Subaru 360 Young SS (1969)
Publication: Car Graphic
Format: Road Impressions (full article includes Daihatsu Fellow SS, Honda N360 TS, and Suzuki Fronte SS360)
Date: January 1969
Author: “C/G Test Group” (uncredited)
Road Testing the Subaru 360 Young SS
The sporty Young SS (385,000 yen), a new addition to the Subaru 360 series of light vehicles (which has been around for over a decade), was released at the end of November with an improved engine, suspension, and other features targeting younger generations of drivers.
The engine’s cylinder bores use a hard chrome aluminum alloy plating in place of the cast iron of the standard unit. Output is 36ps/7000rpm and maximum torque is 3.8kgm/6400rpm, a 44% increase over the standard unit, making its tuning comparable to that of a racing engine. It also boasts the lowest horsepower load of these four cars, at 11.8kg/ps. The engine’s revving is incredibly smooth, and even slightly brisk driving around town will send the tach needle quickly past the yellow zone (from 6500rpm) and into the red zone at 7000rpm. While some lack of low speed performance is unavoidable in a low-powered kei car, it’s still perfectly usable in normal driving. However, the key to driving the SS is to keep the engine speed above 3000rpm.
To match this performance, the standard spark plugs are B-8HN, a high-speed, cold-air spark plug similar to that used in racing cars. One thing to note about these spark plugs is that if you are going to leave the car parked for a long period of time, you must close (tilt forward) the fuel cock on the floor. This is because the fuel system is separate from the key-operated ignition system, so if you do not close the fuel cock, the spark plugs will get wet when you start the car, especially in this SS. If you forget to do this, you will have to set aside at least ten minutes before going to work to clean the spark plugs, especially during the cold season.
The clutch engages smoothly, but the pedal stroke is large, so if you’re not used to it, it seems to engage suddenly partway through its long travel, causing the car to either jump forward or stall. Of course, this isn’t a problem for those who have previously owned Subarus, but if you’re coming from another car, it’s likely to be a little tricky. To get moving, you need to increase the engine speed to around 2500-3000rpm, and then use the clutch to effectively modulate the power while starting off. While this may make it sound like a difficult car to drive, once you get used to it, you’ll realize that the smoothness of this engine is unmatched.
The gear ratios are well balanced with the engine’s 36ps power output. When the engine is taken to its maximum speed of 7000rpm in each gear, the car reaches 33km/h in first, 62km/h in second, and 102km/h in third. The maximum speed in OT (over-top) gear was not reached at the Murayama test course, but is listed as 120km/h in the catalog, which seems like an achievable figure if the conditions are right. The 0-400m time was achieved in an average of 21.9 seconds, second only to the Fronte, but it did not match the catalog data of 20.6 seconds.
For the 0-400m run, we accelerated up to 7500rpm in third gear, but the engine still had plenty of power left, and it seemed like it could easily rev up to 8000rpm. We didn’t use overdrive (OT) because we were concerned about the time loss involved in changing gear. In town, we could keep up with the flow of traffic using about 10km/h in first gear, 25km/h in second gear, 43km/h in third gear, and 50km/h in overdrive (OT). In OT, the car will accelerate slowly from 30km/h, but its main use is as a cruising gear at speeds above 50km/h (about 3000rpm).
What we noticed when shifting gears was that if we tried to follow the shift pattern, we couldn’t shift into OT smoothly, and we would end up in second gear.
The ride is set a little harder than the standard 360, but the dampers work well, and the SS is far better controlled. Although small shocks from the road are hardly transmitted to the body, it is inevitable that as a light car with a short wheelbase, it tends to be thrown around on large bumps. The steering is a rack-and-pinion with a ratio of 20.6:1, common to all models, and is very light, with excellent straight-line stability at high speeds. However, it is vulnerable to crosswinds, which is also inevitable in a rear-engine car.
The low center of gravity and stiffer suspension make the Young SS much easier to handle than a standard Subaru. Eventually, the rear wheels will slide out first, but the limit speed is high, and the slide begins gradually, with the car remaining extremely stable.
The interior is outfitted with a sporty atmosphere, with a leather-wrapped two-spoke steering wheel and a small, easy-to-read circular tachometer and speedometer. The Subaru’s driving position is unique, with the driver sitting very low and close to the steering wheel, and this SS model is no exception. The SS’s seats are special for this model and much better than the standard car’s, but taller drivers would be better off with the backrest tilted back a little more. In any case, it is far from the trendy straight-arm position.
The noise level is high even by kei car standards, and the exhaust sound resonates through the cabin at speeds above 80km/h, but for young people with tough nerves accustomed to the roar of “rock group sounds,” this probably won’t bother them at all.
Postscript: Story Photos
