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They Call It "Mini-Me" - A Mini-Av From Japan

MagicMtnDan

SM 2003
Full Member
Joined
Aug 11, 2002
Messages
928
Subara Baja

They don't call theirs a "Midgate" nope, they call it a "Switchback" ? :p

(It's the Subaru Baja)

Subaru has effectively divided itself into two separate companies in North America. First there?s Rally Subaru that sells the WRX to a generation that is as familiar with it from PlayStation as from the World Rally Championship. Then there is the Outback Subaru, which sells sedans, station wagons and the Forester small SUV to suburbanites who don?t need true off-road ability but like the look and crave the all-weather security of all-wheel drive. The Baja definitely belongs to that second aspect of Subaru?s schizoid personality; it yells off-roader in its decoration while offering a new riff on the ancient car-as-truck formula (see everything from Model T pickups to the El Camino).

Is it much of a car? Or much of a truck? Or much of anything?

Hey, let?s hack off the roof!

It would be unfair to write off the Baja as simply an Outback wagon with the last third of its roof sliced off like a bunion. But it wouldn?t be that unfair ? the basic structure and everything from the rear set of doors forward in the Baja is essentially identical to a Legacy Outback. The Outback, like all Legacys, is a structurally impressive, satisfyingly solid and poised vehicle so, no surprise, is the Baja. And like other Legacys, the Baja is built at Sube?s plant in Lafayette, Indiana.

While the Baja shares its wheelbase with the Outback, it?s about six inches longer overall. So all that extra length is in rear overhang for the 41.5-inch long pickup bed that?s grafted on just behind the rear seat. In truck terms, 41.5 inches is a puny bed length, however the tailgate can be put down (the gate-mounted license plate frame folds out to remain conspicuous) and the bed extended with an extender made with aluminum tubing to stretch that to 60.5 inches. Beyond that is Subaru?s ?Switchback? gate that opens behind the rear seats, which naturally fold down. Add that length, and the total available length is 75 inches.

If all that Switchback stuff sounds an awful lot like the ?Midgate? in the Chevy Avalanche, that?s because it is an awful lot like the Midgate. However, Chevy?s version includes a removable rear window that allows the accommodation of items as tall as the cab?s roof. The Subaru Switchback, on the other hand, uses a fixed rear window that means that items that can pass through had better be pretty dang thin. One suspects that a reason Subaru keeps the rear window in place is to maintain the stiffness of the unibody structure which is something Chevrolet doesn?t have to worry about on the full-frame Avalanche. Even the stainless steel bars between the bed sides and roof aid in the structure. Those, and whatever other tricks may have been employed in the unibody?s engineering, all seem to be working. The Baja?s structural strength seems at least as substantial as other Legacys.

With a 1050-pound payload rating, the Baja?s bed is a useful repository for most contemporary ski, surf and hiking toys and it?s rated to tow 2400 lb. But don?t expect it to haul any stuff very quickly. There?s only 165 horsepower available from the 2.5-liter, SOHC, 16-valve, flat-four engine and unladen the Baja weighs in at a thick 3485 lb. Hooked to the five-speed manual transmission and continuous all-wheel drive system, the Baja?s boxer engine doesn?t feel particularly strained. But when lashed to the four-speed automatic and its ?active? all-wheel drive system that continuously varies the torque split, the engine feels stretched to its limit and then some. To maintain pace on a freeway, even unloaded, the automatic will often have to drop down at least a gear.

Car/truck/whatever

While the truck bed is what distinguishes the Baja from other Legacy-based Subarus, it?s the passenger accommodations that it shares with them that are most impressive. The seats aren?t aggressively shaped, but very comfortable and well finished. The dash is straightforward and easy to use and the other controls are all intuitively positioned. It?s not a perfect interior, but it?s a comfortable place for four people.

It?s also a comprehensively equipped interior stuffed with everything from leather-trimmed upholstery to a power moonroof and an 80-watt sound system. It?s not the hose-it-out extreme sports machine the exterior might seem to promise, and not the sort of starkly unadorned place Gen X, Y or Zers expect inside their first cars. But it is the sort of interior that justifies the car?s nearly $24,000 estimated base price.

