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Post by 88gl on Mar 14, 2013 10:24:07 GMT -5
I finally bought a Subaru Van. It's in near mint condition. The previous owner had it fully restored. Yes I fit, but it's a bit cramped up front. This weekend I'm adjusting the seat for a little more legroom. It has a 2-stroke 2-cylinder engine and will do 60 mph. I'll actually be driving this for a while since my balance shaft chain on the Justy is starting to sound scary and I spent all my repair money on this van. Attachments:
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Post by blacklight on Mar 14, 2013 11:37:44 GMT -5
Love it! You should ride it straight into a mall and say it's your shopping cart. I was driving my Subaru Libero (E10) today, and when I was leaving the parking lot with my window down, someone asked if it were a big shopping cart. I laughed and said "yes" (big smile) and then drove off.
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Post by deej on Mar 14, 2013 16:23:17 GMT -5
Dude that is the coolest thing I ever saw!!! I want it!
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Post by deej on Mar 14, 2013 16:25:08 GMT -5
I never knew anything like that even existed in the Subaru world. You have any background on it? Years made? Numbers produced, countries that imported? That is too cool!
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Post by 88gl on Mar 15, 2013 11:06:47 GMT -5
Yes I know a lot about these little guys. They were only imported into the US for two years, 1969 and 1970. Malcolm Bricklin (of Bricklin SV-1 fame) thought he could cash in on the rising gas prices. He convinced the US government to allow these on the road by creating an exception for safety regulations on vehicles this size and weight.
There was a grand total of 2000 vehicles imported, most of those being the sedan model...which is a small 2 door car similar to a Fiat 500. Of those 2000 maybe 800 or so were vans. The rest were pickup trucks. It's estimated there are fewer than 200 driving vans left on the roads.
From what I hear Malcolm's business plan didn't work out so well. So poorly did these sell that the dealerships were advertising them as "2 for 1". There is even a rumor that hundreds of brand new ones were loaded onto a barge and dumped at sea. They say it was cheaper to dump them then hold onto them!
Ironically deej, you're in Washington and that seems to be where most of the surviving trucks and vans are at. There is a big micro car show up there every year and you'll see a few of them at least.
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Post by deej on Mar 16, 2013 11:52:23 GMT -5
Wow thanks for the information, that is really interesting. That thing adds a whole new meaning to the word minivan. So Subaru made pickups too? I have so much to learn. I really like the older cars from the early 70's, the Datsun and Toyota cars were so easy to work on. Jay Leno had one of his prop guys on his garage show a while back, with a Datsun car, it was awesome. I owned a 74 Datsun truck back in the late 80's, it was such a simpler time then. I also had a 1980 VW diesel truck that got 50mpg! I really want another one of those. Wish I had never sold it. Oh well you live and learn I guess.
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Post by Deleted on Mar 16, 2013 13:38:19 GMT -5
I love these little vans. They are totally badass and I am jealous of countries where they are legal for street use. I have been trying to figure out how to get a newer one licensed as street legal in the US, but you almost have to buy one and take it to your state Department of Motor Vehicles and then it's no guarantee. They are legal for non-street use, so you see a lot of the trucks used in the US for groundskeeping. They are sometimes referred to as Kei cars. To date, I think the only street legal Sambars in the US are the '69s and '70s. www.japanoid.com/cardata.php?listing=255www.japanoid.com/
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Post by blacklight on Mar 16, 2013 14:51:12 GMT -5
Interesting site there, ferox. Especially since a portion of the inventory of the Subaru-models parts are interchangeable with my E10.
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Post by Deleted on Mar 16, 2013 19:56:37 GMT -5
Interesting site there, ferox. Especially since a portion of the inventory of the Subaru-models parts are interchangeable with my E10. Yeah, I check that site out every now and then when I need to feel like we don't have everything in the US. Japanoid, imports used vehicles from Japan and usually has a much larger inventory. They usually have a lot of Mitsu Delica's in their inventory and other 4WD microvans. Since they are on the US/Canada border it's a half day's drive from my house, so if I had the money and it was legal I could just pop up there and grab a sweet machine in a day. Alas, in the US we only really have the '86-'91 Volkswagen Vanagon Synchro available, which is probably a lot less safe than a newer Domingo, Sambar, Libero, or Delica. Just last weekend a bunch of buddies of mine were wondering why no auto manufacturer is making a decent 4WD/AWD minivan that has more than 6 inches of ground clearance for the USDM. It's possibly the most useful and safe vehicle ever made for the most people...someday.
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Post by 88gl on Mar 18, 2013 0:41:40 GMT -5
I love those VW Syncros...it's just too bad they sell for $40k on a bad day!
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Post by Deleted on Mar 18, 2013 13:23:27 GMT -5
I love those VW Syncros...it's just too bad they sell for $40k on a bad day! I know it's ridiculous. Swapping a Subaru engine into your Syncro does not add $10,000 to the value. South African Grill $3,000...not. Coincidentally, just last night I drove past a newer micro-van a couple blocks from my house. I thought it was a Mitsu Delica at first, but now I think it might have been a Subaru. I am going to keep my eye out and stalk the owner if I see them again, so I can ask them how they got it licensed. BTW Sweet score on the 360, they are so awesome.
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Post by Deleted on May 9, 2013 20:06:03 GMT -5
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