As a kid in the sixties we rode in the backs of pickup trucks all the time with no seat belts or seats. You could find baseball hats on the side of the road all the time.
That would literally be safer than this death trap. It staps you to the truck but the seating is to small. With you head poking over the top like that in any roll you would be immediately decapitated with you body straped . That is horrifying.
We sat on the bed rails against the cab at 80 mph across Tennessee in the 70s and would lay in the back window of the 74 impala at 75 on I-17 in Phoenix 😅
@@OfficialKSGFlowanything by ford and dodge for bed space is useless a Toyota Nissan and Chevy have the biggest beds in 2024 because they are the trucks for working men
Only 2nd gen brats do (1981-1985 for jump seats and 1986-1987 without the seats from factory). The one in this video is the first gen (1971-1979 for all models, and the brat was 1978-1980 only which was a wagon with the rear cut off to make a pickup and the seats installed with angles on the brackets for people to easily grind off and remove the seats since Subaru actually didn't want you riding in these death traps). technically this is 80% Nissan-Datsun and the drivetrain and panels and such (easy things to change on a vehicle) are Subaru. the unibody, the ignition switch, the window mechanisms and steering columns are Datsun 710. Subaru and Nissan used to be partnered up in the 70's before Subaru finally made their real first vehicle that wasn't a Kei car from the 1960's in 1981 with their second generation models which became the GL/DL and eventually the Loyale.
My father bought a new Subaru Brat in 1979, a vehicle we all loved. It was amazing how many people wanted to ride in the rear facing seats, even old people! It was fun to ride in the back exposed to the elements like that, except for one major drawback: those thick, hard plastic seats were rock hard, and you’d get sore before too long.
1979 is the last time I rode in back of a ute . By 1984 stringent new laws were introduced forbidding the practice along with necessary provision for the welfare of any dogs that might be riding in the tray .
My friend had a Subaru brat in the '80s and they did not have seat belts. They had handlebars to the side to hang on to, those shoulder straps were modified. Must still be. Love the brat!
Nope, those seatbelts were standard. maybe part of an upgrade package but I don't think so. That's the same setup mine had, and mine was bought new by my frugle uncle who parked it and didn't touch it for 20+ years. He would have had them removed anything that he could to save a penny, so the fact it had the 5 points harness makes me think it was standard. He had no kids, and never planned to drive it, so backseat safety was definitely not on his list of priorities.
Which is just fine, as it was expected that the purchaser would 'modify' the vehicle after purchase my removing the seats. A modification that was 'surprisingly' easy to do. The required bolts were easy to locate and remove. It was almost as if the seats were only there to skirt the import tax. (/s)
@@MrJimheeren 😂 is that really what happened or instead yall complained to make a more even playing feild because America's chickens was cheaper and outselling euorpean farmers.
@@MrJimheeren but it wasn't because of our "chloride cheap chickens" that we got from ya'll btw America didn't have chickens and it was not to protect your chickens but instead to secure your economy and to stop Americans from having a strong influence within your economy. We learned our propaganda tactics from ya'll, Europe has to come up with something we aren't aware of to out straigize us with propaganda.
I found one at a junkyard with my Dad, Great memory of him sharing this story to me and him riding in one, He said these things mainly hold value if you got those back seats and they were not comfortable for practical transportation.
It is still legal to ride in the back of a truck in many states. Some require that it be your families only mode of transportation " no room for everyone inside the cab" and other's just require the riders to be over 18
I wonder how that coincides with trucks like this, cause if it passed regulations when it was originally made (ie: much older cars with no seatbelts) then they're not required to be modified to meet modern standards
@@Maaaatttttt Teenage me laying in the bed of my buddy’s Dodge, sloshed, middle of February, in a blizzard, all while whipping 65 down some backroad home; happily agrees! Makes your skin thicker! 💪🤪
I love the paint job on that one... just a tip from someone who has ridden in one of those, you take bugs and leafs and stuff to the back of the head at times. If you're going to be somewhere rocky or going fast a helmet might make you a bit happier
There were all kinds of ways around the chicken tax. Ford and Mazda got around it with the Courier and B Series pickups by shipping them incomplete and installing the bed here. Ford still used some tricks with the Transit Connect, which was made in Turkey. They were all imported as passenger versions, but the cargo ones had these cheap cardboard seats that would probably collapse if you actually sat on them. They'd be removed right after arrival, and sent back for the next batch.
They should've kept the cardboard seats and sent the vehicle back. Turkish Transits were pretty awful. Had one, regretted it. Front suspension parts failed on a yearly basis, hood release cable failed twice, entire shift lever fell off in my hand once.
Subie’s losing money not lopping the top off the Impreza 2.5, giving it a lift, and marketing it as a new BRAT. Same with the Baja, just cut off the last third of an Outback. The ingredients are there.
I went after a Baja when new and there was excuse after excuse why I couldn’t get one. They ran out being the most common. Subaru lacked sense in these years and many others. They were everywhere for a while and gone in a few years.
