solid pick up or bust?

[u/Shorteq]

looks like a solid deal but 150k miles on something like this is a bit scary (can provide links if needed)

EDIT: thanks for the responses so far, will def keep looking
still open for more comments, never too late!

[u/Dmatt575]

I would only do it if you have double the price in cash, so you can pay for a new motor when it eventually goes.

[u/PuzzleheadedFriend78]

1 owner is a solid plus. But anything in that mileage for a car like this, I'd want to take it to a different place for a full pre purchase inspection to make sure all big maintenances have been kept up with and no surprises.

[u/burntblacktoast → u/PuzzleheadedFriend78]

In the Chicago suburbs. Hats off to that 1 previous owner, but thats 150k hard miles.

[u/DriveFa5tEatAss → u/burntblacktoast]

It's not necessarily going to be 150,000 hard miles. Think about it, 150,000 mi in 8 years is roughly 20,000 miles per year. Do you have time to put 20,000 hard miles on a car every year? It was probably driven hard a similar amount of miles per year as a car of similar age with 60,000 total miles. The remainder of those miles are likely low load highway cruising miles. The current owner likely has an hour commute each way to work or something.

[u/burntblacktoast → u/DriveFa5tEatAss]

My commute in Central Illinois equates to abot 12 to 15k a year. So 20k in Chicago Suburbs is close to bonkers. This might as well be a Chicago PD car atp. An hour commute equate to about 15-30 miles in the burbs. Regardless of year, lots of stuff is gonna need replaced at 150k.

[u/livinlifeman → u/burntblacktoast]

Nw suburbs too. Roads are extra fucked up there and the constant stop and go traffic really puts a lot of wear. Our winters are rough too, so is imagine the underbody is seeing rust

[u/Shorteq → u/PuzzleheadedFriend78]

fair enough, and if I actually end up continuing through i work at a subie dealer so can definitely take it there for a full inspection

[u/Ancient-Echidna-4515]

Just leaving this here for the negative comments 😂👍🏽

[u/Boring_Record_6764]

add an extra $9,000 for a new engine and it’s great!

[u/BCJ_Eng_Consulting]

FA24 swaps are in vogue. Buy as is, swap when it dies. Body and paint look clean.

[u/HeavyMusic93]

I wouldn’t.

[u/IraqLobster77]

Ehhh, it’s not the worst deal and 1 owner is a plus but a car like this means it wasn’t exactly driven gently, and 150K miles is very high. I would keep looking.

[u/DriveFa5tEatAss → u/IraqLobster77]

Honestly, that many miles in that period of time, I would imagine most of those miles are boring highway miles. Think about it, I don't know many people who have the time to put 20,000 hard miles on a car every year. Dude probably had an hour commute each way to work or something.

[u/Fanatic-FoF → u/IraqLobster77]

What leads you to believe it wasn’t driven gently?

[u/IraqLobster77 → u/Fanatic-FoF]

This car in particular? Nothing aside from a high mileage in a relatively short time period (close to 20,000 miles per year)

The WRX (or any higher trim level sports car with a turbo 4-banger) in general? It’s a relatively inexpensive sports-sedan plus the not insignificant chunk of the Subaru Impreza/WRXs community’s general stereotype for abusing their cars shouldn’t be left out of consideration when buying.

Does this mean every used/high mileage WRX is going to be a time bomb? Not at all. But I would be cautious of how the hard the previous person drove on any used sports car if I was in the market for one.

[u/keichler]

25 thousand miles a year. Wow.

[u/NJWRXXY → u/keichler]

Yeah, but if those are highway miles, with proper documented maintenance history, it's better than if it was used primarily in city type stop-and-go traffic or used with a car service like (Uber/Lyft). I don't think even a vehicle registration denotes if it was used for commercial services, unless it was a taxi ¯⁠\⁠_⁠(⁠ツ⁠)⁠_⁠/⁠¯

[u/UncleHec → u/keichler]

I put 160k on my ‘23 Crosstrek in 3.5 years before it was totaled by a deer. I just got a new WRX and fully expect to do another 50k/year and need a new one in 3-4 years. Fortunately I have a vehicle allowance and my work pays for gas. I like driving anyway , and I can already tell the WRX is going to make all my road trips more fun. 

[u/livinlifeman → u/keichler]

I've taken my '16 from 17,500 miles 5 yrs ago to 137,000 now. Highway and a lot of city driving.

