MajorCommonEngine

Subaru Stella: Timing belt service overdue and supercharger wear on EN07 / supercharged EN07T grades

Timing belt service overdue and supercharger wear on EN07 / supercharged EN07T grades is a common engine fault on the Subaru Stella on the 2006–2011 cars, and we rate it major. Putting it right costs $350 to $2,500 at New Zealand independent workshop rates. Below is what goes wrong, the symptoms to notice on a test drive, where to look, and what to ask the seller before you hand over any money. It is one of 10 documented faults on the Subaru Stella.

Vehicle: Subaru Stella
Years: 2006–2011
Fuel: petrol
System: Engine

This page covers the Subaru Stella as a model. Some faults only affect particular engines or build years — enter a plate below to narrow the list to one car.

All Subaru Stella faults10 documented faults on this model

What you are looking at

No photograph available

We do not hold a verified photograph of the Timing belt yet. We would rather show none than show a picture of a different part.

What goes wrong

The EN07 in the Stella is a belt-driven engine, and the cam timing belt is a scheduled replacement item generally quoted at around 100,000 km or ten years (some kei-specialist guides suggest a more conservative 60,000-80,000 km). Sources disagree on whether the EN07 is a true interference design, so a snapped belt may mean either a catastrophic valve-to-piston strike or simply a stranding; either way an overdue belt on an imported car of this age is a real risk because the original service history is usually unknown. Supercharged grades (EN07 with the roots-type blower) add further wear points: the supercharger bearings can become noisy past roughly 130,000 km (about 80,000 miles) and the supercharger drive belt and bypass plumbing need periodic inspection. On any Stella of this age assume the timing belt is due unless there is paperwork proving otherwise, and on a supercharged car listen for boost-related noise.

What you would notice

No record of the cam timing belt ever being replaced
Ticking, squeal or rattle from the front of the engine
Whining noise or loss of pull under load on supercharged grades
Boost-related noise or belt squeal on acceleration

How to check it

Where to look. Front of the EN07 engine: cam timing belt behind the front cover, and the supercharger and its drive belt on boosted grades

Ask for documented proof of the last cam-timing-belt change; if there is none on a car of this age, budget to replace the belt (and tensioner and water pump while it is apart) as a first job. On a supercharged grade, listen at idle and under a light load for supercharger whine or bearing rumble, check the supercharger and accessory belts for glazing or cracks, and confirm the car still makes clean, quiet boost on a test drive. A compression check alongside the belt job is cheap insurance on a higher-km import.

Parts involved: Timing belt.

What it costs to put right

$350 to $2,500 at New Zealand independent workshop rates. That is for this job on its own, not for the car.

An estimate, in NZD, for the repair as normally carried out. What a specific car costs depends on which part has failed and what it damaged on the way — treat this as the floor for a negotiation, not a quote.

Ask the seller

“Is there paperwork showing when the cam timing belt was last replaced?”
“Is this a supercharged grade, and does the blower make any noise?”
“Have the belts, tensioner or water pump ever been done?”
“Has the car ever run rough, lost power or overheated?”

Now check the Subaru Stella you are actually looking at

Everything above is true of the model, and it is free. What it does not tell you is whether THIS car has been looked after: its odometer history and whether the reading has ever gone backwards, whether there is still money owing on it, whether it has been reported stolen, how many owners it has had and what it is really worth today. That comes from the official records for that plate. Enter the plate for the free details, or get the full history and a market valuation from $13.49.

Not sure what you would be paying for? See what a full KickTyres check includes.

Where this comes from

The failure described above is documented in the sources below. The inspection instructions and the cost estimate are KickTyres’ own interpretation of them.

Subaru Stella buyer questions

Is timing belt service overdue and supercharger wear on en07 / supercharged en07t grades serious on a Subaru Stella?

We rate it major and common on the Subaru Stella. The EN07 in the Stella is a belt-driven engine, and the cam timing belt is a scheduled replacement item generally quoted at around 100,000 km or ten years (some kei-specialist guides suggest a more conservative 60,000-80,000 km). Sources disagree on whether the EN07 is a true interference design, so a snapped belt may mean either a catastrophic valve-to-piston strike or simply a stranding; either way an overdue belt on an imported car of this age is a real risk because the original service history is usually unknown. Supercharged grades (EN07 with the roots-type blower) add further wear points: the supercharger bearings can become noisy past roughly 130,000 km (about 80,000 miles) and the supercharger drive belt and bypass plumbing need periodic inspection. On any Stella of this age assume the timing belt is due unless there is paperwork proving otherwise, and on a supercharged car listen for boost-related noise.

How much does it cost to fix on a Subaru Stella?

$350 to $2,500 at New Zealand independent workshop rates. That figure is for this job on its own. A car showing the symptoms on this page is usually worth either walking away from or negotiating down by at least the repair figure.

Which Subaru Stella years are affected?

Our research records this fault on the 2006–2011 Subaru Stella. Build dates move around, especially on imported cars, so treat the range as the years to look hardest at rather than a guarantee either way. The official records tell you the exact build and first registration date for the car in front of you.