For the past 2 weeks, I’ve been motoring around town in our long-term 2016 Subaru Legacy, putting it through the rigors of daily life in Atlanta. While there have been a few disappointing features, such as the lack of impressive acceleration, most of my time behind the wheel of the Legacy has been a pleasure. Still, after piloting the Subaru during long commutes and even a short road trip, I have found that the Legacy isn’t without its quirks.
Low Gusto, High MPG
The first thing I noticed about the Subaru Legacy was its less-than-stellar acceleration. Even with the pedal slammed to the floor, the Legacy could barely match our 2015 Honda Fit. This might not matter to some, but I personally enjoy acceleration in abundance for situations such as merging onto the highway or passing slow-moving semis. There is a trade-off for the lack of power, however, as fuel economy and emissions are improved. In 2 weeks, I averaged around 28 miles per gallon in the Legacy, and that was after spending most of my time in bumper-to-bumper traffic. While these are not exactly hybrid-like numbers, they are respectable given the driving conditions.
Works for Me
The interior of the Legacy is highly attractive, with supple, tan leather seats and well-placed amenities within the cabin. The seats are only moderately comfortable, so while I had no issues with sitting for 2 hours in the car for a short road trip to the mountains of Tennessee, my girlfriend could not seem to get comfy in the front or back seats. Also, ventilated front seats would have been a welcome addition given the black exterior paint job and perforated leather upholstery of the Legacy. After all, darker colors do retain more heat, especially in the hot and hazy climate of the Southeast.
Tech Star
The technology of the 2016 Subaru Legacy is one of the more impressive aspects of the vehicle. I found the Starlink infotainment system very easy to use and virtually flawless when it came to syncing devices. There was just enough flexibility and interactivity within the Starlink system to make it easy to master, particularly being able to use hand gestures on the touchscreen to expand and swipe through maps in the navigation system. In addition, the Starlink system has one of the best-looking interfaces of any of the infotainment systems I’ve tested. Users will be able to tell that Subaru went the extra mile in developing this easy-to-use and visually pleasing system.
The Subaru EyeSight feature is also a great addition to the Legacy. The EyeSight system controls features such as forward-collision alert and automatic braking. These are great features for both everyday driving and road trips and really add value to the driving experience. The system is not without its limitations, however. In dark, wet, and foggy conditions, the EyeSight system has shut off completely, leaving the Legacy without some of its more desirable features. I personally had this issue on a particularly wet evening while driving to pick up some groceries. Eventually, I figured out it can occasionally be rectified by turning on the fog lights so the EyeSight system can see the road ahead more effectively. While this might seem like a minor inconvenience, this is the only system of its kind with which I’ve experienced this issue. Also, idiosyncrasies like this make me doubt the reliability of the EyeSight system and its connected features. It seems only time will tell if this is just a minor shortcoming of a well-designed system or technology that was not fully prepared for the variability of Mother Nature.
