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Are Subarus Really Off-Road/All-Terrain Vehicles or are we k


Guest quattronut
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Guest quattronut

Subaru is known for making go anywhere vehicles, but to what extent? I own a 1984 Subaru Brat, and I have previously owned a 1987 GL 3dr 4WD Dual Range. When I had the 3dr, I would take it everywhere offroading. The sound of the floorboards scraping along the ground was a constant. 7" of ground clearance doesn't quite do it. Now, enter the world of the Subaru Brat. Complete with a couple inches more of ground clearance, and a nice skid plate to protect the sump/oil pan. It clearly states in the manual that it "IS NOT AN ALL-TERRAIN VEHICLE" but an "ALL-ROAD VEHICLE". Well, that is no fun!! So we all decide to take our Brats into 3 feet of mud just to be astonished that we can actually get through it. We really put our Subies through a lot. Are they designed for this? Is the manual just being a bit restrained by stating "AllRoad"? It sure feels like an AllTerrain vehicle. Adjustable suspension? Sounds like an AllTerrain option to me...Skidplate..Hi-Lo Transfer case.. What does everyone else think?

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i beat the SNOT outa my brat and it keeps coming back for more. the conventional wisdom in the 4x4 world is that you have to crank out 300 ftlbs and roll 38" swampers to be a capable off-road vehivle. recently, i have seen more and more suzuki samurais built to the hilt in 4x4 mags, so the tide may be turning. the only reason you need these monster motors and monster tires is to pull an over weight truck up a hill. think about it. the lighter the vehicle, the less power and the less friction necessary to move. Look at todays top end Baja trucks. using 4 wheel indies and CV joints, something that subarus been using for years. a great idea, your clearance directly between the wheels (where it matters most) is much higher when yer diff dosent hang like the tail on a beat dog :) theres alot to be said for many of 80's subies design features as far as offroading goes. I have bolted an old metal shell can in place of the seats, it holds a prety complete orv kit, folding shovel, cable hoist, heavy duty tow strap, tools, fluids, two stes of chains in the winter... I think that if you take care of your subie, it will take care of you, even in the most hellish conditions. i know mine has.

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A lot of people have rubbished subarus over the years, the same people that HAVE to fit monster tyres and motors to do what a subaru will do with minor mods. Might be a little scared that a little jap car will do things equally offroad and then have the subes run rings around them in ride quality and fuel economy on road. I think we have the best of both worlds.

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Guest Subaru Junkie

I dont know if Fuji H.I. Made Subarus thinking of mud, dirt, trails, and rally's... but when I look at my Brat, or when I looked at any of my previous Subaru's, thats all I think about. I dont mind feeling the earth 7" below me... or getting stuck... I love to rally my Brat, and she loves to rally with me. So to everyone sitting in front of the mud puddle thinkig if their subaru can make it, I only have a few choice words.... ...Stop thinking about it, and floor it. Worry about getting stuck when your car starts to stop, and then call your friend out to help you! :) Happy Trails. -Brian

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Guest seattleflyer

I took mine out on it's first "off-road" trip the other day. The road lead to a dry sandy wash. Driving aroung on the sand was no problem. Getting to the wash was a little tough because the road was strewn with rocks, big rocks. There was also one "step" in the road about 2' high that had me a bit concerned, but the old wagon made it through no problem. The Cooper Courser 195/75/14 tires seemed to do a great job on the sand. The tread is aggressive enough to get a good bite and the extra inch of ground clearance they provide really helps straddling the rocks. Still, I don't have any dilusions. I'm not about to go out with the local jeep club and see if I can stay with them. The problems of low ground clearance, low torque, and excess rear overhang would surely prevent me from going everyplace they can go. I am fairly certain however, that I could outperform the average "stock" SUV e.g. Ford Explorer. In stock trim the average SUV does not have any more total (measured at lowest point) ground clearance than I now have. Additionally, they are encumbered by greater size and weight which is definately a disadvantage on most trails. For me this is a true multi-purpose vehicle. It is not outstanding at any one thing, but can do many things better than most. And best of all, the cost of operation is much lower than any other vehicle of its capability that I can think of. Not to mention the fact that I own it outright (no interest payments).

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I bought my 87 brand new and I agree with everyone. Try her out and if you get stuck, then you know what not to do. Plus, I've got a 98 chevy fullsize 4X4 that I trailer with and use for pulling my little SUB out when I get her stuck. I wouldn't try to put my truck through some of the stuff my SUB has gone through. ALso, the truck cost me way too much to screw it up...

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My 84 4x4 Hatchback KICKS it. I've been 4 wheelin' on off road trails of moderate roughness with no problems. Yet I was still a little uncertain about how it would perform in real extremes. Well all questions have been answered! This weekend I couldn't wait any longer for the snow to come to me in Washington state, so I went to it. I went to Northbend Wash. to do some outlet mall shopping and when finished I decided to go check out an Alpine lake that I used to frequent. I started in and found that the road to the lake was gated so I went the other way. To make a long but fun story short I ended up in about a foot of fresh snow that hadn't been driven on yet. What a piece of cake! I went every where and didn't even slip a tire. Hatch facts; Suspension raised to max factory settings, 185/70R13 all season tires, 1800, 4sp dual range. After this little excursion I will not question my Hatch's ability again!!!

