Perfection Within Imperfection
If you’ve ever looked at Subaru performance by the numbers and wondered what the fuss was all about, consider retrieving your nose from a book and planting your bottom in one of their seats. Subarus are a bit heavy and famously practical – deliberately, unapologetically practical – but in some ways they’re also the fastest cars out there. Here’s how: if the fastest way to get from Point A to Point B is a straight line, but the road between Point A and Point B is neither straight, flat, nor smooth, an all-wheel drive Subaru will get you there quickly while all the so-called “pure” or “perfect” Miatas, Mini JCW GPs, and BRZs are busy careening off of pebbles and becoming entombed in potholes.
Still unconvinced? Consider your own performance. With enough training, and under the right circumstances, a skilled driver in your lightweight sports car could indeed outmaneuver a 1998 Impreza 2.5 RS. But you’re closing in on an unfamiliar, bumpy, off-camber turn now (as in, right now). An Impreza could re-appropriate its torque from its fixed 50/50 front/rear split to wherever it’s needed – “from the wheels that slip to the wheels that grip,” according to Subaru – and sail through that corner, all four tires clinging onto imperfect pavement, and long-travel suspension keeping the body under control. But here, in your sports car, you’re on the brakes while a mid-corner bump just knocked a filling loose.
Subarus are perfect vehicles for understanding imperfection. So is the Gospel of Luke. After Jesus’ death, the disciples felt abandoned and unsettled. Wasn’t Jesus supposed to fix everything and make it perfect? After all, he was perfect, right? When the resurrected Jesus appeared, they lamented his death, saying, “We had hoped that he was the one who was going to redeem Israel” (Luke 24:21). To which Jesus replied, “Did not the Christ have to suffer these things and then enter his glory?” (v. 26) Later, he explained:
“[Jesus] told them, ‘This is what is written: The Christ will suffer and rise from the dead on the third day, and repentance and forgiveness of sins will be preached in his name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem. You are witnesses of these things.’” (Luke 24:46-48a)
Jesus, who himself wondered if imperfection, pain, and suffering were necessary as part of God’s plan to rescue humanity (Luke 22:42) now explains the perfect purpose of imperfection. Yes, Jesus did indeed redeem Israel, yet he also suffered, won repentance and forgiveness of sins, and started a movement to preach “these things” to “all nations.” It began in Jerusalem to complete the story arc of God’s chosen nation throughout the centuries, and now includes the fullness of God’s creation. God’s perfect plan utilized key elements of the world’s imperfection, namely injustice, pain, and death, to manifest the end of perfection.
More than 2,000 years later, the bumps and uneven surfaces of life still cause pondering and reflection, or even existential crises. A longing for perfection lives in every human heart, along with despair that such perfection is just not achievable on earth. What a dichotomy. It has left some people feeling hopeless, others madly obsessed with achieving perfection through their own willpower, and everyone else somewhere in between.
The answer, again, lies in the Subaru 2.5 RS. It carries five adults safely along, engineered for imperfect roads. But it also seems to loudly “name and claim” its limits. It isn’t perfect enough to handle a rally course without modification; it has surprisingly low ground clearance and a distinct lack of turbo chargers. It can do most things but not everything, and that’s okay. In a world of bumpy roads and imperfect drivers, it’s the right amount of perfect.
The Impreza 2.5 RS’s main competitor was another high-winged import: the Acura Integra GS-R. The Acura would destroy it on most tracks, but the Subaru would have the advantage on most roads. Its engine generates 162 lb-ft of torque at 4000 rpm vs. the Integra’s 128 lb-ft at 6200 rpm. It sips regular unleaded while the Teggy demands premium. Five seatbelts vs. four, and the list goes on. Both cars greatly benefit from a huge aftermarket community, though, so if you’re planning an elaborate build, either one is a good – even perfect – place to start.
John V16 is the intersection of God and cars. Please support our work and donate a V16-powered 1940 Cadillac Series 90 Sixteen to John V16. Or share this article with a friend.
