<![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat! - Jalopnik Comments]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat! - Jalopnik Comments]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> all this talk about downsizing...
i never even 'upsized' to begin with. i drive a '87 Holden Commodore with the factory 3Litre six. i get around 11L per 100km or 26mpg.
i've been driving her for 8 years now and never contemplated getting into debt on a more 'acceptable' car, for my income bracket.

Naturally Exasperated?

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> That's My excuse for buying a 1982 fiat X1/9, I get mid engine italian sports car that gets 30 to 35 mpg.

evil2win

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> @vr6juan: Yeah, my life peaked around that age, too.

beercheck

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> @TrikeKid: She won't ride in a Brat but she'll drive a Metro? Wow!

joneez

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> I have an 02 corolla that gets 35+ mpg with 150k miles that I intend on driving into the ground.

I also drive to get from point A to point B, but I do it listening to some good tunes.

toyotaboy

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> But it is an automatic...

mytdawg

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> @beercheck: It's the base Prizm with the 1.6, it seems to be the going rate as a few of the Corollas I've seen advertised claimed about 25 also.

mytdawg

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> I was offered the choice between a beater, and a Brat that had sporting equipment thrown in. I remember thinking:

Beater? No, Brat!
Beater? No, Brat!
Beater? No, Brat!
With a baseball bat!

Stoatmaster

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> @the guys complaining about their better half

My girlfriend doesn't care what I drive, but wishes I had a car that I actually want and would enjoy driving.

Stop being wusses and saying you're "doomed." You have an equal say. It's your life, not just hers.

escapenguin

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> @Froggmann: Yeah, I generally shift around 3500...3k before the engine's warmed up and 4k+ if I'm pushing it.

Adamskiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiy

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> @beercheck: Once when I was 2, I was in a 42' Hudson that crashed through a fence in a snowstorm that let a bull loose in from Pennsylvania field.

does that help?

vr6john

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> @vr6juan: The Falcon bit, I mean. Never speak of the Falcon bit again. Ever. Maybe God will forget.

beercheck

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> @vr6juan: Wow. I mean, kudos to you for admitting it, but....never speak of that again.

@mytdawg: 25mpg Geo? Automatic? Which model? I had a '96 4WD Tracker (5-speed, 1.6L 16-valve) and almost never got below 28, normally 30, until I upsized the rubber.

beercheck

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> @badco/LoJ: Build a solid 4 point cage and roll the window down or get one of the non base models.

I want a brat in the worst way, but nobody is going to pay me enough to get out of my '85 Toyota. That and the GF says she won't ride with me anymore if I get one, which is a non point as anytime we go anywhere we take her Metro.

TrikeKid

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> @Sloop_John_B: You need a new wife, one that hates automatics. They're kinkier, I hear.

Turboner

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> I feel like I've chosen poorly now. I'm averaging about 27mpg, but it's behind the wheel of a Cavalier (admittedly, it probably needs a tuneup).

Maymar is convinced M.C. Escher engineered his car

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> Comment on Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat! 2008 Ford focus.... I averages 37.8 mph on the highway with an average speed of 70mph. 85-90 with sprints up to 115 i averaged 28mpg even.

EdaDiores

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> WRX Brat, anyone? - redux

+ Watch video

Gaseous Clay

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> WRX Brat, anyone?

"

Gaseous Clay

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> Funny, I recently "fell into" a 1978 Subaru BRAT. Old guy down the block finally decided it was time to sell it, but he knew I liked it, so he came to my door first. $100! That's it, it was all he'd take, I tried to give him $500. The Subaru has always been serviced at the local dealership. Mechanically tip-top condition except the e-brake is inop, and the heater control cable seems to be frozen. Otherwise everything works perfect, the interior is mint condition except a little sun crack on the dash. It did get parked outside, so the white paint is a bit oxydized, and there is rust in the front fenders, but that's it. The old guy who owned it put an extra fuel cell in the bed, with a valve on the cab floor. He could drive from Portland Oregon to Reno Nevada without stopping for fuel. But due to that mod, it's missing the reat jump seats. She's a great little 1st gen BRAT, but it's the DL model, so 2 headlight grille, and no A/C. But the 4x4 works great, and it's got the rollbar in the bed, and front push bar to sruce it up. I figured I'd clean it up, fix the heater and e-brake, add some cheap off-road lights to the rollbar & pushbar and cruise in it for a few months before I sell it next fall/winter.

