The late eighties and early nineties were a difficult time for Subaru. In the seventies and early eighties, Subaru rode the huge tsunami of Japanese imports, distinguishing itself with its very modern FWD boxer four drivetrain, as well as the first popular four-wheel drive passenger cars. But as happens so often, Subaru unleashed a fad for AWD passenger cars, and suddenly seemingly everyone was getting into the act. Remember AWD Tempos? And Subaru’s conventional FWD cars, like this Loyale, were getting lost in the epic battle between Honda and Toyota for market share. There was a point in the early nineties that Subaru actually gave thought to abandoning the US market. Hard to imagine that now, with Subaru’s tremendous recent success.
What turned Subaru around was a rather bold decision to only sell AWD vehicles in the US, as a way to define the brand in a very crowded market. That, and the rather brilliant 1996 Outback turned the corner, and now it’s almost hard for us in the US to even imagine non-AWD Subarus. But here’s a living example, a Loyale FWD sedan from around 1990 (I’m not sure of the exact year). It was called Leone in Japan and many other markets, and DL in the US, until the larger Legacy came along in 1990, and Subaru kept the DL going alongside, dubbing it Loyale. Presumably for those buyers that were loyal to the DL, and wanted to keep buying it for a few more years?
These cars were powered by the EA-82 1.8 L SOHC boxer four, an engine that developed a very good rep for reliability and ruggedness. This was well from before the common head gasket problem era, which really seems to have blossomed with the 2000 MY engine that reverted back to SOHC, after having been a DOHC for some years. Not exactly sporting, with their 90 hp, but they really helped cultivate the cult of the Pleiades.
Now what makes you think this Subaru is owned by a woman?
The AWD wagon version is a cult favorite hereabouts, although they are getting a bit scarce after all these years. And there was a turbo version of them to boot. Ian Williams did a thorough CC on them here. And although the FWD Loyale sedan is a bit of a wall-flower, it least it’s a colorful one.
mn
Proof that they don’t salt the roads in Oregon. In Vermont these rusted like it was going out of style. Which, in a way, it was – these were last Subarus to rust anything like that badly.
They didn’t last much more than 6 or so Cleveland winters either.
I often think of Subaru and Mazda in similar terms. Both small market share manufacturers, both with excellent vehicles that are entertaining to drive but often overlooked in favor of the competition. I’m glad Subaru didn’t exit the US market because of the 50 vehicles I’ve owned, I rank the Outback at the top for utility and economy.
This is one of the more fascinating paint schemes on your local Eugene cars.
No experience with these, but they do appeal to that part of me that likes basic transportation.
I find it strange that the American car was a “Royale” while the Japanese car was a “Loyale”. It would make for a much better punchline to a language/dialect joke if they were reversed. 🙂
Ford and GM tried with the AWD in the 80’s, but the market still wasn’t big enough. I think the only reason why Subaru is picking up so much sales steam is because they are finally starting to look like every other anonymous appliance out there. Now that they blend in with the Camcords they are really making ground.
actually, most everyone tried. What did we have, Mazda 323 and Protégé, Ford Tempo/Topaz, Pontiac 6000, Toyota Corolla/Camry/Tercel, Honda Civic, Dodge Colt, Nissan Stanza?, AMC Eagles…What else was there?
It also didn’t help that the Tempaz AWD’s were steaming piles either.
My aunt and uncle had one of these as a AWD wagon with manual trans and shiftable transfer case. Rust did get aggressive with it in heavily salted Ohio but it was tough to kill and my uncle was still driving it as a work vehicle many years after it had been retired from family use. It turned him into a loyal Subaru customer and he owned one of the last Legacy GT wagons.
A 2wd Subaru however always struck me as a little daft. That’s like buying a 2wd Jeep, what’s the point?
“What did you buy?”
“A Subaru.”
“Oh the brand made famous by AWD. What model did you buy?”
