Seahag1978

Awww... you know I'd never sell it. It's just so frustrating that it was in such bad shape mechanically. Apparently the two parties that swore that it was in great shape (other than the interior) were either unaware or just plain lied. This Brat was a wreck. I makes me so mad because I'm no purist... I have dealt with "wrecks" in my lifetime... for instance: having driven one with only an emergency brake to stop, stuffing a steel wool pad up the exhaust to get on the Navy base, and another car that had to be parked on a hill to "jump" start it. I have dealt with sheeitcans all my life... I bought my first brand new car when I was 47. The '86 is still in primer... I decided to wait til Spring for the paint... there has been construction across from us and the dirt and dust is godawful, and the weather here is not conducive to paint... we only have a plastic hut to paint in... between the wind, rain and construstion... forget it. The lights and bumpers will go back on and the exhaust will get straightened out by Lou next week. I'll drive it in primer till the spring. I don't want it to sit and go bad from not using it.

Ok... let's face it... the Brat I got was pretty but a mechanical nightmare. Got the wheel bearings and spacer fixed. Changed the axle. Noise is still there. Oooo-kayyy. Next step. My steering rack was deemed "junk" By the alignment guy. I got a nice one and new inner tie rods from Todd. We finally wiggle the old one out and one ball joint is so stuck we can't get it off... heat... WD40 190lbs. standing on it... won't budge. Tim finally has a seizure and takes a maul to it and crushes the whole works while calling it everything but a milk cow. By now, it's after noon. No parts places are open... bummer, wait til Monday to get/order new ball joints. Stay tuned. P.S. I'm even starting to hate this car

Just downshift... subies hate hills... even when new. Trust me.

I have a Bentley and find it a little confusing because it's so precise that I don't seem to find the correct combination... year, model, emissions, etc. We do manage to get it done using the Bentley

During shows, I have had the opportunity to do a side-by-side comparison of the Baja to the H3 and Honda Ridgeline. For utility and comfort, the Baja has it hands down over the H3: Interior space is a lot in the upper front to the dash but the seats are LOW like a Corvette or Mustang. Visibilty from the inside looks to be limited. The cargo capacity is much smaller than the Baja and the back seat will only accommodate very small people. Not worth the effort, other than for its "get-out-of-my-way" factor. (Soccer moms in mini-vans scare me way more). Now the Ridgeline, except for it's squirrely slanty bed and inconvenient height to load and unload. The interior is very nice and very roomy. The running boards are a great protectant from runaway car doors, shopping carts slamming into you. All-in-all it's ugly from the outside, but nice from the inside. After comparing them, I would buy my Baja again. I love it.

Can do... just got in, we picked up a rescue hedgehog.

You're invited... Saturday, November 5th. Yes, it's after Halloween... if you have ever experienced the traffic and mobs of tourists here during Halloween week you would understand. Email or PM me for directions... 10 minutes off Route 128/95 in Salem, Massachusetts. Lots of food and drink... kids are welcome.

I have driven stick for more years than I care to mention... and I find my Baja is very touchy too. It seems to want to bolt at half-clutch, regardless of the gas being fed to it. The car is quiet and I wasn't "hearing" what it needed. This worked wonders for me: Turn off the stereo, heater, A/C in the car and listen to the car as you drive... after a few days, your body will pick up the car's rhythm and respond to it automatically. Good luck!

Yup, and for some reason I think the lower molding on some years has to be modified too? I have no idea what's on mine... the lower moldings and lines match but I have no antenna hole in either side?

All my Subes did (do) that. The exhaust systems rot from the inside out due to the design and the abilty to hold water. I drive only 3 miles to work, so have gotten into the habit of driving up a steep hill to get the water right out because it's not long enough to dry out the inside. It leaves a trail of water... and there is white smoke. It's probably silly to do that because the water sits in the system all night rusting it to heck anyway <shrug>.

Whatever you do.... DO NOT do any business with http://www.autobodypartsonline.com. or http://www.AutoPartsLand.com they also go under several other names. It's a long story that I'll refrain from getting into. It took me 6 months and my credit card company to do a chargeback to them to get my money back. I ended up repairing my original hood and getting a fender from Russ Hill.

