1989 SUBARU Justy 5 doors 1.2i 5MT AWD (73 HP)

Vehicle Overview

Subaru and Suzuki joined their forces to develop a new range of small vehicles that could fit in the kei-car category but large enough to export them in other countries.

While Suzuki made the Cultus, Subaru built the Justy lineup and launched them on the market in 1984. The main problem with these vehicles was that their greenhouses were too short, and taller people couldn’t fit inside. Both carmakers went back to the drawing board and introduced the 1989 model, which was re-designed.

Subaru built the Justy with three and five doors. Its small size made it an excellent vehicle in crowded cities and in tight parking spots. Its minimalist design language showed a set of rectangular headlights and a wide and narrow grille. The black, wrapped-around bumper sported corner-mounted turn-signals. Subaru adopted the same idea for the bumper in the rear, but with a fog-light and a reversing light. Despite its minimalist design, the carmaker tried to offer as much comfort and possible. The five-door version provided an easier ingress and egress to the rear seats, especially for children.

Inside, the car featured a straight dashboard with a rectangular instrument cluster. Even though it was a small vehicle, the carmaker offered it with a tachometer. The floor-mounted gear stick stood on a taller center tunnel needed for the transmission. Subaru used the same floorpans for both front- or 4WD versions, which were available since 1988. The rear bench was fit for two passengers, and if needed, the folding seatback enlarged the trunk from a mere 200 liters (7 cu-ft) to a decent 700 liters (24.7 cu-ft).

Suzuki built the engines for both carmakers since Subaru had little experience with inline units. Power went through a five-speed manual gearbox or a CVT in all corners.