The first Subarus sold in the United States there were 360 imported by Malcolm Bricklin in 1968and the Pleiades-badge was the brand best known here for selling very cheap small cars for more than a decade after. Even as an increasingly devoted group of American pilots have converted thanks to Subaru the company’s innovative four-wheel drive cars (first appearing here as 1975 models), Subaru was still competing on price with the cheaper of the small imports in the early 1980s. Of today Gem of the junkyard It’s one of those cars: a front-wheel drive three-door Leone hatchback, recently found in a car yard in Colorado.
The name Leone was not used in North America. Instead, Subaru called this car simply “the Subaru” and used the trim levels as the de facto model names (except in the case of the BRAT Lion-with-truck-sleeping). When the larger, more modern Legacy appeared here as a 1990 modelthe lion was given the name Loyale. This car is a GL, which was the nicest version of the Leone sedan available here in 1981.
The first Leones appeared here in 1972, with the last ones leaving American Subaru showrooms such as 1994 Loyales.
The cheapest possible 1981 Leone was the base three-door sedan, priced at $4,664 (about $16,128 in 2023 dollars). Being a GL, its MSRP was $5,495 (about $19,001 today). With the GL, you get a five-speed manual instead of the base four-on-the-floor transmission, plus a larger engine and plenty of comfort and convenience features. This car has many options that would add to the price, including dealer installed air conditioning.
In 1981, even a single-speaker AM radio added a lot to the cost of a small car. This one has a deluxe Clarion AM/FM radio, which may have been a dealer option.
The GL got a 1.8-liter boxer-four, rated at 72 horsepower.
This car, like so many I find in Colorado junkyards, began its career in California. The California-spec ’81 Leone cost $99 more than its 49-state counterparts, due to additional hardware and emissions testing ($342 now).
I suspect the speedometer cable and/or odometer mechanism must have failed decades ago, because this car appears to have driven distant more than 104,360 miles during his career.
This crash damage probably put him out of action.
That snowy mountain in the background is Pikes Peak.
This car has served its owner or owners well for more than four decades.
Subaru’s advertising has focused on four-wheel drive vehicles. This car would have cost another $601 with the 4WD option ($2,078 after inflation).
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