[97420]

I had an egine problem with my previous 97' Outback, but I attribute that to pulling too much in a U-haul trailer...and some other abuses like pulling stumps from the yard etc... That engine (the 2.5 4) melted at 120,000 miles. I purchased a used engine (same type) and then sold the car. The transmission was checked by the dealer and was said to have been like new...curious enough.
I purchased a new 02' Outback with the same basic engine (SOHC instead of DOHC) and have had mostly trouble free driving through our 114,00 miles. I've pulled a trailer on several occasions, but not with the blatent disregard as before and so far so good. We plan to keep the car for the long-haul and just throw another engine in it if needed down the road. With the redesign I've noticed only two issues that cause me some dissappointment: Problem one is that the 4 cylinder Outback has rotors that seem to be prone to warping (constantly need resurfacing) I'm told that the 6cylinder has larger rotors and less of a problem. I just ordered some new Brembo drilled rotors to help that problem. The other area of concern is that I have had to replace my O2 sensors about 4 times since I bought the car. I didn't have to replace them once on my 97'. I also have to replace the catalytic converter. This and some of the brake probelms were probably aggravated by pulling our utility trailer.
In short, buy a Subaru and don't pull a trailer like I do and you'll be okay...assuming you do the normal maintenance.