Keep Driving or Replace Car

[Insomniac]

I am moving to California and we have a decision to make. I'm hoping some advice/opinions from the OC crew will help.

I have a 2001 Subaru Legacy station wagon suffering from the infamous head gasket problem (https://www.google.com/search?q=subaru+head+gasket). It was detected about 1.5 years ago. Our mechanic (who has retired) told us at the time to just use it until it's dead. It's not worth fixing (KBB value is <$2k and replacing the head gaskets is at least $2.5k at the dealership). We've probably put another 10-15k on it since it started leaking. It's a minor leak (the oil level was not low at our last oil change).

The first question is, does this go bad all at once catastrophically or will it be a slow progression to a worse leak, then a coolant leak, etc.? Kind of hoping we can get it the ~2,000 miles to California and then start looking for a replacement.

The second question is more of a recommendation request. I have the station wagon because mt wheelchair easily folds into the rear trunk. Part of moving to California is for me to not need anyone to drive me anywhere and using public transportation/uber. So I hopefully won't need the car too long. What are some reliably good used cars to look at? Specifically wagons or crossover SUVs that aren't too high off the ground. I'd like to spend less than $20-25k and would like to avoid buying a car destined to fail. Be nice to have a good resale value after say 2 years and 10-15k miles.

Edit--Can someone edit my post title from "Used" to "Keep Driving or Replace Car?"

[gjc2]

A head gasket could completely fail all at once leaving you stranded. Sustained high speed highway driving could push it to fail. Since you’re moving I’d assume the car would be loaded with personal possessions, so if it fails in the road signing the title over to a local salvage yard and buying a plane ticket wouldn’t be possible. Is there a local mechanic who you trust who could do the head caskets (I assume both sides) for less than the $2,500 the dealer wants? What is the overall condition and mileage of the car? If a couple thousand in repairs buys you a few more years of use it may be worth it.

[Insomniac]

A head gasket could completely fail all at once leaving you stranded. Sustained high speed highway driving could push it to fail. Since you’re moving I’d assume the car would be loaded with personal possessions, so if it fails in the road signing the title over to a local salvage yard and buying a plane ticket wouldn’t be possible. Is there a local mechanic who you trust who could do the head caskets (I assume both sides) for less than the $2,500 the dealer wants? What is the overall condition and mileage of the car? If a couple thousand in repairs buys you a few more years of use it may be worth it.

It has ~95k miles on it right now and is in good condition otherwise. It has been maintained and no accidents. It's good to know it could all go bad quickly. I'll see about finding a new mechanic to look it over.

[WickerBill]

I kind of feel the same way as gjc2 - I would imagine a reputable non-dealer mechanic could do it for half of the dealer cost, and because this is a common issue, they've probably done dozens.

Then the question becomes... at half the price (or 60%, or 70%) - is it worth it? The car could run another two years or another seven. It's 16 years old, so you'll need to invest at least a little bit in it fairly regularly.

[SteveH]

If you have another mechanic check it out, have him also check all major systems. What else will need replacing before you drive it across country and what else in the next two years if you decide to drive it that long? Some things like tires and brakes are easily identifiable, others like water pumps are not.

I did this with my last car. I drove it far longer than I normally would have. But I knew it was rather solid so the risk was minimal.

[nrc]

A major breakdown with a vehicle full of your stuff would be a major pain in the butt so I think risking it should be off the table. Assuming that your local car market offers better values than California I'd bite the bullet and make a change now.

I like our CX-5 and I've generally heard good things about reliability on them. But it's definitely more of a climb into the seat than a regular sedan. You might look at a Subaru Forester. It's about the most wagon-like of CUVs.

I agree with SteveH - if you want to take the repair route, first try to get a good sense of whether there are additional repairs lurking in the wings.

[Elmo T]

A head gasket could completely fail all at once leaving you stranded. Sustained high speed highway driving could push it to fail.

This.

I have a 2007 Subaru Tribeca with 217K on it. We blew a head gasket at 105K. 100K seems to be the life expectation of the Subie head gaskets. Luckily there was some sort of odometer recall and they graced us an extra few thousand miles and completely covered the repair. We first noticed a spike in the temperature during a long run from Virginia. It seemed oddly intermittent on the rest of the drive home.

A trip to the shop after I got home to get the bad news from my local guy - who by the way didn't want to touch that repair. He did say it easily could have just blown out given the long run through DC traffic.

Now at 217K - I am playing the same game - "is it time to let her go?" Everything else on the car is solid - at least as of today - but I've slowly started looking at replacement options.

[Insomniac]

An update. I appreciate everyone's advice and took it. We sold the Subaru and took the Chevy Cruze out to California. A bit of a pain, figuratively and literally, but no worries getting out here. It also had the bonus of being 50 state emissions certified vs. the Subaru. I won't be needing to get around much by car now that my world has been opened up to much better public transportation and Uber WAV. So we will have the luxury for looking for a new car that is better suited for the wheelchair. Considering a Volvo wagon or XC. Appreciate any other recommendations, maybe a Ford Flex, but the gas mileage is pretty poor.

I start my new job Monday!

[TravelGal]

I start my new job Monday!

I assume you are in NorCal?? :(

[Insomniac]

I assume you are in NorCal?? :(

Yeah, Silicon Valley. I would've loved the SoCal weather, but the jobs and excitement are up North. Austin seems to be getting hot too, but I didn't have much luck there versus the SF Bay Area. It was an uphill climb to go from defense/aerospace to tech. I can go on and on about trying to find a new job though. :)