Cash for clunkers bill

[Mark Diegel]

My 1998 Jeep Cherokee qualifies for the voucher. Do I get the Forester or
the Outback auto. No serious off roading. Is the Outback worth the price
difference, or should I wait for the 2010s ( the voucher is good till end
ofDecember.

Mark

 

[Catherine Jefferson]

My 1998 Jeep Cherokee qualifies for the voucher. Do I get the Forester or
the Outback auto. No serious off roading. Is the Outback worth the price
difference, or should I wait for the 2010s ( the voucher is good till end
ofDecember.

I've owned and driven both Outbacks and now a Forester. Love the
Forester myself, but my husband and I actually do a significant amount
of offroad driving. (We've got skid plates on the bottom.) Truthfully,
however, either the Forester or the Outback can handle anything up to
moderately difficult offroad driving if the driver is skilled. Both
have a raised chassis; both have most of the same engine and
transmission features. I'd suggest taking both out for a drive and just
buying whichever works best for you.

Whichever model you choose, I'd wait til late 2009 if you can, then buy
a 2009. You should get as good a deal as you'll ever get on a Subaru.

 

[Yousuf Khan]

My 1998 Jeep Cherokee qualifies for the voucher. Do I get the Forester or
the Outback auto. No serious off roading. Is the Outback worth the price
difference, or should I wait for the 2010s ( the voucher is good till end
ofDecember.

I assume that that's an US government sponsored program. I don't know
too much about the program, since I'm in Canada, but I would assume that
they would want you buying North American manufactured vehicles wouldn't
they? I think the Outbacks produced in Illinois, but not the Foresters.

I might be wrong about the buy American requirements. If I am, then get
either type. I think the Outback might have better cargo space in the
back, while the Forester might have a more comfortable upright seating
position.

Yousuf Khan

 

[Jack Countryman]

The Subaru plant that makes the Outbacks, is just south of Lafayette, IN,
along the west side of I-65. Illinois is some distance farther west. I
went past the plant a few days ago...its still there next to I-65.
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[Ingo Menger]

Whichever model you choose, I'd wait til late 2009 if you can, then buy
a 2009.  You should get as good a deal as you'll ever get on a Subaru.

My wife went to the Subaru dealer to order a Forrester XT the other
day, because their current leasing contract is running out in August.
Unfortunately, she learned that delivery here to Germany will not take
place in less than 4 months. (Strange "crisis", is it not?) I don't
know whether delivery to America is faster. Anyway, it might be a good
idea to make sure the voucher does not depend on delivery date, even
indirectly (i.e. because you could not get rid of your old car before
delivery of the new one.) and to fix that date early.

 

[YKhan]

The Subaru plant that makes the Outbacks, is just south of Lafayette, IN,
along the west side of I-65.  Illinois is some distance farther west.  I
went past the plant a few days ago...its still there next to I-65.

I stand corrected.

Yousuf Khan

 

[weelliott]

I am pretty sure that the cash for clunkers doesn't say anything about
the domestic parts content or manufacturer of the vehicle. It only
cares about the mileage of the new vehicle versus the old one. It is
trying to get cars that pollute more off the road, and jumpstart the
sagging automotive side of the economy. All auto makers are doing
horribly. Even Toyota has taken loans from the Japanese government.
Ironically(since we are on a subie forum) the only major manufacturer
in the black right now is Subaru.

As for the off-road comments earlier, I bought my car because of my
experience in my frien'ds 96 outback. He worked as a ranger in NM in
Carson National Forest, and had a 25 mile drive down a dirt road to
the trailhead where he accessed his ranger station. When I went out to
see him the first time I was dropped off by a guy in an old chrysler
and we were going abotu 10-15 mph the whole way down this road. It
literally took hours. On the way to town later that week my friend had
the outback up to about 50 on the same road. We'd hit ruts and even a
few stones the size of a baseball with no reall drama. Not even the
sound of a whack resonating through the car like I had suspected. You
felt the impact, but the car just kept on going. In 2002, his car was
still runnign strong at 155k miles. So I decided to get a 95, and
actually now that my 95 has topped 242k, I just bought a 98 with 120k
to replace it with.