Subaru Leone
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| Subaru Leone | |
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| Manufacturer | Subaru |
| Parent company | Fuji Heavy Industries |
| Production | 1971-1994 |
| Assembly | Ota, Gunma, Japan |
| Predecessor | Subaru 1000 |
| Successor | Subaru Impreza |
| Class | Subcompact |
| Layout | Front engine, front-wheel drive / four-wheel drive |
The Subaru Leone was a subcompact car produced by the Japanese car manufacturer Subaru from 1971 to 1994. It was released as a replacement to the Subaru FF-1.[citation needed] All Leones were powered by the Subaru EA engine. Although released in Japan and some export markets as the Leone, in others (including at least the United Kingdom, Canada and United States), it was instead named with the trim level designation, which included: DL, GL, GLF, GL-10, and RX; sometimes the engine size would also form part of the name. This means the car is often referred to simply as the Subaru GL or the L-Series Subaru.
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[edit] 1st generation
| First generation | |
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| Production | 1972-1981 |
| Body style(s) | 2-door coupe 4-door sedan 5-door station wagon 2-door pickup truck |
| Engine(s) | 1400cc H4 1600cc H4 |
| Transmission(s) | 4-speed manual 5-speed manual 3-speed automatic |
The first generation of the Leone was released in June 1971 as a front-wheel drive coupé. In September 1972, the four-wheel drive (4WD) station wagon was released, however it did not appear in the United States until 1974. Until then, four-wheel drive had been limited to mainly off-road vehicles for special use. Subaru broke that pattern by introducing a mass-produced four-wheel drive passenger car. Throughout the years, the Leone would see the introduction of a two-door hardtop, a four-door sedan, and a four-wheel drive station wagon.
The first-generation Leones were equipped with either a 1400cc or 1600cc, flat-4, carbureted, OHV, pushrod engine. They were available with a 4-speed manual transmission, 5-speed manual transmission or a 3-speed automatic transmission beginning in 1975. Some early models had drum brakes in the front, however later they were all equipped with disc brakes in the front. All models had rear drum brakes. Unusually the handbrake or emergency brake operated on the front wheels.
The Leone was first brought to the United States of America in 1972. The 4WD station wagon did not make it to the U.S. until 1974, released as a 1975 model. In 1976 the EA63 engine was replaced with the EA71 engine, which was optional the year before in the GF hardtop.
In April 1977 an updated Leone range was released.[citation needed] All body panels were altered slightly and a completely new dashboard was fitted. Despite these changes, however, the overall effect was much the same as the earlier version and virtually mechanically identical.
1977 also saw the introduction of the Subaru BRAT, which was based on the Leone platform, a two-seater with a pickup truck bed.
[edit] 2nd generation
| Second generation | |
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| Production | 1978-1989 |
| Body style(s) | 2-door coupe 4-door sedan 5-door station wagon 2-door pickup truck 3-door hatchback |
| Engine(s) | 1600cc H4 1800cc H4 |
| Transmission(s) | 3-speed automatic 4-speed manual 5-speed manual |
In June 1979 the Leone saw a major revamp. This generation was released with offerings in a two-door coupe, four-door sedan, station wagon, as well as a three-door hatchback. This generation of the Leone was not released to the United States until 1980.
New to this generation included a four-speed 4WD transmission with both high- and low-range gearing. 4WD automatic transmissions were also now offered, allowing the driver to engage 4WD with a simple push of a button.
The new 1800cc EA81 engine was added in 1980. In 1983 and 1984, a turbocharger with multi-port fuel injection option was also added on Subaru BRAT and Turbo Wagon models. It was only available with an automatic transmission and 3.70:1 gearing.
The 2nd generation hatchback and BRAT were made alongside the 3rd generation offerings until 1987 for the BRAT, and 1989 for the hatchback. All other 2nd generation models were discontinued by 1985.
The hatchback version was known as the Subaru Chaser in the Canadian market and Subaru SRX in the United Kingdom.[citation needed]
[edit] 3rd generation
| Third generation | |
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| Also called | Subaru GL Subaru Loyale Subaru Omega Subaru L-Series |
| Production | 1984-1994 |
| Body style(s) | 3-door hatchback coupe 4-door sedan 5-door station wagon |
| Engine(s) | 1800cc H4 1600cc H4 (EDM) |
| Transmission(s) | 3-speed automatic 4-speed automatic 5-speed manual |
| Wheelbase | 2470 mm (97.2 in) (sedan) 2465 mm (97 in) (2WD wagon) 2460 mm (96.9 in) (4WD wagon) 93.7 in (2380 mm) (2WD hatchback) 93.3 in (2370 mm) (4WD hatchback) |
| Length | 4435 mm (174.6 in) (sedan) 4490 mm (176.8 in) (wagon) 157.9 in (4011 mm) (hatchback 2WD) 157.3 in (3995 mm) (hatchback 4WD) |
| Width | 1660 mm (65.4 in) 63.6 in (1615 mm) (hatchback 2WD) 63.8 in (1621 mm) (hatchback 4WD) |
| Height | 1335 mm (52.5 in) (2WD sedan) 1345 mm (53 in) (wagon) 1395 mm (54.9 in)(4WD wagon) 54.3 in (1379 mm) (4WD sedan) 53.4 in (1356 mm) (RS sedan 4WD) 53.7 in (1364 mm) (2WD hatchback) 55.7 in (1415 mm) (4WD sedan) 51.8 in (1316 mm) (2WD fastback) 55.5 in (1410 mm) (GL-10 Turbo 4WD sedan) 56.1 in (1425 mm) (GL-10 Turbo wagon) |
In July 1984, the Leone saw another major revamp. This generation was released with offerings in a three-door coupe hatchback (RX), four-door sedan(RX-II), as well as a station wagon This generation of the Leone made its way to the United States in 1985.
In Europe, the range was 1.6 DL, 1.6 GL, 1.8 DL and 1.8 GL 4wd. The saloon versions were offered up until 1992, then the range was reduced to estates only in 1993. The 1.8-litre versions were phased out in 1991.
In North America, the 1600cc engine was dropped completely from the lineup.
A new 1800 SOHC engine, EA-82 was offered instead of the old pushrod 1800 engine. The engine was available with a carburetor, single point fuel injection, multi-port fuel injection, or multi-port fuel injection with a turbocharger for fuel delivery.
Later models in the generation saw the option of a full-time 4WD manual transmission as well as a full-time 4WD four-speed electronically-controlled automatic transmission.
During the latter half of the 1989 production year, a special trim level was introduced to the 3-door Hatchback (RX). The vehicle is a rarity and very few remain operational today. It can be recognized as being black with gold accents and pin-striping as well as having a rear wing and factory ground effects kit. This trim level was only available as an option during the 1989 production year, and marked the end of the production of the RX.
In 1990, the Leone name was dropped, and instead the car was named Loyale (in Chile, the United States and Canada). The popularity of the Leone wagon was ceded to the new Legacy wagon when it was replaced by the Impreza in 1994, primarily because the new Impreza was introduced as both a 4-door sedan and hatchback.
[edit] References
- Subaru Global History
- Everything Subaru Research Archive
- 'Before the STi...' (Subaru Leone Article) from AutoSpeed.com
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