“A FWD Legacy sedan.”
silence and a “are you an idiot” stare.
Back when this car was new, Subaru was known as a Japanese company that offered AWD in pretty much every model car they made. They’re weren’t necessarily known as an AWD car company. Owning a FWD Subaru back then wasn’t all that odd.
Yes but as I said even then “I” saw it as strange, let me use Jeep as an example. To ME it was like buying a 2wd Jeep. Jeep is legendary for off road capability so if you buy a 2wd one I’m the guy who thinks… “Why didn’t you just buy something else from someone else if you didn’t want the ONE attribute that Jeep is famous for?”
I spent some time in a loved-one’s 85 or 86 Wagon. It was loaded. Fuel injected, alloy wheels, digital dash, 5-speed. But it was FWD. There were some things about that sucked. It had positive front camber to guarantee understeer and the exhaust y-pipe cracked repeatedly. It ate one of the head gaskets at relatively low miles. The hill-holder was nice; the only stickshift I wanted to drive through downtown San Francisco. The shifter and steering were both light and positive. It represented the golden age of Japanese efficient design. Lightweight, small, but cavernous on the inside.
I cant speak to the Loyale, but I used to rent quite a few of the first generation fwd Legacys 1990 or so. Great cars, handling was on par with all the other Japanese imports of the time. And if memory serves me right the engine as fun to drive as either a 626 or the stanza/Altima or a camry. Keep in mind in this is Texas so no real use for AWD.
Its quite possible the 1st gen Legacy you drove in Texas was FWD. The early part of the run was biased towards FWD sales in the US. I’d imagine a penny punching Rental Company in Texas would have gone for the rock bottom model.
This model brings back memories. My Great Aunt Lovey (the one in New England who drove Plymouths for years until she got a Volare) had one of these. It was a 1986 GL 4-door finished in Midnight Blue. She only got a new car when she saw rust on her old one, and by 1986 her light blue 1980 Subaru GL sedan was beginning to show cancer around the wheel arches. She had loved that car (her “Little Subie”), and to her the efficient 4-cylinder and FWD were an epiphany compared to the previous Plymouths. There was no doubt in her mind that she would get another Subaru.
I was going to school in Connecticut at the time, so it was an easy jaunt up to Great Barrington MA for me to see Aunt Lovey and help her go car shopping in person. In 1986 I was a huge fan of the newly introduced Honda Accord, and I did take her to see that one. However, her heart was set on the Subaru since it had served her so well. The local Subaru dealer in the Berkshires did a huge business and had a great selection of cars, including a number of GL sedans. It was really as simple as picking the color she wanted (she was torn between the lighter Marina Blue and the Midnight Blue). She had to get used to the new instrument panel (a bit over-the-top with whiz-bang 1980s-style buttons and graphics), but otherwise the car was as comfortable to her as a well-worn glove. The “Subie Two” was her last car, as she was getting on in years, winding down her photography studio and driving much less frequently. She passed away in 1992, and we sold the car to one of her neighbors, still in great shape (really no rust on that one) and less than 40K miles. I know that they got many more years out of it.
I have to thank Aunt Lovey for getting me up-to-speed on Subarus. I was still growing up in New Orleans when she got the 1980 Subaru, and that was my first real exposure to the brand. I had “helped” her long distance, and it gave me a chance to learn all about Subarus, which were not at all common in NOLA then (zero need for AWD). They were everywhere in New England though, which is why Aunt Lovey saw fit to check them out. With a badly rusted 3-year-old Volare that had suffered myriad mechanical maladies, she was in no mood to consider another Chrysler product. Subaru, pitched as “The New England Solution” was perfect for her, though she never went with AWD, as FWD more than covered her traction needs. She did spring for the GL model though, a great example of the way the Japanese brands packaged many niceties onto their cars for a still very reasonable price. For example, I remember her GL had an AM/FM stereo as standard, which at that time was still an option on most domestics, even more expensive ones.
