The Best Yet
by David Finlay (29 Sep 06)

For a long time, the Legacy suffered from nondescript styling which seemed almost shy of admitting the excellent qualities which lay underneath. That changed markedly when the latest-generation model was introduced for the 2004 model year, and three years on Subaru has improved things still further in what it describes as "an extensive but subtle facelift".

There is no change to the basic line-up, which includes two-, 2.5- and three-litre engines and saloon, Sports Tourer (estate) and Outback (estate with more ground clearance) body styles. The most exciting cars are those with the 241bhp three-litre engine and Spec.B trim level, one of which we're testing here. There's no Outback version of the Spec.B, and of the remaining saloon and Sports Tourer options we've picked the latter since Subaru is convinced, from previous experience, that it will be the better seller.

This suggests that Legacy owners favour practicality. The saloon can carry 433 litres of luggage, but the Sports Tourer manages 459 litres even with all seats in place, and up to 1628 litres with a 1.97-metre load length if the rear seats are folded down.

These figures apply to any Legacy, regardless of engine. The added appeal of the 3.0 is of course its extra power, plus - in a new twist - the addition of a device called SI-Drive, which gives drivers the choice of three modes called Intelligent, Sport and Sport Sharp.

None of these affect what the engine itself does. In each mode full power is available, as is the increased low-speed torque Subaru has introduced to improve performance and driveability even though the maximum power figure has not been altered.

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