Sometimes being ahead your time can kill a business because there aren’t enough customers that understand to sustain you. On the other hand, if you can round up enough true believers you might just hang in there until the world begins to see things your way. Fortunately for Subaru, the latter seems to have been the case and the 2016 Legacy sedan is a perfect case in point.
Subaru has always been one of those slightly oddball brands that did things a bit differently from the volume leaders like Toyota, Honda or GM. From the mini-El Camino BRAT pickup of the 1970s to the quirky XT coupe of the early-1980s to the surprisingly sophisticated SVX Subarus stood out from the crowd. In the 1990s Subaru demonstrated the benefits of all-wheel-drive to the world through its success in the World Rally Championship in much the same way as Audi did with Quattro. Through all of these efforts, Subaru nurtured a hardcore group of fans especially in regions of the country where bad weather is a regular occurrence.
Over the past decade or so, Subaru has recognized the appeal of its cars came more from the sure-footed traction and boxer engines than quirky styling so it has emphasized the safety and efficiency of its machines while going more mainstream with the looks. The result has been steady growth ever since the recession and a seventh consecutive year of record sales, hitting almost 583,000 in 2015.
By Subaru’s traditional standards the Legacy sedan is probably the most conventional looking car the company has ever built. Like much of the current crop of midsize sedans, Subaru adopted the four-door coupe-like profile where the roofline sweeps back directly into the trunklid. The flanks have been deeply sculpted to give the car a forward-leaning stance and everything blends together into a well-integrated whole. The Legacy isn’t really going to stand out from the best of the current crowd of family sedans like say the Mazda6, but it’s also not going to disappear into the background like Camrys of previous generations. It also doesn’t look as forced as the current-generation Camry.
Inside, the Legacy has plenty of room for five with ample leg and headroom in the back and a good-sized 15-cubic foot trunk. The seats are comfortable and the materials are nicely finished. As a proper all-weather car, the cloth front seats were heated and a dual-zone climate control system comes with the mid-level 2.5i Premium trim. The materials are well executed and the thick-rim of the steering wheel was wrapped in leather.
Like all current Subarus except for the BRZ coupe, the Legacy has full-time all-wheel-drive that nominally distributes the torque equally to all four corners. When things start to get dicey, an electronic control system manages the central clutch to redistribute the torque to the wheels with the most traction.
Speaking of torque, all but the top 3.6R Limited trim get a normally aspirated 2.5-liter boxer four-cylinder engine. With 175-horsepower and 174 lb.-ft. of torque the base engine offers plenty of grunt for all normal driving conditions although you won’t mistake this for a sports sedan. Unfortunately, only one transmission is available, a continuously variable unit that does offer manual shift control through six pre-programmed ratios using steering wheel mounted paddles. In automatic mode, the CVT does exhibit the motor-boating effect (the engine revs up to a constant speed and stays there as the CVT adjusts the ratios while accelerating) that many might not like, but the engine isn’t too loud and thus not too bothersome.
When the Eyesight adaptive cruise control or emergency braking activates the brakes, they light up on the icon in the instrument cluster
If you’re looking for a sedan with a bit more dynamic flair on curvy roads, you’ll likely appreciate the Mazda6 or Ford Fusion more than the Subaru. The steering is a bit on the light side but the brakes are firm and the ride quality is well controlled. However, if you’re more concerned about control regardless of what Mother Nature lays down, Subaru has you covered.
An increasingly important aspect of all new cars is the electronic advanced driver assist systems (ADAS). As a stepping stone to future autonomous vehicles and just generally a good safety and convenience feature, ADAS is becomes more ubiquitous. In its usual fashion, Subaru has taken a slightly different approach to the problem and it works surprisingly well. Most other manufacturers use a radar sensor to measure the speed and distance to the car ahead for adaptive cruise control and a single optical camera to look for lane markings for the lane departure warning.
Subaru has developed a unique dual camera system dubbed Eyesight. Just as our brains use the different views from our two eyes for depth perception, Eyesight uses the two cameras for the same purpose. I found the system to work very well for the adaptive cruise control and forward collision detection and it will bring the car down to a full stop unlike some radar-based systems that only work down to 20 mph. Unlike, the radar systems that can covered up road crud in the winter, the Eyesight cameras are behind the swept area of the windshield.
The dual Subaru Eyesight cameras sit just above and on either side of the inside mirror
In addition to the adaptive cruise control, collision warning and automatic emergency braking, Eyesight enables lane departure warning and prevention. For 2016, Subaru added the ability for the electric steering assist to nudge the car back into the lane if it is drifting out. Radar sensors in the rear corners provide blindspot monitoring and cross traffic alert when backing out of a parking space.
Overall the Legacy is an excellent option in the midsize sedan segment, especially for those that live in snowy regions of the country. Unlike the Fusion which only offers all-wheel-drive on premium models, every Legacy gets it standard. Other currently available mainstream midsizers in the U.S. are front-wheel-drive only.
The Legacy starts at just $21,745 and even the six-cylinder 3.6R Limited starts at just under $30,000. Including the $2,990 option package that brought a moonroof, navigation and the Eyesight system, my tester stickered at a very reasonable $27,930 with delivery. The EPA rates the 2.5-liter Legacy at 26 mpg city, 36 mpg highway and 30 mpg combined with my car delivering 27 mpg in mostly around town driving. If you want extra traction in a handsome family sedan and don’t feel like a crossover, the Legacy is far and away the best choice.
Click here for full specifications of the 2016 Subaru Legacy
