Man, what is with the sudden influx of Subaru questions all of a sudden?
I’m actually starting to wonder if there’s a Subaru forum out there having their fun by submitting question after question on our website over the past couple of days.
Anyone else getting that feeling?
This just seems more than normal lately.
BC.
There does seem to be a higher than normal rash of them lately along with posts about engines being run out of oil (not just Subarus) due to never having the hoods raised to check the oil level.
It has been that way for a while. Nothing new.
I’ve sure learned more than I cared to know about Subaru head gaskets…
Here’s a theory, though. Is it possible that the cold weather is pushing some Subaru gaskets over the edge? The thermal expansion (or shrinkage) coefficient of aluminum is almost twice that of steel. Therefore, aluminum heads will shrink more than steel head bolts in cold weather, reducing the clamping force of the head bolts. Maybe some gaskets that are on the verge of failure are being pushed over the edge, so to speak, by the differential effect of cold weather on the heads and head bolts.
Subaru, with less than 10% of the U.S. market, is number 2 or 3 in total threads started on this board…Just enter the word “Subaru” in the search box at the top of this forum…There are 2650 active Subaru threads.
A few nights ago, out of boredom, I started bumping them up to page one…Pretty soon I had filled the entire first page with Subaru threads…mostly the same laments, blown engines, head gaskets, timing belt nightmares, AWD system failures, many caused by mis-matched tires…
The #1 car make who’s owners most frequently ask for help and advise is Honda…
LOL. You probably haven’t heard the joke about the Subaru?s with the NPR bumper stickers that veer to the left all the time…
I would guess that there is a disproportionately large presence of Subaru owners on this board due to the typical profile of a public radio audience. Ditto for the Consumer Reports fans. It?s no coincidence that the reader surveys put Subaru in a tie for the most reliable car spot (pause for the CR and Subaru flaming that will ensue).
I think I recognize some regular Subaru board members on this forum. This board and the regulars on it are a great resource and complement the feedback from the Subaru boards quite nicely.
I think the Subaru driving CR and NPR members have a little extra time after the long holiday to post a little more on this board for fun. Probably a few students, professors, and teachers out there on extended break as well.
Surprisingly enough, some of us don’t think Car Talk is particularly political. . .
-eyeroll-
I enjoy observing all types of trends and automobile makes and models certainly make a great issue to consider and Subaru has peaked my interest for many years. Their commercials seem to often depict a self-effacing understated intellectual bon vivant that for the life of me I don’t understand how that image draws in customers. But they made the “cheap and ugly” commercials and sold cars so who am I to second guess success. The old 1300s and 1600s were greatly under rated if not ignored by the public while their relative quality was outstanding. And, like several manufacturers, Subaru struggled to acquire a good reputation and then squandered the reputation with the introduction of more and more opulence and touting all wheel drive as standard equipment. But then, in my opinion the 544 was Volvos best model so the marketers won’t be wanting my opinion.
I also believe it’s that demographic of people who would even consider going to the internet to share their car problems.
I can’t name even one of my reservation friends and customers who would turn to the internet for research, let alone an NPR chat site.
As a matter of fact, I can’t even tell you if the Car Talk program plays at all on our one local college re-broadcast of PBS radio programming, yes, I never listen to it.
At times when I tune to the PBS station it is local interest programming.
As a matter of fact, I can’t even tell you if the Car Talk program plays at all on our one local college re-broadcast of PBS radio programming, yes, I never listen to it.
Probably does…it’s the #1 show on NPR…and one of the TOP radio shows in the country (public or private).
Perhaps you’re right, I don’t listen to much radio on sundays unless in the car.
I’ll bet, therefore, if I’d go looking for it, I’d find it .
If this site is frequented by NPR listeners, then there should be more Volvo and Saab questions as well.
As I’ve often said, Subarus roll through the service dept. doors as regularly as they appear on this forum and the majority of those Subaru owners are not even aware that CT exists.
maybe it is because subaru owners really like their cars and prefer to keep them, leading to a desire to understand/eliminate/avoid problems, be it with the car or the shop. only a theory.
That’s got to be at least part of it. Most Subaru owners I know are anal about their cars. On the other hand, most Chevy owners I know will drive them even if they’re practically falling apart with the engines making horrible noises and will simply say, “It doesn’t need to go to the mechanic, it still runs!”
Either of you ever worked in a Subaru shop?
You state your Subaru friends are anal about maintenance. Ask them the following.
How often do you change the fuel filter?
How often do you change the engine oil/filter?
When was the last time you had the valve lash inspected/adjusted?
There’s more but that should get the ball rolling. Post the results back and we’ll see just how anal they are.
Maybe its related to the location of the Subaru owners, and what activities they participate in.
Here in Colorado, you can open a window to any building in the state, any time of year, throw a tennis ball out the window, and you are guaranteed to hit at least 3 Subaru’s in the parking lot, and possibly one more driving down the street, if the ball gets that far.
Since there is skiing to be had, everyone and their dog Peaches buys one to get up into the mountains during the season between November and June. I’m sure parts for Subaru’s cost less here than anywhere else in the US.
And with wide spread ownership, comes a wide variety of owners.
Some ignore the vehicle until it won’t start one day. Then they trade it in on a new one.
Others, like my friend, bring his car over to my house, with a bag full of parts, and we do the manual transmission and rear differential fluid at the 30k mile mark on both his car, and his wife’s car.
The biggest complaint I have is how the drivers operate their vehicles in foul weather.
BC.
The Car Talk web site has been around several years. Over 15 I feel sure. My first entry into internet forums was the original Car Talk in the mid 90s. There have been many changes since then some good some not so good. There has always been a tendency for younger and possibly more politically liberal posters. Volvos, Saabs andsubarus have been discussed regularly from the beginning, The Rant and Rave section was quite addictive in the earlier format.