My normal gas mizer is a 1989 Suzuki Swift GTi 16valve, which is a really fun little go-cart of a car. It's as fast as a 944 Porsche of the same year 0-60. Atleast according to the sales lit. Anyhow, it does get 37mpg regularly, and at worst 32 with my foot up it's ass.

I drive the Suzuki so my 2005 Jeep Wrangler can sit in the garage detailed and pretty waiting for a sunny day to come out and play. Well, that's the lie, I really drive the Suzuki because the Jeep gets 15mpg on a good day. It's nearly 3 years old, and I've only put 14,000 miles on it.

Ironpony

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> @vr6juan: git=get

vr6john

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> damn...I met my wife on match.com

AND

I made her git rid of her 64' Falcon sedan...We share the VR6.

I feel like I should be punished after reading this thread...

But to be honest, the Falcon was a money pit and I gave up wrenching on cars (yeah if you call working on 60's VeeDubs wrenching) after I bought a 94' Golf...My knuckles have never been happier

vr6john

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> @Novaload: "OK, there's money to be made with a Jalopnik.match.com site--where there will be questions identifying cars, T/F questions and multiple choice (Manual or Automatic?)"

So instead of a dating category entitled "M4M" (Men for Men), we would have "M4M4M" (Men for Men for Manuals)...? Cool.

Charles_Barrett - Now with Variable-Valve Timing

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> I think downsizing should be a priority, since we see "3 tons piece of crap cars" being dragged down the street!what a waste of resources!Plus i really think small cars are more fun to drive!Driving a peugeot 106 and i love it!I forget the horsepower it doesn't have.

konceptsketcher

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> weight is the enemy!

Miata, you are calling me...

flightofthesuperbees

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> '90's Corollas and early Saturn SL's are the best deals out there right now. I'd like an EG Civic sedan, but even the sedans have all been "modded" and are 100% overpriced.

A BRAT's taking it a little far. I've got to have A/C and at least door impact beams.

badco/LoJ

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> I thought I really wanted a Brat for years, but then I realized that I just want something with rear-facing seats in the bed.

ARE YOU LISTENING PONTIAC?

Tanshanomi

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> @Sloop_John_B: Who's paying for the cars... you or her?

If you're paying for it, then you can 'un-ban' the manual.

If she wants to drive it, she'll just have to learn, ride her bicycle, take the bus or walk.

I taught my wife how to drive a manual and now she enjoys it. She tried suggesting getting an auto way back before she learned, but I told her that I wouldn't buy a car that costs more to buy, uses more fuel and is less enjoyable to drive.

Of course, if she's paying for it, you're screwed.

petersterncan

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> Had a'78 Brat in high school and loved it! Put seat belts in the back to be legal and rarely heard friends claim shotgun. When the 2bbl became unreliable I replaced it with a 1bbl. I had no idea where it came from but it went from 35mpg to 42mpg highway. The smog guy couldn't believe how clean it ran but wouldn't pass it 'cause the carb wasn't oem. Thanks C.A.R.B. you guys suck ass!

joneez

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> @RolloGrande: Go get a B210. Find a wrecked 2008 Sentra.

Take a sawzall to the Sentra.

Retrieve it's door impact beams, all it's airbags, the a-pillars, the ABS pump, wiring, sensors, and tubing, and any standard items (AC, Stereo, power seats, etc) a base Sentra is equipped with that the Datsun didn't come with.

These items will replicate the weight penalty that feature creep and safety regs have imposed on our cars. Pile all of that in the trunk of the 210.

