Hi, I quite like the Forester and am weighing up between one of these and an Outback.
Budget is £5k, which seems to get a 10-12 yr old 2.5 XTen Forester or 3.0 Rn Outback.
I'm not majorly fussed over whether to go for the Forester or the Outback, as long as I get the most reliable version of either- Which is it?
I've read up on crank issues with diesels, so know to steer clear of them. I'd prefer something pokey, though not essential if it means a more stressed engine and have seen a Forester XTen with around 80k miles for £4.5k, but have read about head gaskets going on these at around 100k. Is this the case with all turbocharged Foresters, such as the 2 litre? If so, then does the non turbo petrol Forester have any common faults?
Regarding the Outback, there are a couple of nice 3.0 Rn's available for roughly the same price/mileage as the above Foresters- are there any issues with these engines/gearboxes/other major components?
I've only just started reading up on these and am finding it fairly difficult to weigh up the pros and cons from looking around online. As mentioned, reliability is the main factor. I could forego the speed of the quicker models if it meant better peace of mind in relation to reliability when driving it through Europe this summer.
And lastly, what about the Legacy- pretty much the same as the Outback, but with less ground clearance and a couple of different engine options? It will be doing some light off roading so clearance is a factor.
And XT vs XTen- am i right in thinking that e= leather and n= sat nav? Any other letters to decipher such as R and n?
Sorry for all the questions but i really want to make the right choice and it seems that there are a lot of variables to consider.
Thanks in advance.
