I know I shouldn't be hitting up a impreza club about this, but since you all seem to be really knowledgable about Subaru's I thought I'd ask here.

I've heard really bad things about the Subaru transmissions, and me and the wife are thinking of getting a B9 Tribeca for the kids (the Audi won't fit us and the two kids comfortably anymore). What are your thoughts on the reliability? We haven't test driven one yet, only went and took a look at them at the dealer.

Subaru's only have a problems with transmissions because jerk-off's drop the clutch in second gear. Buy it, you won't be disappointed.

Subaru's only have a problems with transmissions because jerk-off's drop the clutch in second gear. Buy it, you won't be disappointed.

That's comforting... what is the maintenance history like for other Subarus? i.e. is it like Domestics where I need to look into heavy maintenance costs when I hit over 50k miles? I do plan on keeping it for quite a long time.

That's comforting... what is the maintenance history like for other Subarus? i.e. is it like Domestics where I need to look into heavy maintenance costs when I hit over 50k miles? I do plan on keeping it for quite a long time.


Having worked with Subaru sales over a year and a half now, I have seen several trade-ins of 250,000 miles or more, and as much as 397,000 at this dealership. Keep oil in the engine and air in the tires and your car will repay your initial investment ten times over.

The other guy is correct, regarding the transmission issues. It's a topic brought about by irresponsible WRX owners who have no idea how to drive their cars.

You will be perfectly content with the Tribeca and coming from an Audi, you'll feel right at home with the Tribeca's more premium styling/functionallity.... ;)



P.S. - 50k miles is only the break-in period for the Subaru.... :D

That's comforting... what is the maintenance history like for other Subarus? i.e. is it like Domestics where I need to look into heavy maintenance costs when I hit over 50k miles? I do plan on keeping it for quite a long time.

Better than Audi, that is for sure. :)

Better than Audi, that is for sure. :)


Haha.... I wasn't going to go there.... :lol:

See, I can say that because I own one. No one else except a fellow Audi or VW owner can say it. :)

VW = awesome car. But ='s hard to maintain :(

Ditto what everyone's said here. You may want to confirm what I'm saying, but all of the tranny complaints are related to manual transmissions (that's what you get on a forum like this since all but some strange birds buy manual tranny WRX's). With the automatic in the Tribeca, you should be trouble free. I just bought a certified used Baja with an automatic transmission and it's a nice ride (but not the kind of power you'd get in the Tribeca).

There's a reason Subarus are so popular at Consumer Reports and among the NPR crowd -- they're very reliable.

I know I shouldn't be hitting up a impreza club about this, but since you all seem to be really knowledgable about Subaru's I thought I'd ask here.

I've heard really bad things about the Subaru transmissions, and me and the wife are thinking of getting a B9 Tribeca for the kids (the Audi won't fit us and the two kids comfortably anymore). What are your thoughts on the reliability? We haven't test driven one yet, only went and took a look at them at the dealer.

get a Legacy as an act of good faith, then convince your wife to let you buy an STi in like two years

here I've got an idea:

**** Audi

the tribeca is a beautiful suv. I took a ride in one from a person I know and I was like oh you got this new subaru, how is it? They said its great so far. I've driven many subarus so i know how they are. I must say i was impressed riding in it, much better than I expected and I have high expectations for subaru. I would definetly reccomend a look and test drive, great car.

The B9 is great and I'd buy it again today, BUT see what you're confortable in. The Tribeca has a great AWD system, but you might want more power, or a bigger SUV. I have no checked out the H3, Murano, MDX and the RX330...all perfectly nice. BTW, I REALLY liked the H3 (spent some time with one in Florida last week) and was shocked how nicely done it was. But I'll take the B9 due to it's reliability and safety. It's fun to drive and loaded with luxury. You have to pick what's important to you and make a deicision. Thus far I have no regrets. Even the power is just fine for us and we're getting over 25 MPG on the highway. The transmission is perfect, with only a bit of lag in manual mode. It's still shifting as fast as you could with a stick! Flip to Sport or manual mode, click off the traction control and you'll have a good time. Some putzes sit around and read reviews like crazy...and that can drive you nuts. If you compare carefully you'll find that the Tribeca is certainly the class leader at it's price/class. While the look has been drawing fire from critics, the car has gotten more compliments than I can count. The car has personality, rare these days. The stripper that lives down the block from me LOVES the car! I think Subaru should use that in their next ad campaign...I'm such a Subie mark at this point that we may be ordering a new STI in the Spring!

