Subaru BRAT & Baja: The ElCamino's from Japan?
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- Опубліковано 9 лют 2025
- Welcome to Auto Chatter! Todays tale is about Subaru's "trucks" they sold in the U.S. These more car like vehicles with a bed were unlike anything else you could buy then, but did that translate to great sales numbers? Lets find out! Hope you enjoy this one, and kindly leave a like if so! Be sure to check out some of other vids if your new and consider subscribing (ITS FREE!!!). Thank you to current Subscribers as always for the continued support!
i'm a subaru technician. on the rare occasions when either of these come in we all flock to them. nobody wants subaru to bring these back worse than us. as of right now there are no plans on subaru bringing them back. chances are if they did bring the baja nameplate back it would more than likely share its name with something like the toyota stout. that is if toyota makes it. if i can find a baja in even decent shape ill buy one. sadly most are used up, or people want a mint for them. thanks for the video.
@@1heavyelement I'm glad you enjoyed it...Im a fan myself.
There's a decent looking one on ft worth auto trader right this moment
@Kickthelighter Just begging for a EJ swap.
BratSti would be so sweet. Lift it, let it jump some with some mudflaps. Gravel tires and smiles.
Just finally watching, what a great vehicle that sadly most people don’t even know these days. Reminds me of the days in the back of my buddies Rampage screaming down two lanes thinking we were so cool. Gotta love vehicles you can use the headlight buckets as chairs. Subaru truly wins this car truck game, and why don’t they have one now? Perfect time for the Brat to return, without a bs cvt.
I loved the BRAT, but I understand why it fell out of favor. Compact trucks and extended cab models was just a better package. The Baja was too expensive, but maybe a Imprezza based truck like the Hyundai Santa Cruz would find some buyers.
@@autochatter as much as people craved the Maverick….before Ford screwed them with only building expensive models, I bet it would do well.
When I was about 6 I saw a brand new BRAT and though it was great. It became my first dream car and I was lucky enough to buy one, an '85, as my first car. Engine problems aside, it was awesome with the jump seats and t-tops. Unfortunately, it was my first car and suffered the consequences of my naivety. I'd love a Baja but it's starting to get as rare as the BRAT nowadays, especially a minty one.
@@KrayzeeAssKrisReturns There was no Subaru Dealer in my hometown, so any of them were rare sights to me growing up.
16:24 - Ford's Maverick has shown enough demand that Toyota is 👀 and about to release the Stout. If Toyota & Subaru are now bedfellows, maybe Subaru can benefit from the reintroduced Stout.
Subaru is more than a bedfellow.Toyota owns part of them LOL. I'd like to see the Stout here. I think the market would love another lower priced truck option.
I remember seeing Brat’s come out of their hiding, every NYS winter during the 80’s and 90’s. Lol. Couldn’t get out of their own way, but man they were practically unstoppable in the snow- especially with winter specific tires. Seemed that most had simply rotted out from the road salt and pothole laden roads by Y2K, with the exception of a few who went above and beyond taking care of them.
Subaru definately nailed it offering small vehicles with 4wd then as a option.
Cool animations Chatter 👌
@averyparticularsetofskills Lol...Thanks!
I rode in the back of a 1st gen Brat a couple times, quite an experience. No comfort on the hard seats and as low as they were you had to keep your feet drawn up close to you or let your legs stretch out and flop around. You really needed those handholds on rougher roads and trails. It was sort of our introduction to "Utes" as Australia calls them. Very practical vehicles, just not what most Americans prefer. Haven't seen one or a Baja in ages.
I haven't myself. I see a Baja here and there, but not a BRAT.
love both these cars
Subaru has a HUGE opportunity to revive the BRAT, using the same platform that the Crosstrek sits on. Perfect canvas for the quirky ute's return. The Baja, base it on the Ascent SUV, as a real competitor to the Hyundai Santa Cruz and Ford Maverick.
I think both ideas are good ones..The question is will they?
Great presentation of these.
Thank you Rob!
My favorite BRAT was on My Name Is Earl.
Oh yeah it was!
I own both an 80’ and an 81’ brat at they are the same body style 1st Generation. Though the 81’ has a larger engine and dual range transmission. In 82’ the 2nd generation body started.
@@bradfaubion3699 Ahhh..Thank you! Kinda jealous you have two!
Nice 😊
both nice trucks.
Yep!
If Subaru reintroduced the Brat/Baja today, but on the smaller Forrester platform, I bet it would be a hit. The popularity of the Ford Maverick and Hyundai Santa Cruz has proved that there is a market for smaller, affordable car-based pickups in the U.S., especially for those who like active lifestyles.
@donaldwilson2620 Thats why Toyota needs to bring the new Stout here when they make it.
I like both of these. Very handy for hauling camping supplies. Lifestyle vehicles is what I call these. Just like the Sporttrac, Ridgeline, and Gladiator. Of course three out of four can tow more. I feel the Baja is perfect for light trail and hiking excursion. 😊
I live in Lafayette Indiana all i see is Subarus 😂
I wonder why 😜. I bet Isuzus used to be popular there too at one point as well.