Once you've added weight to your Datsun, "hot rod" the Datsun A14 motor until it provides acceleration numbers that fall somewhere close to that of the base model 2008 Sentra.

After adding several hundred pounds of weight and increasing horsepower, drive the Datsun for two weeks. That should answer your question.

Mjolnir427

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> @RolloGrande: Try crashing a 25-year-old Rabbit Vs modern compacts. Those old 1800lb cars crumple like the tin cans they are.

I still agree that there's too much bloat going on. I'll take my compact minus power anything, thank you.

Mad_Science

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> That's been what I've been doing for years. New cars are nice, but the moment it's driven off the lot, it's used. So what if someone else had a 10 year headstart ... at the prices I pay, if it lasts 3 months, I'm ahead of the game versus car payments already.

Mileage on the odometer be damned with beater class cars ... prior maintenance is more the key. My first car, an ex-Massachusetts Volvo that I bought for $350 in SoCal, I put 35k miles on it the first year. Wasn't the greatest looker, but did what it needed to do ... and that was run.

narf

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> I'm driving a 14 year old SR20 Sentra and getting 30 MPG not driving like a granny. and BTW, my wife doesn't think a cluch is a small purse. 3 cars 3 clutches 16 gears.

subsammy

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> @Novaload: What a brilliant idea!

How do you feel about large garages?
How many cars do you want to have?
Are you looking to settle down, or just lease for a while?
Do you prefer stable, reliable relationships, or are you a fan of British and French automobiles?

TheTooth

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> So how come 25 years ago Rabbit diesels and B210s could get 40+ mpg, and these days you have to buy a supercomplex hybrid car to get those numbers?

btw: that 79 subie looks mint, Brats aren't easy to find. I wouldn't call it a beater...

RolloGrande

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> @mechimike: Mine's already committed to re-doing the front seat in our 67 Ford wagon.

@Bad Juju: She's helped me swing both a Ford 9" pumpkin and a Toyota trans + dual transfer cases assembly into place.

She's currently lusting for a beater classic pickup to haul stuff around. Something like this:
[orangecounty.craigslist.org]

The threadjack continues...

Mad_Science

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> @Novaload: Yeah, but by virtue of the demographics here, nearly everyone would just end up with a heterosexual life partner.

Paul Y. can't think of a better, shorter handle

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> @Novaload: Can I please be the person making the repetitive hand gestures and smarmy smiles while reading stoopid copy in the commercials??

PLEASE?!?!?!

for good measure: some trial, topline PCH decisions, with 30 words or less rationale fields.

om Bronx de Mowgli

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> OK, there's money to be made with a Jalopnik.match.com site--where there will be questions identifying cars, T/F questions and multiple choice (Manual or Automatic?)
Also sound clips (V8? Turbo?)

NovaloadMissesPolar

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> @Mad_Science: OK, but how many times has she rebuilt her motorcycle's engine?

I'll admit my wife didn't understand the appeal of a BMW 5'er wagon, either, but we do have arguments over what year El Camino was the best... A keeper, for sure.

Bad Juju

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> @acarr260: I was sticking to the bare necessities of a stripped down model. LOL

TheTooth

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> I never got rid of my 97 Prelude SH and although it's got some miles on her, shes still way fun to drive and still gets decent mileage. My fiancee doesn't like it for practical reasons, but we share it as our only car and she does like driving stick...

phrancis

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> @TheTooth: I'm sure you meant heated leather. oh, and you forgot the nav system and satellite radio. I miss our old farm trucks now... thanks, guys.

acarr260

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> I bought a 95 Geo for a winter car because my 4WD truck was killing on the 40 mile commute. I thought it would do better than 25 but that seems to be about as good as it gets.

My wife has given up. She was mad the first time or two I came home with some crazy POS but she's just numb now. She had some crazy idea that we had to AGREE on purchases. I'm pretty sure she's over it now.