@@creamking7784 I just saw a baja in someone’s back yard. Way to make me feel old yaknow. Well maybe this is a sign I’ll go up and chat about if it’s for sale 🤷🏻♂️
Chicken tax screws up our ability to import a Lot of great vehicles! Which limits manufacturing because they loose a huge market in the United States. Toyota has a sub 20k hilux out but we can't get a 2 seater truck anymore.
I'm 60 sat in the back of pickups entire childhood. Xmas holidays us 4 kids on the back for 9 hours to get to the Holiday spot. None of us were ever hurt and no seats no belts
@@Dellvmnyam Too bad, I'm going to tell you anyway. It's for pedestrian safety. It's also the reason why modern vehicles don't have radio antennas that stick up and their windshield wipers set below the hood.
The Brat did NOT have seat belts in the back. It had grab handles. Ok ok. I stand corrected. My uncle removed the lap belt mounts when it was new. It was indeed a federal regulation.
A girl that I knew in high school died this way when she was 20. She was celebrating the high school graduation of some younger friends, riding in the back of a truck when the driver took a turn quickly and over a curb. She was bounced out and fell under the wheels.
@edwardcook2973 naming terminology can also vary depending on where you live and your age, here in Australia we don't even use the names "pickup" or "truck" for all these vehicles mentioned here in this thread, I'm personally only aware of it because of the internet lol. The small amount of Ram 1500, F150 etc that we import and convert to RHD here in Australia, most people still just call them utes here 😂
@@edwardcook2973 I am going to disagree with you. Let's start by saying we all recognize a truck when when we see one. For example, with very few exceptions, they are body on frame, have a usable bed (with adequate payload), have a cab that is truly separate from the bed, has a 4wd option, etc. I own a '24 Silverado LT Z71 LT 4wd CC, and with its 18,200 lb. towing capacity and 3,550 payload, you'll never convince me that it is not a truck. I also tow a fifth wheel, which meets other "truck" criterion (specialized for hauling). Oxford Dictionary defines truck as - "a large, heavy motor vehicle used for transporting goods, materials, or troops." One of Webster's definitions for a truck is as follows - "a wheeled vehicle for moving heavy articles: such as a strong horse-drawn or automotive vehicle (such as a pickup) for hauling." One could loosely add these pseudo-trucks into the discussion, but at the end of the day, I think most everyone recognizes a true truck when we see it.
OMfgoodness, one of my best friends in HS had three of the Subaru Brats! They are/were awesome little boogers. And are fabulous for Baja, off roading & 4 wheeling with some slight adjustments and upgraded parts. Super simple to work on too. We had SOOOO much fun with them. Maybe it's time to search one out in a scrapyard somewhere & start a new project!
I loved my Brat. I took the seats out so my motorcycle would fit. It did a great 4 wheel drift on gravel. It was a great winter driver with 4 wheel drive and 4 studded snow tires. The only time I was ever stuck I was high centered,, but it was easy to get out. Great little car.
@@TheMetaldudeX They can be hard to see but they mounted to the bed floor sort of behind the seat a little. It counted as a real seat so no way they could have ever been sold without them.
We don't even have to get rid of the chicken tax just the law that says vehicles under certain dimensions and weights need ridiculously high fuel efficiency that can't be met without fines they won't pay. Toyota would likely build the trucks here in the states if that fuel efficiency law would go away.
@@spiet7380 Not really true. Japanese Kei trucks are more then able to meet EPA fuel requirements. GM and Ford have explicitly lobbied against them entering the market
There were also pickups with seats in the back from US manufacturers during the 70's. For some reason, the Ranchero comes to mind though I would have to do some research to see if it's the truck that I remembered.
They also had fully air adjustable independent suspension. You could use the gas station air pump to adjust it. They also typically got 35-45mpg. Could haul a crap ton and were a blast to drive. Hence why they got rid of them.
I recall reading stories about how insurance companies would not insure them if they had the rear seats installed. I have no idea if that is accurate or not though.
When i was a kid we had a cap for the back of the truck. We would place 2×4's side to side on each side of the wheel wells and then a sheet of plywood length wise. Then put an air mattress on the plywood. Anytime we went for a longer ride I would stay in the back, could play with toys or take a nap if wanted. We also had a square inner tube like piece that would lock in place between the opening of the sliding back window and the cap. It cut the wind noise down so the back window could be left open, it also allowed me to slide into the truck if i wanted or back into the bed of the truck. Good times!
As pointed out by one or two others, where I am, your Brat is called the Brumby. I never knew about the U.S. variant having rear seats. For non-Strayans, _brumby_ is the name we gave to feral horses. These were originally brought to Australia by colonial invasion forces since 1788. Descendants of horses that escaped or were released from domestic use, are named after a sergeant in the early Sydney colony, John Brumby. When he was transferred to the island colony of Tasmania in 1806, the horses he left behind in Sydney, subsequently escaped and lived in the wild. Brumbies - somewhat like a certain type of off-road driving enthusiast - fcuk up natural environments. Flora, fauna and soil types in native ecosystems are not adapted to the hard hooves and feeding habits of brumbies
Yes , interestingly the Americans give their feral horse tag to a sporty iconic ford sedan rather than to a sorta work vehicle. Perhaps the tag " draught " would've made alotta sense as a name for it .
