Subaru_dude Posted July 27, 2010 Share Posted July 27, 2010 1985 Brat. T-tops, 4spd d/r, dark blue in excellent shape. 145,000 miles and nearly NO rust. Just a couple spots I could find and it wasn't serious at all. New tires too. He's asking a whopping $5000 and he says FIRM. I offered my 1996 Outback with 217,000 miles and he said with a little cash on top of that he would think about it. My practical side says I should keep the more "reliable" and comfortable ride but good lordy this is one absolutely beautiful Brat. No jump seats though. If he decided it was a fair trade, would I regret giving up my 5spd EJ22 Outback for a pristine Brat? It took me a while to find the EJ22 Outback and I've had no complaints about it whatsoever (besides it COULD use some higher gearing). I would be forced to revert to my EA82 Touring Wagon as a daily. This Brat would be strictly for show or the occasional short road trip. I drive 140 miles daily and enjoy the comfort and nice cold a/c of the Outback. What do you guys think I should do? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idosubaru Posted July 27, 2010 Share Posted July 27, 2010 the EA82 could be a usable daily. the lack of power might drive you nuts though? give it all new timing components, reseal the front with the timing change, new water pump, fresh tune up and they can last a very long time. if it's an EA82T then don't make that wagon your daily! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Subaru_dude Posted July 27, 2010 Author Share Posted July 27, 2010 the EA82 could be a usable daily. the lack of power might drive you nuts though? give it all new timing components, reseal the front with the timing change, new water pump, fresh tune up and they can last a very long time. if it's an EA82T then don't make that wagon your daily! Well that wasn't really my question. My question was whether or not I should make the trade. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idosubaru Posted July 27, 2010 Share Posted July 27, 2010 Well that wasn't really my question. My question was whether or not I should make the trade. oh my bad. i figured the change of daily was part of the deal since you described it. yes do it. financially should be a decent deal as the OBW isn't really worth a ton of market value - it's worth is reliably cheap transportation, so that's for you to decide what that's worth to you. with multiple vehicles you got flex, that's good. it's hard to determine 'is it worth it' since the "cash on top" is ambiguous and everyone has different tastes. sounds like a decent deal for you though, the OBW does have a quarter million miles on it almost though those are nice rides and rack up a ton of miles. not sure how you do maintenance but if the timing belt components are all unknown or old or you have to pay for them yourself maybe that helps make the decision? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Subaru_dude Posted July 27, 2010 Author Share Posted July 27, 2010 (edited) oh my bad. i figured the change of daily was part of the deal since you described it. yes do it. financially should be a decent deal as the OBW isn't really worth a ton of market value - it's worth is reliably cheap transportation, so that's for you to decide what that's worth to you. with multiple vehicles you got flex, that's good. it's hard to determine 'is it worth it' since the "cash on top" is ambiguous and everyone has different tastes. sounds like a decent deal for you though, the OBW does have a quarter million miles on it almost though those are nice rides and rack up a ton of miles. not sure how you do maintenance but if the timing belt components are all unknown or old or you have to pay for them yourself maybe that helps make the decision? Well I'm going to offer NO MORE than $500 on top of the Outback. I originally wanted a multi-purpose vehicle when I bought the Outback. I wanted something that was comfortable yet could handle many different types of conditions. It's also a plus that I can sleep in it if need be and have quite a few times. It's been the best car I've had so far and the only one that doesn't leak any fluids at all. Having owned a few Soobs, it's nice to NOT smell burning differential grease at stop lights. I also just got a hold of a d/r EJ tranny from Numbchux that I'm planning on dropping EA82 d/r low into and that's another reason I don't want to get rid of the OB. I'd just have to get rid of that tranny too. I just performed a tune-up using NGK V-power plugs and Subaru plug wires. My mileage went up about 1-2 mpgs. The timing belt was done at 177,000 from what I can see on the tag under the hood. I do not know if the idlers and tensioner were done then though. Hoses look good too. I may say that this would just be a weekender or a show car but truth be known I'd probably drive it to work quite often. It seems to me that an EA81 would be just as reliable as any EJ22 as long as mantainance is kept up. And yes the Outback is racking up the miles and I can feel the difference