In Greek mythology, turned into a kingfisher due to the grief over the loss of her husband. Today's Subaru SVX was called the Alcyone in its home market, and its seller has turned it into a five-speed. Its price, however may turn you off.

Her name is REO and she dances in the sand, just like that river twists across the dusty land. . .

Oops, sorry. Less Duran squared than original gangster, yesterday's proved that old cars - when they're not saddled with clown-like modernities - still find favor, as did this particular car's fifteen large price tag. Taken together, it motored off with both an air of civility and an amazing 85% Nice Price win.

If it weren't for the ‘80s troll-hair band, REO Speedwagon, Ransom E. Olds other car company could…

That's enough of looking back however, and today we have a car that, for its time, was considered extremely forward looking, at least in its styling. This (top of the line!) is representative of a class of car that prior to its introduction was uncharted territory for the diamond star hubcap brand. Sure, it had Subie's ubiquitous all-wheel drive, but it cloaked that familiar feature in a new and dramatic personal coupe body that made the rest of the company's line up look like matronly lesbians in comparison. What?

Bigger than anything Subaru had previously pooped out - and remember this is the company that made the clown car 360, so they know teh smallz - the SVX demanded an equally embiggening of the traditional Subaru pancake breakfast that takes place under the hood. Turning all four of the SVX's tires is the EG33 3.3-litre flat six sporting double overhead cams and producing 231-bhp. Of interest on this one is the seller's claim that it has been ‘replaced with a low mileage unit' indicating something went seriously afoul with the six it originally rocked. While not rebuilt, according to the ad pretty much everything on its outside has been renewed. A central clutch pack - part of the standard ACT-4 drive system provides a usual 90/10 torque split, but can provide up to 50% of the power to each axle as conditions dictate.

Another interesting aspect noted in the ad is that the car has a new Kevlar Stage Two clutch heading up its 5-speed transmission. It's that swizzle stick between the seats that makes this an SVX with S.E.X. as it's probably the only one you'll find that offers an employment opportunity for your left foot. When Subie sold these new, they all came with thank you, but I'll do it myself automatics. Popping a third pedal in the driver's footwell may have not been that tough, but if you're looking for an SVX with a stick, you'd probably want one that's already been stuck. The rest of the interior - from the tan leather seats to the 747 throttle parking brake - is claimed to stunning, and freakily, transplanted from another SVX like it was Nicholas Cage in Face Off. Creepy.

Outside, the traditionally black-painted roof and trunk lid now share the claret hue of the rest of teh car, and the narrow strip of headlights seem to have dodged the age-caused miasma that degrades their effectiveness to a weak yellow stream. Overall the Giugiaro design which in in the early nineties seemed like something from the next millennium looks kind of dated now that we're actually here. Regardless, it's still a pretty unique shape and the mini-window within a window evokes thoughts of Deloreans and Countach, so it's got that going for it. The gold Prodrive wheels look out of place however, but that's an easy switch if you're handy with a lug wrench.

Not so easy may be determining if its $5,995 asking price is a sweet deal or not. On one hand, it looks to be in pretty good shape, and has a lot of parts fresh out of the box on it - plus it's a stick. On the other hand, it's a bit of a frankenstinian monster despite the fact that all the body parts came from the same family. What do you think, is that $5,995 a price that gives this Alcyone SVX appeal? Or, does that make this car a Greek tragedy?

You decide!

or go if the ad disappears. H/T to smokyburnout for the hookup!

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