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We are new to the subaru scene and well we are looking at buying a 1992 SUBARU LIBERTY GX are they any good and what should we look for. what goes wrong with them and what is the average price for them. We have been a VW family for many years and well we thought we should try something different

welcome! You're come to right place, 92 Liberty, they are reliable if they have been well maintained, check service history if it has one, it has 2.2litre EJ22 engine and they are strong engines normally lasts for a while. Check if it has airbag suspension if its in good working order then that is good, but be prepared for leaky ones and its costly to replace, a lot of people have upgraded to normal suspensions instead of airbag ones. Apart from that check for rust but they're normally good, better than 80s subarus which they're well known to rust arnd windows/doors. There are FWD and 4WD models out there, better get 4wd as they're worth getting. (hint - if it has rear diff then its 4WD model, don't rely on badges on the rear door!)
Cheers
AP

Thanks for that. Had a look at one yesterday and it looked a nice wagon. Is a 4wd the same as AWD as I could not find any buttons or levers to put it into 4wd. this has had all it serviceing done by a Subaru shop on the sunshine coast. anyone know the shop and if they do a good job.

Wag67 wrote:Thanks for that. Had a look at one yesterday and it looked a nice wagon. Is a 4wd the same as AWD as I could not find any buttons or levers to put it into 4wd. this has had all it serviceing done by a Subaru shop on the sunshine coast. anyone know the shop and if they do a good job.

Yep, its the same thing 4WD is also known as AWD. That is why i said above if it has rear diff then its AWD.
Doesn't matter if it has any levers bec there are both single range or dual range AWD out there. If its AWD, They are full time 4WD. But on dual range has hi and lo range where single range doesn't have.
Cheers
AP.

Subaru shop was a reputable repair and service centre. Very good at what they do. I only say was because they had to change their name.

Welcome to the forum

Wag67 wrote:We have been a VW family for many years and well we thought we should try something different

If you have a look at the old school subi's (pre '84) and you're familiar with the old school beetles etc, you'll find that subi's and VW's arnt' that far apart in terms of where they started. The subaru drive train in 2wd trim is basically a watercooled VW setup that's spun around to the front of the car. The early motors have the same layout as the VW aircooled units and the gearbox shape doesn't change much between the two.

There's some trivia for you.

Cheers

Bennie

Outback bloke wrote:Subaru shop was a reputable repair and service centre. Very good at what they do. I only say was because they had to change their name.

to boxer services,

Always remember when test driving to put your foot to the floor to see if the engine stutters or revs up slowly, also remember to go through ALL the gears to make sure they are working properly. Just some things ive noticed on some subies.

AlpineRaven wrote:welcome! You're come to right place, 92 Liberty, they are reliable if they have been well maintained, check service history if it has one, it has 2.2litre EJ22 engine and they are strong engines normally lasts for a while. Check if it has airbag suspension if its in good working order then that is good, but be prepared for leaky ones and its costly to replace, a lot of people have upgraded to normal suspensions instead of airbag ones. Apart from that check for rust but they're normally good, better than 80s subarus which they're well known to rust arnd windows/doors. There are FWD and 4WD models out there, better get 4wd as they're worth getting. (hint - if it has rear diff then its 4WD model, don't rely on badges on the rear door!)
Cheers
AP

I agree here. We have a 92 gx wagon as our second car, never really had many problems with it except, cv joint (ours is fwd), transmission (we did a conversion to manual) i find the auto a bit laggy and heavier on juice, but i think the gen1 is quite heavy on the juice anyway but were gettin better milage after the conversion, also check all the electrics are ok which can also be a common problem in them. apart from the standard points to look at when purchasing a new vehicle of any kind they are very reliable and as you may know the engines are almost bulletproof.. looking at least 350 - 450k if you look after it properly.. good luck

Bump - I was looking @ this ad on Carsales for a 1992 Liberty GX which is selling for $2,200 and has done 320,000 Km's.

Say I bought the car and the engine died at some point, does anyone know what it'd cost to replace (this type of engine)?

Seems like a cheap Liberty! but i have only just started looking so it could be a bit standard