Reply to
me

I don't need a six seater (yet, hopefully).

Reply to
Body Roll

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