High mileage '15 or missing service record '13?

[Blackson]

Hi everyone, I'm looking to join the club! I have a few different BRZs I am looking at, one is a '15 series blue with around 90k miles and the other is a '13 with 50k miles. I don't know which one would be more likely to have issues given the discrepancy in mileage. Can anyone chime in with major issues they've had or things to look out for?

The '15 is being inspected at a Subaru dealer tomorrow and having a compression test as well. Maintenance and oil changes done about every ~6,000 miles or so, one owner.

The '13 came out of a Toyota dealer and they changed tires, fixed the brakes, wheels and serviced it recently. However, there's curbing on all 4 wheels (minor to severe on some) and the front bumper has a major crack in the middle and is splitting. There's very little maintenance history but I have test driven it twice, it feels as mechanically sound as any I've driven.


I'd love to hear thoughts, suggestions, horror stories, whatever may be the case.

Thanks!

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[soundman98]

the '13 might be part of the valve spring recall, which some are starting to report is a death blow to the motor. the '15 is at the 90k service interval, unless you can verify all previous things have been done, you need to assume everything leading up to and at 90k must be done. so the '15, you're looking at more current preventative maintenance costs than the '13 currently. but of course, the '13 could have more issues from being ridden harder--but that's pure speculation.

here's the recommended maintenance intervals
http://www.cars101.com/subaru/maintenance-2015.html

[Blackson]

That's pretty much what I figured. My worry was that the 13 had more obvious issues, is confirmed in the valve spring range along with having to replace a bumper would be more work.

Although the 90k service doesn't seem terrible, I wonder what the price of it all would be

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[soundman98]

personally, i would cross the '13 off the list then. some are starting to recommend ignoring the recall, but that's only going to lead to issues later if you ever attempt to resell. there's a lot of questions about the recall yet, in fact more now than there was when the recall first came out.

i would discuss with the '15 dealer about either/both a price discount, service records proving work, or performing the work before finalizing the purchase.

but then the 3rd option here is to wait or expand your search area. the 86 is a usage oddball car. some use them every day, others barely use them at all. my '14 just crossed 30k mi... pricing is all over the board for all of them, with very little rhyme or reason besides 'blue book' for any of them.

personally, i think a high mileage '15 is a poor choice when so many comparable non-recall '13-14's exist with lower mileage, and a beat up recall '13 is also a poor choice when so many better condition '13-15's exist.

[Fred E]

Originally Posted by Blackson

Hi everyone, I'm looking to join the club! I have a few different BRZs I am looking at, one is a '15 series blue with around 90k miles and the other is a '13 with 50k miles. I don't know which one would be more likely to have issues given the discrepancy in mileage. Can anyone chime in with major issues they've had or things to look out for?

The '15 is being inspected at a Subaru dealer tomorrow and having a compression test as well. Maintenance and oil changes done about every ~6,000 miles or so, one owner.

The '13 came out of a Toyota dealer and they changed tires, fixed the brakes, wheels and serviced it recently. However, there's curbing on all 4 wheels (minor to severe on some) and the front bumper has a major crack in the middle and is splitting. There's very little maintenance history but I have test driven it twice, it feels as mechanically sound as any I've driven.


I'd love to hear thoughts, suggestions, horror stories, whatever may be the case.

Thanks!

Sent from my SM-G973U using Tapatalk

A properly maintained '15 even with 90k miles isn't even close to the end of its lifespan. I suggest waiting for the results of the dealer review and compression test before making a final decision, but I'd already be leaning heavily towards the '15. It's even a series blue!

[gravitylover]

If the 13 is covered under the recall I think the work needs to be done before they can sell it. If it's a BRZ not a FRS chances are very good that it will be just fine after the work is done.

[DarkPira7e]

There were a lot of little changes after the 13' that make it the better buy. Buying a used car means you should expect to replace worn items. Most people get coilovers, upgraded brakes, and other nitpicky thing anyway. Honestly, 90k of wear will possibly mean you should look at a few bushings, motor, trans and diff mounts eventually, suspension refresh, pads/rotors, and depending on who owned it before, a clutch. It may feel like a lot, but that's the extreme list. And it's not that the car will run poorly, you may not even notice the wear for another 60k miles if you're not doing HPDE.

This is not to say they ARE bad either. It's just possibilities of things I'd inspect

[Tcoat]

The list of TSBs tells a story. There are many that apply to the 2013 and one for the 15.
They also gives you a shopping list of what to look for.


https://www.ft86club.com/forums/showthread.php?t=21868