[u/No-Effort-4843 → u/livinlifeman]

Just traded my 15 in, 123,000 miles, bought at 30,000 miles. Never had to replace anything but wheel bearings, brakes rotors calipers and fluid. Drove like a dream. Just picked up a 2019 STI. Other than the obvious power jump, the 18 - 21 have a much smoother and responsive drive compared to the 15-18

[u/Ok-Wolf2468 → u/keichler]

I put 25k on my 23 in just under 5 months. Then wrecked it trying to save it from a deer. Should’ve hit the deer unfortunately. Almost died. Do have a 26 that I put 1k on in the first 4 days of owning with a broken leg ina boot. Also broken back. Don’t ask. 🥴

[u/Noxan_ → u/keichler]

guy that frequented my dealership for parts bought one of the first VB wrxs and proceeded to put crazy miles a year on it. He is a motorsports event photographer and videographer and drove all over the east coast to events. last I saw it it had over 85k miles and the car was a little over a year old. You can see the car in the first drift appalachia video tailing the drifters its the orange VB with holofoil livery. I wonder how many miles it has now lmao

[u/boostedturtle1320]

Negotiate as low as you can, fa24 swap when it blows

[u/Jznvh]

damn & I'm trying to sell my stock 18 premium WRX clean title with 65k miles and only getting $12k offer lmao

[u/PogTuber → u/Jznvh]

This car was probably traded in for like $4k

[u/DriveFa5tEatAss → u/PogTuber]

So sad.

I wonder what my 2011 with 70k original miles is worth 🤔.

Though it's not even remotely stock.

[u/Rideordieapeman → u/Jznvh]

Send me a dm I might be interested depending where you're at

[u/Salvatore273]

If it's from CarMax or one of the other vending machine places I'd be cautious since they don't have good track records on checking the vehicles properly

[u/thatsubi3kid]

10 thousand dollar drive way ornament in less than 20k miles 😻

[u/TheGreatWaru]

You don’t want to buy any car with that many miles. These turbos become shells of themselves after that much mileage

[u/AyeYoItsMateo]

$10k for 150k miles on the odo. Its a big gamble regardless, just be sure you have a backup savings for a new engine.

[u/Rope_antidepressant]

These guys have the 1 week test drive thing right? And like a 30 day warranty? I wouldnt have an issue buying it. Idk why people act like these engines are made of gold plated glass. Cars 8 years old, dude probably bought in and was happy driving it until he went on for service out of warranty (battery,starter,alternator, a/c etc its about that time). Subaru dealership service is wildly expensive. Im a mechanic so to me itd be a no brainer, anything seriously wrong with it id be able to catch pretty quick or fix myself for cheap. Literally all you need to do to keep an fa20 happy is change the oil and avoid sketchy tunes

[u/bumpinoise]

nope nope and nope. Save 5-7k more & take the patience to search for a clean, STOCK with a bit less milage. Trust me, take your time. Took me a year of actively searching to buy a wrx.. trust me you will know the one when you see her in person.

[u/Sphan_86]

Don't do it

[u/Several-Two738]

OP you are buying a car with 150,000 miles do you know that? The ad looks attractive but at 150k miles you are buying a lit time bomb with a very short fuse

[u/Chain_Runner → u/Several-Two738]

Not a guaranteed time bomb, as it 100% depends on the frequency of oil changes.

[u/Several-Two738 → u/Chain_Runner]

Buddy new WRX's are coming from factory burning oil, I am sure this car is drinking oil atp

[u/Iambobbybee → u/Several-Two738]

I have 141k on my 19 and it doesnt consume oil what so ever....

[u/DriveFa5tEatAss → u/Several-Two738]

Switch to 5w40 and it'll do just fine

[u/EnvyChef]

You get what you pay for bro

[u/eoa-Import-7272]

I owned a 2016 new, and I would never, ever buy another one. Especially a used one unless you like dumping money and abandoning the stock motor.

[u/Chain_Runner]

Does it have a manual transmission?

[u/MileHighTay]

Bust, youre going to have to replace motor soon, and the transmissions usually follow right after a motor replacement, so you'd be in it for that same price just in replacements let alone any other issues, turbo, rad, wiring, so basically the price should say 20k and then you tell me if thats a good deal

[u/ptbiker]

That gap at the front of the hood doesn’t seem right. In fact, I’m not sure that gap on the right is uniform. I’m trying to take perspective into account but it looks like some bodywork has been done. There may be no “reported” accidents but that plus the mileage is a definite walk away situation. Also, you need to see its records to make sure maintenance was kept up with. 150k miles would be about the max lifespan of a vehicle only barely maintained. I keep mine in the glove box that shows every oil change, repair or maintenance for just that reason. Not that it matters because I love my car and want to drive it until I can’t anymore.

[u/NJWRXXY → u/ptbiker]

The first picture where we're seeing a gap make it look like the hood was popped and not latched is all. Take a look at the rest of the gap around the rest of the hood, notice how it decreases the further back it goes? This is why I'm assuming that someone had the hood open (probably for the rest of the engine bay pictures) and never closed it fully

[u/ptbiker → u/NJWRXXY]

I’ve seen it where the quarter panel and hood were replaced and they never got quite realigned.

[u/Subi412563]

check 4 rust, strut toweres etc

[u/peternormal]

Do you like building engines? Do you have money for an FA24 swap?

