Donut Media is ruining Subaru's reputation, but how?

Donut Media is one of the Titans of car related content on KZbin, but here recently they've been ruining the reputation of Subaru with their newest
installment of High vs. Low. A series where they take two identical cars in which one gets really expensive parts, and one gets really cheap parts.
Subaru enthusiasts around the world are up in arms over the way they've portrayed the brand in the last couple of months, and they are well within
reason to be upset; but what exactly are they doing that has people so outraged? Is Donut media ACTUALLY ruining the reputation of Subaru, or are
Subaru's just... well... Subaru's?
I just want to say that this video in no way is an attempt to talk trash or slander Donut Media. I love everything that these guys do and will continue to watch them for however long they stay on KZbin! This is just simply my own opinions and nothing more.
#donutmedia #subaru #wrx #ej25 #subienation #impreza #sti
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[@AshB93]

It's a good thing Subaru launched an electric vehicle. This way they'll be remembered for the first electric vehicle to run a bearing knock without having a bearing.

[@OldieProductions]

I commend you for at least being original and coming up with a new joke. Actually made me laugh.

[@spideybuildscars]

*car guy slams the hood after raising the amperage * “Dammit, spun the brushless coil bearing again”😂😂😂😂

[@apIthletIcc]

Just wait until the pc master race over clockers get ahold of a Subaru EV lol

[@josephphelps6913]

So that's why BMW is launching all these electric variants 🤔😂. I'm a BMW guy btw guys. And I'm totally okay with poking fun at myself as well as the brand I love so much. Embrace their hate guys. And turn it into inspiration 😉

[@encryptedaqua]

LMAOOO that was good

[@juliourena859]

Can't ruin a reputation that's already ruined itself

[@AnthroGearhead]

Lol all new Impreza WRX

[@KB-bh9hp]

True, used to want a wrx, getting a mustang 5.0 instead. Those seem to be insanely reliable and very easy to mod.

[@Fred_the_1996]

@@KB-bh9hp mopar boys gonna be after you if you buy a mustang watch out

[@KB-bh9hp]

@@Fred_the_1996 Let 'em come. The s650 has a very attractive rear end so they'll have something nice to look at 😆.

[@ignaciomendez5669]

@@KB-bh9hp American muscle all the way weather your a ford, Chevy or Dodge guy American muscle will always be cooler

[@NuclearPineapple]

Regardless of the mistakes they made, an engine being so sensitive to oil starvation is a pretty poor inherent issue. They didn’t come with the baffled oil pan from the factory, which while relatively easy to upgrade, isn’t going to be known by all owners especially people just getting into them. There are well built EJ’s that can last a long time, but overall they seem incredibly picky and unforgiving. I don’t blame Donut for that.

[@NuclearPineapple]

@@onyxphantom6762 exactly. It’s a lot like rotaries.

[@alienclay2]

On the last episode donut said they were using baffled pans the whole time.

[@jeffreyeidson3662]

@@alienclay2 IDK im pretty sure they said that they upgraded both Hi and Low to baffled pans after the fact so that they both dont run into that issue again...

[@cognition26]

The thing is if you do any track racing oil starvation is a very common problem. it's the main reason when you see a dedicated track car they usually have a dry sump. But if you talk to any real Subaru guy they will tell you unintentionally that Subaru's aren't worth it. They are not designed for high power. You can go talk to people that specialize in rebuilding EJs and they will tell you all these crazy specific things you have to do to ensure it doesn't blow. I get that it's a fun car but I would never own one.

[@banana-ui2qd]

for a "daily" it not being baffled is fine, everyone know ejs are unreliable saying they are is ignorant but donut are just going out buying junk cheap cars and engines and not changing the problems that they know they have and they taking it to a track where the chance of it blowing up is very high

[@knotical689]

Subaru guys are just different man. Every subaru guy I know has been through multiple engines. Had a hardcore WRX guy who's been modding them for decades tell me they're reliable, 10 minutes after explaining he keeps a spare EJ ready to go in his garage because he blows so many motors.

[@PROcrastiDRIVESVofficial]

100% FACTS! Oh and I'll add occasionally you meet these DIY mechanics who are really into Subaru's, usually middle aged with a few white hairs or a receding hairline. When these guys talk, I shut up and listen. These guys are the most incredible mechanics/engineers I have ever come across in my life. I don't know what it is, but yeah some of those Subaru people are different.

[@knotical689]

@@PROcrastiDRIVESVofficial I like going through NASOIC, even though I have no intention of owning a subaru. Their findings around detonation, fuel quality, oil quality, bearing failures etc... Are a gold mine for information they've come by the hard way. Lots that applies to any engine out there

[@PROcrastiDRIVESVofficial]

@@knotical689 Yep! I have learned heaps from NASIOC even before I owned a Subaru.

[@cognition26]

Facts 😂 bro. Some people don't understand the term reliable.

[@jub07]

Lol, it's an abusive relationship...

[@Peppa.Putona]

Video summary:"It's not Subaru's fault for making cars whit defects from factory. It's your fault for treating it like a Toyota and trying to have fun whiteout doing a extensive research on what could go wrong on the car"

[@imto5]

😂

[@lyteness859]

dudes trying to take advantage of their 7m viewers and i’m certainly fooled

[@RChero1010]

It's not extensive research though. You should be looking at covering your bases before taking ANYTHING onto the track with good tires, because (shocker) street cars aren't designed to handle 1+ lateral G from factory.

[@obeseperson]

@@RChero1010 No

[@Thesinistereyes1]

@@RChero1010 except the WRX is literally made for Rally racing that's why it exist. It was a racing car before it was a street car.

[@AlineaEuros]

Idk bro, if you have to modify the engine to make it reliable at all, then it's probably not very reliable, Subaru should have done a better job, and this is what happens when they dont, the last thing anybody has to worry about is Subaru's reputation when they have all these problems from the factory.

[@UmbraWeiss]

Exactly, i don't even know why he made a video about it, these engines suck and everyone knows about it ,there is a reason why subaru still sells engines for these, because they know this to.

[@mikemichaelson120]

As an Audi owner, I can say confidently that I accept my cars downsides. Shit breaks and when it does it is expensive, most of my Audi owning friends have the same attitude. Subaru owners, will insist that Subarus are reliable while blowing white smoke out of their exhaust in a car that’s on its third engine rebuild in 120K miles

[@UmbraWeiss]

@@mikemichaelson120 Yup, this is true too, i work with cars , so i know every car has a downside, some have bigger problems than the rest, i had subarus in the garage multiple times, if you use these engines like a normal person it will last at least 150k -300-400k max ,depends on luck, but the last one i had in the garage had 160k and has similar problems, that is not to bad but it's not to Good compared to other cars out there. I for one have 2 cars exactly because of this reason, i know the Bmw i have is a trash when it comes to anything, so i have a renault that i know will work all the times without any major problems. I have that car only because it's fun to drive and nothing more, Subarus are the same way after they hit that 150k mark, you don't know when it dies, and if those who change your oil and filters don't care what comes out of the engine , you will never know until it dies, that is the biggest problem with these cars,most mechanics don't even look how the oil is in the cars they change the oil....