I guess humans don't consider large familiar animals as an unmanaged environmental organism,@@Philip-hv2kc. Horses, considered _as individuals_ already had many positive associations for people. Mustang just added wild and free to that mythology. Marketing gold! In Straya, the convict colony part of our history means that brumby has a similar vibe. Independent, resourceful, rebellious even.
Yeah it's all fun and games until somebody gets thrown out. I'm the person that got thrown out of a pickup truck when I was 15 years of age. I am now 54 and still suffering the effects of that poor choice in seating. I just had a total knee replacement of my right knee and probably going to have to do something similar to my left knee because when they dig rocks out of your joint cavity it's never a good thing.
I have seen about 30 Subu Brats. Only 2 had the rear seats removed to use it as a truck. Itr was too small as a truck even without the rear seats. I worked with a guy who had a Brat and he showed me he could do donuts in it, even with front wheel drive. The ground was covered in snow that had half melted off, so it was slushy, but he would drive backwards, get a little speed up, start a turn, and he could spin the tires and do donuts.
My grandfather bought a new one around 1982. My cousin and I were 4-5. We rode home in the back on the way home, which included 25 minutes on the highway
I love those pick-ups , and rare as f'ck in the UK and there used to see 1 locally in Scotland. The chicken tax was Japan's way of controlling the import of poultry into their country , and would leave the poor carcasses to rot before charging tax on the poultry. So USA, came up with the tax , named after the poor poultry left to rot on the harbours in Japan. They're called Brumbys in Oz, and New Zealand. And don't forget about the Tamiya BRAT RC car from the 70s and 80s.
I'm from a rural part of the country and yes I have sat in the bed of a truck while it's moving. Then my mother told me a story that made me never want to do that again, as either the driver or someone in the back. Just be careful is all! Everyone's safety is important!
this is how the ford transit connect was getting around the law. "was one of very few fords made overseas and imported into the states" but the government did something about it... the thing they need to do is drop the chicken tax nonsince.
The 1970’s was just a weird time in history. It was a Wild West of sorts. Whenever explaining the decade to young people, they’re shocked to know such a time existed
that roll bar is part of the seat mounting, which also came with lap belts. The seats were required in Japan as part of the gas crunch was about adding extra passenger capacity. All 2 passenger vehicles paid a luxury tax.
@@rupe53 it wasn't made for the Japanese market though, and all you have to do is google Subaru BRAT and you'll see no examples of that roll bar or those harnesses
@@EugeneMStoner764 sorry, I had 2 different friends who had them with that option. One was late 70s vintage and the other was after 2000. I believe the later one was NOT called a Brat any longer, but it was basically the same... and it did have the rear seats.
@@rupe53 The rear seats weren't required for Japan, The vehicle was never sold in Japan. There are some there, but they were personal imports from the markets they were originally sold in. The seats were only fitted to the North American market ones using them as a loophole to avoid the import tax (chicken tax). Nowhere outside of North America were they fitted with the seats.
@@danx7143 next thing you know will be someone saying those 2+2 Z cars were never made for the home market in Japan. That's another example of them making a 4 passenger vehicle to sidestep the luxury tax on personal vehicles.
Very cool and safe. To be rear facing, while riding as a passenger, is statistically safer. Also, you have that awesome harness, keeping you strapped in.
I mean that's actually probably significantly safer than traditionally riding in the bed of a pickup. Which you have to be at least 18 to do in the US. I actually did it the day I turned 18 because it was a Wednesday and we went to Wednesday night church and at the time we had this teeny tiny pick up that I absolutely despised riding in the cab of. And it was November.
I love stories about tax evasion through production loopholes. Another example, in the UK the brand behind Jaffa Cakes avoided a cookie/biscuit tax by proving in court that their recipe technically qualified their product as tiny cakes.
Early studies before the widespread adoption of seatbelts actually showed that in a typical crash, it’s actually safer for the occupants to be facing backwards… but nobody wanted to build seats that automatically rotated 180 degrees.
Its legal to ride in the back of a pickup in many states. In idaho the only restriction is that the seats inside the cab must be occupied, if so as many people as you want can ride in the bed even without seats back there.
I miss when America had utes. People say these small trucks are barely trucks but they were all meant to be utilitarian. The ranchero and el camino were all advertised as ranch trucks because they were small enough to maneuver on a ranch but had enough power to still haul heavier stuff. Then when urban settings got even bigger, they made great city trucks for the same reason. Yeah bed space isnt huge but its enough for tools and whatever parts and other junk you need to haul.
The insurance was insanely high on these Brats too, that's what killed them. Also, Suburu was the worst car company ( at the time) as far as carrying parts to fix their vehicles and the company was fined by the US government many times.
In my experience, “cool” and “horribly unsafe” are pretty much synonymous.
😂I climb trees for a living, can confirm
My project cars can confirm
They're not horribly unsafe if the driver drives safely.
@@user-yo3sz8xe2sabout those other unsafe drivers though... I'd go for a ride in back NOT in rush hour lol
like 3 wheeler's from the 80's (i survived & had a blast! )
As a kid in the sixties we rode in the backs of pickup trucks all the time with no seat belts or seats. You could find baseball hats on the side of the road all the time.
