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looking at buying a 2004 legacy 2.5 non turbo nz new with 130k on the clock, I had heard non turbo subarus were reliable, after looking on the internet now I am staring to wonder,

my question is would you consider this model reliable or am I heading for potential expensive maintenance bills

The 2.5L non-turbo Legacy has a good reputation but you cannot go on reputation alone. If the vehicle has been mistreated and not maintained on a regular basis then it's best to stay away and look for a well maintained, low mileage vehicle.

Thanks for your reply, my main concern was potential head gasket problems, reading forums on the internet would lead you to believe they fail on every subaru 2.5L, I was wondering if this was the case or more just hype,

Thanks again

There is normally a reason for a head gasket failure; such as due to water pump failure, poorly maintained cooling system, blocked radiator, towing an excessively heavy load, coolant leak, faulty thermostat, etc. It can happen to any car.

But no, we are not aware of a common problem with the 2.5L engines.