[@albertquintero5412]

That why I love my ls engines

[@yourmother694]

Subaru had the ej255, Audi had the 4.2 v8, GM had the 3.6v6, every manufacturer has their own special engine that like to go boom all the time

[@thechillywinds5810]

Blew up an ej255 by literally driving it as a commuter for 5k miles. Maybe saw redline twice, never excessive lateral g's. Was my first car, checked the oil everyday because I didn't wanna make any rookie mistakes. Well 6 years later I have my boosted k20z3 making 430hp for the past 78k miles on top of the 73k miles it already had. On a completely stock engine and trans. I'll never stop dissing any ej subaru.

[@henrykalinowski9028]

Yup dropped my 2011 STI and bought an 06 Rsx-s and used the money left over to mod the shit out of it. Haven't missed that pile EJ once

[@thebiggamers999]

how do you redline in daily commute?

[@jamesh5111]

Cant beat a Honda brother. May not be the coolest but they’re damn reliable.

[@jamesh5111]

Cant beat a Honda brother. May not be the coolest but they’re damn reliable.

[@MisoElEven]

@@thebiggamers999 Put you foot on the pedal and press it...

[@hellowhat7803]

Lol people are butt hurt about it, lol well Subaru are known for it, there 350z didn’t even have all these issues

[@OldieProductions]

Not butt hurt at all, just pointing out the reasons why they're having so many issues.

[@802Garage]

Ever work on or own one? There is a reason Subaru owners like them and know they aren't garbage. They had rebuilt engines of unknown pedigree and didn't even bother to do a break in oil change. Plus numerous other issues. Watch Smeedia's video too. This is far from the first issue with Donut.

[@timhortons232]

350z don't have issues, lol okay. Insert your headgasket joke here that was relevant 20 years ago.

[@OldieProductions]

@@timhortons232 People love using the head gasket joke. Usually the go to joke for people who have no idea what they're talking about.

[@timhortons232]

@@OldieProductions legit, hasn't been an issue since the late 90's early 00's? Treat em right and they will last, I've managed to get 90k km out of my FA20 pushing 387-415whp

[@SvgRbt]

I think they depicted what owning a Subaru is like, for first timers, quite well. Of course you should always do your research. But to new car enthusiasts buying these cars the high low subi series taught them a lot. However, these are problems that you would not encounter in other enthusiast's brands, such as honda and toyota. I'm looking forward to seeing what Donut does with these cars in the future though.

[@OldieProductions]

I work on my Honda more than I do my Subaru. That’s just me though.

[@sitandrot]

@@OldieProductions but I guarantee you spent less money on it than your subies😂

[@OldieProductions]

@@sitandrot Absolutely incorrect. Honda parts are insanely expensive. My starter is currently going out. A brand new one is $350.

[@frodosfrostbite]

@@OldieProductions I've had to do far more work on my 2010 SI than my 2006 Hawkeye when I had it

[@auto6547]

why are you guys spending so much money every year on your cars. my nissan frontier only gets a oil change and its from 2001 and also I live in the rust belt. my dad was the first owner and im the second and so far the only things since new that have been replaced are a 15$ knock sensor, 30$ thermostat and it got new rotor, cap, plugs and wireset a year ago because I told my dad that even tho they where not acting up they had been on the car since 2001. honestly i havent seen the CEL light since it was gifted to me. ive done maintence before anything can occur and likewise my dad . the chassis has had frame protection for quite some time and it has scorpion bedliner. usually only bolts are rusted and hidden parts but for the most part everything is pretty easy to get off. my dad had a honda accord which wasnt as good though, so maybe some cars are just angels and others are lemons

[@vr6g608]

Gears and gasoline made a big impression on me for subarus. I already wasnt really a fan and they solidified that

[@j.a.g.8689]

Opposite for me, I was a fan and now I view these cars as 50/50 in terms of reliability. When ben did all thay reliability stuff to his and it blew up on the dyno I just shook my head

[@cognition26]

Dude I couldn't believe it. He spent around 35k just to make 500 wheel. After I saw that I understood why people make the effort to swap 2JZs or RBs into Subaru's.

[@j.a.g.8689]

@@cognition26 yeah, some bullshit right. Subies quite literally have a cult following

[@OldieProductions]

@@cognition26 Id be the first to tell you that if you want big power for the least amount of money possible, don’t build a Subaru. There are better options. People are acting like I’m saying they’re the greatest cars ever made. I’m not.

[@bendavis9524]

My 03 forester has 250k miles on it. Best 2300 bucks I ever spent

[@kylemitlyng6524]

I have 3 instances of friends who have blown their Subarus as well, same issues and thousands of dollars down the drain. I think donut created a great example of what a normal guys (not experts or snobs) can expect from their Subarus in stock form. Sure, they demonstrated "negligence" but I think most normal guys might unintentionally do the same thing. Subarus are clowned on for a reason and they cannot be treated like something with a 2JZ or an LS. They are unique cars and I personally love the way they sound, but be ready to work on them or spend the time and money to pay someone else to.

[@djblc2201]

Right on mate totally agree with you

[@joshuakhaos4451]

Ive had a few friends dip their feet into the WRX/STI phase about 8 years ago. they all had serious problems and now are Subaru free. Meanwhile our other friend owned a Turbo Volkswagen and I owned an 05 Cobalt SS. Both cars not known for stellar reliablity, but better than their Subarus.

[@michaelgutierrez2690]

2 different places of work 2 different people both had wrx stis both told me the same thing engines blown waiting to pay it off so that they could drop an LS into it

[@Aus.S7in]

I feel like rotaries and boxer motors are in the same boat. The people who know get the best from them, while the people who expect ls, and 2j reliability call them pos motors.

[@nicholassilvestri1804]

Well, i wasn’t there when they were driving/rebuilding them, but from a high performance longevity standpoint, Subaru’s have always had more problems than other Japanese manufacturers in general. I don’t hate Subarus though, some last a very long time

[@OldieProductions]

This. I’m not saying they’re the best vehicles ever made. They have their issues. I just hate how they’re portraying them.

[@fluffiestmallard6484]

@@OldieProductions It's not like they broke them on purpose man. They kept breaking on their own

[@ruslanvaliullin7734]

<a href="#" class="seekto" data-time="330">5:30</a> I think they sent the engine to be rebuilt and got it back. What he meant by "supposedly" is that the guy who did the job might not have done anything at all.

[@erikmexico11]

I have had 4 friends owning subarus. 3 of them ended up blowing their engines. Yes, you can make these cars super fast and reliable but that’s isn’t a easy task nor is it cheap. I wouldn’t feel comfortable owning let alone modifying an STI. That’s why I had to go with my evo 9. So much more forgiving and so much easier to work on. Sad that subaru never made an In-line 4😢 I love the body of the 05-07 design and chassis but what kills it for me Is the boxer engine. With that being said, when I see a well built Subaru I tend to appreciate it that much more. Regardless, build whatever you feel like building!

[@salty9781]

Same I originally wanted an sti but after reading forums and talking to people that i know own the cars i ended up going with an evo

[@pootis818]

Same a bunch of the ppl i know or talked to who are or were subi owners said there engine blew

[@damienorr4800]

@@salty9781 and any better how your Evo doin

[@salty9781]

@@damienorr4800 good so far motor and trans are strong

[@masonzizovski449]

Yep I have three subaru friends and two of them blew up their engines, one of which was actually a new model. When the rate of people blowing up subaru engines up is over 50% I think they might not be the most reliable…

[@Gunma_garage]

Suby head and 12yr technician here. I understand the frustration but they can be extremely finicky but also very reliable. Definitely need to do the due diligence to keep them happy but I'll forever drive one.