With its 7.3 inches of ground clearance (enough for pounding down fire roads) and P225/60R16 all-season tires, the Baja?s on-road cornering limits are modest but the all-wheel drive system keeps things manageable. The steering is well damped but still communicative, and the four-wheel disc brakes work with ABS-controlled precision. The ride is comfortable, well controlled and probably better than any other vehicle currently for sale in North America with a pickup-like bed.

As a car, the Baja succeeds in maintaining the sweet manners and composure of other Subaru Legacy products. If the driver never looks out of the rearview mirror, he might not know there?s a truck bed back there. As a truck, the Baja is adequate for the light-duty tasks most suburbanites actually need done ? even if that?s more likely hauling stuff back from Home Depot and Target rather than taking a kayak to some whitewater or a surfboard to the Pipeline.

There?s a lot of off-road pretense in all the cladding and light bars and stuff the Baja wears. Does it really need it to remain compelling? Couldn?t a street-oriented, cladding-free Baja be an interesting vehicle too? It might at least make an interesting concept car at the next Detroit or L.A. show.

As it stands, the Baja is barely compromised as a car and not wholly without virtue as a truck. As sort of a scaled-down Avalanche, it makes a lot more sense for commuting than that fuel-swilling full-size truck and it?s at least as comfortable. It?s not exactly a car, not exactly a truck, but not bad at all.

2003 Subaru Baja
Base price: $23,995
Engine: 2.5-liter flat four-cylinder, 165 hp/166 lb-ft
Drivetrain: Five-speed manual or four-speed automatic, all-wheel drive
Length x width x height (inches): 193.3 x 70.1 x 64.2
Wheelbase: 104.3 in
Curb weight: 3485 lb
EPA City/Hwy: 20/25 mpg (manual); 19/24 mpg (auto)
Safety equipment: Driver and passenger front airbags, four-wheel anti-lock braking, all-wheel drive
Major standard equipment: Air conditioning, power seats with lumbar support, cruise control, fog lights with stone guards, auto-off headlights, keyless entry, leather seats and steering wheel, headrests
Warranty: Three years/36,000 miles

image too large ... changed to url by admin
 
That is kind of funky/cute!
I will have to look at some more pics.
 
That's an interesting color on the mini "AV"...Can't imagine a real AV in that tangerine color?
 
Thats no mini Av thats a car
ernaehrung018.gif
 
Yeah....that's a Subaru's bastardized attempt to copy our AV. Could their be a more blatant rip off in design? :8: Subaru Baja? More like Subaru POS. :7:

Its a ugly car wannabe AV. :D:

I'll take my Chevy AV any day. In fact....I could park my AV on top of that POS. :B:
 
Who ever would have guessed it...a four door Brat! And to think I actually owned a Brat at one time. Guess I was working up toward the AV.
 
BlackAv2002 said:
Thats no mini Av thats a car
ernaehrung018.gif

Well they can try to copy it, but I have the original and it doesn't look anything like that orange thing. I'm with most of you when i say that car doen't even compare. :B:
 
i think its kind of cool in a funky kind of way. i could see where some people would really like it. it gives you the size and feel of a car with the usefulness of carrying messy stuff like dirt, trees, firewood, or the dog. the price doesnt see to bad either. i would be interested to see one in person. now if it came in a wrx version >:D that would be really cool
 
[quote
As it stands, the Baja is barely compromised as a car and not wholly without virtue as a truck. As sort of a scaled-down Avalanche, it makes a lot more sense for commuting than that fuel-swilling full-size truck and it?s at least as comfortable. It?s not exactly a car, not exactly a truck, but not bad at all.

2003 Subaru Baja
Base price: $23,995
Engine: 2.5-liter flat four-cylinder, 165 hp/166 lb-ft
Drivetrain: Five-speed manual or four-speed automatic, all-wheel drive
Length x width x height (inches): 193.3 x 70.1 x 64.2
Wheelbase: 104.3 in
Curb weight: 3485 lb
EPA City/Hwy: 20/25 mpg (manual); 19/24 mpg (auto)
Safety equipment: Driver and passenger front airbags, four-wheel anti-lock braking, all-wheel drive
Major standard equipment: Air conditioning, power seats with lumbar support, cruise control, fog lights with stone guards, auto-off headlights, keyless entry, leather seats and steering wheel, headrests
Warranty: Three years/36,000 miles
[/quote]

I'll take my "so called" fuel-swilling full-size AV any day over this piece of crap. And judging from what's printed above I would say the AV is a much, much better deal and there's no way that thing is as comfortable as an AV. This looks like a car - SUT wanna be.

