Automotive takes five machines for a spin to test their mettle
SUBARU LEGACY B4
Most manufacturers take even their most plain-vanilla models and jazz them up to look as sporty as possible. Subaru goes the other way: it makes an exciting car and leaves the outside quite ordinary.
The new Subaru Legacy B4 does look smart on the outside, but apart from the mild air-scoop on the bonnet and the alloy wheels, there is nothing to indicate that this is a supercharged rocket. Even inside, you are more impressed with the luxurious driver's seat that adjusts eight ways and the incredibly clear instruments in the fascia.
I noted a sporty, three-spoke steering wheel, and the hi-tech gear-shifter in a gate that offers automatic and tiptronic, in this case called Sportshift. Getting under way in drive, I was immediately concerned with the lack of power. So, I snapped the shifter over to Sportshift. With a snort from the exhaust, the car shot forward. The instrument panel showed me I was now in Sport mode and second gear. With the acceleration still building, I snapped to third gear. The Legacy lunged forward, and I snapped to fourth, still with pedal down.
Now the horizontally opposed Boxer-type engine was churning out power, boosted massively by the turbocharger. I could not believe this was a two-litre car - it felt more like 3.2. The Legacy is a permanent four-wheel-drive vehicle. I found a street corner and, with no traffic around, approached it at a healthy clip, and just when I would normally brake, I accelerated. With barely a whisper from the tyres, the Legacy took the corner as if it was on rails. This car is a beauty.
Summary: The Legacy is just like a sleeper, an American hot-rod that looks plain on the outside but is really hot inside.