My Dad just bought a 2001 Legacy GT. He told me the car has a DOHC engine. This worries me because I've heard at least in the '98 Impreza RS' these engines came with skirtless pistons which led to broken lower ring lands. My Question is was this problem resolved in "98 or is this the same engine in his car and should he be worried? Any and all info is greatly appreciated, Thanx

 

Couple of points. Chiefly, his car has a SOHC motor, as the 99 Legacies were the last Subarus to use the DOHC setup. The DOHC's didn't have skirtless pistons, but they were short skirts, so the piston slap *is* an issue. Consensus is, however, that while it's annoying, it's not really hurting anything. The headgasket issue is the bigger deal, but the SOHC's, while still occasionally having issues, are much more reliable than the DOHC's.

Cliff notes: your dad's car should be fine, as it doesn't have some of the engineering weaknesses the earlier cars did.

 

Sybir, Thanks for answering my question so quickly.