A front-wheel drive Subaru seems like such an odd concept to most of us, especially those of us (you, not me!) who are under 30 years old or so. Most people that age have grown up at a time when every Subaru made was 4WD/AWD. I know, the BRZ Subaru/Toyota is rear-wheel drive, but other than that one, they company has been known for their AWD lineup for the last couple of decades or more. This 1985 Subaru GL 3-door hatchback is in Chicago, Illinois and is a daily-driver for the son of the original owner. It’s listed on eBay with a $3,200 buy-it-now price or you can make an offer.
It’s somewhat easy to pick out a GL model Subaru, at least a US car, because they had square headlights. This is one great-looking car, at least condition-wise. Obviously not all Barn Finds readers are into foreign cars and we know that. But, this is a pretty special car in that it is owned by the son of the original owner who had the car in the Salt Lake City area since new and up until the son bought it and drove it back to Chicago in early-2017. It has been their daily driver ever since and yet it still has only 72,000 miles on it.
This SuBARu, as they pronounced them in early commercials, appears to be in amazing condition. The seller mentions “minor rust on the rear bumper and a couple of the wheels”, but they had better quit driving it daily in the winter if the next owner wants a rust-hole-free car. This is actually a second-generation Subaru Leone, or GL for the North American market. They had switched to a new, more-angular design in 1984 and they came to the US in 1985. This older style hatchback remained on sale in the US up until 1989 and that must have been quite a headache at Subaru dealers and service departments.
The interior of this GL really tells the story of what a nice car this appears to be. Other than some loose driver’s seat fabric, the interior looks as close to new as possible. And, yes, it has a 5-speed manual transmission! There is a flawed area, however, the tops of the rear seats need to be reupholstered, but being vinyl that shouldn’t be a huge deal.
The engine in this l’il front-drive beauty is Subaru’s 1.8L boxer-four which would have had around 75 hp. That 5-speed will come in handy for sure. If this car were a 4WD model I would hit the buy-it-now button. Even though I wouldn’t drive it on our salty roads, I just like having the option of having all four wheels powering the car. Have any of you owned this generation of Subaru GL?
You’d be surprised how well a front wheel drive car will handle in the snow if equipped with snow tires (they held their own in northern MI). Having said that, I can see the desire to unload this well preserved example before a Chicago winter takes its toll.
Or it gets shot being in Chicago and all!!!!
I knew this was a Scotty G car as soon as I saw the picture in the preview. Thank You Sir for finding one with fairly low miles in decent shape at a reasonable price and actually has a manual transmission! Very tempting even without the 4WD as front wheel drive is simpler and works just fine in most winter conditions.
If this winter is anything like last year there will be more inches of salt on the roads than snow. So far we’ve had less than a half inch but I’m dragging salt into my garage.
(Comment not related to the car, apologies)
Where are you located? Lots of people (including me) in lots of places (I’m in Massachusetts) would be much more than happy to send some snow your way!
Hi Dave T, I have to agree on the salt comment. We have had one cat tracker here and they have salted twice already. And before the one dusting we had, I saw the County trucks spraying the brine solution! Wow! Take care, Mike.
My friend had a blue 85 I love how the dash controls lit up. Looked really high tech. My dad had a used GL wagon. I always though with the roofline and the grooved rear lights they were attempting a Mercedes wagon look
I had a Subaru GL station wagon of this same year. I loved it. You can’t kill them. I would daily the hell out of this if I could swing it.
I’ve loved these Subarus. The wagon version was a favorite.
Stay away from the early turbos, though. I had a top-of-the-line GLT (Turbo) ’85 wagon that I bought used in ’93 as my first car. It had led a pampered life and was a trade-in with low miles and no rust even though it was “old” for a northeast daily driver, but it had loads of problems in the several years I owned it. His name was Jake. Never name your vehicles because you get too attached. Needed y-pipes, cylinder heads that cracked because of the heat and boost of the turbo, a differential rebuild. I sold it when the replacement heads failed again. I refused to sell it to a single mom who was looking for reliable transportation. Buyer knew what he was getting into when he swung circles in a parking lot to check for cv joint clatter and left plumes of white smoke from burning coolant in rings around us. They should have never turbocharged that engine. I’ve stayed away from Subarus since (I hate the grindy whine of their boxer engines, even on the new ones) and turbos in general ever since. I still have the heads and differential pieces in my basement for some reason. Always wanted to make them into andirons or something.
I had an ’83 GL wagon w/ the dual range 4sp manual trans. Was real neat you could split shift it like a truck, 8 speeds fwd and 2 in reverse. Did some serious boonie-busting, you couldn’t get it stuck. One of the best cars I ever owned.
I currently own a 1984 GL Wagon that I have driven like that on occasion. In the winter or rain, I sometimes start in 4WD because the Weberized boxer spins the front tires too easily and it will launch quite impressively in 4WD when a quick launch is needed. I only have split shifted 1-2-3-4 in 4WD-low, then 4 in 2WD-high, making it a 5 speed.
When I was buying and selling cars, these always sold well. I knew if I bought one it would go quick, no matter the body style, 4WD or 2WD or anything else.
I had an 85, hail damaged bad, real bad. A cheap buy. Good little grocery getter. One of the very few foreign cars I owned.
Half a day’s work to convert to 4wd if you have a donor.
Good reliable cars.
My first car was an 84 GL coupe that I bought from my aunt. It was an auto, but otherwise was a great little car. Never had any trouble driving it in the snow in spite of the lack of 4wd. I loved the quirkiness. The spare tire mounted to the engine got some conversations started. Nothing like a little heat to kill some rubber when you need it. Mine had a little electrical issue where the lights would dim every so often, but you could get them back by slamming the dash with your fist. But it started up every time from -20 to 105 degrees and ran smooth with decent power for a little car. Sold it for more than I paid for it when I went to college.
I had a ’81 DL 1600 wagon with 5-speed, great car, excellent mpg, simple, reliable, and great in snow. Tough to pass emissions (NOX) and replacement CV rarely lasted long. Wish it hadn’t rusted out, gave it away with engine still pulling strong and perfect interior.
bought it. picking it up tomorrow. thx again barn finds!
Congratulations … You might have done the Honorable Author a favor. I hear that he has more than enough vehicles on his property, but I thought for sure that Scotty G was going to buy it anyway.
Congrats on the purchase!!!
And, even more important, is your Toyota Sports 800 for sale?!
You still own it and more importantly would you sell it??
My number 425-218-2447.
I found the center light in a junk yard some of these 4WD versions had. I still have it around somewhere, including the interior switch.
Anyone know if this is still available?? Or a contact for the seller??
I owned an ’88 GL Chaser in Newfoundland, Canada. Mine was beige and automatic. Great little car and awesome in our deep snow. Only issue was they had serious issues with rust. Mine died at 8 years old when the entire rear end broke free and went up though the wheel wells. Sad day.