I've tried to teach her how to drive a stick but it went poorly. She loves Cutlass's so that's a positive. I put my 455 in her 85 Cutlass but she sees it as "unreliable" so she'll only drive it around town. I've tried to explain that a $3000 rebuild on an Olds 455 is actually pretty freakin' bulletproof but she's having none of it.

She came from the world where all cars have to have oil changes every 3000 miles or every 3 months, even if they only have 5 miles on them. The whole family is extremely rigid.

Hey try reading your owner's manual, it tells you when to change your oil - "They just want to sell you another car so that's not accurate". Ok fine.

Of course we got a late start. She turned 40 6 days after we got married and that was 1999 so they're hard to train at that age.

mytdawg

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> @Elhigh: A plain, practical truck? What is that? Oh, you must mean something with 4 doors, miles of leather, and 6 TV screens for the kids.

TheTooth

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> @Mad_Science: Mine can't weld, but she can sew, and that works out perfectly well because we don't ever fight over who gets to use the welder and who gets to use the sewing machine. Also, she may at some point decide to do interiors for me. ;)

mechimike

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> Beater ftw. I just picked up a 93 Miata for my daily commuter. 27mpg beats the pants off the 14 or so I was getting in the 85 4Runner, which now is purely for fun.

Lots of miles on the clock, but for $1500 you can't get a more fun car.

mehugtree

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> @Sloop_John_B:No manny tranny even in your personal hoopy? Is her name actually Cruella or was that just assigned by her sorority?

Evidently all the manufacturers have bought into the BS of the last ten years that Americans don't want mileage, they want power power Power! F that. A new truck with the same power rating as what I'm driving could get 40mpg easy, but I can't have that - they just won't configure it that way. Can't have the long bed either. What the hell? Does no one ever order just a plain, practical truck anymore?

Seriously, I think the best alternative is to get your gas-sipping Rising Sunmobile 20 years ago and keep driving it.

What, that's just me? And Adamskiy? Whatevs.

34.42 mpg at the last fill-up. No mechanical mods, original owner. Woohoo!

Elhigh

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> *@Paul Y. is Going Dumb at the Sideshow and Sloop_John_B: Next thing you know they'll take issue with your choice in socks. Bad taste in cars is not a good character trait in a mate for someone who frequents this site.*

Again, this is why I love my g/f. She drove a '94 Honda Civic into the ground with 250,000 miles, then gifted it to me when she bought her Matrix. She hates automatics. We drove cross country in a stick-shift '64 Corvair convertible, and she loves that car. I bought a '60 Dodge Dart Wagon which she also loves. Pretty much anytime I see a car I like, she says "Just buy it". I have around 14 cars/trucks and several engines/transmissions laying around and she thinks that's perfectly acceptable. She lusts after big, old American convertibles- the only car in which an auto trans is acceptable, in her opinion.

mechimike

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> @Mad_Science:Yeah, but can she weld?

(I win)

touche....
but I can't either....

@charles_barrett: Sorry Charles. I guess it's good to see that some people can wield the "Axe of Parity" in a world filled with post-free-love parent's princess syndrome.

om Bronx de Mowgli

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> @Sloop_John_B: A detached barn with a second floor would rock!

You, sir, would be a lucky man if not for the other vehicular restrictions placed upon you (no manual transmissions? Really?)

TheTooth

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> @Sloop_John_B: "She likes the Lexus SC300"

You mean the 350, right?

I can buy anything I want that has four wheels as long as my wife has a spot in the garage.

Solo_Racer

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> Luckily, our next house has a detached barn/garage. It will suiffice as a bastion for all things manly. No longer will she cry about clutter, grease, tools..etc. I shall be liberated. The second floor is going to be refurbished into my adulthood version of a fort. Below, I envision my fleet of Japanese/European iron and all of my tools. I will christen it the "anti-wife" for good measure. I refuse to go quietly into the night.

Sloop_John_B

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> These guys stole my idea before I managed to do it myself. My truck gets about 12mpg (and the Jag, 14mpg), so I've been looking for a $1000-$1500 beater, and the BRAT was on my list of possibilites.

