2020 Subaru Legacy vs 2020 Toyota Corolla

The 2020 Toyota Corolla, with its redesigned look, was not considered particularly attractive, resembling "malevolent aliens suffering hunger pangs." However, the SE or XSE trims with the Celestite paint color were seen as more appealing, and the overall design was more palatable compared to other Toyota sedans. Inside, the Corolla XSE showed significant improvements in perceived quality, replacing cheap plastics with soft-touch surfaces. Despite these upgrades, the transmission shifter reminded drivers of the Corolla's economy car status. The base price started at $19,600, with the top XSE trim costing around $28,800.

The 2020 Subaru Legacy, while handsome, struggled to stand out with its pragmatic design. It had sharp angles and details but lacked the boldness of competitors like the Honda Accord and Toyota Camry. The front end appeared small, almost compact, which was a drawback for some. Inside, the Legacy featured a massive 11.6-inch touchscreen, but many controls were buried within the digital interface, complicating simple tasks. The Legacy came in six trims, with the Premium trim offering a good balance of features, including the All-Weather Package. The top trims, Limited XT and Touring XT, featured a more powerful turbocharged engine and additional luxury features.

The 2020 Toyota Corolla offered a 1.8-liter 4-cylinder engine with 139 horsepower for the L, LE, and XLE trims, paired with a CVT. The SE and XSE trims had a more powerful 169-hp, 2.0-liter 4-cylinder engine, also with a CVT but with paddle shifters and a physical launch gear. The Corolla XSE's driving dynamics were well-tuned, providing a smooth and stable ride thanks to the independent rear suspension. However, the car struggled with acceleration, especially when passing or climbing hills. The EPA-rated fuel economy for the XSE was 31 mpg city, 38 highway, and 34 combined, with real-world testing averaging 29.8 mpg.

The 2020 Subaru Legacy's base, Premium, Sport, and Limited trims featured a 2.5-liter boxer 4-cylinder engine with 182 horsepower and 176 pound-feet of torque, paired with a CVT and standard AWD. The turbocharged 2.4-liter boxer 4-cylinder engine in the Limited XT and Touring XT produced 260 horsepower and 270 pound-feet of torque. The Legacy's chassis provided precise cornering and refined ride quality, but the base engine was noisy and required effort to reach highway speeds. The auto stop-start system was jarring, but it contributed to a fuel economy of 27 mpg city, 35 highway, and 30 combined, with real-world testing averaging 29 mpg. The turbocharged engine's fuel economy was slightly lower at 24 city, 32 highway, and 27 combined.

The 2020 Toyota Corolla, despite being a compact car, offered a roomy interior, officially rated as a midsize car by the EPA. However, the lack of rear air-conditioning vents, USB charging ports, and privacy-tinted rear glass made it uncomfortable for rear passengers, especially during a Southern California heat wave. The front seats were comfortable, but the low seating position made entry and exit challenging. Storage space was limited, with small cupholders and few storage bins. The trunk offered 13.1 cubic feet of space, enough for a couple of suitcases and additional bags.

The 2020 Subaru Legacy provided solid trunk space at 15.1 cubic feet, which was better than the previous model but still less than crossovers. The backseat offered impressive head- and legroom, accommodating taller passengers comfortably. The front seats were supportive, and the doors had deep pockets for storage. However, the center stack tray was small, making it difficult to plug in USB cables. The rear seats included in-door cupholders, a fold-down center armrest with additional cupholders, and rear USB ports in the test model.

The 2020 Toyota Corolla featured the Entune 3.0 infotainment system with Apple CarPlay compatibility, but not Android Auto. The system was user-friendly, with a high-mounted touchscreen, familiar volume and tuning knobs, and main menu access buttons. The voice-recognition system worked well with Apple CarPlay, and the USB port was conveniently located. Higher trims offered additional features like advanced voice recognition, HD Radio, SiriusXM, and a JBL premium sound system. However, Android users might find the system lacking.

The 2020 Subaru Legacy's Starlink infotainment system, with its 11.6-inch screen, was less user-friendly. Basic controls like heated seats and climate adjustments required multiple steps, making them cumbersome to use. The portrait orientation of the screen also scrunched Apple CarPlay into a third of the display. While the system had large, easy-to-read icons and no lag, the overall experience was frustrating. The base trim had a dual-screen setup with similar issues, leaving no escape from the complicated system.

The 2020 Toyota Corolla came standard with Toyota Safety Sense (TSS) 2.0, which included low-light pedestrian detection, daytime cyclist detection, road-sign recognition, and Lane Tracing Assist. The system operated with impressive refinement and accuracy, though the lane-departure warning alert was irritating. The Corolla also had a blind-spot monitoring system, standard on XLE and XSE trims and optional on LE and SE trims. The NHTSA gave the Corolla a 5-star rating for frontal-impact protection, and the IIHS named it a Top Safety Pick for 2019.

The 2020 Subaru Legacy featured 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, which was intuitive. EyeSight also included an alert for when the car in front started moving, helping to avoid traffic backups. Standard safety features included front- and side-impact airbags, traction control, a reversing camera, and a tire pressure monitoring system (TPMS).