Any problems with your Baja????

General talk about the Subaru Baja.

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ScreaminMimi
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Post by ScreaminMimi »

mbaksic wrote:Hey Screamin, thats the window putting pressure on the gasket with the window up. Then the door seems to drop when you open it when the pressure on the weatherstrip is relieved by the glass pulling away when the door opens. Mike
I figured it was nothing to worry about... and it had to do with the upper gasket. Not to worry BajaBear, it's normal.
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BajaBear
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Post by BajaBear »

I got my door adjusted on Tues. It opens w/out dropping now. Just like the front passenger door.
I didn't get back to the dealer in time to do a ride-along w/the tech for the squaling noise. The service rep said a similar prob on different models was rectified by replacing mirror seals.
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Post by Mike Franke »

nearing 30k, with only a two-trip-to-the-dealer fix of the A/C early on. Since they give out loaners, it gave me a chance to drive an STI and a Forester turbo, so it wasn't too bad.

Other than very minor trim issues that I fixed my own self, it has been trouble free.

I think I'll keep it
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andaconda
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Post by andaconda »

About the squalling noise -- we have it too! Get it mostly when there's a high cross wind. We call it the "duck" and have gotten used to it, and just laugh at it!
However on a more serious note the Wife's '05 BAJA with a N/A 2.5 --
Started using antifreeze at the 15k mile oil change. Called dealer - they said to keep an eye on it. At 18k mile oil change still using antifreeze. 18,500 puked out a quart of antifreeze. 20k puked a half gallon twice in 400 miles. 20,600 miles took it in for a check. They said the radiator cap failed - it over heated -- and that in turn blew the head gasket. It never did reach the red zone (I payed attention!) I THINK that it was the other way around... that the head gasket blew first.

The car is at the dealership now for repair. I just hope they machine the heads and do BOTH sides while they have it in the shop. I also asked them to replace all the belts, even if I had to pay the cost.

This makes me wonder how long the repair will last. It also makes me question why I ordered a new Outback with the same engine in Mid December.

Thank God for warranty!
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andaconda
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Post by andaconda »

Oh, and the Drivers door window sticks too -- suposed to be fixed at the same time as the head gaskets.
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steven765
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baja repairs

Post by steven765 »

Well turns out you can add the heated mirrors, working on the seats next.

Had to get a new front seat cusion put in, 36k miles and I wore it out! I'm 6'1 190 so no it wasn't the weight

The dealership I will never use again, the fucked up the seat doing it, broke a trip and bent the retainer on the back plate so it stick out now and doens't hold. They will fix it but i'm not happy. Apprenntly having the manuals handy is a foreign concept to the techs! I opened my dealer service manuals oh look how to take the seat apart. Sigh then again I'm and engineer and part time mechanic.

Hood has chipped alot from all the highway miles, I might get a new one.
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Pow
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Re: baja repairs

Post by Pow »

andaconda wrote:Oh, and the Drivers door window sticks too -- suposed to be fixed at the same time as the head gaskets.
Sticks how? Opening/closing the window or when opening the door? When I traded in my '03 for an '06 I found that the '06 driver side door seems to stick when opening. What it looks to be is that the geometry of the door glass against the weather stripping "wedges" the high corner and causes it to feel like the door "pops" when opening. Is this what you're talking about or am I the only one?
steven765 wrote:Well turns out you can add the heated mirrors, working on the seats next.

Had to get a new front seat cusion put in, 36k miles and I wore it out! I'm 6'1 190 so no it wasn't the weight

The dealership I will never use again, the fucked up the seat doing it, broke a trip and bent the retainer on the back plate so it stick out now and doens't hold. They will fix it but i'm not happy. Apprenntly having the manuals handy is a foreign concept to the techs! I opened my dealer service manuals oh look how to take the seat apart. Sigh then again I'm and engineer and part time mechanic.

Hood has chipped alot from all the highway miles, I might get a new one.
Heated mirrors! My kingdom for heated mirrors! Has the swap process been documented, or did you have the dealer do it? I know there has been discussion but I don't recall a full step-by-step.