That would literally be safer than this death trap. It staps you to the truck but the seating is to small. With you head poking over the top like that in any roll you would be immediately decapitated with you body straped . That is horrifying.
@@kristelneedtoknow3207 How many people were killed in the back of a Subaru Brat?
Zero.
Yeah I did the same in the 70s/80s with my grandfather driving. I just had to sit still,where he told me.
Same, we would even stand up while the truck was moving. Just held on to the roof bar of the truck and felt the wind in your face.
We sat on the bed rails against the cab at 80 mph across Tennessee in the 70s and would lay in the back window of the 74 impala at 75 on I-17 in Phoenix 😅
Infinitely better solution than turning every truck into a space waster
Cry in a corner, European
@@OfficialKSGFlow he's not crying, he's laughing at all the children you people run over
@@OfficialKSGFlowanything by ford and dodge for bed space is useless a Toyota Nissan and Chevy have the biggest beds in 2024 because they are the trucks for working men
Brats were pretty cool.. They have a step built in the side of the bed with a spring flap to climb over the side.. Wish the big 3 would do that
Only 2nd gen brats do (1981-1985 for jump seats and 1986-1987 without the seats from factory). The one in this video is the first gen (1971-1979 for all models, and the brat was 1978-1980 only which was a wagon with the rear cut off to make a pickup and the seats installed with angles on the brackets for people to easily grind off and remove the seats since Subaru actually didn't want you riding in these death traps). technically this is 80% Nissan-Datsun and the drivetrain and panels and such (easy things to change on a vehicle) are Subaru. the unibody, the ignition switch, the window mechanisms and steering columns are Datsun 710. Subaru and Nissan used to be partnered up in the 70's before Subaru finally made their real first vehicle that wasn't a Kei car from the 1960's in 1981 with their second generation models which became the GL/DL and eventually the Loyale.
@@Omar-em7rl you know a lot about Subaru
Fuck the big three there’s just big me
My father bought a new Subaru Brat in 1979, a vehicle we all loved. It was amazing how many people wanted to ride in the rear facing seats, even old people! It was fun to ride in the back exposed to the elements like that, except for one major drawback: those thick, hard plastic seats were rock hard, and you’d get sore before too long.
And also the roll bar right there behind your head
Man those seats didn't cause that much pain compared to the asswhoopins we got
Braid your hair if it's long ...I learned the hard way
1979 is the last time I rode in back of a ute . By 1984 stringent new laws were introduced forbidding the practice along with necessary provision for the welfare of any dogs that might be riding in the tray .
They got super hot, too, I'll bet! Lol
I kind of love when companies find clever work around for rules or regulations and end up making something unique and very cool.
Better than making a passenger van, importing it to US, shredding the interior and selling it as a cargo van, looking at you, Ford!
Then you'll love the cafe claws it's also why all vehicles here are so big according to regulations they're classified as a light truck
Looks like a Chevy El Camino or a ford Ranchero I never knew Subaru made a car truck like that
Like the tiny little fold down seats in the back on my Nissan. So small I forget they are there.
It's the best when gun companies do this. We get some weirdly designed stuff like the Olympic Arms OA-93.
My friend had a Subaru brat in the '80s and they did not have seat belts. They had handlebars to the side to hang on to, those shoulder straps were modified. Must still be. Love the brat!
There should have been lap belts your friend probabaly yeeted those
Nope, those seatbelts were standard. maybe part of an upgrade package but I don't think so. That's the same setup mine had, and mine was bought new by my frugle uncle who parked it and didn't touch it for 20+ years. He would have had them removed anything that he could to save a penny, so the fact it had the 5 points harness makes me think it was standard. He had no kids, and never planned to drive it, so backseat safety was definitely not on his list of priorities.
Most insurance companies will include a clause prohibiting you from using these seats in your policy.
Which is just fine, as it was expected that the purchaser would 'modify' the vehicle after purchase my removing the seats. A modification that was 'surprisingly' easy to do. The required bolts were easy to locate and remove. It was almost as if the seats were only there to skirt the import tax. (/s)
The chicken tax and cafe standards really screwed up buying a vehicle in the US
Damn us Europeans not wanting to eat chlorinated chicken (and protect our chicken farmers against the cheap American chicken)
Should've taxed lifted trucks instead. Lots of egotrippers will be prevented that way
@@MrJimheeren 😂 is that really what happened or instead yall complained to make a more even playing feild because America's chickens was cheaper and outselling euorpean farmers.
@@KatholikoPharorah it was also the 50s and Europe was still recovering from WW2
@@MrJimheeren but it wasn't because of our "chloride cheap chickens" that we got from ya'll btw America didn't have chickens and it was not to protect your chickens but instead to secure your economy and to stop Americans from having a strong influence within your economy. We learned our propaganda tactics from ya'll, Europe has to come up with something we aren't aware of to out straigize us with propaganda.
This man sounds like he's about to tell me the quirks and features of this truck
Well duh it’s a video on the truck :3
Lol yup he's got that Doug Damero quirks voice. I wonder if it works picking up girls
"Hey Crab-Man."
"Hey Earl."
