greg454 Posted April 11, 2019 Share Posted April 11, 2019 On 4/5/2019 at 7:51 PM, FerGloyale said: The jump seats are not safe, let alone legal. They didn't have seatbelt for a start. And the "oh SH$#" handles are more like "Oh SH$#, this thing just stabbed me in the spleen!" So I won't be putting my wife and infant kids in them any time soon. Plus if you put a bench seat in the back of the Baja you can seat 5 not 4. They did in fact have seat belts in the back for the jump seats! I still have them in my '84. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FerGloyale Posted April 11, 2019 Share Posted April 11, 2019 1 hour ago, greg454 said: They did in fact have seat belts in the back for the jump seats! I still have them in my '84. Still nowhere near safe. Maybe for an adult on a low speed trail ride. Wearing a helmet. Not for an infant/ toddler child in a car seat. C'mon people have some common sense about this. Subaru made the Baja for people in their 30's and 40's that wanted Brat's in their teen's and 20's. Cause now we've mostly all got kids. Funny though. I went on the Winter Wonderland Gambler 500 2 Novembers ago. Ended up teaming with a group of 3 guys in a Brat. (the AristoBrat) it was called. Classy. These guys where commited. I follwed them and for 200+ miles, one of them was riding int the back. In the cold. In the rain. On high mountain roads covered in snow, bouncing around. On the freeway doing 70. I offered up a warm front seat in my 84 wagon. But none of them wanted to be the one who 'couldn't hang" and they finished the run all 3 together, taking turns in the jumpseat wearing raingear and a helmet. I will have to work on getting my GoPro footage of the trip uploaded. Camera mounted to front bumper, so I got about 3 hours of video following "The AristoBrat" 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
el_freddo Posted April 12, 2019 Share Posted April 12, 2019 4 hours ago, FerGloyale said: Not for an infant/ toddler child in a car seat. C'mon people have some common sense about this. Who said anything about putting kids in the back?? No one, except you FerGloyale! It’s a moot point. Jump seats are cool. We didn’t get them due to our design rules. I know of one set imported into Oz - but they’re only for show and not for road use. Plus they chew up too much usable load carrying space where you put the heaviest gear. I doubt I’d want to be in these seats cruising the bush with our dusty conditions! I felt for those dudes in the back of AristoBrat - but as you said, it was their choice... Either way, back on topic - Brat/Brumby for me even with a family. It’s my daily, I can buy others too but I don’t and won’t ever have access to a Baja since they’re a US only model. And I have no hard feelings about that either. Cheers Bennie 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Subasaurus Posted April 12, 2019 Share Posted April 12, 2019 my friends are constantly riding in the back of mine, i've only ridden in them once since im usually the driver, it was actually quite enjoyable and relaxing going 65mph down the highway, it does get awkward staring at someone at a redlight though. in Texas you're allowed to ride in the bed of a pickup as long as it's below 40mph, so pretty much not the highway, i've had 3 different police vehicles trail behind me when i have my friends in the back, they stare hard, follow for a few minutes, then break away, not sure really why, twice on the highway and once on surface streets... the brat is a "pickup truck" in other countries but not a "pickup truck" in the U.S. due to the title saying passenger vehicle thanks to the extra 2 seats. and yes, they have lap belts in the back, mine have been jammed since the day i got it, so they're just decoration, but you're probably suppose to be buckled in due to the fact that it's considered passenger vehicle and the vehicle came with belts originally, it's a 2door car with 2 seats in the back, with a wall inbetween, with the seats facing the wrong way like a 60's Volvo, and then there's no roof, even though thats the least of my worries.... the headrest is more of a backrest, the rollbar is a nice comfortable headrest for breaking your skull open, and relaxing your head to the side introduces you to some healthy slamming onto your skull. im sure one day i'll get pulled over and i'll have to explain to the judge that this is how the car left the dealership. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
craigmcd Posted April 25, 2019 Author Share Posted April 25, 2019 I have followed this very entertaining thread (which I started) and really enjoyed all the comments. I am on my 6th Subaru, and will continue to watch for the right Brat or Baja - but would buy the Brat first just for the fun of it. In regard to the jump seats: Back in high school, circa 1978-80, I owned a ‘67 El Camino SS with a factory 396. I skateboarded a lot, and several times drove with 2-3 kids riding in the back (no seats) from Colorado Springs to Boulder to go to the only skate pool in Colorado. It is a good 2 hours each way on the Interstate. Now, as a father, I would never let my kids take that trip in the back. Different times. We drank out of the garden hose too. Thanks for all the comments. C 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jdkneppy Posted April 25, 2019 Share Posted April 25, 2019 On 4/5/2019 at 4:16 PM, FerGloyale said: I've sold all my Brats because I have a family. Can't take kids and Wife anywhere. Brat's are a collectible novelty now. Totally impractical as a daily driver. I love my Brat and it is a daily driver, now that it's running again. Usually just me, but wife goes with me on occasion but she isn't fond of the "tractor" ride. I can haul a little and get lots of attention and thumbs up when driving around town. I have seen one other Brat in town of 200,000+, but not lately. There are a few others around, but the Brat is not very common. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
franbev Posted April 26, 2019 Share Posted April 26, 2019 Limited use here too. 2 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sparkyboy Posted April 26, 2019 Share Posted April 26, 2019 (edited) @franbev Heading to the grocery store I see! I get it, dog in the front seat to prevent red light escapes. One other point that hasn't been brought up yet...camper tops for the brat! Brat wins its over, no need for for a YouTube Brat vs. Baja comparo! Lol Best of both worlds? A Baja with jump seats AND a brat with an ej engine. Edited April 26, 2019 by sparkyboy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
el_freddo Posted April 26, 2019 Share Posted April 26, 2019 4 hours ago, sparkyboy said: Best of both worlds? A Baja with jump seats AND a brat with an ej engine There is only one world - Brat wins out either way, with an EJ the world is better Cheers Bennie 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FerGloyale Posted April 27, 2019 Share Posted April 27, 2019 On 4/26/2019 at 8:48 AM, sparkyboy said: @franbev Heading to the grocery store I see! I get it, dog in the front seat to prevent red light escapes. One other point that hasn't been brought up yet...camper tops for the brat! Brat wins its over, no need for for a YouTube Brat vs. Baja comparo! Lol Best of both worlds? A Baja with jump seats AND a brat with an ej engine. There are canopy tops available for Bajas also. I'd rather daily drive my XT than a Brat. At least it's a GL model so I got rear seats. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
el_freddo Posted April 28, 2019 Share Posted April 28, 2019 13 hours ago, FerGloyale said: I'd rather daily drive my XT than a Brat. At least it's a GL model so I got rear seats My brumby/brat is a GL - but that has nothing to do with rear seats... Cheers Bennie 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FerGloyale Posted April 28, 2019 Share Posted April 28, 2019 6 hours ago, el_freddo said: My brumby/brat is a GL - but that has nothing to do with rear seats... Cheers Bennie my point was that DL versions of XTs over here got no back seat. Only GL/GL-10s Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
el_freddo Posted April 29, 2019 Share Posted April 29, 2019 10 hours ago, FerGloyale said: my point was that DL versions of XTs over here got no back seat. Only GL/GL-10s Well I didn’t know that. All XTs sold in Oz came standard with a back seat. Cheers Bennie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sparkyboy Posted April 29, 2019 Share Posted April 29, 2019 (edited) The xt would make a fantastic daily driver! And a dl version of the xt backseat delete? Too cool! And that "backseat" is useless anyway, except as a package tray or dog bed. Edited April 29, 2019 by sparkyboy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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