Top of the list is an E30 (325e, not the guzzling 325i), followed by (in no particular order) a Fiero, an AW11 MR2, and a CRX.

Fun, cheap and fuel miserly doesn't have to mean boring.

smalleyxb122

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> @Adamskiy:

You and me both. I just bought a 20 year old beater to use as a daily driver, but I fear its small-block V8 will not even return Brat-level mileage. On the bright side, in a couple of years when it won't pass smog anymore I can race it at LeMons.

@Froggmann:

Keeping the revs below 4K in a 7? Blasphemer! My old '88 was prone to electrical gremlins, so I tried to test the redline buzzer at least thrice daily, just to make sure that it was in good working order.

MarionCobretti

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> @Paul Y. is Going Dumb at the Sideshow: try hannah montana

NICKNICK

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> Leave it to Los Jalops to come up with all new criteria by which to objectify the female of the species: Loves wagons, old or new, thinks SUVs should go off road, and MAD_SCIENCE takes the cake with a mate who can weld...! Jezebel would be proud...

Charles_Barrett - Now with Variable-Valve Timing

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> @Paul Y. is Going Dumb at the Sideshow: Wow. I'm not even sure what could qualify for that. An upper-level hooker catering to government pedophiles in the state of New York?

Unevolved

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> The rules laid out for me are simple... as long as she can get her car in/out of the garage and there's nothing parked on the grass, it's fair game.

She sometimes laments the loss of the patio area in the back yard, but there was no grass on it. ;)

Sadly, that was the last of my available parking, so a new house is in our future. I need room for a '60s Lincoln Continental and a Se7en still. :)

TheTooth

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> Classic Jalopnik Threadjack in progress.

beercheck

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> @smoke~: No, because I'm 26.

Paul Y. can't think of a better, shorter handle

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> There's no doubt, my car situation is fairly dire, but there's hope. She's always said that when I have some disposable income she will not oppose any vehicle I choose. My time will come. For now, I can only lust after '79 Impala wagons and late '70s civics.

Sloop_John_B

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> @Paul Y. is Going Dumb at the Sideshow:

Find you one that's half your age and makes twice as much.

smokeydog001

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> My little civic gets in the ballpark of 28-32 in the city, about 35 on the highway, with AC.

And my girl grew up with a hotrodder as a father, and thinks having twice as many engines as cars in the garage is normal. Also violently opposed to automatic transmissions. Yeah, she's a keeper.

Unevolved

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> @Starlton Heston, Gushing post-mother: Yeah, but can she weld?

(I win)

Mad_Science

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> @Starlton Heston, Gushing post-mother: You marry that girl before one of us jealous fools tries to steal her from you. May the gods of auto motion gift you with many male children with great driving skills.

deckard97

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> @Sloop_John_B: Grounds for divorce. Make sure you get a male judge.

deckard97

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> @TheTooth: BRAVO!!

@beercheck: @Paul Y. is Going Dumb at the Sideshow: Testicles, Paul. Paul, testicles.

you forgot to include Sloop_John_B.

I guess I am mega fortunate to have my girlie love my 65 Impala, be willling to drive a 63 Nova Wagon if I get her one, and digs/is considering buying Audi avants!! OH and doesn't look like your average SciFi convention female attendee!!!! OH BOY! I'm king of this here castle!! WIPOOOO

om Bronx de Mowgli

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> @harumph: Why? Strapped a love-seat to the roof of my friend's CRX HF once. it was painfully show but it got the thing to his house 2 miles away.

jaydez

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> @Paul Y. is Going Dumb at the Sideshow and Sloop_John_B: Next thing you know they'll take issue with your choice in socks. Bad taste in cars is not a good character trait in a mate for someone who frequents this site.

The tough part about a commuter-beater is they tend to get a lot of miles on them. I'm not crazy about putting 15k miles/year on a car with 150k already on the clock.