I found one at a junkyard with my Dad, Great memory of him sharing this story to me and him riding in one, He said these things mainly hold value if you got those back seats and they were not comfortable for practical transportation.
It is still legal to ride in the back of a truck in many states. Some require that it be your families only mode of transportation " no room for everyone inside the cab" and other's just require the riders to be over 18
I think Arizona they just require you to be 18 😂 I see guys riding in the back of a truck on the freeway going 80 😅
it's a convertible.
I remember just laying flat in the truck bed when cops were spotted.
I wonder how that coincides with trucks like this, cause if it passed regulations when it was originally made (ie: much older cars with no seatbelts) then they're not required to be modified to meet modern standards
Indiana just has seat belt law. So if u buy a truck bed seat kit. Install the seat with belts. U can ride in the bed legally.
''BRAT' was an aronym for:
Bi-drive Recreational All-terrain Transporter!
Oh yeah would be fun to be in the back the middle of winter exposed to the freezing cold and snow
@@Maaaatttttt Teenage me laying in the bed of my buddy’s Dodge, sloshed, middle of February, in a blizzard, all while whipping 65 down some backroad home; happily agrees! Makes your skin thicker! 💪🤪
I would not ride in the back of one stupid to tempt the cops😢😮😂 if they pull you over they will find a reason to justify it by writing a ticket
I love the paint job on that one... just a tip from someone who has ridden in one of those, you take bugs and leafs and stuff to the back of the head at times. If you're going to be somewhere rocky or going fast a helmet might make you a bit happier
I can’t believe I just had a “back in my day” moment
There were all kinds of ways around the chicken tax. Ford and Mazda got around it with the Courier and B Series pickups by shipping them incomplete and installing the bed here. Ford still used some tricks with the Transit Connect, which was made in Turkey. They were all imported as passenger versions, but the cargo ones had these cheap cardboard seats that would probably collapse if you actually sat on them. They'd be removed right after arrival, and sent back for the next batch.
They should've kept the cardboard seats and sent the vehicle back. Turkish Transits were pretty awful. Had one, regretted it. Front suspension parts failed on a yearly basis, hood release cable failed twice, entire shift lever fell off in my hand once.
Subie’s losing money not lopping the top off the Impreza 2.5, giving it a lift, and marketing it as a new BRAT. Same with the Baja, just cut off the last third of an Outback. The ingredients are there.
I went after a Baja when new and there was excuse after excuse why I couldn’t get one. They ran out being the most common. Subaru lacked sense in these years and many others. They were everywhere for a while and gone in a few years.
They’re actually planning to build a new BRAT.
When you do get one they are pretty good. I’ve had mine for a couple years now and I’ve only had to replace a battery and some plugs
@@creamking7784 I just saw a baja in someone’s back yard. Way to make me feel old yaknow. Well maybe this is a sign I’ll go up and chat about if it’s for sale 🤷🏻♂️
Chicken tax screws up our ability to import a Lot of great vehicles! Which limits manufacturing because they loose a huge market in the United States. Toyota has a sub 20k hilux out but we can't get a 2 seater truck anymore.
Definitely unsafe.....so enjoy it.. safely..🐾🐾🐾🐾🐾😎
They stole my truck
I'm 60 sat in the back of pickups entire childhood. Xmas holidays us 4 kids on the back for 9 hours to get to the Holiday spot. None of us were ever hurt and no seats no belts
So you stole my truck
@@mryeet17boy74 you should of made your payments
Government regulations Vs. private companies, a battle as old as paper.
Used to use that truck for car photography for rolling shots. Police would laugh and usually pull us over just to marvel at it.
wait thats kinda sick
Still probably safer than most Jeep designs as far as rear passenger safety is concerned.
And way safer for pedestrian or cyclists than modern huge pickup trucks.
@@Dellvmnyamdo you want to know why the Brat has an exposed metal bumper and door handles, along with aluminum trim and the big modern pickups don't?
@@vintagethrifter2114 no, I don’t
@@Dellvmnyam Too bad, I'm going to tell you anyway. It's for pedestrian safety. It's also the reason why modern vehicles don't have radio antennas that stick up and their windshield wipers set below the hood.
It looks very safe, especially in case it flips and rolls...
😏🏆
Those bolt for the seatbelts looks like it would happily break your spine in a crash lol
And the lack of head protection means a good chance at a very close haircut, too.
That Chicken Tax has got to cluckin' GO
In certain states like her in Idaho you can sit in the back of a truck with no seats or seat belts if every other seat is taken
but should you? legal doesn't mean it's smart nor safe
@@yossarian00 if you're not a pussy and need to get somewhere yes lmao, I've never heard anyone have a problem with it until this moment
@@yossarian00It's fun. That's all that matters.
@@yossarian00i mean, you probably aren't going down the highway like that, but taking the boys to Wendy's? The absolute best
@@yossarian00 Who gives mate... ya need ta live a little, and remember that you are also an animal.
The Brat did NOT have seat belts in the back. It had grab handles.
Ok ok. I stand corrected. My uncle removed the lap belt mounts when it was new. It was indeed a federal regulation.
