Rayrook Posted January 13, 2020 Share Posted January 13, 2020 So i am looking at getting a 79 brat have always wanted one! Probably the most gutless year but it is pretty cheap and my first Subaru wondering how hard it is to find parts for the most used up stuff u joints cv joints wheel bearings have been on rock auto and they seem to have quite a bit! i can’t tell you how many times I have ordered something and it ain’t right Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaveT Posted January 13, 2020 Share Posted January 13, 2020 Every day more parts are nla. Start collecting parts cars, etc. Whenever you see them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sparkyboy Posted January 17, 2020 Share Posted January 17, 2020 Subaru brats are such an odd thing, they are often bought as toys for a beast off road build and can be had for just a few hundo from someone too light in their sube game, but some of the hard to find brat only parts like the jump seats and bed trim are worth a mint. At least those have the ea81 engine which was a good engine so someone makes most of the parts somewhere. The not as good ea82 has a few parts noone makes such as the oil pump, which pretty much sucks but the consensus seems to be that those engines are not worth keeping on the road. Luckily, (sorta) subaru had to sell out a bit in the 90s to general motors but one of the best things about gm is that if they invest in a car company they'll see to it that parts for that car grow on trees, sube built only about a billion ej22s and that wonderful engine basically drops right into earlier bodies. So, if I may, is this 79 a barn find that's been buried for decades and is still pristine? Or is she in the 300,000 mile club and rusting to pieces? How much do they want? Is a full frame off resto in your plans? Or beat her till she asssplodes, ej swap and keep thrashing on a huge lift with chevy six lugs? The funniest thing about these cars is that a perfect 79 brat sold for a relative huge pile of cash, over $45,000 at barrett-Jackson about a year ago, and set the precedent for dudes to start treating old brats more like old muscle cars which is a mixed bag of cool. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rayrook Posted January 17, 2020 Author Share Posted January 17, 2020 So it’s 600 and I am looking at keeping it mostly stock and it is a manual cuz I have seen some automatics and was researching seals for the output shaft and couldn’t find any! and that is mostly what I concerned about is seals and bearings water pumps oil pumps cuz I am on a fixed income and just want to be able to fix the high wear stuff Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaveT Posted January 17, 2020 Share Posted January 17, 2020 #1 thing to keep old Subarus running without major repairs is keeping the cooling system in top condition. All of the cooling system hoses, not just the radiator and heater hoses. The radiator in good condition. Checking the coolant level in the radiator and the recovery tank frequently. All of the parts are getting harder to find. So you have to seach, scroung, collect. Mechanics who know these old ones and thier quirks well are rare. So you have to DIY or pay big. Not a great choice for a daily driver unless you have another vehicle for backup when it takes a week to find a part. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GeneralDisorder Posted January 24, 2020 Share Posted January 24, 2020 On 1/17/2020 at 8:22 AM, Rayrook said: So it’s 600 and I am looking at keeping it mostly stock and it is a manual cuz I have seen some automatics and was researching seals for the output shaft and couldn’t find any! and that is mostly what I concerned about is seals and bearings water pumps oil pumps cuz I am on a fixed income and just want to be able to fix the high wear stuff You pretty much can't get any of those things. Oil pumps are NLA as are most engine parts in general. You will spend the vast majority of your ownership searching for parts. Used, new old stock (rare), and otherwise. These vehicles are absolutely not viable daily drivers. GD Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
moosens Posted January 24, 2020 Share Posted January 24, 2020 For that money just get it and live out the experience. GD paints a dark picture but guys like myself still exist and have parts to unload. In fact most of us agree there are sometimes more parts than there are cars. GD is somewhat correct due to the passing of time. But for the amount of items you’ll likely need I’m confident you’ll do well to support your ride for a good twenty years if you score some important parts and care for it as best as you can. You can find my new old stock and great used 1970’s and gen one Brat parts on eBay currently. I don’t like being there but the exposure can’t be beat and I’ve made contacts around the globe. Flippers (resellers) are buying my items and listing sometimes 10x my price. That’s a fact , not a scare tactic. Theres at least a few other guys out there still hoarding their new old stock and also piles of used parts. Enjoy while you can. You like that Brat , it’s tours , show it and enjoy the smiles and waves. Ebay name - cashingmystuffin not shown are items like engines fenders valance glass transmissions , etc etc etc and all 1972-79 and Brat 80-81 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
moosens Posted January 24, 2020 Share Posted January 24, 2020 There were never any first generation automatic Brats. Not sure what you saw. Maybe second generation. There were a few auto’s Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
moosens Posted January 24, 2020 Share Posted January 24, 2020 Your rear brakes and drums are the same as the later 1980-84 and I think maybe same as Loyale 85-95 too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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