For Aunt Lovey, Subaru became the “new Plymouth” so to speak, as it was simple, durable, non-pretentious and functional. The superior traction offered by many of the models clearly helped differentiate the brand, and was definitely a smart strategy for them to pursue. My only concern with the brand today is that they strike me as remarkably generic other than the AWD positioning. The first Outbacks, for example, still had a flavor of that rugged individuality and quirkiness that feels so right for Subaru. To me, many of the newer ones veer into that vague “modern new car” zone with Hyundai et al. Nice, contemporary, but not necessarily memorable or distinct. And therefore prone to another late 80s/early 90s repeat of getting lost in the haze of competent cars again.
Subaru doesn’t do boring vanilla vehicles well enough to survive against all the boring vanilla Toyotas, Hondas and Nissans. Subarus have never been a real value compared to the competition for folks in the market for boring vanilla Japanese vehicles.
So after the early Japanese ugly 4WD wagons became too dated and embarrassing to sell well in the states, Subaru stripped away it’s uniqueness and competed head on – and lost. It seems that Americans in the market for boring vanilla Japanese cars would have appreciated a cleanly styled, durably made, boxer engined, Subaru – but they weren’t.
Like Mazda, Subaru makes excellent cars that just can’t crack the market for boring vanilla cars like Toyota, Honda and Nissan can. I’ve never understood why. Both manufacturers put out cars as good or better than the Big Japanese Three.
I’m glad Subaru is still out there. I know Mazda continues to struggle, but Subaru has somehow figured out how to sell overpriced Japanese cars with enough Saab-ish uniqueness and cultish appeal to find a comfortable market niche. Good. Good for them!
As for this Loyale, it was a fine car. As for this car’s exterior enhancements, let’s just say that this driver feels a powerful need for strangers to be aware of her gender via her vehicle. Many ladies make this statement by wearing something powerfully gender specific in order to attract, this driver probably isn’t inclined to do that. Imagine if this car was painted in camoflage with a Mr. T action figure Gorilla-glued to the hood. Hmmm, I’d say that either way, this driver is trying way too hard to say something to drivers that flat out don’t know her.
It would be hilarious if a guy drove it!
Reminds me of camouflage in colors other than green, brown, sand, ect… Pink camo? Blue camo? Where do you expect to hide, the lingerie section of Sears?
“This bruise? I was shopping at Babies R Us and all of a sudden I slammed into this old pink and baby blue Subaru that was sitting there. I didn’t even see it.”
The first car my wife and I bought new was the top-line 1990 Loyale AWD Turbo Wagon in black. Come to think of it, it was the ONLY car we’ve bought new; everything else has been off-lease and thus pre-depreciated.
It was a great little car with very few complaints, and regrettably we didn’t have it long enough to find out whether it would turn into a bust rucket. Got t-boned by an eejit with a Blazer who was convinced he could drive on any ice-covered hill.
One of the few noticeable quirks was the turbo. I think the dealer swapped it out with a turbot. Every stomp on the gas pedal caused a great deal of spool whine and not a lot of action. It was loud enough to make you look for the cop in the rear-view mirror.
Count me among the few who disagree with Subaru’s decision to go “All AWD, all the time”. Excepting the boy-racer WRX and STI, one rarely sees a Subaru in the south or southwest. There is no need for the added complexity or reduced MPG that AWD brings, in those parts of the country.
I, for one, would be most interested in a FWD Forester, but that doesn’t exist. Perhaps, with the forthcoming CAFE increases, it would behoove Subaru to reconsider its 100% AWD decision.
They went all-AWD in Australia too, which also does not require awd very often. They did/do chase the ski crowd.
After a couple of Suzuki Sierra/Jimny pickups, my grandfather was loyal to Subaru. He even traded his Brumby (Brat) early to get one of the last shipment.