There is a 70s Subaru Brat Model kit I have seen at some of the shows... Hopefully I'll get my hands on one to build someday...
That would be cool! Love how your 77 Jeep model came out!
@@autochatter Thanks!! It built up fairly well foe the most part..
These older Brats were kool
@@h.paulsprojects3061 They were!
4:01 - FYI...You have a little audio trouble here.
@@doug6191 Yeah..The chicken tax part...
Always loved the brat… and have absolutely no idea why. Not a fan of the brand
Not a fan of the slowness
Not a fan of the lack of build quality
No need for 4x4
Not a fan of being that cramped
But I SOOOOOOOO want one! 🤷♂️
Probably because it's not a cookie cutter, gets lost in a sea of sameness type of car.
I'm 36 and I remember seeing commercials in the early 90s of new cars and some were under $10k.
Even about 15 years ago, there was a couple cars that started under 10 grand like the Nissan Versa.
Please correct me if I’m wrong but today there’s only two manufacture’s that use flat boxer engines…
Obviously one of them is Subaru and the only other one I could think of is Porsche…..so am I correct or am I correct or what?
Anyways…1st time Subie owner here and i must admit that over the last 4 years I’ve evolved into a crazy Subaru Fanatic ever since I purchased my 2018 Outback back in Summer of 2020…
4 years & 128k miles later with zero mechanical issues, other then normal wear and tear…even with a whole bunch of offroad abuse and misuse….like, giving it all the beans on a daily basis! Aka stomping the GO pedal to the metal! Even while offroading I would send it full throttle!
With that said, I would also religiously and on a timely basis provide my Subie with all it’s factory recommended maintenance/services and had everything done at my local Subaru dealer(same Subaru dealer I purchased it from) Yes I know, a dealer is always way more expensive when it comes to servicing any vehicle but in my case it was worth it, due to having a 36months/36k miles Subaru Gold Extended Warranty(available only on select certified preowned Subaru vehicles at the time of purchase) which to my great surprise it also covered all the normal wear and tear parts!(except brakes and tires) and let me tell you, it definitely came in handy and paid for itself over and over and over again…all I had to pay was a $100 deductible and it even included a free loaner vehicle for every single visit. Plus I made really good friends with the techs that helped me in getting the best service for my Subie, plus they were always very happy to replace any part/parts that was covered by the warrant…which again to my great surprise just about everything was covered….Lucky me I guess! That’s why It didn’t really bother me to drive it nice and hard! And yes I know the dealer got paid for every single warranty repair they did, that’s why they were more then happy to replace anything in my Subie wether it really need it or not…and you know what? I was more then fine with that lol
Anyways…there’s no doubt about it, the Legacy derived suspension has been factory reinforced & lifted to provide an amazing 8.7 inches of ground clearance and the capability to man handle just about any offroad terrain!
Yet, more impressively amazing…the suspension still provides an incredibly balanced almost luxury feel like ride when driving on regular everyday roads and highways.
Who said you can’t have your cake and eat it too? Not Subaru!
I can’t believe what I’ve been missing my whole life! Never ever again would I ever purchase anything else other than a Subie…
Well…that was until it finally clicked in my head that Subaru is not alone in using the boxer engine…..Porsche was the only other manufacture that had always continued to use the boxer engine layout, so looks like my next vehicle purchase would have to be a Porsche…..now what would be an affordable Porsche? Affordable for me would be around $30k or less……ummmm decisions, decisions….
@SubieandFriends My previous car was a 2015 WRX and I enjoyed it alot! I would have bought another, but I dont care for the new WRX. Yes...As far current vehicles go, only Porsche and Subaru use boxer engines.
I have a soft spot for the BAJA i always wanted one, one was for sale a couple of years ago and i kick myself for not buying it lol
@@GeorgeJFW Same...I ended up buying a new WRX, but was casually window shopping for a manual turbo Baja at one point.
@@autochatter ha no kidding fellow Subaru fan boy love it, honestly they are great cars going from a ford dealership to a Subaru dealership I could not believe how few issues they had in comparison.
@GeorgeJFW Thats how I felt going from Nissan to Lexus.
Work near a guy who had one back in the day. I had a concern about black plastic not do well in TX sun turns out I guess correct.
Oh yeah..Gets hot!
Good choice with this one. I wish I could find a small truck that was actually small…
@@diddlybow3891 Yeah..These make a current Maverick look like a semi truck.
Agreed. It's time to get rid of the 'chicken tax' on vehicles.
@@P_RO_ Should have been gone ages ago.
Unfortunately Australia never got newer Baja, i reckon it would done better in Australia. I can't believe Maverick n Hyundai ute isn't sold in Australia too, can't wait for KIA Tasman ute.
@JimmyShields-z2h Yeah seems odd those aren't sold there.
The ford ranger solved this problem (s)
Before Subaru went full CVT and copy/paste.
Yep!