{"id":30728,"date":"2022-09-03T09:03:39","date_gmt":"2022-09-03T13:03:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/autosector.com\/?p=30728"},"modified":"2022-09-03T09:03:39","modified_gmt":"2022-09-03T13:03:39","slug":"junkyard-gem-1981-subaru-gl-wagon","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/autosector.com\/?p=30728","title":{"rendered":"Junkyard Gem: 1981 Subaru GL 4WD Wagon"},"content":{"rendered":"

Subaru<\/a> did pretty well<\/a> selling the first-generation Leone<\/a> in the United States (despite the popular characterization of it as too cramped for sex<\/a>), and brought over the second-generation version<\/a> starting in the 1980 model year. The wagon version of the second-gen Leone<\/a> was available here through 1984, and it was available with front- or all-wheel-drive and in three trim levels: base, DL, and GL. Here’s an example of a heavily-optioned 4WD GL wagon, found in a car graveyard in northeastern Colorado.<\/p>\n

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Subaru called every version of the North American-market Leone (except for the BRAT pickup<\/a> and perhaps the RX<\/a>, if you consider its title a proper model name and not a trim level) simply “the Subaru” until 1990, when the later third-generation cars<\/a> were given Loyale badges<\/a>. This confused everybody, especially after the XT<\/a> appeared here starting in the 1985 model year.<\/p>\n

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Subaru went to all-wheel-drive on every one of its North American-market vehicles for the 1996 model year, but the company had been known here for four-wheel-drive wagons since the first 4WD-equipped Leones showed up here in the 1975 model year. For 1981, the price of the front-wheel-drive GL wagon started at $6,545, with the four-wheel-drive GL priced at $6,795 (that’s about $22,290 and $23,140 in inflation-adjusted 2022 dollars).<\/p>\n

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American Motors introduced the all-wheel-drive Eagle<\/a> for 1980, with Audi<\/a> bringing Americans Quattro-equipped cars<\/a> the following year, so Subaru finally had real competition in the “non-truck with power to all four corners” category when this car was new. Subaru didn’t introduce the idiot-proof system that we’d now call all<\/em>-wheel-drive until later in the 1980s<\/a>, so this car has an old-school four-wheel-drive system that required the driver to pull a lever to switch modes. That meant that you’d kill the tires (or worse) if you drove for long periods on dry pavement with four-wheel-drive engaged.<\/p>\n

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The low, flat layout of Subaru’s boxer-four engine enabled this spare-tire placement under the hood. This is the optional 1.8-liter EA81 engine, rated at a mighty 72 horsepower (the base 1.6 had 67 horses).<\/p>\n

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Buyers of 1981 GL wagons got a five-speed manual transmission as standard equipment\u2026 unless they wanted the four-wheel-drive version. In that case, they got a good old four-on-the-floor manual<\/a>. You could get a new Subaru with an automatic during this period, but those cars<\/a> were rare.<\/p>\n

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Would you believe\u00a0air conditioning<\/em> on such a frugal little car? Yes! However, Subaru wouldn’t install the A\/C in Japan<\/a>; instead, buyers had to get the dealers<\/a> to install the system on this side of the Pacific.<\/p>\n

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The lower trim levels of Malaise Era<\/a> Subarus had generic monochrome interiors<\/a>, but the snazzy ’81 GL got this vinyl-with-plaid-cloth upholstery. Even staid Toyota<\/a> caught Plaid Fever with the slightly later Tercel 4WD wagons<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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It didn’t reach the 200,000-mile mark during its life, but got close enough for respectability.<\/p>\n

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I didn’t see any meaningful rust (which is very unusual for a Japanese car of this era), but every Subaru fanatic in the Front Range region<\/a> already has a dozen or more of these cars stockpiled, with no room for more. Can’t save ’em all!<\/p>\n