And for reference to the rest of us, who is the dealer that is mucking up your ride? I'm in SE PA, originally used Concrodville Subaru on 202, where I had bought my '03. Service seemed pretty good but knowing more now then I did then, I think if I went back and checked over the work orders they may have screwed me over on stuff that should have been under factory warranty... brakes in particular. I've since moved a mile down the road from Roberts Subaru and have gone there a couple times. Service has been good and they seem to be very flexible when I've asked to get a service time on short notice. So far no complaints, at least on the service side. I wasn't too pleased with their sales group when I was looking for an '06, probably because their Subaru office is split with Chevy sales... and I think I got the wrong sales guy. Wound out buying from Mike at Lancaster Subaru, a Subie only building and top notch. I hate to have to go that far out for service, but for major work I may do so as I believe they will provide me with a loaner no charge.

-Pow
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Re: baja repairs

Post by Kev M »

Pow wrote:And for reference to the rest of us, who is the dealer that is mucking up your ride? I'm in SE PA, originally used Concrodville Subaru on 202, where I had bought my '03. Service seemed pretty good but knowing more now then I did then, I think if I went back and checked over the work orders they may have screwed me over on stuff that should have been under factory warranty... brakes in particular. I've since moved a mile down the road from Roberts Subaru and have gone there a couple times. Service has been good and they seem to be very flexible when I've asked to get a service time on short notice. So far no complaints, at least on the service side. I wasn't too pleased with their sales group when I was looking for an '06, probably because their Subaru office is split with Chevy sales... and I think I got the wrong sales guy. Wound out buying from Mike at Lancaster Subaru, a Subie only building and top notch. I hate to have to go that far out for service, but for major work I may do so as I believe they will provide me with a loaner no charge.

-Pow
Totally off topic... but I've looked at cars at Concordville before, they always seemed more than a little swarmy to me. No thanks.

Bought at Roberts (twice now)... they're not a LOT better, but they don't suck.

Ohhh... might be too late, but it could be worth a try, if everything is documented, I'd approach Concordville about a refund for what should have been covered under warranty. And if they don't give you satisfaction, approach SOA.

K
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andaconda
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Post by andaconda »

andaconda wrote:Oh, and the Drivers door window sticks too -- suposed to be fixed at the same time as the head gaskets.
Well, now 29,000 miles on it.
Head gaskets are holding - they machined both heads, took .006 off one side and .004 off the other. No problems as of yet.

Driver side door gasket was replaced - that fixed the sticking door problem.

No other real issues - been a good cruck.

BTW - does anyone have a problem with idle surge while its in gear? I have to make sure my foot is always on the brake while it is in gear.
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Crickos
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Post by Crickos »

Think I'll throw in my experiences with our twin Baja's.

2004 Sport, purchased new April of 04, 130k on her now. Only problems worth noting is the that the passenger headlight had a tendency to burn out frequently. They eventually replaced the wiring harness for it, and the problem was resolved. Was covered under warranty every time! Brake pads only and tires at 60k (yup the factory tires made it that long and still had decent tread for that many miles amazingly enough)

2006 Sport, purchased new March of 06, 17k on this one. Not a single problem as of yet. A mechanic did notice that the little clip that holds the driver side floor mat in place was damaged, replaced it for no cost.

Both of em average around 28 mpg, slightly less when I drive em though... gotta keep that carbon burned out :wink: Or atleast that's what I tell the wifey for my heavy foot :wink:

I do have to believe that part of our excellent Baja's is the dealership that we use. For you Wisconsinites, it's Gustmans up in Appleton. The 04 has never been anywhere else for anything, and we intend to keep that true for the 06. They are by far the best people we have ever dealt with when it comes to vehicles. One thing that really sticks out in my mind is that a oil change takes over an hour... they actually DO check over the entire vehicle, everything on that checklist page is actually checked, twice sometimes if the mechanic is unsure. For a "feel good" story, the guy that always did all/any of the work on the 04 hounded us for a bit when we picked up the 06... he wanted to buy it from us for his daughter that was heading to college. Don't know about anyone else, but hearing that he wanted to buy it sure gave me a good feeling about keeping it!

Andy
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davecoon13
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Post by davecoon13 »

I just hit 40K miles yesterday on my 03 Sport.

Actual Odometer Reading as of this writing 40,002.