[@BurninSnowMan]

Ok the engine break in thing, I do agree with break in periods. But the spun bearing is from oil starvation at the track like you said because the car does not have a baffled oil pan. So break in period or not that would have still happened.

[@jamesmedina2062]

race cars have more space in bearings for oil and use heavier oil so it is all part of the design. Insufficient space will not allow for enough oil to flow. But as far as break-in goes I suppose that the bearing clearances would not change any after break-in period. But as a system goes rings that are tight will subject the bearings to more load than looser ones and therefore contribute to spun bearing.

[@Yoshi6969]

In the season finale they talked about how they put baffled oil pans on pretty early in the series but apparently never mentioned it until then.

[@leb66]

yo dude love ur Iketani pfp

[@michaelcogan270]

They said it sarcastically and said we definitely didn't put it on after our first engine blew up so thats when they put it in

[@Yoshi6969]

@@michaelcogan270 ah I see, I just remembered them saying they did actually put them on. Watched it when it came out so it wasn't really fresh in my memory

[@Yoshi6969]

@Leb! thanks man! I thoroughly enjoyed Initial D

[@Tofu_Slayer]

I think that them running into these issues demonstrates what a new owner should expect coming into the platform. If they still don't like it or aren't open minded then they've been weeded out. It's a win win I say

[@ishikawa7077]

Funny part is, no other car companies suffer from the same issues straight from the factory. So you're right, idiots will keep buying Subarus and running them into the dirt, smart people will keep buying more RELIABLE cars from the factory. Its honestly a miracle they haven't been bought out yet. A real car company could really help them and do a lot for them.

[@MacSalad__]

“EJ255 is arguably the worst turbo 4 cylinder “ I feel like this just contradicted his whole video

[@OldieProductions]

As if every engine, from every other manufacturer is just sooo perfect. Lmfao.

[@caseylee3350]

Donut 🍩 rocks I've owned 2 Subaru's one was a 2007 wrx and one was a 2008 6 cylinder.. both had massive problems and I was always taking good care of both

[@VeganBytes]

I was laughing so much at this vid 🤣 "they went fast around a corner causing oil starvation" 😆 "thats negligence" 😂 The engineers at Subaru are the ones being negligent here.

[@remissiveslave]

I've driven nearly a dozen cars in last 12 years and every single one I drove aggressively. 1. Was a 2.0 slow golf, brought with around 80 k, put 30 k on it, only service I did before it was flooded in Irene, was oil change, filter change basically. It wasn't fast but when corners and windy roads came up I was driving with pretty high g's and very often. Never had issues. Same with a focus, 250 k beat the fuxk out of it, no problems. Fa 20 has rod bearing failure under 50 k and I literally drove this thing very casually. I was planning on paying it off then modding it. Never saw past 4 k other than maybe a few occasions. Only thing I can think led to it was oil starvation on a few times it was a little sideways. VERY RARELY AT THAT.

[@RehsNahk]

Donut didn’t ruin Subarus reputation. Subaru ruined Subaru’s reputation.

[@antbankzbruh]

Everyone ive ever met that had a Subaru said nothing positive of reliability wether stock or modified. I love the look and features of them but they seem like they are a mechanics friend.

[@OldieProductions]

It’s all about who has owned it and how they’ve treated it. If you buy an abused car, it’s going to have problems. No matter the brand.

[@solaryellowis3007]

Got a blown up impreza i might buy from my customer for a quick flip. Stock auto wrx with 97k miles.

[@leb66]

@@OldieProductions dude have u seen what Top Gear did to that hilux?

[@trilliamogdlocog4986]

@@OldieProductions yeah but you cant deny other car/ engines etc are more finicky then others and let's just say subaru isn't known for having top tear reliability regardless of how a owner took care of it most subarus aren't going to see super high mileage without major work...Not saying they aren't cool other brands like mazda and their rotorys have flaws aswell but atleast mazda guys will tell folks straight up why their builds break down etc besides beating around the bush and blaming it on maintenance ...

[@OldieProductions]

@@trilliamogdlocog4986 I’m not denying at all that there are better platforms.

[@architecteye6089]

I've had 3 Subaru's. I've been a mechanic for 10 years. The older models say pre-2000's were the best. Everything afterwards falls short when it comes to reliability. I had an FRS and spun a rod bearing & 65k miles lol. 06 Hawkeye that blew a head gasket on stock boost. My GC8 was amazing though. Had a 2.0L STI engine. You could beat that car all day and it would never break. Looked the best too. I've since moved on to another horribly unreliable car that I has yet to let me down even though it's approaching 200k miles. BMW E46 lol.

[@OldieProductions]

In my opinion it all boils down to the owners and how they treat the cars.

[@Tachyon836]

I say EJ20s are the best ones, it's the newer motors and the EJ25s that I question

[@razzor4708]

its called "planned obsolescence" and you - people - led to this due to overconsumption. that's why old Hilux and GC\RS Impreza\Legacy\Forester is a tank style vehicles. Driving and Answers actually did a lot of exposing this. Speaking of Subaru he has "iconic engines" video series about EJ

[@Tachyon836]

@@razzor4708 Driving 4 answers is an excellent channel, have learned alot from them

[@joecam7109]

Pretty sure you were just picking up some groceries in your hawkeye for that to happen right? Stock boost you say, wasn’t modded at all, were you having too much fun or just cruising? It’s kinda hard to blow those turbo model’s multilayer steel headgaskets unless they really overheat or overboosting, you’re more likely to lift a head. 😂

[@spideybuildscars]

I was truly introduced to Subaru through Smeedia. I was excited for the Hi Lo Subarus at first because I thought we would get expensive/cheap reliability mods, and a discussion on WHY they need those mods to stay reliable. Was really sad and shocked they skipped over them. And James Pumphry admitted they hadn’t even broken in the hi cars motor in the first episode, which made me scared for the rest of the series.

[@playingisgame]

It's 2023 you don't need to break in an engine... also bad break in doesn't damage bearings...

[@spideybuildscars]

@@playingisgame a fully built engine does need a break in period and it can totally ruin bearings.

[@MrRadicalMoves]

@@playingisgame the year makes no difference... you 100% need to break in a fresh engine. Even fresh cars out of the factory need broken in properly. If you pick up any modern car manual that comes with an IC engine, I can almost 100% guarantee you that there is an engine break in procedure somewhere within its pages for that car.

[@playingisgame]

@@spideybuildscars explain to me how a bad break in ruins bearings...... ? cause i know breaking in is about cylinder walls & piston rings.

[@SrTitusTheGreat]

@@playingisgame metal from break in material and if you don’t change the oil multiple times in the first thousand miles the metal can end up all throughout your motor even in rod bearings

[@dazeen9591]

I mean.. honestly I never knew Subaru WRXs had engine problems.. but when I googled it.. lots of people complaining the engines blow up.. so clearly it's fact.

[@jerrysherwood2886]

Donut media isn't ruining Subarus rep, Subaru does that on they're own (mind you I do love my Soobies). I think donuts hi-low series this time is an actual, accurate representation of the majority of the populations car projects lol. If you have ever had a project then you have gone through this.

