It growls, almost as if it's chewing up the road ahead. And then when you shift gears, it gives a kind of a cough, the way a turbocharged engine does. When you hear this engine, you can almost see the blue rally cars coming toward you through the trees. It makes us think of WRC rally champion Petter Solberg, and we can practically see his face as he turned to us and laughed — and since we were a couple of feet in the air in a WRX rally car, there was plenty to laugh about.
So these are the sounds that Subaru's turbocharged 2.5-liter boxer-4 makes, a soundtrack so familiar to anyone who has spent time around an Impreza WRX. The only thing you ask yourself is what this engine is doing in this grown-up American-style sedan, the 2010 Subaru Legacy 2.5GT?
Bigness and the Backseat
Probably for as long as any of us can remember, Subaru has been trying to show the world that it's more than a fringe player from Subaru City, a place in Japan that is near, well, it's actually not near anyplace. And now with the 2010 Subaru Legacy 2.5GT, the little company has an opportunity to get on equal footing with Honda, Mazda and Toyota.
When the planning began for the current crop of sedans some five years or so ago, most of the Japanese-label sedans were preparing to abandon their international-size platforms and adopt dimensions scaled for Americans. And so in the same way that the Honda Accord and Mazda 6 have been scaled up for the corn-fed inhabitants of this country, so, too, the Subaru Legacy's wheelbase has been stretched 3.2 inches to 108.3 inches. The car now measures 1.4 inches longer at 186.4 inches overall, plus it's about 3 inches more in its other dimensions, some 71.7 inches wide and 59.3 inches tall.
There are 103 cubic feet of passenger volume within the 2010 Subaru Legacy, a huge amount. At the same time, you most notice the increase in the rear seat, where legroom has increased nearly 4 inches. It is perhaps the curse of being American that we seem to measure space-efficiency by the size of our sedan's backseat, even though hardly anyone packs the whole family into the sedan for a trip to grandma's house when there's a crossover utility vehicle sitting right next to it in the garage.
And we shouldn't forget about the turbocharged, intercooled 2,457cc boxer-4, which delivers 265 horsepower at 5,600 rpm (it gets noisy when you go there) and 258 pound-feet of torque between 2,000 rpm and 5,200 rpm (where it's happy). The 2.5GT's all-wheel-drive system has a viscous-type center differential and distributes torque 50 percent front/50 percent rear.
American Cruising
The 2010 Subaru Legacy seems to love the American highway. It looks kind of bold and upright, like a traditional American car. Actually, it might look a little too upright thanks to the high hood line required to meet forthcoming pedestrian impact standards, and even the gorgeous headlights, hood scoop and extended rocker sills can't quite deliver a long, lean look.
The Legacy seems a little traditional, as plain as Lafayette, Indiana, where the car is built.
Though this 2.5GT wears 45-series 18-inch tires, it rides pretty happily on asphalt (though not concrete), and it's resilient, albeit a bit springy in the same fashion as the Subaru Impreza. There's some tire roar from the summer-performance Bridgestone RE050As, but the turbocharged boxer-4 is smooth, although growly, in that typical Subie way. In fact, the car registers only 59 dBA while cruising at 70 mph — far, far quieter than a Mazda 6, in fact.
At the same time, the Legacy seems a little traditional in the American style while you're behind the wheel, as the color palette and materials and even the architecture are as plain as Lafayette, Indiana, where the car is built. The GT has a slightly tougher performance-style aspect inside the cabin than the plain (2.5i) or fancy (3.6R Limited) examples of the Legacy we've driven, yet it's still a step behind the competition.
American Speed
You'd never guess that the 2010 Subaru Legacy has any speed in its soul. It's packing 3,586 pounds now (not that much more, yet still a lot), and the persistent torque reaction from the front end as you lay into the throttle and the tendency of the car to bound over bumps combine to detune your enthusiasm when you're pressing toward the big numbers on the speedometer. But it turns out that the Legacy is quicker and faster than you think.
To get to 60 mph takes 5.7 seconds (5.4 seconds with 1 foot of rollout like on a drag strip), and if you don't abuse the clutch during the getaway and leave the traction control engaged, the time lengthens only to 6.4 seconds. The quarter-mile comes up in 14.0 seconds at 99.3 mph.
