Subaru Legacy

– Cleveland, Ohio

The 2016 Subaru Legacy, in fact this particular Subaru Legacy 2.5i Premium with EyeSight, is the best midsize sedan for most people. Despite what you hear about this segment being ultra competitive and cars like the Toyota Camry and Honda Accord being far and away the best, I’m here to tell you that’s all marketing and hype. If you’re in the market for a do-everything four-door that’s incredibly safe, efficient, and affordable, the Legacy is your best choice.

That’s the conclusion I came to at my last job where I spent many months researching midsize sedans, poring over data points and taking the top contenders out for test drives. The result was this 10,000+ word opus in which the Legacy rose right to the top.

Pros

• There’s no other midsize sedan that stacks up better on paper. The Legacy comes standard with Subaru’s excellent all-wheel-drive system, an option that could easily cost a couple of thousand dollars extra on the few other midsize sedans that even offer it. And despite those extra moving parts, the Legacy is tied for being the second most fuel-efficient car in the segment (its 30 mpg combined is the same as the Mazda6 and only 1 mpg behind the Nissan Altima and Chevy Malibu). Lastly, it’s incredibly affordable. I calculated you would need to spend $7,000 to $10,000 more than a Legacy 2.5i Premium (with EyeSight but sans navigation) to get a comparably equipped competitor.
• Let’s talk about EyeSight. It’s Subaru’s suite of advanced safety systems t...