Legacy gives luxury Europeans run for their money

Subaru's hoping for a vintage year with its features-laden GT spec.B range. Photo / Phil Hanson

The only thing missing is a high price tag.

Subaru's newest Legacy GT is less of a beast in its latest guise, as the company sets its sights on performance versions of European luxury marques.

The performance is still there, and indeed improved compared to the last version, but it's delivered in a luxury package that puts the car up there with comparable Audi, BMW and Mercedes models - without the "European" price tags.

The goodies-laden Legacy GT spec.B Premium costs $65,990 as a sedan with either manual or automatic; $2000 more for the wagon. The "ordinary" spec.B costs $59,990 and $61,990 respectively. Comparable Euro cars like the Audi A4 2.0 TFSI Quattro are $90,000 and above.

For years, Subaru has been considered one of the most "European" of the Japanese manufacturers, notably for its innovative engineering and excellent driving dynamics.

The GT range is the last of the latest Legacy/Outback models to reach New Zealand because some aspects of its engineering and electronics needed to be fully sorted for the Kiwi market. This included for the Premium model a sophisticated package of Bluetooth connections including audio streaming, voice-activated satnav and a reversing camera. The Bluetooth and satnav are up with the best from Europe. A 10-speaker premium McIntosh audio system and DVD player ice the goodies cake.

The 2.5 litre turbo boxer four cylinder engine now produces 195kW compared to its predecessor's 184kW. But the big improvement is in torque, now a maximum of 350Nm and available in a wide band from 2400rpm to 5200rpm. The previous version produced 339Nm at 3600rpm on the tachometer.

As a result, responses are quicker and flexibility is improved.

Subaru repositioned the turbocharger, which now has a bigger compressor, and is fed via a 25 per cent larger intercooler. It spools up to maximum boost a second quicker. These and other improvements make the new GTs quicker in the 0-100km/h dash, and at 6.2 seconds the five-speed auto has a 0.1 second edge on the six-speed manual.

Despite having more punch, the GTs consume up to 11 per cent less 95-octane petrol, and once again the auto is the slightly better performer at 9.7 litres/100km overall. The same car produces 228g/km of CO2, a 12 per cent drop.