legacycentral bbs

No, I do not mean the Baja (or Brat)...

Did anyone knows, if there is a Pickup conversion of a Legacy? Maybe does even has anyone pictures?

I played around with photoshop a little(no skills at all), and I like what I seeing. Maybe there is a real car like that...



Sorry for the bad skills...

greetings
Arne

why is the real question

It's the Subaru El Leggo!

I think it'd be kind of cool if you had a use for it. You'd be able to carry cargo that you normally can't, it could weigh less than the sedan or wagon, and it'd still have the strong, reliable, service-friendly chassis and drivetrain that we love.

I'm sure it could be done. I have a few pictures here of a 123-chassis Mercedes that someone did it to:

http://www.graphics.cornell.edu/~v/123/ ... camino.jpg
http://www.graphics.cornell.edu/~v/123/ ... mino_2.jpg
http://www.graphics.cornell.edu/~v/123/ ... mino_3.jpg

wouldn't you lose too much structural rigidty though? I guess you could install support beams, but that'd kinda get in the way and sort of defeat the purpose. I still say it looks ugly, just get a brat

Yeah, I suppose you would lose some rigidity. It's a tradeoff for sure.

A BRAT wouldn't be able to carry as much and wouldn't have the aforementioned much-loved chassis and drivetrain.

If I had need to carry the kind of cargo people normally buy pickups for, and I had the means to do this kind of project, I probably would!

Careful Vikash...

Brats are a half ton pick-up truck (and need I mention the dual range transmission that they never put on the EJ's over here?). And the engine is a whole heck of a lot easier to work on. In fact one person can hold the entire thing in his arms. The bed length is not the longest but will fit a 125 cc 4-wheeler in the back.

On the Legacy conversion... I haven't seen any done anywhere so you'd probably be alone on plans.

William

The Baja is just a de-roofed Legacy Wagon, isn't it?

It would be interesting to say the least. Kind of like a lengthened Brat (with the much-loved chassis and drivetrain that Vikash was speaking of).

I'd dig it if I needed something that small. Everything I usually carry (downhill bike and the like) fits in the bed of my Ranger just barely.

Hehe, sorry, WIlliam, didn't mean to step on any toes.

For sure, the BRAT is an actual purpose-made pickup, so it's better at the job.

And it was my understanding that a lot of stuff is much easier on the EJs than the EAs. I don't have much experience to back that up, though, I'll easily admit.

BAC5.2 wrote:The Baja is just a de-roofed Legacy Wagon, isn't it?

It would be interesting to say the least. Kind of like a lengthened Brat (with the much-loved chassis and drivetrain that Vikash was speaking of).

I'd dig it if I needed something that small. Everything I usually carry (downhill bike and the like) fits in the bed of my Ranger just barely.

baja's are so worthless IMO. There's not much space in the back, sure you can fit shit back there but it's like meh.

Oh, no toe stepping here... you were just fiddling awfully close to a very large drop-off you don't wanna go down

I can't fathom what possibly could be easier on an EJ. Half the stuff you need to work on doesn't even exist in an EA. All there is is the carb and the lines attached to that (EGR, etc...), and the engine bay is waaay more open. I've worked on both (EA81 is phenomenally easier than the EA82, which i work on in my wagon. The 82 is a red-headed step child that should never have existed)

But I love the EJ and hope to one day put one in a Brat... yet I don't see that making it easier to work on, lol.

Brats came with EA71's or EA81's, neither of which had timing belts. The camshaft was directly driven by the crank, and actuated the valves with pushrods. That right there makes things much easier.

Another thing I can say from working on the XT: timing belt tensioners on EA82's are a breeze. They're spring-loaded, not hydraulic. You can release and reapply tension to the belt in 30 seconds flat, no removal necessary.

But the fact that the pushrod engines were carb and EJ's are FI, makes things easier right there. IMO, FI=good, carb=bad Plus, EA82 heads are a mess compared to EJ's, they're in two pieces: the cam retainer and the actual head with valves in it. Also, Brat mentioned how easy the EGR system was. Well, we don't have em at all

It's mostly based on preference though. Usually whatever someone started working on first is what they think is the easiest. I still feel that BC/BF's are easier than 80's Scoobs.

here's a link to a new wrx convertible, sort of on topic?! http://hrdwrbob.net/mca/uploads/Fuzzy%20dice/osmans.jpg (beware 56k users!)

The problem with this pick up idea is that the door should really be lengthened so as to not look goofy (remember, you can't cut off the pass compartment behind the first window as your head goes back further) unless you add a big blind spot of sheet metal. The BRAT had the longer doors of the 2-door cars for instance. But if you're going that far, I propose a 2-door wagon like a Chevy Nomad. Engineered properly structural rigidity shouldn't be too bad on the P-U, but the rear suspension would have to be really upgraded to have real hauling ability (which I think it would need to justify the project) and the extra stiffness would make for interesting handling.

The EA81 BRATs could be worked on blindfolded. A lawn mower is more difficult to deal with. Though head design was a mess with single ports for intake and exhaust. Those chassis were more flexible but tough as granite with a even tougher torsion bar rear end. The EA81s truly were inexpensive and built to stay that way. A 250 lb tree limb fell on my '83 while driving down the street and I drove the car for several months. This looks like nothing. You should have seen the tree limb - a woman in a Land Cruiser thought I'd been crushed. Even I was amazed...




Steve

Hmm, I see your good points, Steve. Maybe I'll take back my statement -- if I ever need that kind of hauling ability maybe I'll just get a BRAT.

The hood pins kept the hood from popping up more. You could see the strut top outline in the hood.

My '84 wagon destroyed a Sundance when some stupid girl tried to cut across me at a light. I spun her car and sent the rear bumper down the street while I got a cracked blinker lens (the bulb still worked). The cop laughed (I wasn't at fault) and remarked at how I really kicked that girl's ass and then said he'd think about getting a Subaru for his daughter.

Steve

i feel dirty looking at the photos of that legacy. :shudder: