Subaru BRAT
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

The Subaru BRAT (acronym for “Bi-drive Recreational All-terrain Transporter”) was a light-duty,
four-wheel drive Four-wheel drive, also called 4×4 ("four by four") or 4WD, refers to a two-axled vehicle drivetrain capable of providing torque to all of its wheels simultaneously. It may be full-time or on-demand, and is typically linked via a transfer ca ...
coupé utility A coupé utility is a vehicle with a passenger compartment at the front and an integrated cargo tray at the rear, with the front of the cargo bed doubling as the rear of the passenger compartment. The term originated in the 1930s, where it wa ...
, version of the Subaru Leone originally introduced in 1977. The BRAT was developed directly from the company's
four-wheel drive Four-wheel drive, also called 4×4 ("four by four") or 4WD, refers to a two-axled vehicle drivetrain capable of providing torque to all of its wheels simultaneously. It may be full-time or on-demand, and is typically linked via a transfer ca ...
station wagon A station wagon ( US, also wagon) or estate car ( UK, also estate), is an automotive body-style variant of a sedan/saloon with its roof extended rearward over a shared passenger/cargo volume with access at the back via a third or fifth door ( ...
model and was first introduced as a 1978 model – following the concept of coupe utilities such as the Chevrolet El Camino and the
Ford Ranchero The Ford Ranchero is a coupe utility that was produced by Ford between 1957 and 1979. Unlike a standard pickup truck, the Ranchero was adapted from a two-door station wagon platform that integrated the cab and cargo bed into the body. A total o ...
. The BRAT is also known as a Brumby, MV Pickup or Shifter depending on where it was sold. The vehicle was sold from 1978 until 1994.


First Generation

Developed in Japan in 1977 at the request of the President of Subaru of America, the BRAT was introduced to match the demand for small trucks in North America, in order to compete against other manufacturers, such as
Toyota is a Japanese multinational automotive manufacturer headquartered in Toyota City, Aichi, Japan. It was founded by Kiichiro Toyoda and incorporated on . Toyota is one of the largest automobile manufacturers in the world, producing about 10 ...
,
Nissan , trading as Nissan Motor Corporation and often shortened to Nissan, is a Japanese multinational automobile manufacturer headquartered in Nishi-ku, Yokohama, Japan. The company sells its vehicles under the Nissan, Infiniti, and Datsun bra ...
, and
Mazda , commonly referred to as simply Mazda, is a Japanese multinational automotive manufacturer headquartered in Fuchū, Hiroshima, Japan. In 2015, Mazda produced 1.5 million vehicles for global sales, the majority of which (nearly one ...
. Unlike trucks from other manufacturers, all BRATs had four-wheel drive, as they were developed from the existing Leone
station wagon A station wagon ( US, also wagon) or estate car ( UK, also estate), is an automotive body-style variant of a sedan/saloon with its roof extended rearward over a shared passenger/cargo volume with access at the back via a third or fifth door ( ...
. When the Leone was redesigned in 1979 for the 1980 model year, the BRAT continued with the original Gen I body until 1982.


Jump Seats

Although the BRAT could fairly be called a truck, the plastic seats in the cargo bed allowed
Subaru ( or ; ) is the automobile manufacturing division of Japanese transportation conglomerate Subaru Corporation (formerly known as Fuji Heavy Industries), the twenty-first largest automaker by production worldwide in 2017. Subaru cars are ...
to classify the BRAT as a passenger car. North American and Canadian BRAT models featured carpeting, in addition to a welded-in, rear-facing jump seats in the cargo area. The seats were a tariff-avoidance ploy, serving actually to circumvent a tariff known as the
Chicken tax The Chicken Tax is a 25 percent tariff on light trucks (and originally on potato starch, dextrin, and brandy) imposed in 1964 by the United States under President Lyndon B. Johnson in response to tariffs placed by France and West Germany on imp ...
, as the plastic seats in the cargo bed allowed Subaru to classify the BRAT as a passenger car, rather than as a light truck. This significantly reduced the costs of importing BRATS to North America, as passenger cars were charged a 2.5% import tariff, while light trucks were charged a substantially higher 25% import tariff. They were discontinued after the 1986 model year.