Mad_Science

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> @Paul Y. is Going Dumb at the Sideshow: Testicles, Paul. Paul, testicles.

beercheck

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> @Sloop_John_B: To quote the knight in "Indiana Jones and The Holy Grail":

"You have chosen... poorly."

TheTooth

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> 25-30 isn't all that great. Could have done much better and had an easier time keeping it running. What about those crazy Hondas? Like harumph's CRX? Plenty of those around for parts.

My '06 xB with Automatic will get up to 30mpg, but that's if I drive like an old lady, no AC and with decent traffic. I've only gotten 30+ a few tankfuls. 28mpg is more typical. But still, that's a "new" car.

sparksinner

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> @Sloop_John_B: My girlfriend thinks the same thing about wagons. She also insists that they're 'mom cars,' even though middle class moms in this country stopped buying wagons before she was born.

Of course, she drives an Intrepid and LOVES it. pffft. She also crapped on my dreams of even test-driving a smart ForTwo, and/or getting a beater Mercedes.

She's awful uppity for someone who is taking her sweet time getting an associate's degree.

I hate my life.

Paul Y. can't think of a better, shorter handle

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> daily driver 2000 Suzuki Swift cost about 35 bucks to fill every two weeks and that was when regular was $3.54/ gallon

my weekend car is a 2001 Nissan Maxima
it gets decent mileage but cost substantially more to fill up from empty

yellofury * * * * *

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> I love phonetic day at Jalopnik!

beercheck

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> The way I've always thought of cars is like, uh, whores, basically. Get you from point a to point b.

beercheck

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> I had this same year in a wagon as my first car ever. They were horribly rust-prone unfortunately. I loved it all the same.
I now drive a 91 crx dx, it's not the insanely efficient hf but it still gets low 40's mpg on the highway. It's great unless you need to haul a sofa around.

harumph

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> The only problem is that my wife isn't driven my cost savings. She HATES the idea of me driving a beater. Somehow, she holds the belief that we are entitled to better vehicles. In her mind, they are a status symbol. Also, in general, she has terrible taste in cars. She likes the Lexus SC300 and the Solara Convertible more than anything else. She thinks wagons are worse than mini-vans. Otherwise, I'd have a fleet of vintage Japanese beaters already! Sadly, I can't placate her by buying her the car of her desire either! To be honest, I'd gladly compromise with a manual Mazda sedan, but she has banned all manual drive cars. I'm doomed.

Sloop_John_B

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> A '99 Escort with 130K (hand me down from my Mom) is my daily driver. 38-42 MPG in relative comfort. I'm keeping an eye open for a little old station wagon of some sort (Sentra or Corolla or Mazda 323 maybe) for the wife.

Beluga

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> @Adamskiy:Yes you are, but aren't you having fun? BTW you can push that 7 into the 20s by just keeping the revs under 4K. Did it with my old 89!

Froggmann

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> Funny, I just picked up a used subaru, but mines an 97 outback wagon. 5spd, bought for $900. Lets see what mileage I can get outta her.

andy_wallwhore

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> time for me to find a "honey bee"

vwminispeedster is actively searching for a $500 Citroen

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> @diskreet: A horse you don't have to shoot simply because to bent the fork. Motorcycle ftw.

The Name's Ash78, Housewares

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> Actually, a motorcycle - not a car - is like a horse. Technically, a motorcycle is a mechanical horse.

diskreet

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> My small coupe is 23 years old....but it's an RX-7, so I guess I'm doing it wrong.

Adamskiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiy

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> Subaru, inexpensive and built to stay that way...until you have to replace the heads or fix rust.

v8corvairpickup

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> A fine automobile/truck/mino designed by the late, great, Alex Tremulis. I'd never consider paying for one, just merely beat the owner with a sack of frozen oranges then proceed to procure his...

Tucker589

]]> <![CDATA[Save On Gas! Buy A Beater Subaru Brat!]]> Hmmmmm. I could go for a little summer romance with a gas-sipping foreigner. Just don't let either of my 4x4's find out about it.

acarr260

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