GVee

so I ****ed up the old audi last week when a deer ran into the side of the car.

here are my options for replacement.

1998 subaru impreza outback 119,000miles $3600.
1996 honda accord lx 113,000miles, $4400.

both look good and both come in autobox's

i like the impreza's allwheel drive but i'm affraid of repair costs if it **** up. and i know honda has a solid reputation.


just wanted to know which you would choose between the 2.

beep-beep

I did not hear anybody, who had problem with subaru's AWD. I liked Subarus, and had Legacy Turbo before I got Audi. I am not sure about quality right now - Subaru belongs to GMC. On the other side it should be easier to fix. I had problem with AC and my turbo failed twice. Without turbo it supposed to be a solid car.

IHMO Impresa is much smaller than Accord. Legacy is similar to Accord. Also I am not big fan of Outbacks. I would go with Legacy or Impresa.

scrogers

Both my parents have Subaru's, a 94 Impreza (172k) and a 96 Outback (112k). They are both still running strong, little rust on the Impreza, and general maintenance but seem like great cars. Also, not to step on anyone's toes, but Subaru is actually a subsidiary of Fuji Heavy Industries. Now, GM was a 20% minority shareholder in Fuji from 1999-2005, but on October 5, 2005, GM sold 8.7% of their stock in Fuji to Toyota, and put the rest of the their stock in Fuji on the open market. GM has since announced that they are severing all ties with Fuji. Even so, GM has based some of their latest AWD Saab's off the Subaru line, some of that is the stock history between the companies, and some of that is "good company relations" I guess. Anyway, sorry for the long tangent, parent company ownership is something I really try to stay on top of ;-) . As for the cars themselves, from what I've seen and driven they are pretty good cars, not Audi's, but good stuff ;-) . Hope this helps.

~scrogers

beep-beep

I take my words back. Sounds like there is no relationship between Subaru and GM.

samm

Go with the Subaru. I have owned several of them. anything 1990's and newer is very reliable. If you can work on an Audi then the Subaru will be simple to maintain, and I guarantee you Subaru is less expensive and far less complicated to maintain than Honda.

Weak points are front CV joints and there were some problems with the AWD in the early 4EAT automatic transmissions.

I will never give up my Audi for another Subaru, but I will say they are good cars.