questions...

[destiniespunk]

hi, im actually considering buying a 95 SVX L/L AWD I just had soem questions..
1- how good is this car for insurance.. I just turned 18, and im on my parents plan.. i currently only pay like.. 100 bucks a month for my nissan sentra.
2- Gas mileage? good or bad.. I heard its a gas hog..
3- It's an automatic, but the gear selector has a button that says "manual" on that.. now, is that just to use the AWD for like snow and stuff? or is it that you can select manual, and shift the car manually like, 1,2,3,d? or is it just an overdrive button?

Thanks... oh yeah.. its $4994, almost 150K on the odometer.. everything is in great working condition.. is it worth it>?

[MPtyza]

Insurance wise, if you have a clean record, and crap like that, depending on where you live, it may only be $150 a month or less.

The ratings on the original sticker for the SVX are 17mpg city/24mpg highway. Drive it easy, and your mileage will be a little better. I've heard of people getting high 20's by driving it nice and easy, not bad for a 6cyl. Now, don't let this discourage you, it's not going to get Civic type gas mileage, because it has a 3.3L engine, and it's a heavy car.

AWD is always active, it just sends power to the rear wheels when it senses the fronts spinning. About the "manual" button, it is for starting the car in 2nd gear when you need the traction, like on snow or slippery conditions. To use it, you push the manual button, and place the shifter in either "2" or "3".

The SVX does have 3 main flaws that you should know about before buying one:

1. Transmission. It is perhaps the weakest part of the car. It is known for having transmission problems, if you drive it hard, race it excessively, stuff like that. A transmission cooler is strongly reccomended if you do buy it.

2. Brake rotors. The SVX is a fairly heavy car (3500lbs.), so if you brake hard, brake at the last second, crap like that, you will warp the rotors.

3. Wheel bearings. The SVX is known for having the wheel bearings go.

Overall, SVX's are damn nice, just as long as you keep an eye on things, do regular maintenance, don't drive it hard all the time. Also, check out http://www.subaru-svx.net/forum/ . It's a forum on a site devoted to the SVX and that forum will help you out a lot better than this one ever will.

[destiniespunk]

allright cool, thanks, that helps a lot. I knew about the rotors, and tranny going bad.. didnt know about the wheel bearings.. but I've heard that it is fairly easy to correct these problems before they occur.. I took it for a test drive and it was an amazing car to drive. im just worried because i want a car that is giong to be reliable and last, but is also nice, and with this car having 150K its a little iffy....

[MPtyza]

Subarus in general are one of the best cars for reliabililty, and the SVX is no different, just as long as you take care of it properly. Throw a tranny cooler on there when you first get it, stuff like that. The 3.3 H6 is one of their best engines, and a guy on the SVX forum I mentioned above just passed 300,000 miles on his, supposedly on the original engine and tranny.

My friend had a '92, and the tranny went at about 148k, but the engine was still very strong at that mileage. Stronger than the others we test drove recently, so I'd say that 150k isn't really something to worry about. The tranny kept getting better as the years went by, with the '96 and '97 cars having less problems than the '92 and '93's.

If you treat it nice, it'll get ya through the winter, with the snow and ice. (I just noticed that you're in PA, a couple hours west of me)

But yeah, if you've got any more questions, check out the forum I mentioned above. All the people there are nice, and helpful

[destiniespunk]

allright cool.. yeah, i live in PA.. shitty winters haha.. i know when i test drove it, it seemed to run really strong.. a lot stronger than i was expecting it too.. Ive driven a few of my friend camaros, mustangs, and one vette.. now.. the vette was pretty damn powerful, but id say it drove just as strong, if not stronger and better than most other cars ive driven.. im just worried, because i would need it as a daily drive. seeing as how my 94 nissan sentra has been in the shop for 3 months at a nissan specialist, and they still dont know what is wrong with it.... about how much would a tranny cooler cost, and how hard of an install?

[MPtyza]

A tranny cooler should only cost about $30 or $40 or so, and it shouldn't be too hard to install. Just secure it in front of the radiator, take the lines out of the bottom of the radiator (stock tranny "cooler"), and extend them to the aftermarket tranny cooler, and you're set, I believe