Replacement of water pump and timing belt on 2000 Subaru Outback wagon
Asked by 1sttimesubie Mar 18, 2017 at 09:55 AM about the 2000 Subaru Outback Base Wagon
Question type: Maintenance & Repair
I am looking to buy a 2000 Outback
wagon 2.5 With 146000 miles. Shop
records show the head gaskets were
replaced by the dealer at 127000 miles
but they did not replace the water pump
or the timing belt. What should I expect
in cost to take care of this replacement.
Also does the 2000 Outback have the
CVT transmission?
5 Answers
CVTs were introduced on the 2010 Subaru Outback with the 2.5 engine...As for the water pump, well, if it were my car, YES, I would definitely have this done. Look, it's a lot of labor unless you do it yourself.. While they do all this and are in there, you might as well have it done and not worry about it failing. Replace the thermostat as well and make sure you use a genuine Subaru parts... Thermostats on Subarus are especially designed for maximum efficiency, better than aftermarket parts. Good luck. Maybe you can get another 100,000 miles from your car.
The Subaru Lineartronic CVT transmission is the most recent iteration of their CVT and has a metal belt as opposed to the Subaru Justy from years ago... Many people on this forum "hate" this transmission, but, it saves fuel and there's a lot of them out there working just fine.... The fear mongering of the CVT transmission is very overblown.
1sttimesubie- listen, Ernie will probably chime and tell you to wait until the water pump and thermostat fails, but, I'm little more proactive about repairs and would rather not risk a major single point of failure, especially on a trip if you are out of town.. I guess it really depends on your tolerance for risk and inconvenience... I really don't like breaking down in the middle of nowhere which is why I have my car's professionally serviced and pay very close attention to time, miles and advice from my expert mechanic. My car is serviced as close as possible to that of an airplane to avoid problems.... Sure, it may seem a little more expensive, but, I usually keep my cars 15 years and over the course of time with no car payments you can do a lot and still save money. A typical new car payment is $400 per month or $4,800 per year.... 10 years of no car payments is almost $50,000 of value... My old 1995 Honda Accord at almost 20 years ran like a late model car.... Yours can too if you stick with the details and keep everything working.... People usually get discouraged with old cars especially if many systems are failing and wind up just ditching the car.... I'd rather spend a little more and have reliable transportation.
Your old automatic is better and more durable than the CVT's Subaru uses today. It is very strange that they did not replace the timing belt when the head gaskets were done. I would inspect the belt before replacing it.
