Spotted: a Subaru Justy with a Dutch touch

The spotted specimen

In the parking lot of a shopping center in Hoorn, we saw this 1997 Subaru Justy 1.2 Si ECVT. At least, that’s the year specified by the RDW. This model was produced until 1995. Since the car is original Dutch according to the RDW, it must have waited a while for its registration back then. Other than that, the RDW reports no details. Although, the Subaru has been with its current owner since 2007. That’s secretly quite a long time too.

The Subaru Justy

What kind of car was the Subaru Justy again? The first model entered the market in 1984. It was a model in what we would now call the B-segment. The Justy was a completely new addition to the Subaru lineup, filling the gap between the even smaller Mini Jumbo and mid-size L-Series.

First-generation Subaru Justy

The Subaru Justy was technically a kind of enlarged version of the Mini Jumbo. Among other things, the front doors were even completely similar. There was a choice of a three- and five-door hatchback. The engine range was different, though. Whereas the Mini Jumbo had to make do with two-cylinders, the Justy got a 1.0- and a little later also a 1.2-liter three-cylinder. Drive went to the front wheels as standard, but in good Subaru tradition there was also a four-wheel-drive version. Shifting was done with a five-speed manual transmission.

Subaru Justy with Dutch transmission

In 1987, an electronically controlled continuously variable transmission was added to the lineup: the ECVT. Although there are several manufacturers of stepless transmissions today, the Subaru had the original: the Variomatic from Van Doorne Transmission (VDT). Right, familiar from the Dafjes.

Renewals

In 1989, the Subaru Justy underwent a facelift, which, in addition to some technical improvements, included major changes to the front end. The Justy also received a body variant, but only in Taiwan, where the car was produced locally. Under the somewhat strange name Subaru Tutto, a sedan-like liftback also appeared.

Later Justy’s

The first generation Subaru Justy remained in production until 1995, although it remained available from stock in some countries (including the Netherlands) until 1996. A new model generation was ready in 1996, but it was no longer developed by Subaru itself. Henceforth, the Justy was a rebadged variant of the then Suzuki Swift. A variant based on the then Suzuki Ignis followed in 2004 under the name G3X Justy. In 2007, Subaru switched to a Daihatsu Sirion as its base. After some years in between, the Justy name was reintroduced in 2016, this time only in Japan and for its own variant of a kei car from Daihatsu.