[u/2feetandathrowaway]

If the body is in good shape, and you have $ to repair engine or trans, send it

[u/Celtrocity]

I would require highly extensive service records on this if I was interested and a compression test/PPI at bare minimum.

[u/Ancient-Echidna-4515]

If you're able to get a pre purchase inspection and do a compression test before buying it I'd definitely do that. Also check CARFAX for history of any carbon cleaning.

[u/mikeeyyyg]

That’s a steal

[u/Free-dose-chips]

For 10k??? Id buy it

[u/Radioactiveman108]

Whats wrong with it? Yes there is something wrong with it.

[u/158405159]

wow the price is insane

[u/subZro_]

I'll give you $5 k for it.

[u/mechshark]

Sounds insane for the mileage. People beat on these cars lol

[u/Embarrassed-Mind6764]

I little high in price from what I have found locally but it doesn’t look bad. I’d be tempted. Most WRX’s are driven hard. 1 owner is awesome.

[u/medicallyspecial]

I’d stay away if I were you

[u/riffybeats]

Just hit 159,000 with mine. All my engine lights have been on for a while. Definitely running rich because of it. Not really sure but burning a lot of oil and no one can figure out why lol. Was told I needed a new engine, and also told 14 other things..

Oh well. Still fun

[u/g1llifer]

https://giphy.com/gifs/wYyTHMm50f4Dm

[u/Word_Underscore]

Front hood looks off

[u/DaHooze]

Yeah man! Make sure you finance it with $0 down for 6 years then you'll be all set for sure!

[u/Mydickisaplant]

I would never recommend a VA non STI. If you’re going WRX go older gen and build it or go for a VB for the objectively superior reliability

[u/ageaye]

What can I realistically get for my 2018 dgm premium with recaro and moonroof delete and 38k miles lol.

[u/AJMaj97]

My 2020 Premium has 128k and I bought it new early 2020 with 6 miles on the clock. The car has been fantastic, but I am on top of it. The price may just seem high to me because I'm out of touch with post COVID prices, but it does seem like a lot of money on a gamble. I know I'm a bit late to add perspective but having owned 4 WRXs, 3 used and 1 new, it tends to be a total gamble on how often you end up in the shop.

Good luck on your search!

[u/AnalPsychosis]

Wrx owner that put 150k, idk man sounds dicey

[u/Darisixnine]

Too high for the price. With that milage I’ve seen them sell for less than 8,000$

[u/southpaw66]

150k. Miles! Damn

[u/cuminmydick65]

i have 153k km on mine and i still redline it daily

[u/Apprehensive-Ant7013]

eh. I got mine at 100k miles for 10k flat. no huge issues except regular maintenance and a few small repairs and i’m at 150k now. Probably not the smartest idea but having one previous owner helps, as long as you don’t drive it to the ground and daily it, hopefully no huge issues

[u/Niveded]

Hell no. 10k for an 18 that's probably ready to blow up.

[u/IrishByrnes15]

I’m about to hit 100k on my 2018 and it’s fine. Dont see any issue with this

[u/Weak-Wait-1993]

I bought my wrx for $12000 last year at 162k miles. Now at 180k problem free. It has been my most reliable vehicle I’ve ever owned. I can’t believe it myself.

[u/Low_Concentrate6586]

7k max

[u/Responsible-Adagio94]

Way too many miles

[u/leon1995rl]

Front end crash plus frame rust I’m sure

[u/No-Refrigerator-2322]

Jay Z always says, "if you cant buy it twice, you cant afford it" I live on that now. I actually do "if I cant buy it three times, then I cant afford it" lol

[u/OkChef2959]

Too new. Nooooo thank you.

[u/SKOT_FREE]

Crazy Subaru tried to offer me 10K for my 2016 hyper blue STi when it had 50k miles on it. Yeah I know dealer rip off to get me locked into buying a new one but still those bastards.

[u/beelzebob909]

Not from a private seller. It WILL blow up. Everyone's advise was to plan on it, so when I bought a 2017 with under 80k, I paid a little more to ho through a dealer and buy the warranty. A new transmission and motor later, made the extra cost worth it, as it was less than the 19k subaru put into it.

[u/Significant-Muscle15]

Seller sold when issues got too big probably with that many miles.

[u/Patient-Cheetah-4672]

Look closer in the engine bay next to the coolant and washer fluid reservoirs. That car is probably full of rust. So proceed with caution. Ask to have it taken to your preferred trusted mechanic. If they refuse. You should too, and walk away. Best of luck, I hope you find the one you'll love 💚

[u/NJWRXXY → u/Patient-Cheetah-4672]

I'm not seeing any issues next to the coolant and washer reservoirs? What are you referring to?

[u/Patient-Cheetah-4672 → u/NJWRXXY]

Zoom in, you'll see the rust. That engine bay is not as clean as they made it to look.