[@OldieProductions]

I’ve had multiple Subaru projects and have never gone through this. Because I treat my cars right.

[@jerrysherwood2886]

Not every one does. I've had 2 subies and neither blew up like this. Still stand by what I said though. I've met so many people where this is how the projects go. Not every one is as mechanically inclined as some of us. Best of luck on every ones projects though!

[@Hugo350R]

@@OldieProductionswell I feel like you just have to be more much more careful with a Subaru. They’re not as forgiving as other cars. I’ve seen too many friends blown up Subarus. Meanwhile I had my untuned e85 Volvo 940 turbo taking all the beating in the world. Or any of my LS vehicles. You just have to be more mindful with Subarus is all.

[@OldieProductions]

@@Hugo350R And I completely agree with that statement. I never said they were THE BEST most reliable cars like everyone is assuming. I’m just saying they’re not as bad as everyone makes them out to be.

[@urgandma]

@@OldieProductions plenty of guys jump into the Honda scene, there are lemons, lots of first time car owners, guys unfamiliar with Honda, negligent owners, but they don't have a crap reputation. Speaks for itself.

[@vanouellette8031]

Oh so just everyone who owns a Subaru is very negligent to maintenance, it’s not how unreliable the car is

[@michaelclark3192]

While I loved my lifted 2006 Subaru Forester XT it was a reliability nightmare and my experience with it was cut short by gradual head gasket failure on the ej255 engine. As this was a high KM car that I paid $8000 for it wasn't worth me spending the $5000 to get the gaskets fixed. Plus they're not very fuel efficient commuting cars so I ended up buying a 2006 Honda Jazz for less almost $2k less than the head gasket cost and that car was extremely reliable and very cheap to work on, I turned it into fun hill car and also tracked it once and never worried about blowing it up. At 275,000km the Honda was still on the original clutch and I never even changed the coolant or gearbox oil.

[@PiroFyre]

OK. So I guess it's not obvious with the Subaru community on why they said "supposedly rebuilt". The motor blew up on them after getting a rebuild. They said "supposedly" because they couldn't believe it blew up so fast and was probably questioning if it was even rebuilt. They most likely had someone else rebuild it (since they lack a lot of knowledge on rebuilding a Subaru motor and even working on Subarus in general) and probably thought they got scammed because they weren't expecting an engine failure so fast.

[@joaohenz6061]

Imagine if you have to buy a new engine every time you hit the track

[@RC-no3uw]

Subaru tech here and they arent lying , subaru does not retain reliability

[@JRRowen-ht6du]

My 2002 WRX has 237000+ miles on original ej205 and still going today ✌

[@djmartin4776]

How dare donut for thinking that you can beat on an unmodified Subaru for 13 min without costing you a motor. Everyone knows it needs $8,000 in upgrades before you can go more than half throttle

[@joetroy2904]

Zach wasn’t saying that the brakes the car comes with are horrible, he was saying that car in particular braked horribly, which ended up being the fault of a busted brake line if I remember correctly.

[@villedocvalle]

Lol imagine running rubber hoses and talking shit about braking.

[@Alltracavenger]

I'll start off by saying I'm neither a fan of Donut or Subaru; I live in Colorado where Subarus are a dime a dozen and you can't throw a rock down a residential street without hitting a few Outbacks, a couple normal Imprezas, one or two WRXs and maybe an STi. On the Donut front I find James incredibly grating and obnoxious, and I refuse to watch their content as a result. That said the critical thing here is that they didn't observe any break-in procedures, and I'm sure they didn't take any precautions to shore up any weak spots in the engine/drivetrain before taking it on the track. Tracking a car puts far more stress on it than normal(or even enthusiastic) street driving and it's up to the vehicle's owner to address these issues. I know someone who took a bugeye WRX to well over 200K before having significant issues, but they did proper maintenance to it(including regular coolant changes). They require more care and feeding than, say, a Civic or Corolla, but if that care and feeding is done they'll work well and will be reliable.

[@muttenmagroo]

I loved my Subaru impreza during the time I owned it, but something was always breaking. Wheel Bearings, CV axle boots, ball joints, O2 sensors, Coil packs, every bushing known to man, and finally oval bores, vvt solenoids, burning oil, and oil starvation which lead to bearing death. Dropped Valve Guides, leaking head gasket. I miss driving that car but holy hell it was fragile.

[@fadmap9676]

My wife and i have had 4 Subarus over 14 years all bought new off the lot never had a single issue with any of them. Wife has a WRX hatchback she bought new off the lot, 80k miles later 0 issues. Her current daily is a 2012 WRX she also got new, never had any issues. I had 2 STIs, a 2010 & 2019. 0 issues, got both new off lot, but I traded both in for a TRD Tundra recently but I do miss them, I can still take my wife's hatch out once in awhile since it just sits in the garage. So what it comes down to is maintenance and upkeep with these cars. Kids get their hands on them and mutilate them, throw terrible tunes on them supported by cheap quality parts and they abuse them. It's bound to have issues. Take good care of them, plain and simple.

[@OldieProductions]

You hit the nail on the head.

[@zokusharuuku1091]

I have a very interesting history with my sti. I bought a forged internals sti that I raced around at 24psi for 7 years before I had to replace anything on it and of course it was the head gasket. Why you ask? Because they put the stock type known to fail after 100,000 miles on a modified engine back on. You must put a mls head gasket on a ej if you plan to raise the boost. I rebuilt the engine with the most aggressive off the shelf cam, largest possible stock location turbo, new closed deck block built to handle 1000hp, drag ported heads, oversized valves etc and the car made 510whp at 25 psi on the break in tune. It was scheduled to go back after a couple months and tune it on high boost 36 psi or so when I moved and had to postpone the tune. 7 months of babying the car to work and back with the occasional 3-4 seconds of fun which was all it took to go well over the speed limit and it spun a rod bearing while it was warming up on the way to work (driven under 2500rpm) Now I had changed the oil 2000 miles ago and had planned on changing it the very next day sadly but what I hadn’t realized was happening was that in the 5 degree weather it was warming up in the driveway for 3-4 minutes every day was that it was burning oil and lots of it from the forged pistons taking a long time to warm up. Now I usually check my oil every week or so but it was very cold and maybe I skipped a week or two since I never had to add oil in the last 7 months of checking and turns out it was 2 quarts of oil low. Which ladies and gentlemen turns out is all you need to be to spin a rod bearing. Sadly there is nobody near me who can fix the car or is willing to so it has been sitting with its broken fully built engine the last year and I have no intentions of selling or fixing it until I save up the $20,000 I have been quoted by the closest Subaru performance shop to fix it (so probably never since there’s just better things I can do to my turbocharged mr2 spyder with that sort of money) which mind you is less than I paid to fix it the first time. Problem is with having such expensive parts in an engine is when they break you have to replace them and it’s just as expensive to replace them the second time as it was the first time. For this reason in the future I’ll be keeping most of my other modified cars engine internals relatively stock so when one engine goes it’s easy enough to throw another in.