Hey, Tim's nephew, works in a car paint shop in Coudersport. We visit that area often. Sooo... I just learned there's an idle Brat just over the line near Corning. We were there last weekend and didn't have time to check it out.

After 20+ years, so many of these cars have been bastardized. Missing parts... unknown parts... I wonder how half of them run. Mine is the champ of the practice! Thank God for this board!

Ed, Do a compression check. I know old and new gen are different... well sort of... since they run off the same principal. The smoke I saw from mine was definitely white and smelled of extreme exhaust... not sweet, (toasted marshmallows) or mild exhaust. In the end, one cylinder was at 35 psi, while the others sat at around 150. The oil was very thin (no viscosity) and heavily laced with fuel. I don't know what was wrong, but a new j/y motor solved it. Now, if we can only fix that right front wheel. Best of luck that it's the PCV:)

When I got my '86 Brat home, I found a 3 story condominium in the ducts. Took a while, but I got all the remnants out... luckily, no one was home. Eeeeek!

We have 3 weekly shows and several yearly shows here. The majority of the cars are muscle cars, there's a GT500E "Eleanor" signed by Carroll Shelby that has been coming regularly. Now, she's a pretty car. The rest are old American made... BelAirs, Cadillacs, Model T, chopped trucks and sedans with hydraulics. Lots of money into these cars, but as common as a Lincoln penny. The Brat really gets its share of attention because most people have forgotten about them. The kids/teens think it's a new model or a kit.

Central/Western MA... almost every badge is a Subaru there, it's the official car I think! Anyway, Flint's Garage in Athol specializes in Subaru. My daughter just bought a Forester from them, and they seem like a nice people to deal with. Very reasonable too. One mechanic that works there just restored an old Brat, sold it on eBay. They have been in business 30 years. Good luck!

Thanks for thinking of me, I have one for the 78. I am considering looking for one for the 86 but may go with 3" stacks instead, I can't have both and the seats too.

Just tossed my other set to Skip... let me look... not sure there's anything good... 2 WD? You need not match treads? You'll all come a wee bit north for the annual Halloween Party... late this year, family thing... it's Nov. 5th.

Arrrrrghhhh! I hate reading this post! I wanna come too! Family thing... gotta do it. Stomp!

Back to the brakes... if you have ABS brakes then slowing at a fairly high rate of speed will make the brakes sort of "rumble"... they will also do it on slick surfaces. It's normal. My Baja is the first car I have ever owned with them. Scared the heart out of me the first time I tried stopping quick with them. Quite frankly, I'd rather lock and recover. Ahhh, I have learned to practice the fine art of downshifting

My Brat has been a money pit, but it's pennies compared to the payments, insurance and excise tax on my Baja. It's running great now (just have to change the hub and bearings). I wouldn't trade it for anything, when something breaks we'll fix it.

If the show is a hit, looks like the price of Brats is going to go up!

Unfortunately, in the great state of Massachusetts, there is no such thing as selling a car "As Is". Be up front with the buyer, but remember, verbal agreements about the car's condition don't hold up, so avoid them. To protect yourself against the Lemon Law, the only safe way to sell a questionable car is to state "For Parts Only" on the Bill of Sale. If the buyer cannot get the car to pass inspection because of the defects and it costs more than 10% of the purchase price to repair the defect, then the seller can choose to repair it to pass inspection, if not, then the buyer is entitled to a full refund. The inspection also includes emissions, even/odd years, I'm not sure if we're on even or odd this year, you might want to check that because you car is still subject to that portion of the test (exempt after 15 years). The plates and lack of inspection sticker has no bearing on the matter. Every car bought and registered MUST be re-inspected within 7 or 10 days of the purchase date, regardless of when the previous owner had it inspected. The numbers on the inspection sticker must match the registration number. Good luck! Mary

After talkng to Mudrat and Todd, we have learned that there is a much needed spacer that sits between the bearings. My Brat is lacking the spacer. Sooo, combine that with the now warped hub... munch! Todd is winging me a new hub with spacer. Thanks guys!