Subaru Problems

Glass is not something that is normally covered by the warranty, but the problem your wife has experienced is not normal. I would expect it's a design or quality issue, a product failure as you say, and should be fixed under the warranty. Go back to the dealer and have them take photos of it and send them to Subaru with the request to have it repaired under warranty.

Sadly, 2011 is not one of the better years for a Subaru. The new-generation model Forester arrived in 2013 and it gets The Tick. Ironically, a Forester from 2002-2009 is a good choice.

The Impreza is a good choice with all-wheel drive safety and a raft of airbags, so too is the Corolla, but you could also consider the Mazda3. It's best to stick with the recognized Japanese brands, European brands can be appealing, but they tend to be more troublesome and more expensive to service.

Servicing, particularly changing oil and filters, is the key to long engine life. My thinking is that 12 months/10,000km is about right for a service interval. If you’re doing 20,000km per year you’ll be servicing it every six months anyway, but if you’re not doing a lot of kays then annual servicing it probably enough. To go to two years and 24,000km is a step too far in my view.

With modern stability control systems and on-demand all-wheel-drive you are far less likely to get caught out with understeer (where the nose of the car pushes wide) than you once were. Having said that, the Kluger — and the LandCruiser for that matter — aren't city-friendly vehicles. If you no longer need to tow but still like the safety net of all-wheel-drive, why not look at a Subaru Outback or Forester?

Subaru is well out of step on service support in Australia but the orders come from Japan. You will save money by going outside the dealer network for logbook servicing.

A Mazda CX-5 would be the best bet, and gets The Tick, but also look at a Subaru Forester which is more car-like and will be better around town when you're not towing.

The Forester gets The Tick from me but only the latest model. It has improved quality and refinement, which came after Subaru — and a lot of Japanese brands — cut costs through the GFC.

I'd go for the Mazda6, which has a combination of class and comfort, and not the Falcon unless you're a sporty driver. The Liberty in that age was a bit 'off' by Subaru standards because of the Global Financial Crisis, and the 3.6 is no real improvement over the 2.5 unless you tow.

The Sorento has just been voted the 2015 Car of the Year so it gets The Tick from me. There is an all-new CX-9 next year and a Santa Fe update soon. Today, the order is Sorento, Outback, Santa Fe and CX-9.