[@PhoenixRising251]

I'm nearly 60, been in the car scene since my teens with no plans of stopping. I don't care what you drive as it makes absolutely no difference to me, just don't be a jerk about what you drive. Sadly one things I've seen for many years in the import car world is snooty, opinionated Subaru owners having some of the worst attitudes. That's not my opinion, rather my observation. Without fail 99% of the time I encounter one of these cars in my rear view mirror I'm immediately on alert. They spot my EG hatch on the road and act like complete imbecilic morons. And they'll even pull some of the worst moves in heavy rush-hour traffic in trying to catch up to me. Some of these drivers aren't young teenage kids either, they're definitely old enough to know better. I've abruptly pulled into parking lots or turn on another street to avoid them when they behave in such manner. I've had too many close calls and it gets really old dealing with it. Since even does having an AWD boosted car make these drivers feel invincible? 🤦

[@JayOnzs03]

You have to admit that anyone getting into cars, which is who they're speaking to, should know this about subarus. Even with you "clearing this up", a smart buyer would stay away

[@fmartin59]

Exactly Toyota Supra from 90s was more reliable than modern Subarus.

[@Mike_Atwell]

This is the 3rd video of a Subaru guy saying that donut is wrong about Subaru being unreliable, but then saying all these things about Subaru being actually unreliable.

[@OldieProductions]

No once did I say they were unreliable. But you keep telling yourself what you want to hear I guess.

[@Mike_Atwell]

@@OldieProductions my comment stated you said things about them being unreliable. Which is true.

[@OldieProductions]

@@Mike_Atwell I said there are better options than the Ej255.

[@Mike_Atwell]

@@OldieProductions you did say that.

[@a_rice_bowl3663]

I had a friend who was really into Subaru WRXs. But he told me not to, because as he put, “I have a parts Subaru for my parts Subaru”

[@Xchax3]

This still doesn't defend Subaru because they're completely right with their judgment on both cars. They're terribly designed engines. Simple. They're awesome cars when they work. They absolutely suck at maintaining functionality even in a short amount of time. Obviously, the catalyst was driving it fast at Willow Springs but it would have happened regardless. Without knowing the problems of each engine that they have produced, you're going to find those problems even sooner than expected before you have the chance to upgrade or maintain. The tolerances and margins for failure are smaller on these engines than on the other Hi and Lo videos. I just felt "I needed to stand up" for them here. I don't know exactly what the goal was here other than to get some views by hashtagging Donut Media, but if you were even half-serious then my condolences to you. That's what makes a Subaru a Subaru.

[@802Garage]

Just watched Smeedia's video. Glad to see more people addressing this. Donut is spreading a lot of misinformation and making the car community more toxic with this. Subaru is not shit, they can be very fun and reliable, they are very easy and logical to work on, and Donut really needs to do more self analysis. Personally, never been a Donut fan. They are for entertainment, not real information. Videos like this are why we will never get another STI and I don't appreciate it.

[@OldieProductions]

They definitely aren't doing us any favors.

[@jack8356]

Everyone knows Subaru arent reliable

[@802Garage]

@@jack8356 Tell that to the 10 Subarus well over 200K in my yard. :P

[@OldieProductions]

@Jack Correction, everyone just believes what they hear on the internet and have no firsthand experience.

[@authentic1369]

Mind telling me any examples or statements donut media made to misinform the community about the brand and cars of Subaru?

[@malakius]

Moral of the story, don't try to mod a Subaru because they are meant to be kept stock, and any minor modifications will blow it up.

[@atx-cvpi_99]

Well stock ones blow up as well.

[@AutomatedUser]

I feel you, but it is the average experience for a turbo scoob owner for it to blow up. The 2.5L has been around the longest and is the most common, and they just blow up. Sometimes multiple times. Literally the only engines I've ever had trouble with. Also we need to have a talk about the supposed torquey nature of boxers.... stop. They're worse than gutless down low, and don't try to use that admittedly fine midrange torque or the engine will shit out in some manner. There's literally no situation where the stock setup is okay to just leave alone and enjoy. In other words, it's a bad engine.

[@OldieProductions]

I have left every Subaru I’ve ever owned mostly stock and have enjoyed every second of it with zero issues.

[@AutomatedUser]

@@OldieProductions how many turbo 2.5 scoobs you got with over 100k miles on the unmodified original engine?

[@OldieProductions]

@@AutomatedUser I’ve had 3. One of which was bone stock, the other two were lightly modified with stock blocks. Also had a 2017 STI with almost full bolt ons for 40k miles. It’s not rocket science. Do research, modify with quality parts, and tune appropriately.

[@slothonastick32]

Comments aren't going how this guy expected lmao. Everyone I know with a subie has blown motors

[@OldieProductions]

The comments are going EXACTLY how I expected. Debate and controversy creates traction.

[@nickwagner2284]

The thing is that Donut does the same sorts of things to other models without these issues. It’s not so much that they’re unreliable, it’s that they require more upkeep and maintenance than many other Japanese cars.

[@TDT0188]

circumstance and knowledge are really the factor here. the subaru is not a platform that you just start throwing parts at and hope for the best. not to mention that they didnt break in any of the engines. they literally started thrashing these cars without doing any break in or pre track testing. subaru designed these cars for snowy commutes not hot track days and they didnt do anythign to prevent the inevitable failures you'd see on track. Neither did Donut media, which is why they had so many issues. the problem with turbo subarus is that they're marketed like rally cars and built like cheap trash. you have to throw so much money at them to make them reliable track or performance cars compared to better platforms.

[@carneasada3693]

Very well said I’ve had 3 Subaru and all of them went over 250k miles of course with issues over time but never a blown motor

[@OldieProductions]

Unfortunately these cars end up being a product of marketing towards the younger generation. Teenagers with little to no money and no common sense often beat them into the ground and wonder why something went wrong.

[@skillergamer3746]

All I got to say is that you're backing Subaru up a little bit too much the oil problem first of all is just completely out there

[@jacobsuess8033]

My 06 sti gave me a scare when I got it home. I looked at the roughness on each cylinder because the idle was off and it was slightly shaking and what do you know, I have a misfire on cylinder 4 with no engine codes. Hope this one isn't to expensive. My 05 sti that I have also ran into the same issue but ended up being a vacuum leak. I love these cars and their history but damn do they rile me up

[@Cherrybomb-rp1vx]

Hope the new engine you’re gonna need ain’t to much

[@EddySpaghetty]

The way I see it is, there's 2 or 3 types of engines when it comes to modifying, there's type one which is engines like the B58, Gen 3 Coyotes, and/or 3rd gen viper V10s, these are engines that have a ton of potential, handle a ton of boost, and can get to 2 or 3 times their stock power levels without having to be replaced with a billet block. Then there's type 2 like the LT4 GM block, the late S197 GT500 motor, and the LS engines, where they can make power really well but unless you build the block you're limited to like 750whp before it goes boom. Then there's the 3rd type which is engines like any and all Subaru engines, the 392/6.4L hemi, and the D series Honda engines. these are engines that don't make power unless fully built, can't take any boost at all, and honestly are better stock or else the Pistons, rods, and crank will leave the chat before you even have a chance to contact a tuner. so before you drop $10k into a platform, ask yourself, am I really building this car for what it's meant to? Or am I trying to build a drag car out of a Pentastar 3.6L V6 Chrysler 300? Know what the fuck you want to build it for and choose the right car before you all complain "oh my god of course the engine blew up after he spent $300 on intake and exhaust! You have to buy a $2000 oil pan first!!! Dumbass!" If it's a shit platform it's a shit platform admit it and move on stop blaming donut for making entertaining videos they didn't make any breaking news showing that Subarus are unreliable as fuck everybody knew that already they're just showing exactly how unreliable they are. Stop crying

[@OldieProductions]

First of all, nobody is crying about anything. I’m simply voicing my opinion, no different than you are. So by your logic, you are also crying. Secondly, why would I admit it’s a shit platform when it’s not? I would be the first to tell you that if you want to build a track car, there are definitely better options. Y’all are making it out like I’m saying Subarus are gods greatest gift to the earth, when that’s not what I’m saying at all. I’m simply pointing out the mistakes that they made, creating a controversial topic of discussion, and reaping the benefits of the traction it has gained. Simple as that. So thanks for your bump in the algorithm. And lastly… stay mad I guess.

