Ronald Reagan was never pictured in one of his favorite vehicles that he received as part of a bizarre deal

Former US President Ronald Reagan was also a secret Subaru test driver.

Now, those are some words you wouldn’t expect to find in the same sentence.

In his ‘free’ time, Reagan apparently drove a Subaru truck at his ranch in California.

And there’s a reason why this story remained a secret until now.

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This story sounds fake, but it’s true

According to a report from Benjamin Preston shared by Jalopnik, Ronald Reagan was a secret Subaru test driver.

It all happened quite organically – as marketing people would put it.

We should also point out that this happened before he became President.

Back then, the would-be President quietly began driving Subaru BRAT at his (private) ranch in California.

The key word is ‘private’, which explains why he was allowed to drive it in the first place, and also why he was never photographed at the wheel of this tiny truck.

Apparently, there was a secret agreement between Reagan and Subaru that basically made Reagan a de-facto Subaru test driver.

There are a couple of things worth noting.

First, the (unfortunate) name BRAT actually stood for Bi-drive Recreational All-terrain Transporter.

And second, this only came to public light recently because back then, for geopolitical reasons, no US politician wanted to be seen anywhere near a Japanese vehicle.

In the same way you wouldn’t see the current US President in a Chinese-made car or the current Chinese President in a Cadillac today.

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The reason why Reagan couldn’t drive his car in public

Ronald Reagan, like any other US President since 1958, was not allowed to drive this car on the road.

Or any other car, for that matter.

There’s a little-known law – technically it’s an ‘act’ – that prohibits any former (and of course current) US President from driving on a public road.

The law applies to the current US President in the same way it does to Bill Clinton, Barack Obama, Joe Biden, and George W. Bush.

It has nothing to do with age, seniority, or how long since they’ve been in office: it’s essentially a lifetime ban.

The reason is simple: security.

The US Secret Service evidently believes that having been President, even if it was just for one day three decades ago, makes you potentially vulnerable to threats, which is why all former US Presidents have drivers and never drive themselves on a public road.

So this is today’s lesson: if you love driving, don’t run for office.