Good catch! Most people not have known this, I only know because my dad is a classic car mechanic
It had seatbelts,
Yep. 100% right
@alanhinkel420 Nope my best friend had one, it had handles, we would put dirtbike grips on them.
My uncle had a black one, no seat belts, two handles per seat, and the cyclops eye in front. I thought that truck was the coolest thing ever!
Old Subarus had such a great quirky personality. They lost it somewhere along the way (around the mid-late 2000s) and I miss it.
I was driven to CCD in a station wagon with rear facing seats in the far back . Such fun inventions back then .
Had an 83 Brat, loved it..... sold it with 283,000. Great little rig. Thanks for the walk down memory lane!
My buddy's Mom had one back in the 90s. We loved it. She put a cap on it. That made it feel more like a wagon where you faced the wrong way.
I tried buying those once. It was from a used car lot in Atlanta Georgia. That was what I found out what a front business was.😊
A girl that I knew in high school died this way when she was 20. She was celebrating the high school graduation of some younger friends, riding in the back of a truck when the driver took a turn quickly and over a curb. She was bounced out and fell under the wheels.
I remember those trucks back in the seventies, but I never once saw anybody sitting in those seats!
Me and my brother did . On the way to school one cold morning. 😅
To be fair, in reality, it's not a real truck. It's more akin to a ute, like a Ranchero, El Camino, etc.
Yeah exactly, its a car based ute and is just a 2 door ute version of the Subaru Leone which is a station wagon.
To be fair, regulations aren't always rooted in reality.
You must also acknowledge the FACT that a pickup is not a truck.
Never has been, never will be.
@edwardcook2973 naming terminology can also vary depending on where you live and your age, here in Australia we don't even use the names "pickup" or "truck" for all these vehicles mentioned here in this thread, I'm personally only aware of it because of the internet lol. The small amount of Ram 1500, F150 etc that we import and convert to RHD here in Australia, most people still just call them utes here 😂
@@edwardcook2973 I am going to disagree with you. Let's start by saying we all recognize a truck when when we see one. For example, with very few exceptions, they are body on frame, have a usable bed (with adequate payload), have a cab that is truly separate from the bed, has a 4wd option, etc. I own a '24 Silverado LT Z71 LT 4wd CC, and with its 18,200 lb. towing capacity and 3,550 payload, you'll never convince me that it is not a truck. I also tow a fifth wheel, which meets other "truck" criterion (specialized for hauling).
Oxford Dictionary defines truck as - "a large, heavy motor vehicle used for transporting goods, materials, or troops." One of Webster's definitions for a truck is as follows - "a wheeled vehicle for moving heavy articles: such as a strong horse-drawn or automotive vehicle (such as a pickup) for hauling."
One could loosely add these pseudo-trucks into the discussion, but at the end of the day, I think most everyone recognizes a true truck when we see it.
OMfgoodness, one of my best friends in HS had three of the Subaru Brats! They are/were awesome little boogers. And are fabulous for Baja, off roading & 4 wheeling with some slight adjustments and upgraded parts. Super simple to work on too. We had SOOOO much fun with them. Maybe it's time to search one out in a scrapyard somewhere & start a new project!
I loved my Brat. I took the seats out so my motorcycle would fit. It did a great 4 wheel drift on gravel. It was a great winter driver with 4 wheel drive and 4 studded snow tires. The only time I was ever stuck I was high centered,, but it was easy to get out. Great little car.
In my hometown Texas...
There were no seatbelts. They came with handles. Two for each seat.
Bull, they had seat belts or else it never would have been certified.
@@thud9797this is the first I’ve seen one with seat belts
@@TheMetaldudeX
They can be hard to see but they mounted to the bed floor sort of behind the seat a little. It counted as a real seat so no way they could have ever been sold without them.
They had handles and lap belts, but no shoulder harness.
They had a lap belt I think.
Awesome paint colors!
As a kid I sat in the back from New Hampshire to Georgia in one of those in the late 80's man those were the good ole days
Seat belt? No rain? Rain?
As a kid in the 70s, I can tell you that the Brats were just FUN! "Real" truckers hated them, but young drivers had a blast!
We owned an '85 Brat & it was a fun little truck, even towed a ski boat w/ it. Lol
That neon green paint job is... a choice I supose
I had one, great vehicle. If 1 wheel touched the ground you could get it unstuck. Fun for riding the trails.
Thing only had 59hp, hard to be dangerous when the 0-60 was 22seconds
Yeah. A roll-over at speeds under 100kph is perfectly safe.
American 'logic'.
🤣🤣🤣🤣
@@trueaussie9230 We don't use kangaroos per hour here.
@@tyttuut
But you do believe you're so important that the entire world knows where YOUR "here" is. SMH
🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
@@trueaussie9230lmao are you good bro? Sounding straight unhinged lmao
@@ncw01ify
JOOI - what language are you using, seeestaaah?! 🤔
FYI - I'm NOT 'good'. I'm FANTASTIC. 😉😊🤣🤣
I hope we get rid of the chicken tax
Yes! We want the little Toyota kei truck!!!