[@BoostedSpeedDemon]

The best thing about being a Subaru owner, is feeding so many Subaru Mechanics families🤣

[@nesbygalvan2088]

Nope, I’ve had a couple friends go through the same thing donut media has shown. They didn’t hurt Subarus reputation, it was already established and they just showed the reality of these cars.

[@jmoore9806]

Regardless if it was rebuilt or forged built, if u do a track day with the stock oil pan you can expect a rebuild very soon

[@Chriskary1]

But any other car would be fine. So that says something

[@natanaelonate5193]

@@Chriskary1 yea thats true but the people who know about subarus would have known what parts to upgrade and with what. Them not knowing anything about subarus is what let them to not do the essential upgrades

[@Chriskary1]

@@natanaelonate5193 once again it’s still showing how fragile they are. I don’t hate WRXs and STIs matter of a fact I love them. I just don’t trust them. Never have and never will.

[@-WhiskeyAndSteel-]

@@natanaelonate5193 my 30 year old 200k mile ka24e still rips at the track in 240sx. Boxer engines just suck. Get over it.

[@natanaelonate5193]

@@Chriskary1 theyre not for everyone

[@tervenjames8305]

They were accurate , that's how it is for first time owners who know nothing about the engine.

[@bengibson3955]

I just don’t get it. I’ve done something like 1000+ laps of competitive motorsport (including winning a few trophies) in a Subaru. The majority of these laps were done in an EJ207 GDB STi running 20+ psi boost and being revved as it needed to be to win the aforementioned trophies. I never lost an engine, other than the dirt khanacross I did in my wife’s turbo Forester, where the boost control feed from the compressor housing came off, effectively leaving me with a massive boost spike from the tiny little TF035 turbo. I’ve never used a baffled sump, although I did go to the twin-scroll sump/Killer B oil pickup with my built EJ257 that’s sitting where the EJ207 once sat. All I can figure is that I’ve been obsessive about oil changes, I ensure there’s plenty of the slippery black stuff in there to avoid starvation, and I’ve been quite OCD when it comes to warming up and cooling down the drivetrain when doing supersprint/time attack events. Nearly forgot to mention that the EJ257 has been built and tuned by one of the best Subaru builders/tuners (and drivers for that matter) that I could hope to find here in NSW, Australia. Check out MSR in Somersby if you want a fast and reliable Subaru track weapon. As far as I’m concerned, Subaru engines are completely reliable.

[@jagger2001]

Just coming to say that 1. They don't say the cars have bad brakes, they say that specific car has bad brakes because something is wrong with them. And 2 their latest episode they tear down the engine from the crashed car and reveal that they've been using aftermarket baffled oil pans in all the engines they've installed, and the reason it stopped running was the engine ran backwards (didn't push in the clutch) and broke a timing gear. Otherwise yeah they probably should have taken time to break in the engines, but still makes for good content

[@14luca95]

I live in Italy, here there are very few subies, anyway I always liked them since I was a kid and now I own two: a 2011 WRX STI (with the infamous EJ257) and a 2007 Forester with the NA EJ20 as a daily. I also owned a 2011 hatchback Impreza with the diesel EE20 engine that probably you never got in the USA. This is the list of issues I had in these cars during the years: the turbo to intercooler pipe cracked in the diesel Impreza at 200.000 km. Fixed it and sold the car a year and a half later. The car is still on the road with the new owner, and it has over 300.000km. In my WRX STI, just a month after I bought it, the steering box started leaking. It was covered by the warranty, so I fixed it and right now I owned the car for 3 years without problems. Nothing to say about the Forester, it always worked perfectly. So, the only thing I do for my subies to be reliable is just treat them well with all the maintenance they need.

[@vanouellette8031]

Reputation?? Bruh Subarus reputation is terrible engines and transmissions. They’re just showing what Subarus do. My whole life all I here from my Subaru owner friends, is blown up engine, blow trans, burning oil, head gaskets, low miles lots of issues. Recalls recalls recalls

[@TheCalvinator07]

In fairness, in episode 2 they admitted not breaking it in is likely what caused it.

[@OldieProductions]

It's absolutely what caused it.

[@owenhunt6796]

@@OldieProductions was there a reason you left it out of the video?

[@OldieProductions]

@@owenhunt6796 I didn’t. Again, did you even watch the video?

[@jeffreyeidson3662]

@@OldieProductions nah bud, the break in wouldnt have solved the oil starvation, which is what blew the engine.(actually all the engines they went thru) that is an engineering/manufacturer issue

[@bena8272]

WRX are notoriously unreliable, and cheaply made cars... Doesn't mean you can't love them.

[@triston5540]

This is the first time I’ve come across your channel, this was a good video. Earned a sub. The problem with Subarus is this I think: People treat Subarus like Hondas. They don’t do any maintenance😂 almost all of the “problems” with Subarus come from a lack of maintenance and rarely just from poor design. I have a NA 03 bugey wagon. Legit the easiest car to work on. And dead reliable.

[@nelsonzayas7514]

Unfortunatelly my experience with subaru has always been leaking valve covers, bad head gaskets and rod knocking engines. Its true they can be reliable but the same can be said about rotaries. Like rotaries you need a lot of knowledge before owning one, which doesnt make them practical to car guys trying to get in to their first subarus.

[@Rad1oD3mon]

Low Key, had no clue who Donut Media even was before this video. Personally in my opinion, and as an owner myself, 99% of all Subaru problems are owner rooted. Things going wrong/failing due to unknowledgeable and reckless driving. Being in the car community has taught me one inevitable truth, a car is a reflection of it's owner; and that stems to overall longevity and reliability. How you treat your car is a reflection on how you go about treating many things in life.

[@DrRyan82994]

yup. they bought they're car for the company and took it straight to a race track

[@jeffreyeidson3662]

Im guessing you havent experienced many different driver/car combos. theres plenty of cars out there thatll run straight thru the abuse; and others(mainly subaru) are way too sensitive even for mechanics to rip on. Id just avoid any Subaru after all of the notorious problems they have.

[@IAMPOPP]

Almost all of the Issues I know people to have had with their Subarus always came down to doing Dumb things to make more Horsepower and not having a plan or researching how they should go about it. In other words self-inflicted by unknowledgeable Owners. I have taken care of my 2017 STI Limited and carefully went about upgrading it in ways that are acceptable for Subarus. People complaining and saying Subarus always break down when they have no knowledge or experience with Subarus always makes me cringe a little. If I decided to get into RX-7's but just winged it without gaining knowledge on Rotary engines and i blew the car up, well that would be my fault. Stop being Idiot people treat your cars well and know the platform.

