Toot, toot! The T87 Eighties Train is pulling up into the Japanese carmakers’ station. Our first stop will be Subaru, with none other than the legendary Leone Turbo wagon. You will note that this is not a JDM vehicle, though: we are in the presence of a return migrant, a relative rarity in these parts. But that’s why this post doesn’t have the name “Leone” – that name was not used in most overseas markets.
Instead, Subaru called these “DL” or “GL” – in North America, at least. Or so I thought until I saw this one, which just says “Subaru Turbo” on the tailgate. Oh, and “4WD,” obviously. But after a minor amount of online sleuthing, it seems these were dubbed (but not badged) as the Turbo-Traction Wagon.
Subaru introduced the Turbo-Traction Wagon (and BRAT pickup, though those were never sold in Japan) for MY 1983. It was a sort of culmination of several desirable Subaru features into a single package, essentially. By the time the 2nd gen Leone was launched in June 1979, the marque’s strong suits were already well-known: flat-4 engines, front-wheel drive with optional 4WD capability, outstanding value for money… The station wagon was at the height of its popularity, certainly in North America, so Subaru sold those by the boatload.
It was also the start of the turbo craze, and Fuji Heavy Industries had to get in on the action. The venerable Subie 1.8 litre flat-4 kind of needed a vitamin shot anyway. In Japan, the power was quoted to be 120hp, but this seems to be the gross figure. American publications mention 95hp net – not exactly Porsche territory, but then that’s not the point of the car.
The point was to offer quite a lot of cargo space with 4WD capability and decent fuel economy – that last point, for instance, was where such competitors as the AMC Eagle fared far less well.
To top it all off, Subaru even offered an automatic transmission. There was really no reason to pick anything else if you wanted a 4WD wagon in the early ‘80s, especially in the US.
For this particular wagon was bought new on the other side of the Pacific. I talked to its owner, who told me he had re-imported a couple of Subaru wagons from the States because they had become extremely hard to find in Japan. The other one he shipped back, a beige 1979 model, he had sold to a friend. I knew immediately it was the one I had caught a couple years back and showed him this post.
But this ’84 Turbo model, he decided to keep for himself. The car’s pristine condition was a joy to behold, and I imagine CC’s very own Coloradoan contributor Jim Klein will be particularly interested in this one, given its provenance. Right from the Sweetheart City! Fogle was an Oldsmobile-GMC-Subaru dealer, which seems to have now merged with King Auto.
Jim also owned a Subaru wagon pretty similar to this one, too. His was not a Turbo model, though, so it’s probably not this specific one.
And according to the photos Jim included in his COAL post, his pride and joy had steelies, whereas this one has these oh-so-period-perfect four-spoke mag wheels.
The other killer detail has to be these TURBO callouts on the mirrors. Why didn’t more manufacturers think to use this space on their cars?
Of course, even before I managed to talk to the owner (and even before I saw the Loveland badge on the rear end), the fact that the steering wheel was on this side was a big sign that this Subie had a peculiar life story. No Japanese person in their right (-hand-drive) mind would have ordered their Leone as a left-hooker.
It’s interesting to think that it’s easier to find a well-preserved 40-year-old Subaru wagon overseas than in its home country. Glancing at online Japanese classified ads bears this out: the literal handful of 2nd gen Leones that I could find for sale were neither wagons, nor turbocharged.
I’m not sure how many of these were made or were exported, but apparently Subaru sold over 200,000 Leones on the JDM between 1979 and 1984.
However, the wagon would only have represented a small fraction of that – the 4-door sedan, the “Swingback” (a.k.a hatchback) and the hardtop coupé (not pictured above) are also included in that 200k total.
I have a feeling that there are a few other older Japanese cars that are now almost extinct in Japan, but still (relatively) easy to find abroad. I bet that’s the case for early Honda Civics, for instance, as I have yet to see one in the wild over here. So what can you do if you’re in Japan and hankering for a 4WD turbo Subie wagon? Two words: Loveland, Colorado.
Related posts:
Curbside Classic: 1983 Subaru DL Wagon – Apply Memories of Grandad Here, by Yohai71
Neighborhood Outtake: 1983 Subaru GL AWD Wagon – Crunchy, by PN
COAL: 1982(?) Subaru DL 4WD Wagon – Like The Energizer Bunny!, by Jim Klein
COAL: 1982 Subaru GL Wagon – 4 Wheel Deadly, by IdiotKing
Early Subarus are all but extinct here including the boat loads of ex JDM used imports, lack of parts to keep them going isnt helping.
That, and rust. But I am in Michigan, not Colorado. My parents, as well as my aunt and uncle (dad’s older brother), had several of these Subaru 4WD wagons throughout the 80’s. I don’t think any were the turbos, but all had 3 pedals at least.
The pop-ups on this site are insane!
I had a ’83 2wd wagon, my brother had a ’84 4wd wagon he bought new, and I have driven a ’84 Turbo wagon with a 5 speed. Most of these 79-84s sold here in the Pacific NW were manual trans, automatics were few and far between. And the non turbo ones were gutless enough with a stick, why anyone would have ordered one with auto trans is beyond me.
I drove a turbo version that was beyond gutless it was a 5 speed range topping version non turbo they were slower, I owned a 1.8 Legacy it was gutless and drank enough fuel for a good six cylinder car even after a carb rebuild, reliable as a anvil though.