Used car buying guide: Subaru Legacy 3.0R

Business car it was not, due to its poor economy and high CO2 figure. Brace yourself for those two, but at least there’s the three-mode SI-Drive system with its economy-minded Intelligent setting that makes this 3.0-litre Subaru feel like a dozy 2.0. It’s operated via a rotary controller and steering wheel-mounted buttons.

Cars priced below £5000 tend to be UK-registered examples with high mileages. However, if their service histories and unmarked interiors (even the leather seats show little signs of distress) are a guide, they tend to attract caring owners. From around £8000, lower-mileage Japanese imports heave into view. They look bright enough and, assuming they’ve been prepped to satisfy UK regulations, are well worth considering as a less lairy but no less accomplished alternative to the ubiquitous Impreza.

How to get one in your garage

An owner's view

Mark Harris: “I’ve had my Legacy 3.0R Spec B estate for nine years. My wife was against an Impreza so I bought the next best thing. It’s a 2006 auto and with 173,000 miles. It’s been extremely reliable. I’m fussy and change the oil every 7000 miles, and the gearbox and diff oils every two years. The engine is bulletproof. I was told Subaru turned down the power so the Impreza wasn’t overshadowed, so it’s fairly unstressed. I’m the one suffering stress: road tax is £500 and economy rarely goes above 25mpg.”

Buyer beware...

â–  Engine: Check for leaks from the front timing chain case and the lower part of the engine. Misfires may be due to the most inaccessible pair of spark plugs not having been replaced in years, so try to check their condition. Inspect the head gasket for leaks and inside the oil filler neck for emulsified water and oil. Check the external coolant pipes for corrosion, especially on higher-mileage cars.

â–  Transmission: Generally reliable but in any case feel for worn synchros on manuals and hesitant changes on autos. Also on autos, check that paddle changes are instant. Drive a few cars to gauge normal levels of drivetrain noise, although driveshafts and centre shafts are fairly trouble-free.

â–  Suspension: With the car on a ramp, inspect the condition of the front track control arm bushes. The model goes through the rear bushes on the front wishbones, so inspect those, too. At the back, the front bushes on the rear trailing arm can tear but may still pass an MOT. Subaru OE replacement bushes are perfectly good.

â–  Brakes: The front, sliding calipers are prone to seizing. The rears tend to give little trouble.

â–  Bodywork and chassis: Resists corrosion well so any you do find is probably repair related.