[@JmMoto700]

For those in the comments the last video donut media did say that they insatalled the nessisary mods to prevent oil starvasion so all the engines that they went through had those mods and there was reasons why they upgraded the brakes on them 1 for content comparing brakes 2 because hi car had problems with its brakes and 3 because they were building track cars and wanted better brakes and for the negative comments about the cars donut media made is not that weird when they had all those issues with them they also made negative comments when they blew up the 350z so i don't get why so many think they targeted subaru they were bad and untenable🤷‍♂️

[@emoryzakin2576]

So I've never seen your channel before this and wanted to tell you you did an excellent job. It was very well thought out and addressed and it makes me smile seeing the younger generation appreciating and understanding these cars. Late 90's early 2000's I lived and breathed Honda/Nissan/Subaru and have been out of it for some time but still enjoy taking a peak at the scene. Well done man

[@CheeseSqueeze99]

So.....because subaru *poorly* designed an engine with flagrant, inherent, "holy fuck, how could you not understand this is a shitty idea" design elements......which is...yaknow...1000% subaru's fault and a commentary on their design quality, donut is slandering them?

[@ocd2222]

Subaru's don't need some youtubers to ruin their reputation, they already do it themselves with their crap engines

[@sakaraist]

Honestly I'd probably have to argue the opposite. While *most* of the commony issues can easily be avoided by someone who's been into the modding scene, had a few cars and knows failure points the overwhelming majority of people will just buy a car that looks like it's performance oriented and expect to be able to send it. I absolutely LOVE driving my subies but holy shit they are at the top of my ownership list of unreliability, I felt like I was always wrenching. People really should be more aware of their pitfalls and limitations before buying one, particularly if you don't have a lot of experience with them or the money to get your work done at a shop.

[@OldieProductions]

I agree 100%. However I don't have as many problems with my Subaru's as you seem to have, but yes, unfortunately these cars require quite a bit of knowledge and understanding to own and maintain. It just blows my mind that people buy cars with zero research and just go full send, then wonder why things break. That could never be me.

[@jsplit9716]

At <a href="#" class="seekto" data-time="520">8:40</a> you smear them needlessly. They did put baffled oil pans in both cars after the first damaged engine.

[@IcanDriveIt]

“Donut has ruined Subarus reputation” No, Subaru ruined its own reputation by not only making junk engines, but making them virtually unchanged for decades

[@fillhall4774]

I’m just saying, they are basically only having the most commonly reported problems that occur with that generation.

[@Milecarful]

I understand that they were obviously too inexperienced to handled the car, but special treatment does not make up for the fact that the car IS unreliable out of the factory. It's not quite like putting a Honda engine in a Ferrari, but imagine if you said that Ferraris are reliable cars IF you treat them right (never push them hard). That's not treating them right, that is just avoiding their known reliability issues.

[@OldieProductions]

Ferraris also don’t get daily driven by teenagers for 140k miles and then go full send on the track.

[@Milecarful]

@@OldieProductions It's even worse - they get dailied in the city by middle-aged men, then get full sent on the track. Because so many of them are rented, you will have no idea how they were treated. Furthermore, the issues you talked about and that are present are from the factory. They don't have much to deal with the expected wear and tear of an engine.

[@OldieProductions]

@@Milecarful You’re also comparing a sub$30,000 econobox to a high end luxury car. Not even in the same ballpark. The issues with Subarus are well known and well documented. The non baffled oil pans and pickups were just a few of the noteworthy cost saving measures. They didn’t intend for people to treat them like a full blown race car. I swear people expect high dollar performance out of low dollar cars and it blows my mind. These issues are KNOWN and yet people still buy them and cry about it when something goes wrong that they failed to address. I know about these issues, and guess how many major problems I’ve had out of the 20+ Subarus I’ve owned? Zero. Crazy right.

[@Milecarful]

@@OldieProductions I am not comparing the cars, I am comparing the reputation. What, you want to compare a Porsche to it? Maybe if the price matches the comparison for car reliability will be good? Or maybe you have an issue with the country of origin? Well, how about Mistsubishi then? Are blown head gaskets and crappy O rings where we draw the line, but oil starvation BY DESIGN isn't? Nobody expects the Subarus to perform good. They are slow cars and no one takes that against them. However, to claim that 2000s Subarus are reliable is clearly a biased statement divorced from reality. There were way more reliable cars both in that price and performance range. And based on the latest info we have, that the pans were there since the start, most of your arguments from the video have fallen into water anyways.

[@PUNKF001]

I hope they do a subaru vs rx8 comparison. To see which one breaks first.

[@SI0AX]

They would probably track the RX8 with all the factory cats in, get them clogged and the engine destroyed.

[@blablabla983]

had myself a 2002 wrx 2l turbo. with the STI 6 speed manual upgrade. bigger turbo and allot of nice small stuff to make it better, baffeled oil pan, sti injectors tgv delete, and so on. it made about 350 hp and i "ONLY" blew the original! yes original headgasket once. upgraded it and never had another problem. loved the car to death

[@fmartin59]

You’d not ever have had the head gasket issue on other brands.

[@CorlosMazda]

I used to work one one of the donut guys. And I believe at least two of them are automotive engineers to some degree. You can say whatever you want about subaru, but regardless of the generation or engine code I shouldn't have to change the oil pan and pickup tube on a stock car so it'll do what Subaru advertises it to do off the showroom floor. Subarus in general are glass. This is one of the weirder cope videos to pop up in my feed for no reason.

[@joshuakhaos4451]

I had a few friends that got into the STI phase 8 years ago. Needless to say, they quickly bailed once they realized these cars are not bulletproof. I even told them that they jumped in blind, but I was dismissed. I also say this as someone who owned a not so reliable car known as the Cobalt SS. But that car never left me stranded nor would break things back to back. Just little things here and there.

[@thegirthquake8574]

Alright boys and girls, who's less reliable? Subies or Rotaries?

[@g4bbn149]

They are reliable as long as you keep a spare engine🤣

[@tervenjames8305]

Lmao they changed 5 engines so something is up. The engine isn't reliable that much is a fact

[@kidthunder1311]

These comments "They aren't experts on Subarus, that's why they broke" If you need to be a certified mechanic to keep your car alive for a single day, then your car is a pile of shit.

[@OldieProductions]

No one is saying you need to be a certified mechanic to keep your car alive. However, if you’re going to be building and modifying your car, you should probably not be a dumbass.

[@builtvisions]

@@OldieProductions Lol, beat me to it. People truly are clueless about even the most basic understanding of engines 🤦🏾‍♂️

[@OldieProductions]

@@builtvisions Dudes acting like you have to do a full tune up every single day to keep a Subaru running. Lmfao.

[@SiCaRiI_DaGgEr]

@@builtvisions I agree, just reading some of the comments speaks volumes to your statement.

[@OldieProductions]

@@AndyZULUL Man you’re really digging DEEP in these comments to push your bias. We get it, you’re triggered.

[@Torresmeza9]

Well if those boxer engines weren’t ticking time bombs 🙄

[@Marticus518]

Took my suby to the track this summer, it's a 2013 sti, basic upgrades and about 65k miles on the clock. Went absolutely fine and I have some reliability supporting mods like a pro tune. I'm also thorough on maintenance. This winter I've already installed a killer b oil pickup with baffle and I'm also getting an AOS. Subys die when treated wrong, if you treat them right, you're dramatically increasing your cars chance of survival, which goes for any car. Know your motor and you'll be fine in absolutely most cases.

