Good morning, Autopians! Well, this is it: the last Shitbox Showdown I will write from our official headquarters in Portland, Oregon. My minions and henchmen are hard at work on the new facilities on the East Coast, and I am assured that plans are progressing nicely. It’s amazing how motivating the threat of diesel Chevettes as company cars can be.
I’m a little sad to see the old lair go, if I’m honest. I’ve written more than five hundred of these Showdowns now, most of them from right here. So I thought it only fitting that I say goodbye to the old town by featuring the two cars that will always remind me of this place, for better or worse.
But before we do that, let’s check in with yesterday’s premium hatchbacks. From the sounds of it, this was a difficult choice. These are both fun-to-drive cars, but neither of them has a sterling reputation for durability or reliability, and several of you expressed concerns over the Mini’s mileage. Because of this, I expected the Fiat to win, but I was wrong. Me? I’d flip a coin.
When we moved to Portland from Los Angeles back in 2008, I wasn’t expecting much of a car culture up here. I’m not sure why, but somehow Portlanders didn’t strike me as car folk when we visited prior to moving. I was proven gloriously wrong, however; Portland has a thriving car culture. It’s just, like so many other aspects of this city, a little weird. I’ve seen everything from brand-new Ferraris to 2CV Fourgonnettes prowling these streets, I parked next to a beautiful dark green ’60s Alfa Giulia Berlina at a burger joint just a few weeks ago, and I’ve had the pleasure of getting up close and personal with all kinds of rare classic British steel through my MG connections.
But those are the outliers. Most of the cars in Portland are far less interesting. Some time ago my wife and I were circling a parking lot looking for a spot, and I said, “There’s one, between those two Subarus.”
My wife replied, “This is Portland. Every space is between two Subarus.” She’s not wrong.
But old European iron is still a staple of Portland traffic. One make in particular, Volvo, is very common here, likely due in part to the presence of famed Volvo specialty shop IPD. Old 240s and 740s are still common cars here, though the citywide fleet has started showing its age in recent years.
So today, we’re going to look at one of each: a very nice used Subaru Outback, and a very Portland Volvo 240. Which one better represents the best the Rose City has to offer? Let’s see.
2005 Subaru Outback Limited – $4,950
Engine/drivetrain: 2.5-liter overhead cam flat 4, five-speed manual, AWD
Location: Portland, OR
Odometer reading: 168,000 miles
Operational status: Runs and drives great
Just how common are Subaru Outbacks in Portland? For a while I worked at a job where there was only street parking, and all my co-workers and I parked along the same block so we could keep an eye on our cars. Along that block were my big green truck, my boss’s ’68 VW Beetle, a little teal Prius C, and five Outbacks: two gold, two gray, and one white. More than half of my co-workers drove the same damn car. It was a little like Stepford. Or Camazotz, if you’d rather.
I get the appeal in a place like this, I suppose: Subaru has carefully crafted a market for the Outback as the car of choice for outdoorsy, big-dog-loving folks who enjoy hikes, and there are a lot of them here. Its all-wheel-drive system has likewise been touted as a “necessity” for getting around during that week or so of snow we get every year. And so Subaru wagons in general, and the Outback in particular has become the de facto official car of this fair city.
At least this one is a stickshift. I don’t think any of my old coworkers’ cars were. It’s powered by a basic 2.5 liter version of Subaru’s EJ boxer engine, that notorious devourer of head gaskets. There’s no word on whether the gaskets have been replaced on this car, but at 168,000 miles, I would guess so. The seller does say the clutch was just replaced, and that the car runs and drives great.
It looks well cared-for, both inside and out, which is more than I can say for a lot of Outbacks around here. Typical owners lean heavily on the “utility” part of Subaru’s “sport utility wagon” description, and there are some rough-looking Outbacks here. Not rusty, or obviously banged-up, but clearly ridden hard and put away wet. I’m happy to see that this one has received more careful ministrations.