Good luck!

Robert B
NY

thats funny, my next door neighbor is a MILF Stripper and she adores my Tribeca.

one . . . . . . . . .

Subaru's only have a problems with transmissions because jerk-off's drop the clutch in second gear. Buy it, you won't be disappointed.

I can't stop laughing about what you said. :lol:

but they're so ugly.

saw my first Tribeca that was registered driving around town the other day, pretty big but looked fairly nice, too bad I don't like SUV's...

I know the kid aspect of vehicle choice and thank god your not going for a mini van. :lol: When my kids were younger, we had an 88 GL wagon. It was a 1.8L with a 5 speed. As noted in previous posts all I ever did with that car was (ocassionally) change oil period! We were younger and barely had a pot to **** in. There were some things that needed doing over the years... timing belts, clutch cable, brake pads etc... but I had that car for 13 years.

Now I have an STI and my wife has a forester. The Forester XT is an alternative to the B9 and takes to modifications nicley!!! Sway bars, Coilovers and a Cobb stage 2. You could have a nice sleeper of a family car. :banana:

http:\\www.cobbtuning.com

We love my wife's Tribeca

Subarus are very reliable cars. Take care of them and they will take care of you.

The B9 is great and I'd buy it again today, BUT see what you're confortable in. The Tribeca has a great AWD system, but you might want more power, or a bigger SUV. I have no checked out the H3, Murano, MDX and the RX330...all perfectly nice. BTW, I REALLY liked the H3 (spent some time with one in Florida last week) and was shocked how nicely done it was. But I'll take the B9 due to it's reliability and safety. It's fun to drive and loaded with luxury. You have to pick what's important to you and make a deicision. Thus far I have no regrets. Even the power is just fine for us and we're getting over 25 MPG on the highway. The transmission is perfect, with only a bit of lag in manual mode. It's still shifting as fast as you could with a stick! Flip to Sport or manual mode, click off the traction control and you'll have a good time. Some putzes sit around and read reviews like crazy...and that can drive you nuts. If you compare carefully you'll find that the Tribeca is certainly the class leader at it's price/class. While the look has been drawing fire from critics, the car has gotten more compliments than I can count. The car has personality, rare these days. The stripper that lives down the block from me LOVES the car! I think Subaru should use that in their next ad campaign...I'm such a Subie mark at this point that we may be ordering a new STI in the Spring!

Good luck!

Robert B
NY

H3 is definitely a nice car
my friend just bought one and the material in the interior is a lot better than I had expected!

nonetheless, the reliability of american car really makes you :rolleyes:

after just a week of owning the car, my friend has a rear door that won't open and a TCS checking light. although both problems is fixed, but gives you an idea of its reliability.

we just sold the Murano for the B9, if u want power go for the murano but if you want a great all wheel suv go 4 the B9. we had 2 problems w/ the muranos CVT system and the actuator on the fuel door all within 2yrs.

Got my Tribeca 3 weeks ago,really wanted another outback. Cant turn down a good deal.For about the a little more money I took the tribeca.Great car,they give you quite alot.Go for it you wount be sorry.Everbody who sees it likes it!Very impressive.I lease mine from Hillside Automall in NJ.By the way this is my families 3rd subaru. My son took his outback in for service will see how that is. So far they seem very attentive, diagnosed problem willing to fix under warranty.Bought from another dealer. Keep you posted.

Just thought to mention, i pulled up to a lite yesterday. There was an older fellow in an older subaru legacy.Honked his horn asked me to role down my window. Ithought he wanted directions. Insted he asked me how i liked it!We spoke for about a minute about different things on the car. He wanted to know how the visibility out the back window was and if this was my first subaru.I told him this was my families 3rd. Itold him it was like a poor mans lexus.He responded by saying" BETTER "their one of the best cars made!He had several. I never expected anything like that.The b9 will eventually take ho :cool: ld as a premium luxury suv ,I only hope subaru will keep the cost affordable.

Subaru and longevity.. You can get different stories here. My 01 OB had a trans problem and the typical cold tapping problem. They were fixed under warranty. The 1998 to 2000 cylinder head problems hurt a lot of people including a friend's 2000 that he shelled out $2300 to fix. Got half the money back after that problem got known. My son's 2003 had a wheel bearing go at 64K. A $400 fix.
Yet my son's girlfriend picked up a used 120K OB sport.. no problems yet.