Wow, I didn't realize all the negativity for Subaru. I've been a Subaru fan for a long time, and I currently drive a Subaru Forester and am very happy with it. In the 7 years I've had my Subaru, the only two issues I've had was a front sway bar endlink going bad, and the outside temperature sensor going bad. But the whole engine/drivetrain has been flawless. I replaced the endlink and the temp sensor myself, grand total for everything was under $100. So to me it's been very reliable. My previous Subaru was also reliable, yes it had to have the head gasket replaced, and some work on its center differential so it wasn't 100% trouble free, but overall I beat the [censored] out of that car and it kept going strong. If it wasn't wrecked, I'd still own it today.
Subarus aren't for everybody, but I like them. Some of the things I like are the reliability, the excellent AWD system, and the fact that they do very well in crash tests. My Subarus have also been very easy to work on and do the maintenance myself.
Like I said, they're not for everybody, but I see a lot of positives in them. Most of my friends drive newer cars, but it seems like the few friends I have with older cars are always having to take them to get something fixed or checked out. My Subaru is only seven years old, but it's going strong and I fully expect it to continue to be problem free for a while.