[@chaosengine3772]

These haters seem not to know these things. Nah, I don't think they are that dumb... Just trolls be a hating. Good thing they only exist on the net, not in the real world.

[@Hugo350R]

Subarus are just not as forgiving as other cars that’s all. Other cars can take more abuse and maintenance neglect compared to Subarus. That’s all it is, you just have to be more caring with a Subaru.

[@chaosengine3772]

@@Hugo350R I had three WRXs. Sold two, still have one with 110k miles. None of them ever had any issues other than the current one's plastic end tank radiator leaking at 101k miles. There is no forgiveness for being lazy maintaining any car. Kids heads today would explode doing all the frequent, routine maintenance in the pre electronic engine management days. All flat engines by nature can have oiling issues when doing straight line and lateral at high g-forces. Pushing beyond normal limits without doing one's homework is asking for trouble and will break things. Like doing doughnuts at high revs, roasting tires on any flat wet sump engine may cause starvation to spin a bearing. Normal on the street driving, there are no issues.

[@highwaltage]

my subaru wagon was fun. until it spun a bearing.

[@Mortimusmoose]

IF you get a good Subaru....you're lucky, and baby that thing! They're really hit or miss. Almost every single one that goes up for sale around my area needs wheel bearings, and they have rust issues....and thats at minimum.

[@countersteer713]

If your car NEEDS engine mods from the factory to be good, it's a legit knock against the car. Subaru loves to remind people of racing but you have to mod the oil system to drive it like they told you you could to get yoy to buy it.

[@subbiiee7795]

its not taking bad of them , ive learnd alot , but they have inspired me , and im bulding a sleeper subi so thanks to them ive learned alot

[@amazingskyland]

I've been driving the 2.5 WRX Turbo engine for almost 17 years and have never had any problems. I have driven a 2006 Impreza WRX for almost 10 years and I have driven the 2016 WRX STi for 7 years. I always warm up the engine first and don't always drive at high revs. I do an annual maintenance and oil change. When I see on KZbin how most people in the USA drive the STi, I'm not surprised if they break. VW has problems with the TSI engines and nobody talks about it. Greetings from Switzerland

[@grimfate9711]

I personally believe If you can't turn in a car it's not a good car I love the Subaru style but knowing that a hard turn will kill my engine is why I'll probably never get one even though I like everything else about their cars

[@thatguyinthatoneshow]

I understand that they could have treated the cars “better” by not driving them on a track for fun, but just how softly do you have to treat one of these 200hp cars? Maybe if it only makes as much power as a 1955 Cadillac 331, it shouldn’t be a faberge egg

[@DJY0241]

Subaru engines are pretty garbage tho……

[@jgrady3888]

I wouldn't call subarus unreliable, they are difficult to modify. The ej platform is NOT forgiving. You can't cut corners, you can't say "eh, close enough. Full send!" Other platforms will be more forgiving and you can get away with it. I have an 07 with over 180k miles on the original bottom end, currently making just under 400 whp. Don't cut corners and keep up with maintenance and you will see these motors last a long time.

[@brxvk_Media]

Ironic that I rebuilt my EJ255 right before this series came out and I’ve had 0 issues. Break in and break in tune specific to your exact motor is a must.

[@zakura70jr]

On of my downsides for this series was the turbo kit comparison... they compared 2 totally different turbos instead of comparing the same size turbo cheap vs expensive

[@likethehotels]

Didn't they explicitly state that they were using baffled oil pans ever since they blew up the first motor?

[@OldieProductions]

Did you even watch my video? I recorded this when they were on episode 6. They explained that in episode 8.

[@john.f.remedy.237]

I didn’t know some of these things until after the 1st yr of owning my Subie. Some cars need different types of attention and research of the most common problems based on what it’s being used for…

[@alexvela291]

As an enthusiasts with not a lot of funds I do like Donut Media lessons. I would buy a 350Z before I would get a Subi. At the same time Subarus as fun and powerful as they can be, do give lots of problems to their owners. Not even compare a Subaru to a Civic SI on reliability of engines and other parts. I thought it was great content from them as if you want a Subi to mod, you have to be really careful with what you are doing, there are lots of lessons to be learned. For that I will continue to drive my SI and beat the crap out of it.

[@JaegerWrenching]

Donut's video is a perfect representation of how a real first time Used Subaru owner would go through the learning pains of owning a Subaru IMO. You as a customer, shouldn't have to look to forums and the aftermarket parts companies to be able to drive your car as it was portrayed by the manufacturer to be driven. Imagine if your sports car blows up driving it like a sports car...... McLaren caugh caugh. I think Subaru should have recalled all the non baffled oil pan cars and swapped them out for baffled oil pans, especially if that's the actual fix.... My guess is the subaru engineers weighed their options and the Japanese's always thinking their cars don't break... found it to be a non issue for a high percentage of their vehicle owners, as they are grandmas and "I love my dog." owners.... thus subaru forwent any recall/solution. Regardless this is the same kinda deal as a 6.0 powerstroke, except the perception is/was head studs would fix the head gasket issues on 6.0s. However most don't know Ford had engineers on it willing to offer a headstud kit as part of a actual recall/solution, but during testing with head studs they found the issue was still present and found the problem to actually be cupping of the cylinder heads from inconsistent cooling during casting, along with being on the boarder of insufficient cylinder head material. Reduced material during casting cooling actually causes the cupping. Thus cylinder head resurfacing was not suggested because "not enough material is there to resurface" and many customers installed their own head studs to only be in the exact same boat a month later....

[@OldieProductions]

I understand your point and completely agree. The issues should 100% be rectified by the manufacturer. Unfortunately, they aren’t so it’s up to the consumer to either fix it or take the appropriate actions to avoid the issues it causes. Blows my mind that people don’t do even the slightest amount of research to figure out the issues of a car they’re interested in buying. If you know a car has issues with oil pan baffling, why on earth would you full send it on a track? Imagine I took my 2000 civic and proceeded to launch it over and over until the transmission exploded and then went on to say Honda is a dogshit company. That’s essentially what people are doing with Subarus. Pushing them past their limits and blaming the brand. Makes zero sense. All cars have limitations, if you’re dumb enough to push it past those limits, that’s on you.

[@JaegerWrenching]

@@OldieProductions I agree with doing your research and people now days are very ignorant especially when the information is so readily accessible. I will say this the difference is Honda doesn’t represent the civic as a “launch it” car while the WRX is at minimum represented as hybrid city/rally car. That’s where my issue with Subaru lies. Any competent person would do research, buy a baffled oil pan, and alleviate the issue. Just don’t claim to you can do X when doing X will actually hurt/break the car in stock form. Nonetheless I’m glad you have a passion for Subaru’s, turn it into something! I have a friends who owns a Subaru specific repair shop here and they are always packed with work, it’s a great way to help educate new owners and fix the known problems all while making money.

[@OldieProductions]

@@JaegerWrenching Only thing I’ll say to that is that rally is much different than a circuit track. So by that logic they’re being used as track cars when they are not represented as track cars. That was my point with the Honda reference. However I do appreciate you actually willing to have a conversation rather than immediately trashing the brand. By no means am I saying they are the best/most reliable cars ever, I’m just saying they’re not as bad as they’re made out to be. That’s all.