Advice for selling Subaru Forester with a BLOWN engine?

[wolfelot]

I have a 2011 Subaru Forester X Limited with 94,000 miles. Despite checking the oil regularly, the engine blew up 15 miles from my house while driving back to Denver from Nebraska on Sunday. I have done perfect maintenance by the books on the vehicle and have all records down to receipts for new windshield wipers. Subaru says the engine ran out of oil. I’m still waiting for the basic diagnostic report from Subaru, but they have told me that I am pretty much screwed because it is out of warranty. I expect zero help from Subaru.

I am done with this car. I am not putting another engine into it whether from the dealer or an independent shop. I am cutting my losses and moving on. Other than the engine the vehicle is in great shape.

What advice do you guys have to help me mitigate my losses (legal ways)?

We are going to buy an Acura MDX, but trading it in under these circumstances is for sure going to result in getting screwed.

Is selling it on Craigslist “as is” the best option? Subarus are very popular here and I have a hunch that there are people who may want to take the vehicle on and put their own engine in.

Kbb.com says a functioning version of the vehicle has a trade-in value of about $8400 and private sale value of about $10,400. What do you think a realistic private sale value is with a blown engine?

Any other advice you guys have is appreciated.

[adrenalated]

Kbb.com says a functioning version of the vehicle has a trade-in value of about $8400 and private sale value of about $10,400. What do you think a realistic private sale value is with a blown engine?

Get a quote for replacing the engine and subtract that plus a couple grand from the selling price.
Or get the engine replaced and sell the car with a new engine.

[GeezerSteve]

+1 to what adrenalated said. Be up front that the engine is blown in your CL ad. Somebody will buy the car, quite likely somebody who plans to drop in a used engine and resell it. Best o' luck

[Quadzilla]

Get a engine complete with tranny from a wrecking yard, get a independent mechanic to do the work and either sell or trade in. That is if the car is in decent shape and marketable. Maybe keep it? afterwards...............

[skaredshtles]

Engine ran out of oil due to catastrophic failure of the head gasket. Guaranteed.



Have these guys give you a ballpark for the motor replacement: http://www.summitauto.us/

[uglymoney]

The 2011 was a 2.5X right? First year of the FB motor in the Forester I think.

I'm of no help. I'd find a new motor or shortblock if that is what blew and change it out myself. Find someone like me to sell it to.

[GeezerSteve]

wolfelot, you might be covered by an extended warranty arising from a class action settlement. See http://oppositelock.kinja.com/subaru...ion-1600566355 For certain vehicles (including 2011-14 Forester with FB25 non-turbo engine):

--The length of the powertrain warranty has been increased from 5 years or 60,000 miles to 8 years or 100,000 miles.
--Vehicle owners’ costs for repairs, parts and labor, rental cars, towing and the cost of up to six quarts of oil per vehicle will be covered 100%

ETA: Link re class action info with link to claim form: https://topclassactions.com/lawsuit-...ction-lawsuit/

[MagnificentUnicorn]

Check into what Steve posted or sell it on CL for $2500

[uglymoney]

wolfelot, you might be covered by an extended warranty arising from a class action settlement. See http://oppositelock.kinja.com/subaru...ion-1600566355 For certain vehicles (including 2011-14 Forester with FB25 non-turbo engine):

ETA: Link re class action info with link to claim form: https://topclassactions.com/lawsuit-...ction-lawsuit/

Looks to me like OP's car has a full engine warranty and should be taken care of for free by the dealer.

https://topclassactions.com/lawsuit-...on-settlement/

[wolfy]

+1 for what Quadz said. Complaining to Subaru about oil consumption is a dead end- been there done that. This situation happens locally multi times a year, quite a few subies around Reno/Tahoe. You could probably get a wrecking yard 2.5 that's decent, and have a small shop mechanic do the R&R in the 1.5 to 1.8k range and have a sellable car. Subaru would be closer to 5k, 9k for a WRX. Locally the same job with a "remanned" engine is 3.5k from a small shop.
Craigslist "no motor" cars tend to go to mechanics in the 1/2 of low book range. Yep- that hurts.
May have been a head gasket failure, some do that, but suby had quite a few built with funky rings, that let oil blow past. Made for high oil usage that Suby called "normal". We had an '03 Forester that needed topping up every couple days on a road trip. It's still on the road at 220k and still using oil. The oil burners tended to foul the cat converters over time- causing a "check engine" code and lots of tail chasing.
Hope this helps- good luck with it. At least it got you close to home? New Acuras are nice...

oops- Steve's info looks better.

[Timberridge]

Park it next to a cliff and forget to set the p-brake.

[wolfelot]

Thanks everyone for the ideas. I’d especially love to let it roll off a cliff lol. I already looked into the lawsuit and I’m screwed because mine wasn’t formally considered to be an oil user. The only way to do that would have been to have oil consumption tests done.

The Subaru dealer left me a message saying that they would provide me with $2000 in assistance for a repair as an act of goodwill. I need to call them back when they open. Previously they said it would be $1500 just to tear the engine down and know exactly what is wrong. I’m not sure if they will make the $2000 contingent on getting it fully repaired through them. I am hoping I can have them tear it down and then make a decision. If it will cost too much for Subaru to repair it (most likely) I’ll take the parts list to several independent shops to get their price on a repair. With Subaru doing it the repair bill could be $5000-$10000 and I highly doubt it’s going to make sense for them to do it even with $2000 credit. Most of it will disappear from the tear down. I’ll be pissed and fight them if they make the $2000 fully contingent on the repair being done by them even if the cost is near the value of the car.

