There could not have been too many sold in Australia for a start, beginning 25 years ago.
Priced new at about the same as a mid level turbo VL Conmmodore (unfair comparo)
Surely they did not crap themselves too early in their life, like in first ten years 1985 to 1995?
As a car gets older, its owner or subsequent owners tend not to want to spend money paying mechanic to keep car on the road reliably, so can be passed on to someone like myself and Disco, Checkers who continue to tinker at our leisure (or flat out like Checkers EJ "blaspheme" conversion) at a cost of parts only, most times. Pick on a similar vehicle of its era the turbo Cordia - not many of these little rockets left on the road today as they left the factory
I looked at an auto turbo L in 2000. Asking price $5k
I finally bought one in 2006 for $600. So it came with its very own compliance plate, so no stuffing around with an engineer (dollar signs), rego (PITA), insurance (more dollar signs) because it ain't modified to turbo, and got my first disc braked rear car
As asking price drops so does what you get. I have had some cheap fun, learning experience with efi, demistifying turbos (worked with a turbo nut 20 years ago but they were still his secrets)
If I'd shelled out 10 to 15 K on a turbo subie and gassed it and ended up blowing gaskets or turbo or heads it would be a more costly exercise than what I have got now. Amazingly still beetling around on LTurbos old rattler we swapped $100, a tail light and rear bumper for. Only been on a tow truck once in my possession and that was to get it home.
Love its 2.5 inch turbo note, its 4WD accessability dressed as a sedan, and also the disappointed looks on people when they turn to se a REX rumbling down the road
Done almost 40,000km in it, holding my Brumby back from its millionth km, and curently costs me 7.5 cents per k in 60cpl fuel - equivalent to the cost of a petrol or diesel car giving 6.5litres per 100km
And if some arse wipe nudges its paintwork in a car park - I don't get too upset.
Surely if an EA82T was rebuilt to like new specs, new radiator, fuel pump, injectors, relays, fuses, fusible links, ECU senders and kept at standard factory boost - it would give a good ten years or 250,000km good service
