With more and more NEW customers being drawn to Subaru and flat four engines, some of us that have been dealing with Subaru engines for years, need to learn to be nice to the new guys
The reason for it being funny is that graphic shows oil in the engine as though it rides behind the pistons and its always lubing them. This is not the case, and in no engine does the oil level ride on the pistons or rods. In fact it doesn't even ride on the crank. If that graphic came from an engine oil manufacture, they should be bombed!
In these engines, oil gets squirted or flung at the pistons and piston walls that that is what keeps them lubed. There are pistons rings that keep the oil from getting into the combustion chamber. But keep in mind this is how all engines work, not just Subaru engines. The only difference is the pistons are arranged differently.
Yes the pistons are laying on piston walls, which sounds bad at start up,but within a couple of cranks, oil is being squirted onto the back of the pistons, and lubes them up. Again, this is normal for all engines. The other thing is its not like these are new engines. Subaru has been building these for a very long time and its not uncommon to see Subaru or Porsche engines with well beyond 150k miles.
Now if the issue is friction while running, well Subaru (like many) uses offset wrist pins on their pistons. This helps offset some of the load on the piston as its being pushed back and forth also reducing friction.
It may seem as though their is an inherent flaw with the flat four engine and added friction, but proof is in the years and miles put on these engines.
Hope that helps answer the question better.