What do you do with a patina-laden Volkswagen Rabbit diesel pickup and a mostly-complete Mazda Miata fall into your lap at the same time? You both it! It’s a Miata chassis wearing a Rabbit pickup hat! And you could buy it right now!
The pickup’s wheelbase is three inches longer than the Miata’s, but the width is basically identical. So dropping the body on the Miata’s backbone chassis wasn’t too difficult. I mean, it was difficult enough, but not impossible.
Look at that. The engine looks like it belongs in this car. It’s a stock 1994 Miata 1.8-liter, and the standard 5-speed Miata gearbox remains as well. The 130-ish horsepower from the Miata engine is a whole lot more than the diesel Rabbit’s original 50-ish, so it’s more than enough to move the truck around. And with a decent amount of the original chassis cut out, including the rear wall separating the bed from the interior, it might be a good bit lighter than it was in 1980 as well.
Dubbed the Maple Bar, this wild machine is rough and ready. Here’s what the listing has to say:
Rwd Body swapped Rabbit Pickup! 1994 Mazda Miata drive train. 1.8, torsen lsd. All miata sheet metal underhood and in passenger compartment. Uncut miata harness, except to hook up to the rabbit lights and fuel tank. All gauges work, besides fuel. Put whatever swap you want into it. K24, ls, turbo, supercharger? Awesome project, and people love it. Definitely not a car for introverts. Motor and trans are tired but runs great. Just showing the abuse of drifting and donuts. Willing to partially trade for a 400hp+ LS (iron or aluminum). Registered as the diesel rabbit, so no biannual smogs. Featured on Hoonigan, search for VW Drift Missile!
Don’t worry, I went and found it for you. You don’t have to search. The Hoonigan boys kinda sorta broke the car, but it seems to have been put back together alright. Just be aware you might have to fix a few things. Still probably worth it.
If you’re a California driver, you won’t have to smog this thing, because it’s old enough for diesel exemption. Just make sure you bring your sunscreen when driving this thing, because there’s no roof whatsoever.
They’re asking $7,000 for this wild ride. Considering the amount of fabrication work that went into this, you probably couldn’t build one for less than that. Grab an LS swap kit for Miatas, and you’ll have a 400-horsepower Rabbit pickup in no time flat. Wouldn’t that be a sight to see?
