It’s hard to imagine, but minivans didn’t always have two back doors. Today’s Vanagon comes from that era, but still sports four ports. It also has a Subaru six, and a price tag we’re going to judge.

Yesterday, we slipped onto our muscle tees and jorts, combed back our mullets, and cranked up the Whitesnake. That was all so we could appropriately appreciate the days of yore when Pontiac existed and the Trans Am was that company’s weapon of choice in the pony car wars.

The channelling all that ‘80s embodiment still looked pretty good today. Of course, any number of today’s modern four-pot sedans could out-horse and out-run that old F-body, but there’s still something sexy about a big coupe with a rumble-bumble V8 under its long, low and louvered hood. The attraction made its $4,950 price tag all the more palatable, and the GTA took home both our hearts and a 66-percent Nice Price win.

That F-body Pontiac just goes to prove that there’s no school like old school, and that’s especially so when the school gets spruced up a bit and class is in session.

That’s just the case with this . The ad notes that in place of its old school flat four, this bus has been schooled by a Subaru EG33 boxer six, late of an SVX. That’s 3318-ccs and a factory claimed 230 horsepower when powering Subaru’s eclectic GT.

In the Vanagon it sits bass-akwards and sends its ponies through a stock four-speed manual transaxle. There’s a Magnaflow exhaust to keep the neighbors from complaining, aftermarket springs and Koni shocks to keep you on the road, plus a nice set of Rial alloys behind which lie upgraded brakes.

And here’s the deal: all that’s not even this Vanagon’s best feature.

No, the real showstopper here is the door behind the driver’s seat. All modern minivans have sliders on both sides, but when the T3 was offered to a sliding door-craving public, it only came with a single portal in the back. Except that is, when it didn’t.

This car is said to have come from Canada where the seller claims a few four-doors were sold . They apparently were put into service for specific uses like for airport shuttles and freaking people out. The four-door T3s are so rare that even on The Samba they seem relatively unknown. On the forums there members speak of the model in the way Scotsmen talk of the Loch Ness monster or maybe being sober.

The seller says this clear-title car has been his daily for four years, and apparently he’s getting tired of showing it off at fuel stops and beer runs. He says that the chassis has an amazing 220K on the clock, while the six cylinder pancake in its ass comes up with less than half that time served. The Orly Blue paint looks pretty clean, although there are a few dings here and there underneath that. The window trim is also kind of grody, but overall it’s not bad.

The interior presents as just as serviceable, and apparently includes the weekender package so the back bench converts into a bed. There’s a fancy-pants stereo in here, which means door panels have been cut for speaker installations, but thankfully the likely unobtainable left-side slider panel remains intact.

The Subie installation looks professional and tidy, however it’s not all beer and skittles here. The seller notes that there’s a “Minor leak” but doesn’t detail what exactly is leaking. He says it’s a $500 fix, but dares you to leave it leaking. Other issues include a bad window motor, a floppy sideview mirror, and a dime of rust on the hatch. Also there’s the admission that the A/C has never been tested. Take all that into account when you consider the car’s $24,999 price.

In fact, consider that right now since it’s time we get to the vote. What do you think, is this amazingly rare and Subie-imbued Vanagon a deal at that $24,999 price? Or, does the price and the presentation make you think this is a bus stop you’d just as soon skip?

You decide!

Portland, OR , or go if the ad disappears.

H/T to Windadvisory for the hookup!

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