1976 Volvo 242 DL – $4,200
Engine/drivetrain: 2.1-liter overhead cam inline 4, four-speed manual, RWD
Location: Portland, OR
Odometer reading: unknown
Operational status: Runs and drives great
Before there was Subaru, there was Volvo. These old square beasts have gotten less common on Portland streets in recent years, but when we first moved here, they were everywhere. 240s seem to be the most common, with a few 740s and later front-drive 850s mixed in. Spend time on Hawthorne Boulevard and you’re almost certain to see at least a couple old 240s roll by, often festooned with all manner of bumper stickers, some of which appear to be structural. They’re only now starting to be seen as classics here, it seems, and to be cared for as such. A lot of them still look like this one.
A lot of old Volvos have an air of the Ship of Theseus about them. This one isn’t too far removed from original; only the front seats are obviously out of place, though they appear to have come from two different cars. As is common, the odometer only works when it wants to, so the actual mileage is unknown. It doesn’t matter much; these cars just seem to chug along regardless. This one runs and drives well enough to be daily-driven, according to the seller.
It’s powered by a 2.1-liter fuel-injected version of Volvo’s “Red block” engine, backed by a four-speed manual. This one doesn’t have the push-button electric overdrive unit fitted to some 240s. It does, however, have a taller final drive than usual, thanks to big meaty General Grabber off-road tires. I don’t know if this was done for cosmetic reasons, or for purposes of some Gambler 500-type use, but I bet they help with Portland’s pothole-riddled streets.
Outside, it has some rust, dents, and missing trim, but some cars wear patina like this better than others, and I think this old Volvo looks pretty good as it is. With values starting to creep up, you could take the time to clean it up and return everything to original, but that seems too much like hard work, to me.
Well, that wraps it up for my West Coast-based cheap car shenanigans, I guess. When next we meet, I’ll be back on the road one last time, and we’ll have a special guest car-chooser for the week. See you then!
(Image credits: Craigslist sellers)
Valuable extra points have been awarded to the Volvo, because that aftermarket cup holder is really a bike bottle cage (as you’d expect in Portland).
Wow – good eye there.
That Outback for that price in that condition is a great deal. I have a 2006 manual with cloth seats and shod with studded Nokians that I love for driving up to the local Missoula ski area. The thing with EJ25 head gaskets is that the originals will surely blow at or before the 100,000 mile mark, but replacements (more robust than what came out of the factory), installed by a competent mechanic, will last the rest of the car’s life.
In the late ’80s in Santa Cruz I had a ’72 142 with the MT4 that I bought for $500. It leaked around the windshield (cars parked near the ocean will rust from the salt in the fog), would slip out of gear when parked, the hand brake didn’t work (broken cable), and I had to buy an alternator from the junkyard every three months because the crank pulley was bent, but I drove it over the hill to San Jose every workday for two years. It was remarkably fast for the time (malaise error and all) and when I moved to Montana I gave it away to my single mom neighbor.
I love that ugly old 242 so much. The Outback is the smarter buy for most, but it will never become a slacker’s classic like this 240. It oozes coolness from every one of its many wounds.
Whoa! A SBSD that I actually have experience with! My 2nd car was a 1978 244 and my current car is a 2007 OBXT.
My OBXT is a 5-speed, but my 244 was an auto, so I voted Volvo. Both seem like good choices.
That being said, today’s Outback, even without the turbo that mine has, should be pretty peppy since it’s got the manual. I had a 2000 Outback (also a 5-speed) here in the Denver metro area and it was a blast in the mountains.
As much as I prefer the Volvo, the Subaru is the smarter choice. Check the engine maintenance and it’s probably a keeper.
The Volvo as it will not die.
Voted Roo today. A/C, very clean looking.
Wanted the Volvo, but too used up, no A/C.
Good luck in the East! Had to go Subie but I would double-check the head gasket issue. Seems like those went around 60-70k miles if they were going to go.
I like old Volvos but that one has been used up, has something going on with the rear wheelwellls and I’m not a fan of the tire choice and the missing trim. It also looks like that carpet smells of mildew and Patchouli.. That Subaru is pretty damn clean compared to most around that age.
SAVE TRAVELS, WE’LL MISS YOU!