Nevertheless, the 2010 Subaru Legacy 2.5GT doesn't seem like a platform that loves fast driving, especially compared to the former model. There's just not quite enough precision from the steering, and the rear end of the car might be a bit too lively for a sedan of this scale. And yet perhaps this is really a matter of taste, as we recorded an excellent 67.7 mph in our slalom test once we disengaged the stability control. The front end feels a bit soft initially, yet this helps the car carve through the slalom gates, and you'll never feel any understeering compromise from the setup of this all-wheel-drive car.
Not for Grown-Ups
The Legacy is so big now that you expect it to be more helpmate than playmate. You know, there's that big backseat and then that trunk of 14.7 cubic feet. But we still found ourselves on a narrow little road in the middle of nowhere, perhaps longing for those days when a Legacy sedan felt more like an Impreza WRX sedan with a certificate from charm school.
And what should we discover but a little of the old magic. The initial roll from the front end that feels like imprecision at speed helps the car turn quickly into slow corners, and the car then arcs around with its nose down and tail up while holding its line effortlessly. Then as it reaches the exit, the Legacy seems to spring up on its suspension and bound forward, now on an even keel and ready for the next corner.
We could see evidence of this goodness on the skid pad, where the car delivers 0.84g of cornering grip, and indeed the stability control is so finely calibrated that the Legacy achieves the same performance whether the system is engaged or not. Even the Legacy's braking seems to measure up, as a relatively soft pedal action doesn't keep it from coming to a stop on its relatively sticky 225/45R18 91W Bridgestone RE050As in just 111 feet, which the car does time and again without fading.
We confess there were moments when we almost could hear Spaniards cheering for us in the mountains behind Barcelona (they had neglected to paint any encouraging messages on the pavement here in the Santa Monica Mountains, however).
And then we shifted the six-speed manual transmission, and the dream evaporated. This is the best shift linkage ever from a Subaru, so our in-house Subie expert tells us, with more positive action and smoother engagement, and yet you still need help from the GPS to find the shift gates when you're going quickly.
The Subaru Connection
The 2010 Subaru Legacy 2.5GT is very much the grown-up car that Subaru has been seeking, more in tune with the way Americans drive (and the way Americans eat, which is what makes us so big). But when you stack it up against the competition, it's also very much in the same place as before. It's as big as the other guys, has the right kind of features and comes in the right kind of trim levels, and yet it's still a half step behind in refinement, style and driving enjoyment.
What makes the Legacy 2.5GT interesting is the same thing that has always made a Subaru special — quirkiness. It's got a funny engine that is very vocal, all-wheel drive that's effective when the weather is terrible or when the roads are fun, and an overall personality that's pleasantly off the beam. The turbo 2.5GT is also quicker than the underpowered Legacy 2.5i and more fun than the expensive Legacy 3.6R.
If you're hoping to find a WRX, you won't find it here, as the Legacy 2.5GT is a little too big and a little too nice to be the aggressive sport sedan of your dreams. And yet the 2.5GT is far less grown up than its mainstream competition from Honda and Mazda (and even the Acura TSX) — after all, it offers you a manual transmission, doesn't it? It's a kind of quirky combination of qualities, but Subaru people love that quirkiness and (perhaps most of all) love explaining that quirkiness to others.
The manufacturer provided Edmunds this vehicle for the purposes of evaluation.
Add A Comment »
tomb57 says:
03:04 PM, 11/03/2009
After driving the car for a week more, I have a few observations. The short throw STI stick is fine, the car is quick(my last car was a 335i ... a moment of silence in memory of that great car), but I will be looking to add koni sports or FSD's to address rebound damping, which I believe is too soft. Funny that according to even edmunds inside line tests, its notably faster than all the competition(mazdas, nissans, acura TSX V6 etc) in the slalom, around the skid pad, and in a straight line. It also has much better fade free braking performance(111ft from 60mph is BMW 3er, G37 territory, compared with ~130 ft for the TSX, mazda, Nissan "competition"). I loved my 335i sport pack, but I was pleasantly suprised that the brakes of this legacy arent that far off in stopping power. At ~30K(actual price) for the limited GT, there just isnt another car out there that can be a family and sport sedan with all that the performance and room inside. And in addition its a terriffic bad weather car(the 335i was definitely not one of those). The steering feel falls short of the mazda, but the bridgestone RE050A tires are notoriously soft and vague in feel in tire performance tests(see tire rack). They(RE050A) are near the bottom of their class in feel, and handling performance. I can hardly wait to put some michelins and Koni sports on! No its not close to the 335i, but I certainly like it better than the "competition" put forth by honda/acura, nissan, and mazda. Funny also that edmunds editors comment on the legacy GT's "weight gain", but its still 200lb lighter than the 3700 lb FWD mazda V6!
