Im pretty new to the subaru world and was wanting some general opinions about an 87 hatchback awd I saw for 250$ . Im looking for a good gas mileage car for daily runs to and fro. What kind of general advice can ya all suggest for me to think about with this car? Things to run from. Thinks to look for. The price is right, if it aint rusted out real bad, I guess.

You're getting into the confusing years for the term hatchback. At least for the unfamiliar. The "hatchback" never came in awd, only 2wd and selectable 4wd. It is also powered by the ea81 ohv 1800cc motor.

The 3 door coupe also never came in awd, 2wd selectable 4wd and ft4wd(some people would call that awd but its not). And to get the last option it wouls have to be an RX turbo car. They will be powered by the ea82 or ea82t ohc 1800 either n/a or turbo.

basically everything can easilly be replaced except rusted unibodies. harrys u pull it in hazelton has all the mechanicals. check the floors/rockers/shock mounts/unibody rails closely for rust. $250 seems like a decent price.

Im pretty new to the subaru world and was wanting some general opinions about an 87 hatchback awd I saw for 250$ . Im looking for a good gas mileage car for daily runs to and fro. What kind of general advice can ya all suggest for me to think about with this car? Things to run from. Thinks to look for. The price is right, if it aint rusted out real bad, I guess.

 

Bearing in mind that (a) it's 20 years old and (2) it costs $250, hopefully you have decent mechanical skills, or have friends who do. That being said, you will get great support here and they are pretty easy to work on. Don't expect fantastic mileage--high 20s to low 30s would be about it.

 

For used cars I budget about $100 in immediate maintenance, unless these items have recently been done: tuneup (air filter, cap, rotor, plugs (NGK), wires, PCV valve); thermostat, fresh coolant, oil/filter change; belts & hoses. I do this to eliminate the most common problems that will leave you stuck by the side of the road. Keep a log of when you did stuff to it. Throw in some fuel system cleaner, and some oil sludge loosener before you change the oil.

 

Also very important--change the fuel filter and keep a spare in the car, along with a couple of tools to change it out on the road. This is a very good idea for carbureted cars, whose fuel filters often last only 10K miles. This practice has saved my butt more than once. Twice on road trips, in fact.

 

Maybe you know all this stuff already, but now for sure you do.

I got my hatch for $250 in april and haven't had to touch a thing on it.

I got my hatch for $250 in april and haven't had to touch a thing on it.

 

Great. But my point was for a new owner to establish a maintenance baseline, so that he/she knows the condition of the major systems of the car. In going over it this way, the owner gets to know it a lot better, even if not everything I mentioned needs doing immediately.

 

I would add: make sure the thermostat is from the Sube dealer, and check the condition of the brakes too.

Actually... Full Time 4WD is the same as All Wheel Drive. They both use a center differential and power all 4 wheels all the time.

 

Selectable 4WD is not AWD.

 

-Brian