Like seemingly everything else, new car and truck cycles have sped up. Cars and trucks used to stay in production for much longer, at least in the 80s and 90s. These two are stellar examples of that: the Subaru GL (Leone) was built for eleven years (1984-1994). But that’s nothing compared to these Ford trucks, that stayed in production for a whopping 18 years (1980-1997), with just a couple of new front ends along the way as well as various improvements.
This is a classic Subaru, from a time before CUVs were invented. if you wanted an economical, rugged, AWD wagon, this was it. This generation came out in 1985 and was called GL in the US, but had its name changed to Loyale after the Legacy arrived in 1989. It was kept on as a lower cost alternative for some years yet.
These are from the pre-head-gasket-busting era, and the 1.8 boxer four in these has a rep for being very durable.
I’m now wishing I’d taken another shot of the big F250, but it’s hard for me to think of them as genuinely vintage trucks now, given how common they were and still are, mostly. And how many millions were built over those 18 years (17 for the F-150)?
I’m going to guess these two may still have some years ahead of them. The question is which one will outlive the other?
For me this is the last of the “real” Ford trucks. Now they look like something out of a cartoon.
+1!
Agreed.
What a toss-up for which one will remain!
I’m going with the Ford, though. Every engine they offered in those trucks was reliable like the sun-the 4.9 I-6, the 5.0 and 5.8 Windsors, the 460/7.5, the 7.3 diesel; all big heavy understressed lumps of iron designed to be run day-in and day-out without complaint. The transmissions were great, too. Even the 4R70W they installed in the later trucks will go for way too long without even changing the trans fluid, and once they do start to shudder the Ford-recommended switch to Mercon V will smooth it right back out.
And, the Fords have parts availability that the Subaru owners could only dream of. I think at this point one could, if so inclined, order enough individual bits online to just build a new truck. Cab corners rotting through? Buy new ones and weld ’em in. Broke the shifter off because the pin in the column worked its way loose? Buy a new one and put it in. Fuel tanks, steering gears, radius arm bushings and brackets, shock mount towers-you name it, you can probably find its replacement with minimal work along with a YouTube video of how to install it.
Not gonna lie, though, I love me the Ford trucks of this era. They look the business and do what they’re meant to do. The new trucks on the job might have more energy, but these older ones know how to do the job right the first time.
“Even the 4R70W they installed in the later trucks will go for way too long without even changing the trans fluid, and once they do start to shudder the Ford-recommended switch to Mercon V will smooth it right back out”
For a little while. ATF +4 works too. I got 3 years out of my 95 F-150 after the shudder started. The trans made it to 175,000 before finally calling it a day.
I’ve heard about that breeding technique. You turn them back to back. It’s more comfortable for them during a long session.
Re Subaru gaskets, they don’t so much burst as seep small but smelly amounts of oil, in my experience. You can probably mistreat them into failing, of course. My ’07 has 93K on it (74K by me), and I keep the cabin filter going all the time to keep fresh air in there. Next summer, I’ll do the timing belt and gaskets. Really, I will. I promise myself. It’s mostly just niggling things that are bothersome… noisy heat shields and brake dust shields, rough idle for no discernible reason, etc., but the car just runs and runs.
I had a 97 Legacy GT that leaked oil like a British race car, busted Cam Seals, head gaskets, transmission shift solenoids busted and that car just ran and ran and ran with no real troubles other than lots of oil stains. IIRC, it had about 180k on it when I got it in 2010.
Finally got rid of it when the cost to repair it became too much and it couldn’t pass emissions here in CT.
I would also vote for the Ford, if its owner is inclined to care and repair it. This one is an F250 with the 7.3 Diesel. The drivetrain could probably go forever.
Since Ford split their trucks into two platforms starting with the F150 in 97, they have let the Super Duty go quite long between new designs. The 1999 platform was just replaced with the new 2017 design. That’s 18 model years, quite a long run.
For all the shade I’ve thrown at Subaru around here, these and the pre-2.5 Legacies were remarkable. The ’92 Legacy we owned for a short time was a ball to drive. Co-worker of my wife’s kept his for close to 400k.
They sure could rust, though.
I love that both have the good old “wagon wheels”.
