Rethinking How I Commute:

Returning To Simplicity With A Classic Subaru

Editor's note: "This is the first Caffeine GT Magazine article that was not written by me... and I couldn't be happier. The coolest thing to me is highlighting other car guys and girls especially in my new home, the DFW area. You know what a real supercar is? The one that the owner thinks is pretty super. Without further a do. Stephen G discusses his badass vintage Impreza."

Article and Photographs by Stephen Giangrosso

I am not an impulsive person, I swear. But also understand that impulsiveness and the ability to

talk yourself into questionable decisions are not always related.

At least that is how I believe that I came to own my current car, a 1990’s Subaru Impreza. After

many years of owning nice and comfortable touring cars I decided to take a different approach

and seek out something that really feels like a… car. Gone is my modern suspension that soaks up bumps in the road, quiet interior cabin, and upgraded stereo system. And in its place is a car that makes me feel present when I drive it , I do not feel distracted. I have feedback coming through the steering wheel and into the cabin to let me know about the condition of the road.

And lastly, it feels purposeful in being transportation. It isn’t trying to be anything else.

I see other people on the road that have had a similar epiphany. I see them driving around in

well kept cars from the 80’s and 90’s. These cars are the millennials’ equivalent to the ‘65

Mustang or ‘57 Bel Air. It’s a desire to own something simple, analog, and familiar. I look

forward to the day that I see someone driving around in a beautifully maintained Mitsubishi

Galant VR-4. I will fangirl, mark my words.

This renaissance in “neo classic” cars has been fun to watch. You can see what resonated with

them when they were younger just by looking at what they are driving today. For me it was rally

cars. As a young kid in the late 90’s me and my friends would download crazy rally videos off of P2P file sites such as Napster and Kazaa, I was hooked. Horribly compressed 240p videos of

Colin McRae and Carlos Sainz pushing a car to its limits was amazing to me. And that was it for

me, a Subaru fan was born.

But there is a problem… I am a fan of the Impreza that led to so many victories in the 90’s.

Nothing past this chassis sparks my interest. When I see them on the road I get excited

regardless of the condition. It’s just one of those cars for me. We all have them and I bet that you are thinking of your car of choice right now.

Depending on where you live, my interest in the first generation Subaru Impreza might make

sense or it will not make much sense at all. Living in Texas we never see these cars due to our

state being hot, dry, and flat. This is not an area where all-wheel-drive economy cars have ever

been in high demand. So when you see a car like this in traffic, it stands out. Well, you probably

know where this is headed next, I had to find the car. The Impreza that will be worth my time,

the diamond in the rough. Low mileage, rust free, good paint and complete interior. If you know

these cars well then you know that I am asking for a lot here since no one bought these cars

and treated them nicely. After a few months of searching I found what I was looking for: a first

generation Impreza wagon. This didn’t mean that I got to drive down to my local “buy here pay

here” lot and pick up exactly what I was after, far from it. But I did manage to find this car with

68,757 miles on it for $6,495 in Virginia… pretty far from me over in Texas. But I did what I had

to do to get the car that I wanted, I booked a one-way flight to Virginia and drove it 22 hours

home. It’s a memory that I will always cherish, but will not soon try to replicate. If I did

anything “right” in this whole process it is this: Buy a car that is already roadworthy. Create your

dream car on top of a solid foundation. Do not buy someone else's unfinished project. The extra

money that you spend up front will end up saving you time & money down the road.

And if you are someone who is considering leaving modern cars behind for something simple

and reliable, I hope that this article has helped you take that leap of faith. I have had this car for 2 years now and I am so glad that I took a chance on it.

But what does it mean to build a dream car, truck, or SUV? That is something that has to be

decided by every one of us. Lucky for you I am already pretty far down this path for myself and I

will be discussing my experience and potential pitfalls to avoid in my next article.