Driving through a Houston downpour last night reminded me why I love my Outback. Clear sailing, no drama. It’s quiet competence scares me.
+1. I’ve always lived in the snow belt and never had an awd car, nor have I wanted one. Granted, I live close enough to a major metro that our roads get plowed pretty well. In northern Vermont I could see it, but really, it’s not that hard to keep a front-drive car unstuck in suburbia.
Reminds me of my 1989 GL-10 Turbo. One of the nicer cars I ever had. Digital dash, air suspension, power everything. Too bad I didn’t take better care of it.
Nowadays, you can’t even find them.
“It was called Leone in Japan and many other markets, and DL in the US, until the larger Legacy came along in 1990”
I don’t think it was called DL in the U.S. as much as it just didn’t have a model name at all. These cars were just “Subarus”, as all Subarus sold in the U.S. had historically been more-or-less built off of one basic design, with little need to differentiate by model name. DL was really just a trim level; at least at one time, these came in other trim levels besides DL (note the references to “GL”s in some earlier comments).
While I am far from a Subaru expert, I think MCT is absolutely right about the Subaru nomenclature, at least for much of the 1980s. Certainly in the U.S. for 1980, other than the BRAT, they were just Subaru “insert trim level” and “insert bodystyle” or as in my great aunt’s case, a Subaru GL Sedan. This naming convention held through most of the 1980s. I recall specifically that the 1986 line had the XT coupes, which were really more of a series name, while the sedans, hatchbacks and wagons were still known just by bodystyle and trim levels: DL, GL, GL-10. By the late 1980s, series names were becoming more prevalent with the arrival of the Justy, and by the early 1990s they switched over completely to series/model names (when this feature car became the Loyale).
As I mentioned a few weeks ago, I saw what must be a very rare configuration of the Loyale in a place where these Subarus are already rare…a 3-door ’87 FWD coupe with the quadruple sealed beam headlights in Pawtucket, RI. It looked like the top picture in this brochure page, except it was white and had dog-dish hubcaps. I had never seen one like it before, and I might never see it again, since it didn’t appear to be in very good shape.
(Brochure courtesy of Subaru of Wichita.)
The only real claim to fame these have was Possum Bourne won rallies in one and prompted Subaru to build something better like the RS Legacy with some power, Very few left going here in a country that has highest Subaru ownership rates in the world.
This Subie doesn’t do much for me but love that gold Audi A4 in the driveway. One of the best looking, best driving 4-doors ever.
By the time 1991 had come along, the Loyale had been given the “America” treatment if you will. The options were limited to sedan or wagon, color (white/red for free, metallic colors $300 extra), tape deck ($225, sat below the AM/FM standard radio) and your choice of transmission. They wanted $900 for that three speed auto. 1992 made the tape deck standard.
The car in the pictures was probably the most value-packed deal in those days. FWD, 5-speed would return decent enough mileage on the highway, plus came with power windows, mirrors, locks plus air conditioning for under $9000. The same class of vehicles from other manufacturers were complete strippers in that price range. I wanted one pretty badly, but ended up being a cheapskate and going for the thousand dollar cheaper base Tercel. Every summer I regretted the lack of AC.
Sadly, the design wasn’t competitive anymore. Definitely a vehicle that shouldn’t have escaped the 1980s. The only ones that sold near sticker price were the 4wd wagons. After driving both the 5 speed and automatic version, the stick shift is the only way to go. After attempting to enter the Montanabahn with the automatic version, I realized why my folks never took the thing on the highway.
I had an 84 and 85 GL, the latter being the first in the generation of the car featured. The 85 was a quantum leap in refinement. The 85 served me through college, and some years my biggest expense was parking fees. As a fwd vehicle, it was inferior to the Civic in refinement, but easily superior in durability and value. You couldn’t talk anyone out of a Civic or Carolla then. Years later I bought a 2002 Outback, the car driving Subaru’s success, and was a little disappointed.