The government would never give away their free money
@@yissibiiyteGM and Ford lobbying for BS like this is why we cant have nice things
We don't even have to get rid of the chicken tax just the law that says vehicles under certain dimensions and weights need ridiculously high fuel efficiency that can't be met without fines they won't pay. Toyota would likely build the trucks here in the states if that fuel efficiency law would go away.
@@spiet7380 Not really true. Japanese Kei trucks are more then able to meet EPA fuel requirements. GM and Ford have explicitly lobbied against them entering the market
There were also pickups with seats in the back from US manufacturers during the 70's. For some reason, the Ranchero comes to mind though I would have to do some research to see if it's the truck that I remembered.
They also had fully air adjustable independent suspension. You could use the gas station air pump to adjust it. They also typically got 35-45mpg. Could haul a crap ton and were a blast to drive. Hence why they got rid of them.
I recall reading stories about how insurance companies would not insure them if they had the rear seats installed. I have no idea if that is accurate or not though.
Nobody even asked when insuring my BRAT.
No thought given whatsoever to rollover protection. 😂 I love it when manufacturers implement silly loop holes.
It has a roll-bar!
@@jacobshort6528 For the jump seats??
@nathanielmoore87 The rollbar is right over the jump seats in the back.
When i was a kid we had a cap for the back of the truck. We would place 2×4's side to side on each side of the wheel wells and then a sheet of plywood length wise. Then put an air mattress on the plywood. Anytime we went for a longer ride I would stay in the back, could play with toys or take a nap if wanted. We also had a square inner tube like piece that would lock in place between the opening of the sliding back window and the cap. It cut the wind noise down so the back window could be left open, it also allowed me to slide into the truck if i wanted or back into the bed of the truck. Good times!
I absolutely love the Subaru brat you could always take four people in a little two-seater
It was a great time to be young and it will never be repeated.
As pointed out by one or two others, where I am, your Brat is called the Brumby. I never knew about the U.S. variant having rear seats.
For non-Strayans, _brumby_ is the name we gave to feral horses.
These were originally brought to Australia by colonial invasion forces since 1788. Descendants of horses that escaped or were released from domestic use, are named after a sergeant in the early Sydney colony, John Brumby. When he was transferred to the island colony of Tasmania in 1806, the horses he left behind in Sydney, subsequently escaped and lived in the wild.
Brumbies - somewhat like a certain type of off-road driving enthusiast - fcuk up natural environments. Flora, fauna and soil types in native ecosystems are not adapted to the hard hooves and feeding habits of brumbies
Yes , interestingly the Americans give their feral horse tag to a sporty iconic ford sedan rather than to a sorta work vehicle. Perhaps the tag " draught " would've made alotta sense as a name for it .
I guess humans don't consider large familiar animals as an unmanaged environmental organism,@@Philip-hv2kc. Horses, considered _as individuals_ already had many positive associations for people. Mustang just added wild and free to that mythology. Marketing gold!
In Straya, the convict colony part of our history means that brumby has a similar vibe. Independent, resourceful, rebellious even.
Back home, these little pick ups were called Datsuns. They were my favorite with their tiny wheels, round side mirrors and low bed height.
In Aust they were called a Brumby,never had seats in the back but they did do a version with a t-top. Was sold here until 1992.
What’s the point of the chicken tax?
25% import tariff on light trucks in retaliation for European tariffs on US chicken exports dating back to 1964
Today it helps local manufacturers but takes away choice from the consumer, making imports much more expensive
🐔
To fuck over consumers
Screw over foreign makes to protect our deonestic manufacturers while they make an inferior product.
Known from: "My name is earl"
Great movie
@@gonebloodypsycho8759 series
Not a Suburu Brat. Earl drove an El Camino.
@LAkadian Joy drove a Brat
@@lewislathrop7077 🫡
Yeah it's all fun and games until somebody gets thrown out. I'm the person that got thrown out of a pickup truck when I was 15 years of age. I am now 54 and still suffering the effects of that poor choice in seating. I just had a total knee replacement of my right knee and probably going to have to do something similar to my left knee because when they dig rocks out of your joint cavity it's never a good thing.
Jeez
I have seen about 30 Subu Brats. Only 2 had the rear seats removed to use it as a truck. Itr was too small as a truck even without the rear seats.
I worked with a guy who had a Brat and he showed me he could do donuts in it, even with front wheel drive. The ground was covered in snow that had half melted off, so it was slushy, but he would drive backwards, get a little speed up, start a turn, and he could spin the tires and do donuts.
Can cars not do that anymore? I haven't tried since I was 16
I love that truck. Just needs a color correction 😂🎉
I wish they still made these
I love how your height barely changed when you stepped off the mystery machine 😂
My grandfather bought a new one around 1982. My cousin and I were 4-5. We rode home in the back on the way home, which included 25 minutes on the highway
When I was a kid, nothing was illegal... How 40 short years can fuck up America
I love those pick-ups , and rare as f'ck in the UK and there used to see 1 locally in Scotland.
The chicken tax was Japan's way of controlling the import of poultry into their country , and would leave the poor carcasses to rot before charging tax on the poultry.
So USA, came up with the tax , named after the poor poultry left to rot on the harbours in Japan.
They're called Brumbys in Oz, and New Zealand.
