2020 Subaru Legacy vs 2021 Honda Civic

The 2020 Subaru Legacy presented a conundrum with its styling. While it was a handsome car, it struggled to stand out among competitors like the Honda Accord and Toyota Camry. The Legacy featured sharp angles and details, but its design felt smaller and less bold. The front end, in particular, appeared compact, making it easy to mistake for a Subaru Impreza. Despite its pragmatic sensibility, Subaru aimed to go mainstream with the Legacy, but the design fell short of making a strong impression.

Inside, the Legacy boasted a massive 11.6-inch touchscreen, but many features were buried within the digital interface, complicating simple controls like climate and radio. The base trim came well-equipped with features like remote keyless entry, Bluetooth connectivity, and dual 7-inch touchscreens. The Premium trim, which we drove, added 17-inch alloy wheels, a leather-wrapped steering wheel, and dual-zone automatic climate control. Higher trims like the Sport, Limited, and Touring XT offered additional features, including a more powerful turbocharged engine in the XT versions.

The 2021 Honda Civic, on the other hand, continued to build on its segment-defining legacy. Available in sedan, hatchback, and performance-tuned Type R formats, the Civic offered a range of options. The two-door coupe was discontinued, and the sporty Civic Si was on hiatus. The Civic sedan came in LX, Sport, EX, EX-L, and Touring trims, with our test car being the Touring sedan in Cosmic Blue Metallic paint. The Civic's styling, while polarizing, had become familiar over the years, and the Touring trim's 18-inch wheels and appealing blue paint added to its charm.

Inside, the Civic's interior, though not as dramatic as when it first debuted, still featured quality materials and thoughtful detailing. The maximum infotainment screen size was 7 inches, which felt dated compared to newer models. However, the Civic's cabin remained comfortable and practical, with a spacious trunk and ample storage space in the center console. The Touring trim offered additional features like navigation and a premium audio system, enhancing the overall driving experience.

The 2020 Subaru Legacy offered a 2.5-liter boxer 4-cylinder engine in its base, Premium, Sport, and Limited trims, producing 182 horsepower and 176 pound-feet of torque. This engine was paired with a continuously variable transmission (CVT) and standard all-wheel drive (AWD). The Legacy's powertrain was responsive, making it suitable for city driving, but it struggled to reach highway speeds without significant noise. For those seeking more power, the Limited XT and Touring XT trims featured a 2.4-liter turbocharged boxer 4-cylinder engine, delivering 260 horsepower and 270 pound-feet of torque. The Legacy's chassis offered precise cornering and refined ride quality, making it a pleasure to drive.

The 2021 Honda Civic, in its LX and Sport trims, came with a 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine producing 158 horsepower and 138 pound-feet of torque. This engine was paired with a CVT driving the front wheels. However, the turbocharged 1.5-liter four-cylinder engine, available in EX, EX-L, and Touring trims, provided 174 horsepower and 162 pound-feet of torque, making the Civic more powerful and enjoyable to drive. The Civic's sophisticated suspension and steering offered excellent ride and handling qualities, but the CVT's droning noise and unsophisticated gear lever detracted from the overall experience. Despite these drawbacks, the Civic's fuel economy was impressive, averaging 34.8 mpg on a 140-mile driving loop.

The 2020 Subaru Legacy offered solid trunk space for its class at 15.1 cubic feet, though it couldn't compete with crossovers like the Subaru Forester. The backseat provided ample head- and legroom, accommodating taller passengers comfortably. The front seats were supportive, and the cabin featured deep pockets for storage. However, the center stack's small tray made plugging in USB cables a bit challenging.

The 2021 Honda Civic sedan sat low to the ground, making entry and exit a bit of a workout. Once inside, the driver's seat offered eight-way power adjustment, but the front passenger seat lacked height adjustment. The Civic's interior was roomy, with excellent thigh support and a comfortable backrest angle. The center console provided remarkable storage space, and the trunk offered 15.1 cubic feet of cargo space, slightly reduced to 14.7 cubic feet in the Touring trim due to the premium sound system.

The 2020 Subaru Legacy featured an 11.6-inch touchscreen with the Starlink infotainment system. While the icons were large and easy to read, basic functions like adjusting heated seats and climate controls required multiple steps, making the system cumbersome. The portrait orientation of the screen also scrunched Apple CarPlay, reducing its usability. Unfortunately, this system was present in all trims except the base, which had its own set of issues with a dual-screen setup.

The 2021 Honda Civic's technology showed its age, with the LX trim offering a 5-inch LCD screen, Bluetooth, and a basic USB port. The Sport trim upgraded to a 7-inch high-definition touchscreen, Apple CarPlay, Android Auto, and an eight-speaker sound system. Higher trims like the EX and Touring added features like HD Radio, SiriusXM, navigation, and a premium audio system. However, the voice recognition system in the Touring trim was unsophisticated, requiring specific prompts for successful operation.

The 2020 Subaru Legacy came standard with Subaru’s EyeSight suite of driver-assistance features, including forward-collision warning, lane-departure warning, and adaptive cruise control. The system used a head-up light system for alerts and included a helpful feature that alerted drivers when the car in front started moving. Other standard safety features included airbags, traction control, a reversing camera, and a tire pressure monitoring system (TPMS).

The 2021 Honda Civic was equipped with Honda Sensing, which included adaptive cruise control, forward collision warning, automatic emergency braking, lane departure warning, Road Departure Mitigation, and a Lane Keeping Assist System. The Civic also featured automatic high-beam headlights and a multi-angle reversing camera. LaneWatch, available starting with EX trim, used a camera to monitor the right lane but had several drawbacks, including susceptibility to damage and limited functionality. The Civic earned a Top Safety Pick designation from the IIHS and received five-star ratings from the NHTSA in every assessment.