East Bloc Budget: Boy Racer Done Right

Buy cheap, buy twice!

That's what you always hear or see in discussion of building cars these days; the notion that if you don't spend top dollar on shinier or fancier parts, something will break. Well, Martin P. of Vladivostok, Russia, says no to that with his JDM 1990 Subaru Legacy in a rather interesting fashion.



What's that? You didn't spend five grand on your suspension setup? Wow, enjoy scraping your oil pan outta that pothole!
Would you look at this guy, he doesn't spend a thousand on a ECU. What a chump!

Alright, I'll admit, if those quotes were any more strawman they'd be in a cornfield. But, the theme of including those lines still holds: Money doesn't make the car. The reason why I emailed Martin and scheduled a meetup is because he proves that theme, then goes even further. The real question with this car is, where do you start?



I suppose we could start with the exterior, but that raises more questions: Where the hell do we even start on the outside!?



Stickers are one of the cheapest, if not the cheapest 'modifications' one can do to their car. And this Legacy is in no means lacking: The staples of the online car community are represented fully; MightyCarMods, CarThrottle, and Speedhun- Hey! Wait a minute!



The rear of this Legacy isn't the only one adorned with stickers, the aftermarket roof rack bearing a stickerbomb so great in size, Martin ran out of stickers three quarters across the way! The budget rings true again, as the roofrack only cost a hundred and fifty bucks, and the stickers coming at dirt cheap prices in their own regard.



Readers with a good eye would probably have noticed the dual license plates on the rear. Well, next to stickers, fake plates are decently cheap too, and can add the final edge or a humorous twist to any car. Hence, Martin grabbed himself a "SUBI LYF" vanity plate, and slapped it on, leaving his actual and legal Russian plate off to the side. Nice!



Let's be frank, anyone and their mother can tell that the suspension of this car is not stock. The taut flush of this BC chassis is done by H&R Street Performance coilovers, which Martin tells me came at a great price brand new. Additionally, it doesn't take a wheel nut to know those alloys aren't stock either. The Rotiform Sixes that this car wears were bought off of Martin's friend, who had gotten new wheels for his drift car, ringing in the term of budget: Expect used parts!



Hey, that's not a EJ18! You're right, it's not! Martin had gotten tired of his pitiful base motor, and instead of pouring money into an inferior engine, he decided to go for an outright swap. And swap, he did. The EJ257 that resides in the Legacy now was sourced for an impressively cheap price, and packs a punch. Not surprising, considering how the EJ257s were sold in the US market to power the '04 Impreza Sti's!



I'll give Subaru some credit, I can't think of a single motor of theirs that won't fit in a recent body of theirs without minimal effort. As seen in this picture, the EJ257 looks at home in there, despite the fact that this car left the factory with the much, much smaller EJ18.



All in all, I honestly like what Martin's done and planning with his Subaru. It displays hard work and craftsmanship, rather the badge of "Restored by Who Cares? Customs." It displays earnesty and modesty at the same time. It displays the character that our modern car scene was created by after the second World War. Finally, it displays the sense of creativity that started our hobby, and keeps it thriving today.


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