Oppo, talk to me about Subaru Bajas

"MarquetteLa" (marquettela) 07/06/2018 at 12:03 • Filed to: baja

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Why do I not see any modded Bajas around? I saw a stock Baja a few days ago and I got the urge to buy one and make it into a hot ute. I’m not much of a Subaru guy and WRXs and STIs are a dime a dozen in Colorado, but the UTE CALLS TO ME. Is there an aftermarket for these cars? A cursory Wikipedia glance tells me the 2004-2006 XT model is the one to get.

HammerheadFistpunch > MarquetteLa 07/06/2018 at 12:12

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They are Just Legacy wagons made less useful if it helps. Finding parts for Subaru’s is easy, its just legos basically. Legacy stuff, Impreza stuff, Forester stuff..its all pretty swap around compatible. If you can find a clean 04-06 XT manual (good luck) then just browse the group N catalog or visit Rallysportdirect or Cobb and you’ll be set for the aftermarket.

Captain of the Enterprise > MarquetteLa 07/06/2018 at 12:14

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Personally I like them but don’t think it’s worth the price premium over a similar year outback. I think the wagon would probably more practical too with how small the bed is on a Baja.

MarquetteLa > HammerheadFistpunch 07/06/2018 at 12:19

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Found one! Not a huge fan of yellow, but I’m not exactly looking to buy one. It’d likely be a replacement for my Speed6 if something were to happen to it. Good to know there’s plenty of fun parts to buy for them, though!

EDIT: That one’s a 2003 so I guess it’s not a turbo. Oh well.

MarquetteLa > Captain of the Enterprise 07/06/2018 at 12:22

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You can take your reason & logic and leave kthxbai

They are pricey though. $15k for a nice one from what I’ve seen browsing around craigslist. I have no real ~need ~ for a ute, and a wagon would definitely be more practical... but ute.

Highlander-Datsuns are Forever > MarquetteLa 07/06/2018 at 12:35

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https://kalispell.craigslist.org/cto/d/subaru-baja-sport-utility/6629073947.html

The car has a few critical flaws that would prevent me from buying it.

1. It only seats 4, no middle person in the back

2. The interior in this model outback is cramped if you are a taller person, and going to the baja model only makes it worse.

3. All you cargo room is open to the elements unless you get a locking cover

4. It’s still an outback and you can get a similar year outback for much less $$$$.

vicali > MarquetteLa 07/06/2018 at 12:37

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Leggie n o t c h ..

I’m r a t h e r confused by Bajas with canopies .

OPPOsaurus WRX > MarquetteLa 07/06/2018 at 12:37

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i’m guessing there just are no t a lot of them. They were only made for a few years and probably didn’ t represent a large % of production.  I’d love to have a performance ute.  A Baja STi would be perfect.  I know some people will put down the small bed but i’d welcome it.  I hate putting trash inside to bring to the dump.  put the tailgate down and strap a bike down with a bungee cord and you are good to go.  

AestheticsInMotion > MarquetteLa 07/06/2018 at 12:38

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Look for one that's a solid color, none of that grey body cladding junk. They're definitely oddly pricey, but the aftermarket is there. Swap over Sti parts and you'll be living my dream. 

MarquetteLa > AestheticsInMotion 07/06/2018 at 12:43

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The two-tone really doesn’t work well . The criteria for a “good” Baja is getting longer and longer!

Long-Voyager > vicali 07/06/2018 at 12:44

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I’m rather confused by Bajas with canopies

Never owned a truck with an open bed?

MarquetteLa > Highlander-Datsuns are Forever 07/06/2018 at 12:48

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The example you linked to is in nice condition, but if I were buying one I would need a turbo with a manual. Preferably without the two-tone body cladding.

1. I don’t remember the last time I had more than two passengers in my car.

2. Before I bought my Speed6 last year, I daily drove my Miata. I’m used to not having any interior space.

3. Not a huge concern - I’m not hauling cargo that couldn’t fit in the backseat if it needed to very often.

4. Yep. :(

MarquetteLa > vicali 07/06/2018 at 12:49

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I’ve seen a few Bajas, Brats, and Ridgelines around with bed covers! Definitely a weird look on all of them.

TorqueToYield > MarquetteLa 07/06/2018 at 12:50

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Most aren’t modded since most are the same 2.5 NA engine in everything non-performance Subaru made at the time. Same reason you don’t see too many modded non-turbo Subaru Outbacks or Legacies or even Imprezas.

The turbo versions seem rare and those that do come up for sale get the ‘I know what I have’ tax...on top of the regular Subaru tax.

Highlander-Datsuns are Forever > MarquetteLa 07/06/2018 at 12:56

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I physically cannot drive a miata, I have a roughly 37 inch inseam and my right knee either hits the shifter or is wedged between the dash and the steering wheel. It sucks!

MarquetteLa > OPPOsaurus WRX 07/06/2018 at 12:58

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From what I can find, there were nearly 19,000 Bajas sold between 2004-2006. Now, what percentage of those were manual XTs is anyone’s guess.