If the repairs are too much I’ll just say screw it and either sell it as is with a full parts list of what’s needed and it will be ready for someone else to put an engine in. Or if Subaru decide to be jerks about making the $2000 depend on them doing the full repair regardless of cost I may just sell it as is.

Given that our other car is a 2000 Honda Civic that my wife has been driving since high school I really hope it makes sense to have it fixed. We are going to look at MDXs on Saturday.

I have one suggestion for Summit Auto to get an engine quote. Anybody else have suggestions for engine quotes in Denver?

[SB]

PM Leavenworth skier

[wyeaster]

my experience with our 2010 forester has soured me quite a bit on subaru. we had a honda civic that was 13 years old that didn't have a single major problem until i got t-boned. the forester has been one thing after another. they were great about fixing shit under warranty, but they still had to fix a bunch of shit under warranty. i like the awd for the mountain and where we live, but i'm not enthused about another subaru. i guess we'll see how this one plays out.

[creaky fossil]

Find someone who just totaled the same vehicle, that engine + your chassis = win.

[Iowagriz]

Before they make the repair, have the Suby dealer get you a trade-in value for it. Also have them source you a used MDX and see if that all pencils out. They can repair for cheap on their own, so the trade-in should be better than your craigslist sale price.

[GeezerSteve]

The Subaru dealer left me a message saying that they would provide me with $2000 in assistance for a repair as an act of goodwill. I need to call them back when they open. * * *

Did you make a claim under the class action settlement process?

[TAFKALVS]

PM Leavenworth skier

I would never fix or repair a newer Subaru. They are disposable transportation appliances. Wife owned a newer Subaru with the 2.5 for a few years, will never buy another one...

Subaru is simply riding on the coat tails of making a decent product 20 years ago. The 2.5 has always been a major piece of shit, regardless of the "fixes" Subaru would claim they did to the motor. They still have head gasket problems and lots of other issues too.

Personally I'd only buy a 2.5 Subaru if you could get it cheaply and view it as something that's on borrowed time. They aren't going last like the early 1.8 and 2.2 legacy and imprezas you see driving around.

[glademaster]

Did you happen to take a look underneath the car for signs of oil spatter? I had a 2010 Outback with the 2.5 engine, and it had the cam and crank seals fail at around 73,000 miles. They were leaking a bit for a week or so, based on some other evidence, but when they truly failed, I was losing a quart of oil every 10-15 miles. I could easily see how a similar failure happening in the middle of a road trip could result in the sort of problem you encountered.

[wolfelot]

Before they make the repair, have the Suby dealer get you a trade-in value for it. Also have them source you a used MDX and see if that all pencils out. They can repair for cheap on their own, so the trade-in should be better than your craigslist sale price.

That is a good idea. I just looked at all of the Denver metro Subaru dealers to see if any of them have anything in stock. Flatirons Subaru/Acura in Boulder carries both. No other dealer in the metro area has an MDX with the specs we are looking for.

[wolfelot]

I would never fix or repair a newer Subaru. They are disposable transportation appliances. Wife owned a newer Subaru with the 2.5 for a few years, will never buy another one...

Subaru is simply riding on the coat tails of making a decent product 20 years ago. The 2.5 has always been a major piece of shit, regardless of the "fixes" Subaru would claim they did to the motor. They still have head gasket problems and lots of other issues too.

Personally I'd only buy a 2.5 Subaru if you could get it cheaply and view it as something that's on borrowed time. They aren't going last like the early 1.8 and 2.2 legacy and imprezas you see driving around.

Yeah. I get what you are saying.

[wolfelot]

Did you happen to take a look underneath the car for signs of oil spatter? I had a 2010 Outback with the 2.5 engine, and it had the cam and crank seals fail at around 73,000 miles. They were leaking a bit for a week or so, based on some other evidence, but when they truly failed, I was losing a quart of oil every 10-15 miles. I could easily see how a similar failure happening in the middle of a road trip could result in the sort of problem you encountered.

I did not look at that. I still need to call Subaru to get more information. It was dark when this was all going down and I have my prego wife and two-year-old with me.

[wolfelot]

Did you make a claim under the class action settlement process?

Without it being a certified oil burner its pointless. The lawsuit wasn't nearly as expansive as it sounds on the surface. It initially reads like EVERYBODY was covered, but only those whose cars failed the oil consumption test are subject to the warranty.

[klauss]

your engine failed because it ran out of oil and they can somehow claim it didn’t fail the “test.” That sucks. How many miles time since last oil change which you have records for.

[uglymoney]

OP was your FB an oil burner?

The 2010 Outback with cam seal failure listed above is a EJ engine. Not really a common failure even on that engine and not the same as the OP engine being discussed.

Lot of Subaru hate in this thread. Yeah they can suck. Or they can run forever. For the price of an entire remanufactured Subaru motor with a warranty you probably couldn't fix the timing chain on an Audi...no motor should blow before 200k though. Certainly below 100k you'd like to think the manufacturer would step up. Toyota spent a shit ton of money fixing the VvT cam on my Dad's Sienna out if warranty at like 120k because of a blown oil line.

It is like 4 studs and and some harnesses holding the engine in on Subaru's. Swapping a complete motor out of a junkyard is a 1 day job for 1 person in a home garage.

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