tomb57 says:
08:12 PM, 10/30/2009
I bought the legacy GT with the STI short throw shift kit, it shifts MUCH better than stock and cost only $400 discounted. Edmunds should have done their homework and got that shifter. the car does feel lik a bigger sedan, but corners flat with little body roll and doesnt float at all. I have to admit that if I bought a car on looks only I'd buy a chrysler, nissan, acura, or mazda, not a subaru. But I was tired of V6 front drivers that torque steer and understeer in the corners and I didnt want a wimpy 4 cyl TSX since I often drive above 5K elevation where you lose 30+ hp off a normally aspirated engine. At those higher elevations, turbocharged cars rule, they dont lose much if anything at all. In the mountains all those other cars, mazda V6's, toyotas, nissans, acuras, will lose a ton of power and not be able to get but a distant rear view of the legacy anyway, LOL. And at 30K for a GT limited with moonroof and all the options except nav, it was a very good price, camry, altima or accord territory, not TSX territory.
malik14 says:
07:19 AM, 10/25/2009
Style: 7
Perfomance: 8
Value: 7
Overall: 22 out of 30
szos says:
10:29 AM, 10/21/2009
Subaru was the last hold-out in this insane bloat-game that every other automaker is caught up in. Their cars were slightly smaller - but guess what... SOME OF US LIKE SMALL CARS.
My WRX has a smallish backseat, but I don't freakin' care. I barely use it... having to live with a large car ALL the time for those rare times that I might need to seat 3 or possibly even 4 is not worth it. I don't need every damn car on the market to be the size of a boat.
The old Legacy not only looked better, but was a great size for people that were looking for something with more room than the Impreza, but not quite the land-barge that cars like the Accord and Camry have become. Mazda is also guilty of making their latest cars (6) balloon in size.
TPAWRX says:
01:20 PM, 10/20/2009
I agree it just looks plain ugly in these photos. Subaru's current model line up just looks too bland and boring. It's a if the Legacy is trying to look as Japanese as possible, imitating Toyota, Nissan and Mazda with out creating it's own identity. Surprisingly the front end looks like the car's best angle. Come on Subaru set up your style game!
famof3kids says:
09:22 AM, 10/20/2009
Being a long time Subaru fan and owning many since the mid-80's I was excited when I saw the design on the car show circuit. Of course, the actual model is watered down.
In person, the car does have an odd shape. Reminds me of the B9 Tribeca mistake. Of course, now as even Caddy is in the wagon game, Subaru continues not to offer the Legacy wagon in the US.
I drove a $33k 3.6R. I was not impressed at all. Acutally I was disappointed. I thought it had a rough ride, made odd powertrain noises, and had no sense of quality. It did not impress me any more than a 1991 Legacy LSi. I also noted that the front bumper color was a mismatch on all the red ones on the dealer lot.
I'm up for a new car here shortly. Looks like I'll be looking at a $37k Ford Taurus SHO instead.
dalaw says:
12:26 AM, 10/20/2009
The old one looks a lot better
buickboy92 says:
10:46 AM, 10/19/2009
Excellent 0-60! excellent look, excellent sound, and an excellent car! Subaru did great with this new Legacy! I really love it!
94_gsr_cpe says:
08:55 AM, 10/19/2009
When I turn 30 I'll consider it....but I can't help but prefer the youthful frivolities offered by the WRX.
bankerdanny says:
07:37 AM, 10/19/2009
The 6-speed is all well and good, but let's face it, Subaru is not competing with the 328 or A4 here. As you correctly point out, the Camry, Mazda 6, and Accord (and the Malibu, which you didn't maneytion) are the primary target here and what percentage of those are sold with a manual? 10%? 5%? Does the GT offer Subaru's rarely seen 5-speed auto? If not it will remain firmly in 5th place.
You don't have to want a sports sedan to want a car with enough power to get out of its own way (and as a Subabru owner I can tell you that the standard 2.5/auto combo in my '07 Forester doesn't really qualify). The turbo engine should be the most common upgrade for legacy buyers, but without a decent auto box it remains a niche car for a niche crowd.