I wouldn't buy one.
 
Looks a little like a foreign version of a "Sport-Trac" to me. You know the commercial of the EXT in the parking lot with the car ??? Maybe Chevy could make one with an AV in a parking lot, squishing the Baja....just a thought ;D
 
Not my piece of pie....I'm not overwhelmed in the least by it's design....and as far as an Av wanna-be...it doesn't hold a candle to the Av..... :B:
 
Ya whoever wrote that the subaru is at least as comfortable to ride in, must have never ridden in the AV. This is one of the smoothest rides, partially due to the comforatble seats, long wheelbase and just shear weight makes the bumps more smooth.

THe subura Thing I would imagine would be a much harsher ride with more lightweight uncomfortable seats.

I am sure that you cant fit a 4x8 in that car and thats what makes the AV so functional, otherwise FORD got there version with the short box that is barely functional as a pickup bed. I will pass, thank you.
 
thats kinda funny... cause i have owned a wrx... and a avalanche and that is like the cross breed. ;D i think it's cool. btw guys.... subaru is part owned by gm... so i'm sure thats were the idea for that car came from. it could use a little work. good idea catcher for certain people.

would love to see a twin turbo one of those rippin by me as i pass him up. >:D


~BIGRED
 
They say imitation is the most sincere form of flatery.

It looks kinda cool. But i would say it competes more with trucks like the Explorer Sport track and the other crew cab little pickups.
 
Just saw a Subaru Baja today!!!

Yep--that's right--trying desperately to parallel park in downtown Salem. We got to drive by and stare. Looks "almost" cool--like it wasn't supposed to be that way. :) No cladding, per se, but the lower door panels and wheel arches have extra "material" on them making them stick out all "tough-like".

Very interesting vehicle to look at from afar. It had a Capitol dealer (same place I bought my Av) placard in the license plate frame, so I wonder if they're selling them here. Have to go to the dealer and check it out. We're finally starting to get 03 stuff now...

Just wanted to be the first one to see one in my neighborhood!

Brendan
 
Awwwwww- it is kinda cute, looks like my AV drove through an orange grove and took a D*MP. But seriously, it will have a good piece of the yuppy "I'd like to have 4WD but not the huge truck" demographic.

-Gatorjedi
 
Another weed thread.

Search back on this one. I think it has popped up as at least 3 other threads. I think it was called the 'outbrat'
 
One big differentiation from the Av that no one has talked about is it's wall design (other than the obvious stuff of course). Chevy has the midgate which drops down to expose THE ENTIRE area for cargo usage. The Baja only has a small area within the wall that folds down. In the previous post here that talked about this car, I referred to it as a portal. Since the rear window is fixed, you certainly won't be toting bikes in the back unless they mount to the roof. Heck, my wife's 02 GrandAm with both seats folded down will probably have as much access space AND be weather tight.

Jamie
 
I'm a bit surprised by the hostile reactions! Personlly, I don't feel threatened by a car based "cute-ute". It will appeal to an entirely different demographic and should have virtually no apprecable effect on Av sales. If I were in that market, I'd look at this little thing before even considering a CR-V or Escape.
 
Crexis said:
I'm a bit surprised by the hostile reactions! ?Personlly, I don't feel threatened by a car based "cute-ute". ?It will appeal to an entirely different demographic and should have virtually no apprecable effect on Av sales. ?If I were in that market, I'd look at this little thing before even considering a CR-V or Escape.


I agree. I saw the Subie for the first time today. It is an outback with a small bed. It has some good ideas however it is defiantly not a truck. It is without a doubt better than a CR-V, Escape, or anything else in that market. I hope they do well. However it is a car and should not be called the Mini AV ;)
 
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