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I did my first road trip in the Brat today. I only drove 64 miles round trip but, it was perfect. It ran fine, was smooth, and I like it even more. I normally drive around 60MPH, I had yo fight it to keep it down to that. It kept wanting to do 65 to 70. And it would do 70. I was getting out of the way of some trucks, going up hill, and went from 65 to 70 in no time. If the mileage is ok, I might keep the 3AT. It can get out of its own way. The only problem now, is all the fluids that leaks, spilled or splashed are getting burned off, and it smokes a little after I shut it down.

I had to replace the tires on the Brat Friday. The ones that were on it were there for at least 5 years. It was parked that long. I drove it around and the farther I went the rougher it rode. It felt like I was driving on square blocks. I stopped at my tire shop to see what they were going for, and picked up a set of SUMIC 175/70/13's. The were less than $300 for five tires mounted and balanced. I did not want to pay that much but, I could not drive it like it was. I plan to put 14" tires on both of my Soobs sometime this year. I just have to drill out the hubs or find 10 14" wheels with the 4x140 bolt pattern. I think I will probably end up doing the drill out to 6 lugs. I just wanted to let everyone know that there is a company out there that still makes a few different size 13" tires. The parent company even has a 205/60/13, THe only problem is that they are on road car tires. I just thought I would share. Here is the link. www.laramietire.com

OK, here is my day. I got up and fixed the wagon. Had to replace the timing belt idler pulley and timing belt. After that, I went to the parts store and got the vacuum modulator for the Brat. Came home, installed it, and so far, no smoke. Thanks for the help guys, I really am glad to have the Brat on the road. Now, to fix the oil leak around the pump.

The gas gauge is broken. It showed that I had used half a tank of gas for 50 miles. I could only get 2.4 gallons in it, so I am very happy. After I get the new vacuum modulator installed, I hope the milage will go up a little. It should because it won't be burning tranny fluid. Thanks for the info guys. And cobcob, I love being able to drive the Brat, it does very well at hiway speeds.

I used JB Weld to seal it. Would the tranny fluid in the system make the milage go down? I filled up today, drove 50 miles and the gauge shows a little over 1/4 tank used. I am going to go fill it again to make sure the problem is not the gauge. The smoke does smell like tranny fluid. I called the local parts house and they list it for $18, should be here tomorrow.

If it is the vacuum modulator, how do I fix it?

I finally got the Brat on the road and legal today. I drove it 6 miles to the gas station to fill her up. On the way back, as I was pulling out of the station, it started the smoking thing again. Big clouds of white smoke out of the tail pipe. I thought I fixed that when I plugged the hole under the carb. It has the Weber carb, and I was told to plug the hole since it is not needed by the Weber. It worked until I drove it today. I did not smoke until after driving for 6 miles. I really need this to work, the wagon is down right now and my Suburban does not get good enough milage to be my daily driver. Any ideas will be appreciated. Other than that, it drove great, had enough power on the hills to not lose any speed, even with the 3AT. Thanks guys.

yes it does, no one had gotten that before. i really like it here. you guys know your stuff. i carried one for almost 4 years, then i found a Springfield and started carrying it instead. i gave the cd to the wife.

I went to the gun range today. Did not do too bad. On the way home the idler pulley on the drivers side locked up. When that happened, most of the teeth on the belt went away. It still ran fine but, it made a funny noise with what was left of the teeth on the belt slipping over the locked gear. I pulled over and turned the car off. Started checking, cut the belt off, and found the problem. Called all the parts stores in the area and only one had what I needed, Advance Auto. They had the gear for $36 and a new belt for $19. I paid $9 to get the pulley delivered before the 15th. It will be here on Wednesday. Now I sit and wait until the parts get here. I will pull it home if a little while so I don't have to worry about it getting trashed on the side of the road. I am ordering the new parts for the Brat this Friday.

