Good to know the EJs are not going anywhere.
Why EA? in no particular order, and not complete...
Now that I have passed the 25 year mark, I will not deal with another car newer than 25 years old, just to avoid emissions hassles. For whatever reason, I just always have those crop up when I am already crazy busy. SO done with that.
I never had an older / original Legacy, but we did have an 01 Forester for my wife. I could out maneuver it with my EA wagons, and all the newer versions are even bigger. Ok, didn't have to do the timing belts as often, but the DIY cost was nearly 5 times higher.
Both of us can tell where the EA is on the road & parking a lot better than with the newer rounded cars.
I can get bigger things into the back of my EA wagon than any of the newer models I've checked. Not by a lot, but a few items, it mattered.
Do not want AWD forcing me to always run 4 identically worn tires. Bigger tires are more $ also, so not interested.
I've also added lighting to my wife's Foresters, and now Impreza. [We replaced her 09Forester with an 09 Impreza recently, as she could not get used to the bigger rounder shape. Horrible time parking, etc.] What a PITA! all the wiring is hidden, even under the hood.
Even though I am an electronics engineer [or maybe because I am one...] I don't want MORE computers to maintain and deal with in my vehicles. One for the ECU is ok, but that's enough.
I don't drive tons of miles a year. I know the EA and have acquired or made all the tools I need to do nearly everything with them. Don't need to start over. It's now also just one of my hobby things - see how long I can keep running them. Because I can.