The seats in the bed on today’s Nice Price or No Dice Brat aren’t just for terrifying passengers, they were once Subaru’s way to get around the U.S. import tariff commonly known as the “Chicken Tax.” We’ll have to see how taxing its present price is on a potential buyer’s wallet.
Generally, the uber-rich don’t have to worry about paying taxes. Like the rest of us, however, the financially well-off still have to be concerned with getting stuck with a salvage title car like the 2009 Rolls-Royce Phantom Coupe we considered just yesterday. At $86,000, that repaired Roller didn’t impress, earning an 86 percent No Dice loss in our voting, proving some commonality between the rich and the rest of us.
If you’ve ever seen the classic comedy, Harold and Maude, then you’re likely familiar with the talents of Ruth Gordon, who played the second half of the titular couple. Being car enthusiasts, you probably also remember the Jaguar XKE that was converted into a shooting brake-style hearse for the movie. In real life, Ruth Gordon had a connection to another car conversion as she was the spokesperson in ads for Subaru’s Brat, the pickup truck version of the Leone car line.
Gordon introduced the second-generation Brat in ads where she cast the car’s features in simpler terms than the flowery descriptions offered by the ad’s voice-over. This 1982 Brat has pretty much all those notable features, including the “twin halo” T-top roof, secret stash side step to the bed, third-eye headlamp behind the Subaru emblem in the grille, and the rear-facing plastic jump seats in the bed. This particular car also comes with a cap over that bed, making those seats less of an outdoor adventure. Additionally, the seller says it has a brand-new clutch and an engine that was replaced in 2012.
If kept to original specs, that engine should be a 1.8-liter pancake four that, from the outset, made 71 horsepower and 94 lb-ft of torque. That’s mated to a four-speed manual and Subaru’s capable AWD system. With nearly nine inches of ground clearance, the mighty Brat should prove a solid contender for slush season driving.
According to the ad, this one has driven 198,000 miles, and based on the pictures, a few of those have been pretty rough. There’s surface rust poking out here and there under the dulling sand-color paint and cracking decals. The interior has seen better days, as well, suffering from ashy plastics and torn, albeit charmingly plaid, upholstery. It also requires the installation of a new clutch cable, although that’s supposedly included in the sale.
On the plus side, the seller says the car “Fires up every time!” and touts its optional chromed gas cap as a major selling point. The title is clean, and the price is a wallet-friendly $2,999.
Is that, however, a good deal? As sassy and spunky as an old Brat might be, there’s little fun to be had if the car in question is tired and/or in need of rust repair. What’s your take on this Brat and that $2,999 price? Does that seem fair for a decked-out edition? Or for that much, is this Brat just the wurst.
You decide!
Spokane, Washington, Craigslist, or go here if the ad disappears.
H/T to Don R. for the hookup!
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