Okay, I tried to mount a set of lights to the bumper of my Brat today. First, I tried it on the bar that runs under the bumper but, the lights are too big and hung down too far. Then I tried to mount them to the bottom of the bumper itself and could not get the mount bolts tight enough to keep the lights from moving. I need to find out how think the metal of the front bumper is. If it is thick enough, I can cut some of the plastic off around the mount bracket, maybe that will let it get tight without moving. The lights are almost the same size as the regular headlights so I need to mount them higher. I even looked at the holes for the front plate, just did not have a flat place for the washer and nut to lock down. Any ideas will be looked at. Please help. The lights were a gift for Christmas, and they will look great on the Brat. I thought about getting a light bar for the bed but, I plan on putting the topper back on. Thanks in advance.

1987 GL Wagon, D/R 5sp manual. Carbed EA82, no cat. Reseal last year, blew out the drivers side cam seal. Passenger side drive shaft once, drivers side twice. New wheel bearings all around earlier this year. Disk brakes all the way around. Replaced the fuel pump on Tuesday of last week, got almost 3 years out of the last one. Oil changes regularly, and tune-ups every March. I really like the Wagon, it was free, and I don't have too many problems with it. Needs a front end alignment. I don't get the mileage that everyone on here gets but, it beats the Suburban by a mile.

I did the ones on the 87 wagon, and am fixing to do the bearings on the Brat. They are not hard to do. Relax and don't get into a hurry.

cob, that Brat looks great. I can't wait until mine is ready to drive, I am so jealous. I will let you know if the tranny is a go.

Mom gave me a 1983 4x4 Chevy Suburban. It runs good, and has seating for 9. That means I can pull the back set out, fold the middle seat, and have enough room to sleep comfortably, and store all of my stuff out of the weather. I was going to sell it until I had to work on my Wagon this last weekend. I have decided to make it into my hunting truck. I have searched the web for days now, and can't find a place like this place. If anyone knows of a site like this, let me know. I have always liked the Suburban, and I want to make this a nice truck and still be able to take it pretty much anywhere at any time. Thanks.

GD, what would you charge me to pick up a couple of distys for my Brat, with good vacuum advance? There are no Soobies around here in the junk yards.

That is so not fair. I looked for 2 years before I found one. Now you have a new one. I live in the wrong state. Hope it turns out to be a nice Brat.

Hello, welcome to the boards. You will like it here. Soobies are great cars. They are not very fast but, they go any where no matter what the weather. Wagon looks good, enjoy her.

I will be putting new oil pump gaskets and seals in the 87 wagon this weekend. Is there anything I should watch or be ready for? It seems like a simple job. I wll be doing this instead of going deer hunting, unfortunatly.

I want it. You can use any of my pics, and there are not that many. Can't wait to see it.

Thanks for posting. My Brat does the same thing. I was thinking of redoing the PCV system, I really don't like the way it was set up. One line goes to the PCV valve, the other goes right to the breather.

I disconnected everything from mine, even installed a manual choke. It runs a lot better than it did. I am still going to replace the whole carb with a Weber. The Brat had one when I brought it home, and it is so much nicer to work on. Now to do the wagon.

This really sucks. I am only getting 23 to 24 MPG. I got 26MPG on the hiway. I guess I am going to have to get a Weber and replace the Hitachi. I am just glad the Brat already has the Weber. P.S. This milage is in my 1987 GL Wagon with a D/R 5Speed, and 4WD.

Update. I drove it arounf the block again, and this time no smoke. I will drive it again later to see if it does it then. After this, all I have to do is the rear bearings, they are starting to make noise, even on the dirt roads only doing 35 MPH. I can see the light at the end of the tunnel. Thanks everyone. This place still rocks.

Connie, it has the Weber on it, and there is nothing in the air box. Thanks for asking. Cob, I think I will keep it a while longer but, I will keep you in mind. Fixing to go out and drive it again, just to see if it does it again.

Pulled the line, no fluid. I did drive it, and then let it idle, and no smoking. I took it out around the block again, the other direction this time, and it started smoking when I did a left turn. Not from a stop, but in a long tight curve. It quit almost immediately. When I got home, I drove it in a tight circle to the left twice. It smoked for about 2 minutes, and then quit again. I am almost there, can't wait until I get to drive it farther than two miles.