And don't forget about the Tamiya BRAT RC car from the 70s and 80s.
I'm from a rural part of the country and yes I have sat in the bed of a truck while it's moving. Then my mother told me a story that made me never want to do that again, as either the driver or someone in the back. Just be careful is all! Everyone's safety is important!
this is how the ford transit connect was getting around the law. "was one of very few fords made overseas and imported into the states" but the government did something about it... the thing they need to do is drop the chicken tax nonsince.
Every time I see this dude I remember the video where he complains because he’s too weak to pick up a tool box
Nice idea to avoid stupid government interference on market freedom.
The 1970’s was just a weird time in history. It was a Wild West of sorts. Whenever explaining the decade to young people, they’re shocked to know such a time existed
I looove Subaru Brats. If I had a bunch of disposable income, I'd totally try to buy one in good shape
Actually those harnesses and roll bar are aftermarket, they were never sold with those accessories
that roll bar is part of the seat mounting, which also came with lap belts. The seats were required in Japan as part of the gas crunch was about adding extra passenger capacity. All 2 passenger vehicles paid a luxury tax.
@@rupe53 it wasn't made for the Japanese market though, and all you have to do is google Subaru BRAT and you'll see no examples of that roll bar or those harnesses
@@EugeneMStoner764 sorry, I had 2 different friends who had them with that option. One was late 70s vintage and the other was after 2000. I believe the later one was NOT called a Brat any longer, but it was basically the same... and it did have the rear seats.
@@rupe53 The rear seats weren't required for Japan, The vehicle was never sold in Japan. There are some there, but they were personal imports from the markets they were originally sold in. The seats were only fitted to the North American market ones using them as a loophole to avoid the import tax (chicken tax). Nowhere outside of North America were they fitted with the seats.
@@danx7143 next thing you know will be someone saying those 2+2 Z cars were never made for the home market in Japan. That's another example of them making a 4 passenger vehicle to sidestep the luxury tax on personal vehicles.
WHATS THE MOST EXOTIC SPORTS CAR I CAN GET WITH 40k
HOW ABOUT YOU THINK ABOUT HOW MUCH THE INSURANCE WOULD COST FIRST
A broke down AMG
IF YOU HAVE TO ASK, YOU CAN’T AFFORD IT
NISSAN ALTIMA
1993 GEO STORM
Very cool and safe. To be rear facing, while riding as a passenger, is statistically safer. Also, you have that awesome harness, keeping you strapped in.
Sitting in the back of that truck looks like my childhood. 80's babies 🎉 wootwoot! Hella rad!!
Good job on the LineX!
I mean that's actually probably significantly safer than traditionally riding in the bed of a pickup. Which you have to be at least 18 to do in the US. I actually did it the day I turned 18 because it was a Wednesday and we went to Wednesday night church and at the time we had this teeny tiny pick up that I absolutely despised riding in the cab of. And it was November.
Those were really cool for stump jumping. A friend had one and it went everywhere.
I love the jank color combo
Looks like a sad version of an El Camino
had one that I did alot of off roading in. It was fun 👍 Could get into lots places others couldn't.
Love how sitting in the uncovered back “seats” of a Subaru BRAT are legal and yet Kei trucks aren’t.
Subaru brats are awesome, the USA themed one on my name is Earl is especially cool.
My g/f back then had one of those. It was a kick ass truck!
Laughing in Gen X when I was in the back with no seatbelt.
I love stories about tax evasion through production loopholes. Another example, in the UK the brand behind Jaffa Cakes avoided a cookie/biscuit tax by proving in court that their recipe technically qualified their product as tiny cakes.
A friend of mine had one. They were a nice little rig to get around town and get out into the woods on a rough road.
I’ve never seen a truck i wanted in my life more than this
Early studies before the widespread adoption of seatbelts actually showed that in a typical crash, it’s actually safer for the occupants to be facing backwards… but nobody wanted to build seats that automatically rotated 180 degrees.
Dude sounds like matpat
I was looking for one a couple of years ago. Not enough left but loads of fun.
Ive got a set of the Subaru bratt seats, the work great in older flat fender jeeps for the rear seat.
Its legal to ride in the back of a pickup in many states. In idaho the only restriction is that the seats inside the cab must be occupied, if so as many people as you want can ride in the bed even without seats back there.
I miss when America had utes.
People say these small trucks are barely trucks but they were all meant to be utilitarian.
The ranchero and el camino were all advertised as ranch trucks because they were small enough to maneuver on a ranch but had enough power to still haul heavier stuff.
Then when urban settings got even bigger, they made great city trucks for the same reason. Yeah bed space isnt huge but its enough for tools and whatever parts and other junk you need to haul.
The insurance was insanely high on these Brats too, that's what killed them. Also, Suburu was the worst car company ( at the time) as far as carrying parts to fix their vehicles and the company was fined by the US government many times.
Cool ...just safe enough to take your mates a few blocks, but also crazy enough that youd never use them regularly.
When I was a teenager, my friend's father owned one of those. He took it everywhere. There was a lot of fun riding in the back.
In australia these were called the brumby
We had a Subaru brat when i was little it even had a tarp covet you could put over the back part too