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I'm asking here on the behalf of my uncle, who is considering a new car to replace his current one (a 2012 Chevy Impala). Which car is more comfortable and would be an overall better ownership experience for roughly seven or eight years-an Audi A4 or a Subaru Legacy?
By the way, other cars are being considered, although the A4 is practically the only luxury model being considered. I'll also disclose that this is a matter that is still completely up in the air, I'm mainly making this thread out of curiosity.
Unless he's considering an A4 allroad, the differences between the two are so stark it's hard to imagine why someone is cross-shopping the two. What exactly is he looking for in a vehicle anyway?
Location / climate / driving conditions?
Age?
Family? / Solo?
Driving style (sport or passive)?
# miles / yr?
Maintenance habits?
Dealer / repair / service availability?
As mentioned these are very different vehicles.
Drive them under specific conditions and terrain, and see what best fits. I know which best fits me. (Driving style / performance expectations)
He lives in Texarkana, Texas.
He's 59.
He's solo, never been married and has never had children.
More passive.
Oh, high mileage for sure. Maybe around 20,000 a year.
He maintains his cars very well.
Dealers are kinda few and far where he lives, I'll admit. Nevertheless, the Audi and Subaru dealers are equidistant from him.
Subaru Legacy is a capable, comfortable, well packaged somewhat bland sedan. Competent but never inspiring, CVT blunts performance. Generally very good reliability but like any marque has some hiccups. Excellent standard safety systems and ratings, unmatched on road AWD. All new this year with an upgraded chassis, interior and drivetrain.
Audi A4 is a great handling, sporty drivetrain, great tech, comfortable and inspiring high speed cruiser, great AWD, safety systems (options) and ratings. Finicky but not horrible German reliability and maintenance requirements. New, will have a 25% premium over the Legacy. Used, a 35% greater depreciation (original price).
If you (your Uncle) isn’t hung up on prestige or daily performance style driving the Legacy will more than suffice. But if he doesn’t need AWD the Accord, Camry, Mazda 626 are more than worth a look as well.
Subaru Legacy is a capable, comfortable, well packaged somewhat bland sedan. Competent but never inspiring, CVT blunts performance. Generally very good reliability but like any marque has some hiccups. Excellent standard safety systems and ratings, unmatched on road AWD. All new this year with an upgraded chassis, interior and drivetrain.
Audi A4 is a great handling, sporty drivetrain, great tech, comfortable and inspiring high speed cruiser, great AWD, safety systems (options) and ratings. Finicky but not horrible German reliability and maintenance requirements. New, will have a 25% premium over the Legacy. Used, a 35% greater depreciation (original price).
If you (your Uncle) isn’t hung up on prestige or daily performance style driving the Legacy will more than suffice. But if he doesn’t need AWD the Accord, Camry, Mazda 626 are more than worth a look as well.
Cars like that have been considered as well. Are they better than the Legacy?
Location: We_tside PNW (Columbia Gorge) / CO / SA TX / Thailand
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I will venture to say the A4 will be a whole lot more fun / comfortable.
Both should be similar in operational costs and longevity.
For a High use car in that location... I would find a resell 'fixed' VW Passat TDI ~40k miles. 50 mpg would pay-off pretty quickly and they are plentiful to find at the moment. (Manual tranny a bit tougher to locate). Friends with these cars really luv'em.
But... in Texas, I prefer my Kenworth with a Heavy Duty Deer Guard. (~3 strikes / yr)
Again... see what best fits. (I have Subies & VW, but I am not a true Subie fan)
I really like my kids and friends Audis, and they fit me very well.
My take is that the Accord can’t be beat. Not perfect, looks are subjective but I think it looks a little awkward in some angles but great powertrains- you still get CVT on the 1.5, 9 spd on the 2.0. The turbo DI engines of the Honda probably don’t have the durability of the Toyota hybrid/port injected/DI naturally aspirated 4 and 6 engines of the Camry but the Camry has well documented issues with its new 8 spd transmission. Mazda is the outlier, great handling, great looking, upgraded drivetrains and interior. Just doesn’t have the top tier status or as solid reliability of the others.
The Legacy XT (turbo) looks to be a solid proposition, but it is a brand new car. And there is a brand new Hyundai Sonata just released.
My take is that the Accord can’t be beat. Not perfect, looks are subjective but I think it looks a little awkward in some angles but great powertrains- you still get CVT on the 1.5, 9 spd on the 2.0. The turbo DI engines of the Honda probably don’t have the durability of the Toyota hybrid/port injected/DI naturally aspirated 4 and 6 engines of the Camry but the Camry has well documented issues with its new 8 spd transmission. Mazda is the outlier, great handling, great looking, upgraded drivetrains and interior. Just doesn’t have the top tier status or as solid reliability of the others.
The Legacy XT (turbo) looks to be a solid proposition, but it is a brand new car. And there is a brand new Hyundai Sonata just released.
I bought a Sonata last year. I cross-shopped it with two others: the Camry and the Accord. Both of the competitors were about $10,000 more for approximately the same features, and - this part is personal preference - I found the Sonata more comfortable in the driver's seat, as the other two sat "low" and - well - I'm not getting any younger. The only real hesitation is that, in the past, the Sonata had a poor reputation for quality, but my research told me that has changed in recent years (and they were offering an amazing warranty.)
To the OP: I'm about your uncle's age, and he might be more comfortable in the Sonata, especially as he moves into his 60s. Just an idea.
The overhauled 2020 Legacy is supposed to be a great car, and the model has been pretty reliable, plus it's also a bargain relative to the A4. The Audi has more prestige and will likely have better ride and handling though... ultimately *he* has to go through the candidates thoroughly in the showroom, sit in them, try out all the controls and go for a good test-drive to see what he thinks. My take would be that the Subaru is enough car for most people, would serve him well, and help to conserve his cash for retirement when the paychecks stop coming in. But if he has extra money, he might enjoy the perks of driving the Audi. One other car to try would be the Honda Accord - it's priced like the Subaru, a little less actually, and is a very sophisticated car for the price. The only thing really lacking in the Honda is AWD or a limited slip differential for the FWD, for mild driving, this isn't a big deal.
Last edited by OutdoorLover; 01-02-2020 at 08:19 AM..
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