What do I sell this for - 2008 Outback XT
 

So I was all set to trade in my Subaru Outback XT when the replacement (Mazda 3 for the wife) comes in, and of course to get revenge on this betrayal the Subaru decides to blow a head gasket.

It still starts and runs, but obviously I'm not driving it. I can see a little bit of milkiness in the oil and it's overheating so I'm 95% it needs a head-gasket.

I obviously can't limp this thing into the dealership and expect them to want it. Other than some marks on the back seats due to child seats, and the usual scratches you'd see in a 15 year old family mobile it's in good shape. It has done 155k km, and everything works, no rust.

I have no idea what I should sell this for. Any thoughts?

https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...7996a2e6_c.jpg
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...b5022cee_c.jpg
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...99434e4b_z.jpg
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...a453b76b_z.jpg

Thanks

Well it is a Subaru so it's kinda expected. Will some additive ghetto rig it enough to be traded in? It's either take a bath on the trade in or get it fixed. I don't really see any other outcome.

K SEAL and trade it.

This stuff is the ultimate hack juice.

https://www.amazon.ca/K-Seal-ST3501-...e%2C408&sr=1-1

I don’t know why Subarus have such a loyal following given all these typical issues. I’m sure the fix isn’t that expensive.

The fix is expensive because the pistons are sideways and pulling the heads off side to side is hard af in the car, if that's even possible.

what are head gaskets these days, $1500-2k?

sounds like it's either spend $1500 to get head gaskets fixed and sell it for more on your own or eat a $500-1000 trade in

i was in a similar boat once and just ate the trade in to avoid the headache.

sell it on IS THIS AVAILABLE? LOL

$500 all in :troll:

Your car's private sale value in repaired condition is actually still decent since you've only got 155K on it, thats sub 100k miles.

The EJ is known to be a decent motor with weaknesses that can be addressed, so if you're willing to take some time I'm sure you'll be able sell it for a decent amount, even accounting for the rear interior condition.

Time is money, yes but if the dealer is offering you like 2500 for it, they're gonna be fixing it up and asking $10K+ for it, so to me, thats worth it if you can find a shop that knows Subaru's. Would help you in a potential private sale situation.

Find out other outback prices, chop off 2k off yours, post it, eeeezzzzz

That's if the head or block is not warp out of spec. Don't know if you want to open that bag of worms. Considering it only has 155K kms and blows a head gasket I would be prepared for worst case scenario.

The best financial move is K-seal it, hope it holds long enough to trade it and the next poor soul has to deal with it.

Worst case ontario you're right back to where you are right now and less 50 bucks.

Mazda not going to fix anything. They're not going to offer you $1,500 less and HOPE to jesus the heads don't need to get decked lol. Any trade in they're already spending a G note on reconditioning/detail/dents etc, they're not doing head gaskets.

Mazda is in the business of selling and making money off cars fast, not sending heads to the machine shop. They're going to wholesale that by the pound at the next auction and give you 20 bucks.

You need to get that thing running for 10mins and sign the dotted line.

Is it morally wrong? That's up to you.

Go see Mr. Azro on Canada Way, he is a Volvo and Subie specialist. He might be interested in buying it from you for cash and then fixing it up himself to flip it. He may just offer you that price point which you may be satisfied with ... maybe.

Thanks for the input all. The dealer was offering 6k, and my best guess would be 10k private so perhaps I'll try Tollface's idea and sell it for cheap with full disclosure.

I'm not in Vancouver anymore, so Mr. Azro would be out of reach. :)

very true. But they always have a clause in the contract. It's only once the technician goes over the whole car and find nothing major. Just hope the tech doesn't find out the issue. lol

Which Mazda dealer is this? Most dealerships don't do an inspection at the time of trading in, and the ones that do the techs aren't getting paid to do much other than a quick visual lookover. Just try to trade it in and see what happens. If they find out about the HG and low ball you then just tell them you'll sell privately.

This is exactly why I take trades on test drives when I do appraisals.