Technical

All BRAT's had four-wheel drive and the
Subaru EA engine The Subaru EA engine is a series of automobile internal combustion engines manufactured by Subaru, a division of Fuji Heavy Industries. All EA series engines are of a flat-4 design, and have always been water cooled. Design and history Prior ...
. Early models received the 1.6 litre EA-71, whereas 1981 and later models received a 1.8 litre EA-81 engine. The 1983 and 1984 models could be purchased with an optional
turbocharged In an internal combustion engine, a turbocharger (often called a turbo) is a forced induction device that is powered by the flow of exhaust gases. It uses this energy to compress the intake gas, forcing more air into the engine in order to pro ...
engine.
Manual transmission A manual transmission (MT), also known as manual gearbox, standard transmission (in Canada, the United Kingdom, and the United States), or stick shift (in the United States), is a multi-speed motor vehicle transmission (mechanics), transmission ...
s were standard on all models, and an
automatic transmission An automatic transmission (sometimes abbreviated to auto or AT) is a multi-speed transmission used in internal combustion engine-based motor vehicles that does not require any input from the driver to change forward gears under normal driving c ...
was available on turbocharged BRAT's. The 1980 and earlier models had a single-range transfer case, while 1981 and later GL models had a dual-range transfer case (DL's still had single range), and all turbocharged models were equipped with a 3 speed automatic transmission with a single-range, push-button, four-wheel drive.


Second Generation

The BRAT was restyled in 1981 and the jump seats were discontinued after the 1985 model year. The BRAT was re-introduced with a rise in popularity of small trucks being sold in the United States, primarily from
Toyota is a Japanese multinational automotive manufacturer headquartered in Toyota City, Aichi, Japan. It was founded by Kiichiro Toyoda and incorporated on . Toyota is one of the largest automobile manufacturers in the world, producing about 10 ...
,
Nissan , trading as Nissan Motor Corporation and often shortened to Nissan, is a Japanese multinational automobile manufacturer headquartered in Nishi-ku, Yokohama, Japan. The company sells its vehicles under the Nissan, Infiniti, and Datsun bra ...
, and
Mazda , commonly referred to as simply Mazda, is a Japanese multinational automotive manufacturer headquartered in Fuchū, Hiroshima, Japan. In 2015, Mazda produced 1.5 million vehicles for global sales, the majority of which (nearly one ...
. Production continued into 1994 but ceased to be imported to North America in 1987. It was also known as the Brumby in Australia and
New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...
and the MV Pickup / Shifter in the UK. Imports to Europe, Australia (from 1978), and New Zealand continued until February 1994. The BRAT was not sold in Japan and was manufactured for export markets.


Features

Early 80's saw the introduction of a second Gen Targa-Top version. It also had other features, such as: ; a spring-loaded hidden door, for a side step into the cargo bed; and a spare tire mounted under the hood. In Australia there were specialty features : Ag-quip / packages with graphics, Roo bar, sump guard & rear step bar. Wagon wheels were also optional.


Manufacture

It was an export-only model, never being officially sold in Japan. Due to this, the BRAT became a popular
grey import vehicle Grey import vehicles are new or used motor vehicles and motorcycles legally imported from another country through channels other than the maker's official distribution system. The synonymous term parallel import is sometimes substituted. Car make ...
in
Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
. There were several locations that manufactured the vehicle : Subaru never considered marketing the BRAT in their home market, due to a truncating demand of pickup trucks that had been occurring since the late 1970s. The declining demand came as a result of Japanese customers shifting to station wagons at that time. In 1987, exports to North America ceased, but exports to Europe, Australia, Latin America, and New Zealand continued until 1994.


Notable owners

President
Ronald Reagan Ronald Wilson Reagan ( ; February 6, 1911June 5, 2004) was an American politician, actor, and union leader who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He also served as the 33rd governor of California from 1967 ...
owned a 1978 BRAT until 1998, which he kept at his
ranch A ranch (from es, rancho/Mexican Spanish) is an area of land, including various structures, given primarily to ranching, the practice of raising grazing livestock such as cattle and sheep. It is a subtype of a farm. These terms are most often ...
near
Santa Barbara, California Santa Barbara ( es, Santa Bárbara, meaning "Saint Barbara") is a coastal city in Santa Barbara County, California, of which it is also the county seat. Situated on a south-facing section of coastline, the longest such section on the West Coas ...
. The vehicle has since been restored and returned to the ranch, which is now owned by the
Young America's Foundation Young America's Foundation (YAF) is a conservative youth organization founded in 1969. In 2018, the ''Los Angeles Times'' called YAF "one of the most preeminent, influential and controversial forces in the nation's conservative youth movement. ...
.


