I brought it through a private sale and was lucky enough the owner agreed to get a vehicle report done by Autocraft Subaru in NSW before i flew over.

For your situation id probably pick a few in a city (Melb or Syd probably) and tell the sellers you will be coming over and asking them to drop it off for a report and pay over the phone/speak to the mechanic personally after he is done. If not an RAC check should suffice. An my05 with those low kilometers, unmodded and FSH will most likley be an absolute plum anyway.

If you want to see the car first then fly over and have a shortlist of ones to look at. Public transport is good, hotels and good food is cheap as so stay for a couple of days its well worth it

Alrite, this is gonna be wrong. Remember, I know very little about the mechanics of cars, so this was to help me try suss out a well looked after one.
It's written in an order of significance/ease of checking. Basically, easy to check turnoffs are right at the start.
Some of it could be a little specific to GC8's, which is what I was looking for.

1)Body work, check for;
-rust, look under window seals, inside wheel arches.
-lots of stone chips, lots on a low km car could suggest it has a new dash put in.
-signs of crash, different pain, uneven gaps between panels, wripple effect underneath bonnet, and signs of welding/fiddling with the front/rear bumper (most likely to be crashed there...)
-Windows, with the frameless windows, the seal that the window slams onto when the door is shut can wear out, resulting in scratched windows. Also look for bad tinting, scratches, and chips (look under old rego stickers etc)
-Tyres, check for kerb rash, uneven tyre wear, tread depth, bearings
-Wiper blades

2)Engine Bay
-Look for oil leaks, check ground where car is parked
-An oil based air filter could cause a problem with the AFM (maybe only late model GC8?)
-Check that the radiator fluid is clean, and not oily
-Aftermarket B.O.V, I've read atmo B.O.V's on an untuned car can cause problems, they're also illegal.
-Make sure the coolant hoses aren't to soft
-Condition of fuel line
-Clutch/Brake fluid
-Power steering fluid
-Check engine mounts, could help identify replacement engine if they have been tampered with
-No oil leak near turbo (to the left of intercooler)
-If you can see any exhaust bolts, see if they have been recently removed. Could help show a modified car that has been changed back to stock...

3)Start Engine
-NO SMOKE!!!
-Steady idle, when cold approx 1200 (can fluctuate a bit), warm is approx 750.
-Listen for any knocking, when cold and warm
-Are the brakes firm to push on

4) Test drive
-A slight clutch judder when car is cold isn't necessarily bad.
-Smooth changes
-Check all dials work
-Air con
-Demister on rear window
-Horn
-Mirrors, test electric
-Floor it then remove foot, car should back off smoothly
-Build up revs from a low speed in each gear. Helps show a slipping clutch.
-Test hand brake, somewhere on a steep hill
-Brakes should be firm to push
-Drives straight
-Remove oil filler cap after drive, should not have fumes/petrolly smell
-Check suspension out, go over speedbumps, do circles at full lock etc.

5)Other things to check
-Lighting, do all lights work
-Do wipers work
-All electric windows work
-Dash, should be flush and not flimsy
-Check a-pillar for signs of gauge removal
-All seats belts are good
-Key works in all holes
-Wear n tear of seats
-All door locks, and boot release
-Check tyre pressure, a well looked after car will have the correct pressure

Stuff to ask about
-Oil change frequency, and oil used
-Age of spark plus
-Trans/Diff oil should be changed ever couple of years
-Cambelt around 75,000km
-Timing belt 100,000km
-AFM
-O2 Sensor
-Clutch change-NO heavy duty clutch on standard 5speed gear box
-Brakes, rotors+pads



Now, I realise some of this stuff is very simple, and some of it is probably wrong. But it is what I used to help identify a car that has been cared for and looked after. Hope it helps in some way!

Cam & timing belt are the same thing...... 100,000km OR 4 years change interval.

Plugs are done about every 40,000 km.

Window scratches are caused by the felt pads that stop the glass rattling when wound 1/2 down being dirty, they are inside the upper section of the door just below the door belt moulds.

Drive a couple of slow circles, both left & right, at full steering lock. listen for clicking which indicates shagged front cv joints....Do the same in reverse just in case some smart ass has swapped the outer front cv's left to right to hide the problem.

Look at each drive shaft behind each wheel, look for split cv boots.

HTH

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[CENTER][COLOR=#ff0000]Built Ej207: Semi-closed RA Cases - Wiseco Forgies - Manley rods - BC 272 cams - GDA Heads - billet f/whl - Vi-pec - WbO2 - 800cc Yellow tops - TD05-20G - 409Hp ath @ 1.75bar on E85[/COLOR][/CENTER]

Hth?

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Hope That Helps

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Remove hail dents yourself, fast and easy - $25 for a kit. PM me for details
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Hey Guys. Just thought I'd share the result of months of searching and all your help. This is the new Rex. Cheers!

LOL Upload fail.

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[COLOR="Red"]I have the right foot of Subaru death![/COLOR]

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365hp and 515nm

New Beast to arrive April 2015 - 365hp, 450nm, 0-100 in 4.4sec. AMG Goodness!

Doesn't exactly look stock.... :P

Either way, congrats and enjoy.

We kept the receipt showing the change over from our personal plates to the new state ones. One interested party was really concerned about the new plates on the car so it was definitely worth having the paperwork to show them.

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Classic WRX all the way ...