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Guest aingles

nah, you just have to know your limitations as a driver as well as your subies limitations as a car...been many places in my 87 wagons, mtn passes, rock fields, bogs etc....but the most fun and exhausting was when i made a wrong turn while 4wheeling down at ouray colorado and ended up going down Pougkeepsie Gulch, which is rated by state 4wheel clubs as VDL, which means vehicle damage likely!! could not back up so down i went, took 2 hours to go about 1/4 mile, but it was worth it for the looks of the drivers of the jeeps who were coming up the gulch and probably thinking to themselves "if he can come down this in a SUBARU then i sure as hell can go up it" :)))) i still make sure i always carry cell phone though :-)

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Guest desertsoob

NO WAY......SUBIES KICK A**!!!! I HAVE TAKEN MY SUBIE SOME CRAZY PLACES...NO PROBLEMS..I WILL BUY SUBIES FROM NOW ON....AND FOR THOSE GUYS WITH 40" SUPER SWAMPERS AND ALL THAT NEETO STUFF....SUBIES MIGHT BE LOW AND SMALL BUT IF YOU KNOW HOW TO DRIVE A SUBIE WILL GO MOST OF THE PLACES THEY CAN GA AND FOR A LOT LESS DOUGH!!

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Guest Whtspoke

Whether or not they're capable is always in the back of most of our minds. There are stock cars with winches on them, they sponsored the ski team in the 80's, etc. All I get are cockeye looks, comments like "can it actually do anything?" I still can't get over the fact that Subarus don't get any credit from anyone except for Subaru owners. My neighbor drives a landcruiser and we went offroading, and he has a lot of respect for these cars now, but he would never discuss them with 'his buddies at the bar'. And that's how it goes- there is nothing mechanically wrong with the cars, but we live with a bigger is better mentality. I have never seen a car with such balance as Subarus. They're tough but not heavy, they have decent gas milage but are four wheel drive. I think the only reason why they are not given All terrain status is because it is a unibody, and the uneven ground will ultimately stretch the frame out. I assume the designers figured out the lifespan of the frame under rough conditions and it didn't meet a labling requirement.

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Guest moosens

My 79 Brat went down trails once unknown to mankind.Maybe not like a Yamaha Banshee,but still it did what I needed it to do.The greatest hunting vehicle I ever owned.I can still see the dripping blood.

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Guest DaZeD69

Well, I saw the 4x4 car thing and was hooked. No matter the cost, even though I obtained it for free, I made my subaru PRIMARILY for offroading(my daily driver is a 1994 F-250 4x4). Hence the "lift" I installed(not really, just some spring spacers). I have it lifted enough to get 29 inch all terrains under the baby. While she was still running(having axle problems), I put her through everything and more. I'm a member of my college's 4 wheelin' club and my were they impressed. I went down a "modified" only trail will little difficulty. The only thing it had trouble w/ was articulation(none because of the spring spacers). During this particular trail, we had water and MUD running into the car because we didn't carry the height of the huge trucks running in front of us(tire sizes between 44" to 33"). Yet we still crawled through it. Lost reverse in the stamp sands down by Lake Superior, not a big deal. We have run through mud halfway up the doors, hit holes where the water line was on the top of the headlights(luckily didn't get any into the air cleaner, it was dry). And through it all, although we started as a joke in the MTU 4 Wheelin' club, we've earned a lot of respect! There has yet to be anything that the "Ru" (as we've dubbed it) hasn't gone through. The club president was also quoted as saying, "screw this, I'm selling my jeep and buying a subaru!" After we transversed a hole w/ the parking brake on(DOH!), that he could barely crawl through. I don't know, to each his own, but I'm going to continue to use my Ru for wheelin' until she dies. Hence the reason I'm spending the money for Byb's 4inch lift and 29 inch Super swampers. The reason I'm staying w/ 29 inch, is because I'm afraid that my poor Ru couldn't throw mud w/ anything of a bigger diameter. Also, if anyone has a Semi-locking diff I'm interested, otherwise I'm going to weld the rear axle. heh. Then I'll be damned if I can't go anywhere. Just my two cents guys. Although my next project is going to be a Toyota 4x4 wagon or an AMC Eagle... the Ru is here to stay, for memories sake if nothing else. If you haven't seen them yet, I have pics posted of my Ru mudding. Mind you the pics are on modified only runs. <A HREF=http://www.angelfire.com/mi2/DaZeD69 >http://www.angelfire.com/mi2/DaZeD69 </A> have fun!

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The Subaru was never meant to be off-road/all-terrain vehicles but that never stopped any of us. There is a lot of satisfaction in getting the Suba through a difficult spot when you know it wasn't supposed to go there. At least if you don't make it you have an excuse, and when you do you're a hero. But when you get the huge big-booted stomper stuck you sure look like a fool.

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Guest earthguy

My friend took me on a little 'excursion' on one of the local road construction sites. I'm impressed with the ground clearance. I just have to wonder about the durability of the cv joints on the car as the boots may get torn and be stuffed with gravel.

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I'll answer that question Guys. If you break you go get the spare parts you've been rat holin' and fix and get back to it. I bought my Hatchback for $200.00 took it home replaced both front axle shafts and 4 tires and haven't looked back. Well only to see the big 3 (F, C, C ) shaking there heads in disbelief. There's nothing funner than doing what everyone else thinks you can't. A quote I heard once " It's only impossible until someone does it" So I say "go make a believer out of someone" do it in your Roo! Qman

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