welcome to the forum. Not sure what you're really looking for here as far as help goes. Essentially, the Outback Sport is a slightly tweaked version of the Impreza RS wagon. It has a different interior, and some upgrade features in the Special Edition. Depending on incentives in your area, you may also want to consider the RS wagon. , as it's a very similar car, for less $$.
If you have any more specific questions, feel free to fire away, and someone will almost certainly know the answer. You can also search for past posts to get an idea of what people who own them think about them (maintence, warranty, driving enjoyment etc)

 

i've taken an outback sport home for a week as a demo- and i must say that it feels slightly different than a ts(rs) wagon. and when i say "feels"... its very minor. i think the feeling is that the outback feels a little more "bouncy". thats a terrible way to describe it, but thats my subjective opinion.

if you must have the spiced up exterior(body cladding) more "outdoorsy" looks then go with the outback. but like luke said, try the rs wagon- you could save some money.


aloha from the summit of *-^-mauna Kea-^-*

 

you probably won't find anyone with negative feeback on the OBS. i've sold about 25 of them in the past year and i haven't had one complaint yet. Consumer Reports always recommends it (along with every other model). since you are buying used- some things i'd look at would be diff fluids and basic fluids(make sure they have been changed)
and the basic stuff- does it shift smoothly? bearing noise? etc. . .
for some cool info on subies check out joe spitz- his website is www.cars101.com
its all about subies-


aloha from the summit of *-^-Mauna Kea-^-*

 

I had an '02 white OBS and loved it. Until I got hit by an 18 wheeler. Now complainte whatsoever about it. Now I have a 98 OBS and love it just as much, like the styling of the older bodies better. Only complaint i have about my MY98 is the 2.2l engine. really miss having the 2.5. other than that, great car.

 

OBS is not a car that should bring over KBB private party. Such cars do exist (e.g. GC8 Impreza RS sedans), but seeing as you can get a brand new OBS special edition 5spd for about 17,300 after all the incentives, I think 12K sounds pretty reasonable, if it's well equipped and very clean, and the odds of him actually selling @14 are about the odds of being struck by lightning while winning the lottery. Maybe slightly higher.

 

17,300 is essentially rock bottom on OBS 5-speed. Add 800 for A/T, so 18,100. That's a good quote, but depending on your area, and demand, you may be able to squeeze a couple hundred more, then again, if they're selling well in your area, it's not out of line for a dealer to expect to make $500 on a new car.