It is a toss up as to which will be on the road longer barring any accidents.
I’d have to probably give the nod to the Ford though, the Subaru already has some body damage and any major repair will be too close to its as repaired value. The truck however has a much higher intrinsic value and seems to be in good shape cosmetically so an expensive repair could much more easily be justified.
Just from appearances the Ford will survive longer, barring a wreck. It still shows its owner’s pride. The Subaru has signs of creeping “I Don’t Care-itus” though the crumpled fender and probable bent bumper brackets, snd maybe bent radiator support may reflect unaffordability and/or parts made of Unobtainium.
I vote for “I Don’t Care-itis”. There are so many Subarus in the Pacific northwest – and have been for years – that there’s no way a guy couldn’t find those parts in almost any wrecking yard even if he had to venture out into the country to find a place that kept cars longer.
God bless that two-toning.
This generation Ford truck took pretty well to facelifts, GM’s 73 vintage C/K was better looking(IMO) but it really got frozen in time with the 1981 facelift until the GMT400 came along, yet Ford managed to Aero facelift their 80 vintage body with this nose and the result is nearly as effective as the fully redesigned GMs.
I like the Subaru, they long since rusted away from the Chicago area and I remember the ones that were still around 10 years ago looked really rough and the design archaic compared to modern Subarus but I’ve grown fond of them since. It’s angular 80s design looks so refreshing, and unlike modern CUVs it doesn’t look like a muffin
The truck will outlast it though. These pickups are STILL fixtures in the Midwest, even with copious rust. They’re built like tanks and for truck work they do everything a brand new one can do for a tiny fraction of the cost. The Subaru is a dent away from being declared total loss, like most 80s cars unfortunately.
This generation of Ford truck is funny. I really dislike the early ones and really like the later ones. Was it just an extended time to get used to them? More likely was the styling improvements in the late 80s and the replacement of the AOD with the E4OD in the early 90s. I loved my 96 Club Wagon with its 5.8/E4OD drivetrain and suspect that I would love an F-150 with that drivetrain as well.
Anytime that I’ve junked out a pickup truck, the junkman always perks up at the mention of pickup truck. The next question is usually about what kind of shape it’s in. I tell them that I’m selling it for junk, not trading it in. I guess the moral of the story is that there is always someone looking for a good old pickup to run or fix up and flip. For just that reason I vote for the Ford.
Every junkyard i have been to uses junked but still running pickups around the yard as work vehicles. I would say they have large amounts of use in them, unlike anything else. Although, i did ride in a door-less Geo Metro one time that was on tractor tires to cross a large yard. The power seatbelts still worked.
That OBS Ford will most likely outlive the body style (97-03 for the 150) that replaced it.
Been looking for a full-size Ford truck or Bronco (even a Bronco II) for a winter rig. The truck would be able to haul some firewood…
Some rigs have been presenting themselves in the $500-1500 range. A ’96 F-250 just turned up for $650… Rot free body but moldy inside (It’s the Northwest) and a 460 that hasn’t ran in awhile…
Huh…
I vote for the truck. These Ford’s are just handsome machines. This configuration with the extended cab and long bed is the most flexible model. Plenty of room to lock up tools and equipment in the cab, and a long enough bed to hold a decently long load. Not like those ridiculous 5 1/2 or 6 1/2 quad cab beds! When my brother needed a truck to work on a home remodel I lent him my old ’66 F250. He decided he needed a better truck so I found him a ’97 F250. He used that for the project, then bought himself a brand new truck. I then sold that ’97 to a coworker of mine for HIS remodel project. He still has it.
That’s a good way to score a good usable truck. Lot’s of guys will buy an old truck while they remodel their house or redo their yards. They’ll fix it up a bit maybe buy a new set of tires. Then when they don’t need it, and don’t want it parked in front of their house they will sell it cheap to get rid of it. Unfortunately a lot of 90’s era trucks are being sold to CARB board instead of being put back on the market. Around the Bay Area the supply of beater trucks has dwindled.
These subarus have mostly all rusted away around here, but the fords are still everywhere.
Older Legacys are still very common here in coastal California, but locally this generation Ford outnumbers the GL/Loyale by at least 100, maybe 1000 to 1.