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Hi I'm new---'84 Brat and '01 Outback


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Hi everybody, I am brand new to this site and would like to say Hi. I have an '01 Outback that I love, and just recently purchased an '84 Brat. Some years ago I had an '86 GL Turbo.

 

I am curious about the Brat, never had one before, don't know a whole lot about them. This one seems in pretty good shape, 148K mi, very little rust, silver w/blue interior, 4 spd, T-tops, has the jump seats and belts in the back. It has a minor oil leak, cracked windshield, and it needs a CV boot in the front. Paid $1300 for it.

 

One question I have about the Brat, it seems very loud underneath when driving it, I don't know if they all sound like that or not. I mean it runs and drives great, it's just loud. I don't know if it's because I'm so used to my nice quiet Outback or what. Driving the Brat reminds me of riding in a 4x4 pickup with big mudder tires on it, or riding in a car with studded snow tires. Just a lot of road noise. Is this common in Brats? Thanks!

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Hey we have an 84 brat as well... it is very noisy also. The air suctions valves are the source of most of our noise. and some minor exhaust leaks.. You might want to check if your gaskets where your exhaust pipes connect to your motor are bad... You can kinda feel around under there to see if any exhaust is escaping... be careful not to actually touch the pipes though... it is harder to tell also if your cooling fan is running... Good Luck, and welcome!

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If it's loud, I'd bet you have some sort of exhaust leak.

 

Once the car is up to operating temp it should be only very slightly noiser than any other car and most of that noise should be road noise.

 

Check if the noise is related to the motor or chassis. Push the clutch in(or neutral) and rev the motor a bit as your driving at speed. This will tell you if it's related to the motor or not?

 

My bet is something in the exhaust system needs some minor attention.

 

Welcome to the board and...

Let us know what you found?

 

Glenn,

82 SubaruHummer

01 Forester

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The early soobs do get a lt of road noise, being a smaler car, smaller engine, they couldn't weigh them down with a lot of sound deadening material.

 

Welcome aboard, what part of Washington are you in?

 

 

Thanks for your reply! I'm in Central Wa, Yakima area. Not a lot of rust out here in the desert, lol! I think our Brat has been here all its life and has been garaged a lot, it is nice and dry and very little rust. I am originally from the West side so I know all about rain/rust/rot! lol. :)

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Thanks every body for your replies! I did recently try putting the clutch all the way in while driving to see if it made a difference in the road noise and it did not, it made no difference, clutch in or out. It's hard to describe but like I said the best way to describe it is, it sounds like it has studded tires on it or something, which it does not, they're just regular all season radials, it's just this constant humming noise. I am thinking maybe I am just spoiled by my Outback because its so quiet. The Brat doesn't really seem to have any handling or suspension problems. I think the exhaust is OK too although that's a good suggestion. It doesn't really seem like exhaust noise tho. Maybe it's just me, lol.

 

So anyway it has a cracked windshield, what do you all think it will cost to get a new windshield for it? I am thinking wrecking yard is the best way to go....but these cars are getting pretty rare I guess so it might be hard to find one. What do y'all suggest? thanks! :):)

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