Last year’s Automotive Journalists Association of Canada Car of the Year award winner was a mid-size sedan with impeccable road manners, so it’s little wonder that AJAC’s 2015 COTY went to another car in this category – the 2015 Subaru Legacy.
I was standing with a group from Subaru when we heard the announcement at February’s Canadian International Auto Show in Toronto, so I asked for a test drive then and there. Several weeks later, I drove away from Subaru’s Mississauga, ON office in a 2.5i Limited Package with Technology Option.
First impressions
Clad in Lapis Blue Pearl, my tester was a handsome car from any angle. Not overly flashy, just refined, a little bulky in all the right spots. My eyes immediately lit upon the large (18” by 7.5”) aluminum alloy black wheels.
Interior
The Legacy’s exterior size leads to what you’d expect inside: a big, roomy sedan. It’s the first time in memory I haven’t had to push the seat all the way back to fit comfortably in a car. (That’s why I didn’t feel the need to work much with the 10-way power adjustable seat.) Even more amazingly, my head didn’t touch the moonroof.
Subtly classy design touches coddled me beyond the leather seats, steering wheel and shift knob. Heated seats (front and back) and woodgrain accents add to the atmosphere.
The trunk was massive, easily passing my hockey bag test.
The lovely blue paint job? Unfortunately obscured by the effects of Canadian weather in February.
Keyless opening made it easier for me to put the bag inside. My sticks would have fit diagonally if I didn’t have extenders on them. (Did I mention I’m tall?) They went instead into a huge back seat that I almost found comfortable. (My head touched the ceiling since it slopes down to the rear window right above the seat back. That’s par for the course in most cars. People of average height won’t have that problem.)
Driving
The Legacy meets its unstated promise of a comfortable ride with aplomb. The 2.5L DOHC Boxer engine produces 175 HP at 5,800 RPM and all the oomph I needed on my errands. The suspension soaked up the worst of the abuse Toronto’s winter-weary roads threw at it, from wood-slat temporary “bridges” covering transit work to roads that scream out to be repaved.
Road conditions were too good during my week with the Legacy to put any of its road-hugging technology to the test. I presume it’s just as sure-wheeled thanks to the symmetrical all-wheel drive it shares with most of its stablemates.
Calm driving (asterisk here – see below) helped me achieve fuel economy just under 10L per 100km. Subaru claims combined city/highway numbers of 9.0 L/100 km and 6.5 L/100 km. I didn’t get to take the Legacy very far, but its 70L tank ought to provide great highway range.
The Legacy probably delivers better fuel economy if you let the continuously variable transmission (CVT) shift gears, but it also includes steering-wheel-mounted paddle shifters that drivers can use to slosh through six preprogrammed (artificial) gears for a sportier experience. Needless to say, I had some fun with the shifters.
In-car technology
The Subaru ships with a touchscreen featuring plenty of standard-issue apps. They’re easily accessible from the 7″ dashboard-mounted touchscreen. Big icons make it easy to know what you’re doing with the merest of glances away from the road ahead.
For the audiophiles, this “head unit” led to a Harman Kardon® 12-speaker sound system boosted by a 576-watt amplifier. It also integrates with Subaru’s Starlink smartphone app to enable streaming audio from select mobile apps.
Safety technology
Even years after Subaru introduced it, the EyeSight driver-assist technology is still class-leading stuff. I first tested it (under the watchful eye of Subaru Technica International representatives) in December 2002, and I gave myself a reminder of its effectiveness when merging on a highway right after I picked up the car.
I had to slow down since traffic was slow in the merge lanes that day. I took my foot off the brake to let the Legacy decelerate to match the speed of the vehicle in front of me, but it still beeped at me. The small screen between the tachometer and the speedometer warned me I was a bit close to the car in front of me. That’s the first warning EyeSight gives the driver. It was all I needed.
That little screen I mentioned shows a number of useful things, from safety warnings to fuel consumption to the next turn I needed to take, in a very handy place. Switches on the lower left side of the steering wheel let the driver cycle through those views and keep from averting one’s eyes off the road for too long.
Back to EyeSight: I glanced up at the assembly just in front of the sunglass pocket on the ceiling, recalling the two cameras and other equipment housed there. EyeSight also delivers adaptive cruise control, meant to maintain safe following distances even in stop-and-go traffic. Pre-collision throttle management keeps drivers from accelerating into a stationary object.
Throw in blind-spot detection with lane-change assist plus rear cross-traffic alerts and it’s hard to get in trouble on the road or backing out of a space in a parking lot. (Several times that trip, and on several others, I deliberately began to depart from my lane when the neighbouring lane was clear, just to set off EyeSight’s lane departure warning. That’s about as much trouble as I would let myself cause.)
In the same way rear-view cameras are set to become standard equipment on new cars, I hope such collision avoidance technology follows suit.
This year’s award-winning sixth-generation Legacy will set buyers back $32,395 MSRP. Buyers can opt for other trim levels, including models powered by 3.6 L 6-cylinder engines.
Subaru claims 96 per cent of Legacys sold in Canada over the past 10 years are still on the road today. With manners like those of this car, I can understand why owners would hold on to their Subys.