Motorsport

There have been several private enterprises that have used the BRAT / Brumby / MV Pickup in Motorsport events : * 2014
Settlement Creek
- Brumby desert racer. * 2018 -
Freddie Flintoff Andrew "Freddie" Flintoff (born 6 December 1977) is an English television and radio presenter and former international cricketer. Flintoff played all forms of the game and was one of the sport's leading all-rounders, a fast bowler, middle-orde ...
chose a 1985 BRAT during an electric vehicle challenge on
Top Gear Top Gear may refer to: * "Top gear", the highest gear available in a vehicle's manual transmission Television * ''Top Gear'' (1977 TV series), a British motoring magazine programme * ''Top Gear'' (2002 TV series), a relaunched version of the or ...
series 27. Unlike the other vehicles, Flintoff kept the petrol engine
in situ ''In situ'' (; often not italicized in English) is a Latin phrase that translates literally to "on site" or "in position." It can mean "locally", "on site", "on the premises", or "in place" to describe where an event takes place and is used in ...
, as well as installing a Tesla power-plant. * 2020 - 198
Drag Brumby
- Fastest EJ powered vehicle.


Appearances in Media

Along with its most famous owner, here are some instances of the BRAT used in Film / TV & other media : * A 1985 BRAT, decorated in the Stars and Stripes, was owned by Joy in the television show ''
My Name Is Earl ''My Name Is Earl'' is an American television sitcom created by Greg Garcia that aired on the NBC television network from September 20, 2005, to May 14, 2009, in the United States. It was produced by 20th Century Fox Television and starred Jaso ...
''. * In ''
Kidd Video ''Kidd Video'' (originally in development as ''Hot Rocks'') is an American Saturday morning live action/cartoon created by DIC Enterprises in association with Saban Productions. The series originally ran on NBC from 1984 to 1985. Reruns contin ...
'', Haim Saban and Andy Heyward's first ever live action/animated cartoon series, Whiz owned a 1984 BRAT, which transformed into The Kiddmobile (a hovercraft and submarine) after the band entered a cartoon realm called “The Flipside.” * In the movie ''
Napoleon Dynamite ''Napoleon Dynamite'' is a 2004 American comedy film produced by Jeremy Coon, Chris Wyatt and Sean Covel, written by Jared and Jerusha Hess and directed by Jared Hess. The film stars Jon Heder in the role of the titular character, a nerdy high- ...
'', the character Rex drove a 1982 BRAT. * In the Achewood universe, a 1982 BRAT is given to every soul that enters hell. * The 1980 model is available in several of the Forza racing games. * In '' Alaska: The Last Frontier'', Season 6 Episode 13, Eivin Kilcher rebuilds a Subaru BRAT for his brother, August. * A Subaru Brat was featured on the episode "Tour De Utah" of "
Diesel Brothers ''Diesel Brothers'' is an American reality television series. The series premiered on January 4, 2016, on Discovery Channel. The program follows a group of friends in Utah who repair and customize pickup trucks. Despite the name and physical rese ...
. There are also media appearances of the Brumby in adds / television in Australia / NZ : * Brumby Seen in
River Cottage River Cottage is a brand used for a number of ventures by television chef Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall. These include a long-running Channel 4 television series, cookery courses, events, restaurants and products such as beer and organic yogurts. ...
,


Future Concepts

There were no third generation BRAT / Brumby / MV pickup as the range was discontinued after 1987. There was however a concept for a Subaru Suiren and later Subaru released a similar vehicle called the Baja.


References


External links

*
President Reagan's BRAT
with many photos
Drag Brumby
{{DEFAULTSORT:Subaru Brat Cars introduced in 1978 1970s cars 1980s cars
BRAT Brat, Brats, The Brat or similar may refer to: Term for young people * Spoiled child * Military brat ** Military brat (U.S. subculture) * Trenchard Brat, a nickname for aircraft apprentices in the British Royal Air Force Films * ''The Br ...
All-wheel-drive vehicles Front-wheel-drive vehicles Coupé utilities Cars powered by boxer engines