in just 30,000 miles. That's what's nicer about the EA82, you don't feel as bad about driving it into the ground. Or at least I don't. I'm just torn lol. I'm honestly too emotionally drawn into this situation to make an informed decision. Just the thought of how clean and pristine of a Brat it is makes me decide right then that I want it. I need you guys to think practially for me!!! You're doing good so far... but even if you do bad and I end up with the Brat I'll forgive you. Sigh.... Edited July 27, 2010 by Subaru_dude Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GeneralDisorder Posted July 27, 2010 Share Posted July 27, 2010 Brat's are EA81's - they never came with the EA82. It's a step back in time. Your Outback is a car. The Brat is much more like a farm implement. They are like mountain goats off-road but the street manners are lacking. Manual steering, 74 HP, etc. Not getting run over on the freeway can be challenging especially with the stock carbs. From a drivetrain perspective..... you won't regret the EA81. You will hate the 4 speed with it's grinding syncro's and crappy linkage - you will want a 5 speed D/R for it. I dislike driving my Brat simply because you can't lean the seats back - I know that sounds strange but on a longer trip it makes a difference. But don't get me wrong - I drive an EA81 daily - you can't beat them for brute reliability, easy maintenance, and just plain and simple driving IMO. But you have to have the right mindset for it. I drive a hatch daily for the shorter wheelbase, lighter weight (better mileage), and interior cargo space. I don't find the Brat very useful here in the NW where we get so much incliment weather - Now I have a hatch and a full size truck I have been saying for a while now - Brat's attract people to the EA81's - but Hatchbacks keep them driving them GD Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Subaru_dude Posted July 28, 2010 Author Share Posted July 28, 2010 Brat's are EA81's - they never came with the EA82. Yeah I'm aware. I have an '89 Touring wagon that would probably become my daily. That's why I made reference to it. It's a step back in time. Your Outback is a car. The Brat is much more like a farm implement. They are like mountain goats off-road but the street manners are lacking. Manual steering, 74 HP, etc. Not getting run over on the freeway can be challenging especially with the stock carbs. At one point I had a 1987 DL with manual steering and I prefer it over power steering. I just like the feel, I've always been somewhat Spartan when it comes to my tastes in vehicles. I could easily get by without even having A/C. I learned to drive on a '78 3 on the tree straight 6 Chevrolet with power NOTHING. I loved that truck. I'm also a laid back driver anyway MOST OF THE TIME. Sometimes I do get a wild hair though... The Outback sees speeds in excess of 100 at least every couple months. But don't get me wrong - I drive an EA81 daily - you can't beat them for brute reliability, easy maintenance, and just plain and simple driving IMO. But you have to have the right mindset for it. I drive a hatch daily for the shorter wheelbase, lighter weight (better mileage), and interior cargo space. I don't find the Brat very useful here in the NW where we get so much incliment weather - Now I have a hatch and a full size truck GD I like to think of myself as a very simple person. I don't mind sacrificing a little to have less to worry about. I also recently bought a hatch in very good condition that needs a little work to get it running. If I get tired of the Brat, I'll just switch to the hatch! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
84gl Posted July 28, 2010 Share Posted July 28, 2010 (edited) Jordan GD is right about brats not being as good of daily driver they are pain on long trips and you know that I know that heck I worked/lived out of mine for six months on the road but if this one is going to be toy number 2 along with the hatch go for it you need a truck and I a few years it will be worth three times what the outback is worth and if you get it we can do spfi conversion and rear disks one weekend to make it easier to stand on the interstate but its up to you Oh by the way still need a tow Edited July 28, 2010 by 84gl Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ShawnW Posted July 28, 2010 Share Posted July 28, 2010 Take the Brat. Sell the EA82 Wagon. Fly out here to Denver and get another Outback I see those for $2000 or less now sometimes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
T'subaru Posted July 28, 2010 Share Posted July 28, 2010 Go with your gut feeling, id love a brat, but 5000.00 is a hunk of change. My experience is when I really fight with myself over something like this I need to step back and think about it abit. If its really what YOU want and not the opinions of others, than go for it dude:grin: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2manetoys Posted July 28, 2010 Share Posted July 28, 2010 Although the BRATs are cool as hell to own and fun to drive around and tinker with, $5000 is a bit much for one IMO as ones with little rust and needing a little TLC interior wise can be had for $2-3K on eBay. You'll pay less in shipping or travel costs than the $2K difference. I'm betting that it wouldn't be long and you'd miss the OBW. I know that I bought an EA82 just to drive around while I work on restoring the BRAT that I picked up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gloyale Posted July 28, 2010 Share Posted July 28, 2010 (edited) 1985 Brat. T-tops, 4spd d/r, dark blue in excellent shape. 145,000 miles and nearly NO rust. Just a couple spots I could find and it wasn't serious at all. New tires too. He's asking a whopping $5000 and he says FIRM. You could buy a truely rust free Brat out west, and have it shipped to you for less than that price. Might even find one with less miles too (145k isn't exactly low, although it's not terribly high either) Fact is, if it's got any visible rust AT ALL......it will continue as cancer and eventually will rot. $5000 is WAAAY too much to pay for a brat with any rust at all. Espescially since it's not a "low miles" car. It will have lot's of things needing replaced to be any sort of regular driver (wheel bearings, strut mounts, tierods, etc....) I'd say $3000 tops. You could find better Brats for 5k Edited July 28, 2010 by Gloyale Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mcgus1 Posted July 28, 2010 Share Posted July 28, 2010 My 2 cents as a Brat owner and driver: Wait on the Brat. There are still some deals out there. You don't have to pay 5 grand for a good Brat, yet. I bought my '86 2 years ago for 1k and I've done basically nothing to it since (well, I'm working on it now). Burns no oil and has very little rust. I've collected the parts for a 3" lift, 5 lug/rr disc swap, ej swap, XT seats & pw/pm(putting them in as we speak), etc, etc. Point is, could never have afforded all these extras if I'd paid that much for the car in the first place. Sounds like you may be looking at some of these upgrades as well. No matter how sweet it looks, as GD says, it's a farm vehicle and mountain goat. To give it street manners will require work, regardless. I say, save your dependable OBW and keep looking for the Brat. You'll get a better deal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Subaru_dude Posted July 28, 2010 Author Share Posted July 28, 2010 I most definitely would NOT be buying this vehicle as a daily driver. Some of you seem to think I'm replacing the OBW with it. That's just not true. It would be a short road trip, camping vehicle STRICTLY. The EA82 wagon would become the DD. And I'm most definitely not going to pay $5000 for it. I'm going to offer the OBW in trade and throw $500 on top of that and THAT'S IT. That's a total of 3,300 being that I paid $2,800 for the OBW when it had 185,000 miles on it. If he doesn't take it then no real losses, I love my Outback. If he does then I'll just have to make sure the touring wagon is ready for many MANY miles. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Subaru_dude Posted July 29, 2010 Author Share Posted July 29, 2010 Okay so I talked to him on the phone after work and asked how much on top of the Outback he wanted for the Brat. $2000 . So I told him I would offer no more than $500 on top of my car and he said he still wanted to have a look at the car and negotiate. So I head in his direction. I get to his house (he's keeping the Brat at a friend's house) and he drives my car the 5 or 6 miles back to the Brat. He only nit picked about a couple little things but overall really liked the car actually. Talk about what he's got at home, factory jump seats and factory camper. SWEET. He lets me take the Brat for a test drive and I'm really impressed. Not bad at all on room, seemed to have enough head and the seat just BARELY leaned back far enough for me to feel comfortable. Had no idea 4th was THAT TALL. And you guys weren't kidding about it being a billy goat on the road either. Anyway I ended up passing cuz he still wanted $1000 on top of my car WITHOUT including the jump seats OR the camper shell. I've got my hatch to look forward to at least. Having driven an EA81 now, I'm really motivated to get the hatch home and running. Thanks very much guys for giving me an idea on what to expect. I indeed found all your input to be very useful!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
84gl Posted July 29, 2010 Share Posted July 29, 2010 enough for me to feel comfortable. Had no idea 4th was THAT TALL. And you guys weren't kidding about it being a billy goat on the road either. Just what i said wasn't it 4th too tall 3rd too short. you never have the right gear on the highways here in east tn Its geared for flat ground not the Mountians we live in and the ride alot ruffer than most other subarus out there if you come pair them with an ea82 wagon or and outback Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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