But I’m kinda used to finding and buying semi-rare cars. There were about 600 323 GTXs still left in the US when I bought mine a few years ago. The Mazdaspeed 6 was only produced for two years and I think around 10,000 of them came to the States.

MarquetteLa > TorqueToYield 07/06/2018 at 12:59

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Yep, all of the turbo models I’ve found are quite a bit more expensive than I would have expected. 

MarquetteLa > Highlander-Datsuns are Forever 07/06/2018 at 13:05

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If I were any taller - torso or legs - I wouldn’t be able to fit. I have headroom, but I don’t have hairroom.

vicali > Long-Voyager 07/06/2018 at 13:10

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Actually Canopy is usually my first purchase on a truck..

I wouldn’t go out of my way to buy an outback wagon with the top removed and then buy a top to put back on it.. s e e m s r e d u n d a n t .

You’re looking at a pretty rare piece of fiberglass, plus it’s ARE so it’s not cheap - and it has to mount around the existing ‘roll bars’ and trim so that uses up more space back there.

It’s neat that they brought the Baja over, it sold like crap and was weird though so they stopped.

http://www.cars101.com/baja.html

vicali > MarquetteLa 07/06/2018 at 13:21

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2005 and 2006 XT had factory covers;

AestheticsInMotion > MarquetteLa 07/06/2018 at 13:25

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There was a point where I was looking for solid color, manual bajas in good shape. Found a few.... But they were north of $15,000. Yikes

BoxerFanatic, troublesome iconoclast. > MarquetteLa 07/06/2018 at 13:44

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Not many get sold, especially not turbos, or 5-speeds.

Nothing like it, so nothing to replace it... people who have them, seem to really like them, and keep them, and now they’re ~ 15 model years old, so resale is such that most would probably just keep the vehicle until it is done, as a backup.

Mechanically, a mix of WRX/FXT and Outback parts should fit. The 4-speed Auto might not deal with a whole lot more than 240 ft.lbs of torque without overheating. The 5MT should be better in that respect.

Cosmetically, not much out there for that generation of Outback, Legacy, and Baja that I remember...

The only fundamental down-side is that the rear axle is between the rear seats and the bed... so any weight in the bed is leverage, and any trailer tongue-weight is also, like an outback wagon. Light to medium car/ute  duty, they do OK, but they won’t haul like a truck with the axle under the middle of the bed.

thejustache > MarquetteLa 07/06/2018 at 13:51

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I have an ‘05 Outback XT with a manual I bought clean with 100k miles for $7k . I thought that was a fair price (although still higher than I wanted to pay for what was then an 11 year old car).

Baja XTs take that price and make it look like change found under the couch for some reason. I’d say it’s the rarity, but based on some numbers I’ve seen online manual Outback XTs themselves were sold on average just under 1000 a year so they’re already rare. The Baja versions are probably more rare ? Either way I love my OBXT... Legacy GT parts are easy to find and bolt right up for the most part (I have a full Legacy GT exhaust, plus some other stuff). They are older cars though, and many of them got flogged and put away wet. I’m not sure I could personally justify the premium for a Baja, but then I prefer the wagons more anyways. Good luck!

MarquetteLa > BoxerFanatic, troublesome iconoclast. 07/06/2018 at 14:28

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I think you’re right about there not being anything else like it. Similar situation with the Honda Element.

Do people try to do Real Truck Things with the Baja? One look at the car and you ought to know it’s not doing heavy duty work.

MarquetteLa > thejustache 07/06/2018 at 14:30

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Thanks, I’m not ~actually~ looking to buy one, the idea just came to mind recently. I was expecting Baja prices to be similar to what you paid for your Outback, but good examples are  double that. So it’s definitely not happening any time soon for me! But the idea remains.

BoxerFanatic, troublesome iconoclast. > MarquetteLa 07/06/2018 at 14:41

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Not really... but sometimes if people look at the GVWR and towing capacities, they sometimes wonder why it can’t haul a bit more than it does, especially on the trailer towing aspect.

People don’t expect those limits to be high, but I remember some asking why they were so comparatively low to some mid-sized CUVs and such with longer-wheelbases, and D-pillars with full-length roofs... cutting that structure out of the unibody puts the same sorts of stress on the Baja that caused the odd C-pillar shape of the original Ridgeline and stuff.. it creates a point in the unibody that wants to flex at the floorpan at the back of the C-pillar structure, under towing loads. Full-length roof CUVs/wagons essentially are a longer box-section as a whole.

Dusty Ventures > MarquetteLa 07/06/2018 at 23:20

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For future reference, Subaru hasn’t put a nonfunctional hood scoop on a car since the late 90s. If a Subaru has a hood scoop it has a turbo. If it doesn’t have a hood scoop it doesn’t have a turbo*

*exception being the 2013+ Forester XT and the new Ascent

MarquetteLa > Dusty Ventures 07/07/2018 at 13:54

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Good call.