No major mechanical issues yet, only minor annoyances:
Crickos wrote:the little clip that holds the driver side floor mat in place was damaged, replaced it for no cost.
I also noticed that my clip was broke. I did see at NHSTA that there is a Technical Service Bulliten on this. I didn't get this fixed though since I have aftermarket rubber floor mats (not specific to Baja).

I have had to replace the tires once and front brake pads twice, which seems unusual to me given that I only have 40K.

I replaced one headlight bulb, and I still can't get the trim ring that holds the bulb in place to lock properly, so I secured it with Gorilla tape.

The outside of the bed liner around the edges kept loosing one particular trim plug. Dealer charged $15 each, which got old, so I got a Nissan trim plug that fit pretty close and secured it with Silicone sealant.

I have had to replace the Windshield twice.

I had to replace the driver's side view mirror when It was sheared off by a ¼" flying metal plate on the beltway.

2 flat tires (both were my replacement tires covered by road hazzard warranty).

Plastic skid plate hangs down underneath the vehicle.

The paint is crazed on my passenger side mirror.

The paint is crazed at the seam between the plastic body pannels and sheet metal on the doors.

It sure would be nice to have more than one lighter plug. I have a 6 outlet lighter strip installed.

It sure would be nice to have net pocket pouches on the backs of the front seats.

It seems like the A/C on full blast is very loud

My paint is crazing on my silver dash cover that sorrounds the radio and A/C controls.

I had an issue where it was hard to start and idled rough until I cleaned the fuel system.

Had to replace one wheel from a pothole.
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Flowmastered87GL
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Post by Flowmastered87GL »

my genuine subaru cooler blew both my power points. I found the fuse for the front one and changed it, but cant get the back one to work and cant find a fuse for it.... so I now have no rear outlet. Good thing I still have 1 year and 16K left on my warranty. Maybe they can find out why my baja is retaining water (I found it dripping out of drivers cladding after a rainstorm on a hot day.... it was like 90 and there were little puddles under the cladding)
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bajasine
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Post by bajasine »

Catalytic converter died at 25k miles. Dealer replaced it at no cost. I HATE the way the car is geared. 3500 rpms to do 65 mph? My new car does 100 mph at barely 3000 rpms. I never really noticed it until I bought the new car, but at higher speeds (over 65), the Baja was really wobbly and though road noise wasn't bad, I could sure FEEL the road through the steering wheel...you could definitely tell the Baja working pretty hard.
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Post by BajaGermany »

bajasine wrote:I HATE the way the car is geared. 3500 rpms to do 65 mph? My new car does 100 mph at barely 3000 rpms. I never really noticed it until I bought the new car, but at higher speeds (over 65), the Baja was really wobbly and though road noise wasn't bad, I could sure FEEL the road through the steering wheel...you could definitely tell the Baja working pretty hard.
Hm, the baja is great geared if you concider the characteristic of the boxer-engine. You can´t compare it to a v- or an inline-engine. And don´t worry, the boxer-engine loves high rpm (best acc from 4000 to 5500 rpm!).
And yes, you feel the road, belongs to the stiff suspension (a result from the rallye-sport Subaru comes from?). And the chassis is great if you accept, that its a hard and loud one...
I never felt some wobble, even at 120 mph...
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bajasine
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Post by bajasine »

BajaGermany wrote: Hm, the baja is great geared if you concider the characteristic of the boxer-engine. You can´t compare it to a v- or an inline-engine. And don´t worry, the boxer-engine loves high rpm (best acc from 4000 to 5500 rpm!).
And yes, you feel the road, belongs to the stiff suspension (a result from the rallye-sport Subaru comes from?). And the chassis is great if you accept, that its a hard and loud one...
I never felt some wobble, even at 120 mph...
regards
Chris
If the best acceleration comes in at 5500 rpms, that sounds like a design flaw, not at all something to be pleased with. I understand that a large part of what I was feeling was due to the suspension, and I was mostly able to separate that from the other less pleasant aspects of driving my Baja at high speeds such as the roaring hum of the engine. The Baja does not feel good to drive at high speeds. When I talk about not liking the way that the Baja is geared, I'm comparing it to a Legacy sedan...so another boxer engine. I have since sold the Baja and it would be silly to compare the Baja to my new car...there is NO comparison. The Baja was a very solid car, but not at all amazing. I can't say I miss it.
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