1981 Subaru GL (Leone)

The Origin Story

I bought this car at 14 years old, before I even had my license. The Scagliano family sold it to me for $5. I paid with a $5 bill because I didn't have a $1 bill. My dad had a white 1986 Subaru wagon, so I was already obsessed with the brand, and this little hatchback was exactly the kind of thing a teenager with no money and too many opinions about cars would fall in love with.

I drove it through high school. Then I went to college, needed money, and sold it for $600. I regretted it immediately. That's not a figure of speech — I mean I regretted it before I finished the handshake.

Eleven years later, I was engaged, buying a house, and doing what any reasonable adult does in that situation: browsing Craigslist for old cars. And there it was. My exact car. I couldn't afford it. My future wife Ashley dipped into her savings and bought it back for me. That's either the most romantic thing that's ever happened or a very early warning sign about what life with me would look like. Probably both.

The Build

The original EA81 engine made about 73 horsepower, which was fine for 1981 and considerably less fine for someone who wanted to go rallycrossing. When it started smoking, the decision was easy: swap it. I sourced a 1995 Subaru Legacy Wagon as a donor, pulled the EJ22, and discovered the cylinders were scored — likely from a previous blown head gasket. Rather than source a clean block, I had it bored out from 2.2L to 2.4L and built it properly: forged Manley rods and pistons, a mild cam, and an adapter plate from Anderson Design & Fabrication to make it fit the original engine bay.

The 4-speed transmission became a 5-speed using a unit sourced from another EA82-era Subaru and Jerry's 5-speed conversion kit. It still retains the factory dual-range High/Low 4WD selector — something a lot of people don't realize early Subarus had. The 5th gear means I can cruise at 65 mph at a reasonable 3,000 RPM, which is a significant quality-of-life improvement over the original setup. There's also a factory LSD from a mid-80s Subaru RX hiding under there, vented front rotors, and a rear disc brake conversion.

One of my favorite details: because the EJ22 donor was from an automatic car, the ECU expected a Vehicle Speed Sensor signal it wasn't getting. Without it, the car ran on the wrong fuel map. The fix? A tiny magnet glued to the back of the mechanical speedometer, triggering the VSS just enough to convince the ECU the car was moving. It works perfectly. It's also exactly the kind of solution this car deserves.

On the Rally Stage

This car has competed in Autocross, Rallycross, and Time Speed Distance rally — and it has won. The Rallycross days actually predate the EJ22 swap entirely: it ran competitively on the original EA81 engine with the Weber carb, no low-range needed, just momentum and commitment. One of the better party tricks was running in front-wheel-drive only mode — something early Subarus could do with the 4WD selector — which turned out to be genuinely competitive and confused more than a few people in the paddock. The car has also done the Gambler 500 multiple times, including a run through the Ochoco National Forest in conditions that required sleeping in the back of the car. It's now retired from those more aggressive adventures, but the capability is still there.