Seahag1978

She's still alive and well After 10 years. In for some garage time. :-)

Thank you! :-)

I haven't posted in a while. I did a search, but can't find the answer. We just installed a new radio into the '86 BRAT, but when we trun the car off, it loses the pre-set stations. Why?

Thanks!

On an '80 BRAT which position on the shifter, is 4WD engaged? Toward you, away from you?

These people had them right on the shelf for my '78 BRAT: http://www.kaliper.com/ They're local to me and have pretty much any caliper you could want. Recently, Tim needed them for an unknown dropped axle for his '50 Ford truck. He brought the axle over and the guy came out and looked at it, fitted him right up. They know their stuff!

The test with the volt meter proved there was power running to the pump so we changed it out with the pump from the parts BRAT. It started right up and immediately shot up to red-line! We had a brutal winter and severe rain the past month, it was just sitting, so it seems there was something stuck at the carb, WD40 to the rescue! She starts and runs normal again. I was very lucky the morning of the fire, adrenalin kicked in and I acted quickly, the fire extinguisher was behind my seat, but the real saving grace was that the HOOD RELEASE ACTUALLY WORKED ON THE FIRST PULL! LOL! We checked all the wiring and hoses, there was no damage from the fire except to the starter itself. I do need to do some serious cleaning under there. Thanks for all your help! You're the best!!!

Thanks for all the responses and the link to the FSM and mikeshoup for putting it there! I have a complete '84 parts BRAT, so I'm sure I have the part to fix it. Looks like I have enough information to make it work. I'll let you know what happens!

Hmmm... I know my battery terminal connectors are iffy. We're hoping that maybe it isn't getting enough juice? It rolls over nice and runs with starting fluid or pouring gas directly into the carb. The fuses in the box are all fine, where would the fusible links be located? I don't have a manual for this BRAT only the '78. Not to worry, I won't get offended, like I said, talk to me like I'm 5 years old

If the fuel line broke, wouldn't it be pumping fuel into the engine bay that I would smell?

I had a push button start and it was so cold one day that the button housing broke off. I didn't realized it was stuck in the "on" position. I drove it a few blocks to the gas station and when I tried to turn it off, it wouldn't shut down. I then realized that the starter was cranking continuously. I left the station to drive home. About a block away, the car lost all power and shut down. I pulled over and had smoke, I popped the hood, grabbed the fire extinguisher and it was so cold, it gave me just enough of a blast to put out the fire. The car restarted normally and I drove home. I checked things, replaced the button and drove it for quite a while without incident.

I had a small fire back before Christmas, once I put it out, seemed everything checked out and it was driving and starting with no issue. It sat for a few weeks and the temp dropped way down and when I tried to start it, nothing. I figured a frozen line and it sat. The weather is warm now, I get no gas into the carb. I searched and have no idea what I'm looking at. Those of you who remember me, know to talk to like I'm a 5 year old... don't assume I know where the fuel pump is, or if there are fusible inks that may have fried... Skip! Where are you??? He even sent me pictures and drawings of what to do!!! Is there another Skip here?

Finally, my friend. Glad to see that!

Dad's Paint Stripper takes it right off. Let set for 10-15 minutes and hit i with a putty knife. I did the whole bed of my BRAT in a few hours.

You can use silver leaf. You can buy a "book" at any major craft store, like AC Moore or Michael's. It's a super thin sheet of silver and a liquid that you paint on and let dry to tack. Then gently lay the leafing over it and tamp it down. Try it on a junk piece of plastic to get the feel of the leafing... it's extremely delicate and wrinkles easily. I put clear coat over it and it's held up for over 2 years now. It's way cheaper than having them rechromed and looks pretty good. Good luck!

Rob left here around 10 am... he should miss the traffic going into Boston and make normal time... hava agreat time tomorrow! Wish I could be there!

Here's a quick search of '78: http://www.vinbee.com/cgi-bin/pv_fetch.cgi?kw=1978&Search=Search&s=&veh=subaru-brat The prices of all BRATs can vary like crazy. In reality, it's worth whatever someone is willing to pay you for it.

Ahhhh... a blast from my past! Thanks for the memories!

Don't forget about the primitive "airbag" sitting on the engine... It didn't look like the dummies were belted in. Not so sure how the rear seat passengers would fare... sitting backwards their backs would take the brunt of the hit, but I imagine that the recoil with only a lap belt would be brutal. All in all, I was amazed at how well it stood up, I always wondered.

Very nice Ed! Hang on to her til this economy gets better. My friend just lost $25k (yes, twenty-five thousand) selling a couple of his classic cars. Ouch!

No mention of Subaru? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hatchback

LOL! My old boss used to jump start my GL-10 on a regular basis. After several trips to the repair shop without results, I finally gave up on her and begged him to just let her die quietly in the corner of the lot! The landlord of the building was a bit miffed until The Kidney Foundation was called and off she went. Sad day.

My BRAT is the Gen 1 on there

My ignition is a little flaky on the '86 BRAt, so Tim installed a push button start. It was so cold the other morning, the button broke after it started. I drove to the gas station and the car wouldn't shut off. I started to drive home and got about a block away when I lost power, no lights, dash, radio etc. I smelled smoke, yikes! I pulled over and purposely stalled her to shut her off. I pulled the hood latch and grabbed the fire extinguisher. I could see smoke at this point while I raised the hood. The tire was in the way but I could see where the smoke was coming from, so I shot it under the tire. I got it out and good thing because it was so cold, it only gave me one blast. Apparently, when the button broke, the car stayed in the start position and the starter was running continuously. My battery is smoked.