Also, the ovloV is tempting, but as I always say, “wagons before seda-gons!”
Wow, another tough choice today. I would love both of these cars, but I chose the Volvo, only because it scratches an itch that my other available cars cannot. I know some of you hate on Subaru here, but as much as the headgaskets in these are… problematic, this is the best Outback design overall. It’s basically the perfect wagon when it comes to form factor. And this one looks like it’s been babied.
I’m exceptionally jealous of the west coast when it comes to cars like these. They would have no chance up here in the forever rusty Northeast.
The Volvo’s probably the right choice. So I voted for the Subaru.
It’s probably the best-looking generation of Outback … and years ago, a rented one got me safely through an ice storm in southeast Michigan so that I could stand up in a friend’s wedding.
We’ll take the Subie, and load up at Powell’s before leaving town.
If ever there was a Subaru that might tempt me, this is it. It’s clean, has leather and fake wood, and OMG A STICK. Love the clutch replacement, wish I knew more about those very far-ly separated heads. So close!
But. I’ve owned a 240. With a manual. It was a block of granite. I love that.
Slo-vo wins (and with only 4 gears and a shorter rear end, it’s probably diesel-Rabbit slow.)
all of the early 2000’s subie issue be damned, that is a clean example of an old outback, though I would want to look closely under that plastic out back….lol. around here it often hides lots of rust and sometimes frame repair that is simply not worth it.
I like the Volvo 240 in general, but I prefer 4 door sedans (the two door models look weird to me) and I also prefer the later models with single headlights. So while I like the 240, this is the 240 model that is the least desirable to me.
I still voted for the Volvo, though. It is my least favorite variant of the 240, but I’m having a hard time coming up with anything I like about the Subaru. It is fine, but to me it is a generic transportation device. I think I could find something equally reliable and more interesting for the $4950 asking price.
Four doors and just a tad better shape and I, too, would have gone Volvo.
I had a 76 245 and it ran and ran until rust took it. Other things I have seen on these is heater core failure and a propensity for fuel pumps (in the tank) to fail. I still love these enough to vote Volvo but it is definitely a bad choice.
I really, really, really wanted to vote Volvo until I saw under the hood.
No AC, no vote from me.
Which is weird, because the AC only current DD isn’t working…
I would dream of the Volvo and its sexy square corners, but the Subaru is the one that I’d actually be quite to willing happily live with day-to-day.
ISTR that the Subie head gasket problems were 2.2 problem and the 2.5 was largely unaffected. Am I misremembering?
Anyhoo, head gasket gamble vs possible Gambler? I love the Volvo but I feel like its overpriced in that condition. My heart says Volvo but my head says Subie, and I’m going with my head on this on.
Other way around, less issues with the 2.2, 2.5 was the head gasket muncher.
Thanks!
Pleasant journey, we’ll see you when we see you. Already have an old 240, so Outback gets the vote, even if it doesn’t come with a Bloomin’ Onion.
Have you seen the pic of an Outback on the back of an Outback in back of an Outback?
https://www.reddit.com/r/pics/comments/4drji5/an_outback_towing_an_outback_parked_outback_of/
Classic. The only way to improve on it is if they were parked out back of the Outback.
Have you come to accept that there is only one True Portland? All other Portlands are truly imposters, even if they have a bigger port and more land. And with this realization, you couldn’t stand being in a False Portland, and were called to go up and Downeast to True Portland. Then let me welcome the new headquarters to actual Portland. May the wind always be at stern as you embrace the “Way Life Should Be”.
Also Volvo if you have style.
If the gaskets have recently been done on the Subaru I’d go that way. If they were done at 100k miles they’re probably coming up on being done again.
The Subaru is the better car, but the Volvo would be more interesting. Practicality wins out today, so the Subaru it is.
I like Subarus and that Volvo looks rode hard and put away wet.
The Volvo, because I want that purple Nalgene bottle in the engine bay.
I went with the Subie as the “safe” choice, but I kind of agree with the voting right now, we are autopians, the volvo is much “cooler”!