Compare the2022 Subaru LegacyVS 2021 Nissan Altima

Safety
Reliability
Engine
Fuel Economy and Range
Brakes and Stopping
Tires and Wheels
Suspension and Handling
Chassis
Passenger Space
Cargo Capacity
Servicing Ease
Ergonomics
Economic Advantages
Recommendations

Safety

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The Legacy has standard Whiplash-Reducing Front Seats, which use a specially designed seat to protect the driver and front passenger from whiplash. During a rear-end collision, the Whiplash-Reducing Front Seats system allows the backrest to travel backwards to cushion the occupants and the headrests move forward to prevent neck and spine injuries. The Altima doesn’t offer a whiplash protection system.

To provide maximum traction and stability on all roads, All-Wheel Drive is standard on the Legacy. But it costs extra on the Altima.

Both the Legacy and the Altima have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, front and rear seatbelt pretensioners, height adjustable front shoulder belts, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, lane departure warning systems, rearview cameras, available blind spot warning systems, rear cross-path warning and driver alert monitors.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does side impact tests on new vehicles. In this test, which crashes the vehicle into a flat barrier at 38.5 MPH and into a post at 20 MPH, results indicate that the Subaru Legacy is safer than the Nissan Altima:

	Legacy	Altima
	Front Seat
STARS	5 Stars	4 Stars
HIC	50	187
Chest Movement	.7 inches	1.4 inches
Hip Force	335 lbs.	511 lbs.
	Into Pole
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Max Damage Depth	14 inches	16 inches
HIC	104	157
Spine Acceleration	38 G’s	42 G’s
Hip Force	681 lbs.	769 lbs.

New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.

For its top level performance in IIHS driver and passenger-side small overlap frontal, moderate overlap frontal, side impact, roof strength and head restraint tests, its standard front crash prevention system, and its headlight’s “Good” rating, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety grants the Legacy its highest rating: “Top Pick Plus” for 2019, a rating granted to only 102 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The Altima is only a standard “Top Pick” for 2019.

Reliability

To reliably power the ignition and other systems and to recharge the battery, the Legacy has larger alternators than the Altima:

	Legacy	Altima
Standard Alternator	150 amps	120 amps
Optional Alternator	190 amps	150 amps

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2021 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the long-term dependability statistics that show that Subaru vehicles are more reliable than Nissan vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Subaru 17th in reliability. With 3 more problems per 100 vehicles, Nissan is ranked 21st.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2021 Auto Issue reports that Subaru vehicles are more reliable than Nissan vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Subaru 5 places higher in reliability than Nissan.

Engine

The Legacy has more powerful engines than the Altima:

	Horsepower	Torque
Legacy XT 2.4 turbo 4-cylinder	260 HP	277 lbs.-ft.
Altima 2.5 DOHC 4-cylinder	182 HP	178 lbs.-ft.
Altima 2.5 DOHC 4-cylinder	188 HP	180 lbs.-ft.
Altima SR 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder	236 HP	267 lbs.-ft.

As tested in Motor Trend the Legacy XT 2.4 turbo 4-cylinder is faster than the Nissan Altima 4 cyl.:

	Legacy	Altima
Zero to 60 MPH	6.1 sec	7.4 sec
Quarter Mile	14.8 sec	15.7 sec
Speed in 1/4 Mile	94.5 MPH	90.2 MPH

The flat cylinder configuration of the boxer engine in the Legacy lowers its center of gravity, enhancing handling stability (That’s why Porsche uses boxer engines.). The Altima doesn’t offer a boxer engine configuration.

Fuel Economy and Range

To lower fuel costs and make buying fuel easier, the Subaru Legacy uses regular unleaded gasoline. The Altima SR requires premium for maximum efficiency, which can cost 20 to 55 cents more per gallon.

The Legacy has 2.5 gallons more fuel capacity than the Altima AWD’s standard fuel tank (18.5 vs. 16 gallons), for longer range between fill-ups. The Legacy has 2.3 gallons more fuel capacity than the Altima FWD’s standard fuel tank (18.5 vs. 16.2 gallons).

Brakes and Stopping

For better stopping power the Legacy’s brake rotors are larger than those on the Altima:

	Legacy	Altima
Front Rotors	12.4 inches	11.65 inches
Rear Rotors	11.8 inches	11.02 inches
Opt Rear Rotors		11.5 inches

The Legacy’s standard front and rear disc brakes are vented to help dissipate heat for shorter stops with less fading. The rear discs on the Altima are solid, not vented.

The Legacy stops shorter than the Altima:

	Legacy	Altima
70 to 0 MPH	174 feet	176 feet	Car and Driver

Tires and Wheels

For better traction, the Legacy has larger tires than the Altima (225/55R17 vs. 215/60R16).

The Legacy Base/Premium’s standard tires provide better handling because they have a lower 55 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the Altima S’ standard 60 series tires.

For better ride, handling and brake cooling the Legacy Base/Premium has standard 17-inch wheels. Smaller 16-inch wheels are standard on the Altima S.

Suspension and Handling

The Legacy Limited handles at .85 G’s, while the Altima SV AWD pulls only .84 G’s of cornering force in a Motor Trend skidpad test.

The Legacy Limited executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver quicker than the Altima SV AWD (27.1 seconds @ .62 average G’s vs. 27.7 seconds @ .61 average G’s).

Chassis

As tested by Car and Driver, the interior of the Legacy Sport is quieter than the Altima SR AWD:

	Legacy	Altima
At idle	40 dB	45 dB
Full-Throttle	76 dB	77 dB
70 MPH Cruising	68 dB	70 dB

Passenger Space

Because it has more passenger and cargo room, the EPA rates the Legacy a Large car, while the Altima is rated a Mid-size.

The Legacy has 4.7 cubic feet more passenger volume than the Altima (105.5 vs. 100.8).

The Legacy has .2 inches more front headroom, .8 inches more front hip room, .4 inches more rear headroom, 4.3 inches more rear legroom, .3 inches more rear hip room and .3 inches more rear shoulder room than the Altima.

Cargo Capacity

To allow full utilization of available cargo room, the Legacy’s trunk lid uses concealed beam hinges that don’t intrude into the trunk. The Altima’s useful trunk space is reduced by its intrusive beam hinge.

Servicing Ease

The engine in the Legacy is mounted longitudinally (North-South), instead of sideways, as in the Altima. This makes it easier to service and maintain, because the accessory belts are in front.

Ergonomics

The Legacy’s power parking brake sets with one touch and releases with one touch or automatically. The Altima’s parking brake has to released manually.

The Legacy’s standard front power windows open or close fully with one touch of the switches, making it more convenient at drive-up windows and toll booths, or when talking with someone outside the car. The Altima’s standard passenger windows don’t open or close automatically. The Legacy Limited/Touring’s front and rear power windows all open or close fully with one touch of the switches. With the Altima SL/Platinum’s power windows, only the front windows open or close automatically.

In case you lock your keys in your vehicle, or don’t have them with you, you can let yourself in using the Legacy’s available exterior PIN entry system (not available on Legacy Base). The Altima doesn’t offer an exterior PIN entry system.

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) conducts detailed tests on headlights for their range both straight ahead and in curves and to be certain they don’t exceed acceptable amounts of glare to oncoming drivers. The Legacy’s headlights were rated “Good” by the IIHS, while the Altima’s headlights are rated “Acceptable.”

To help drivers see further while navigating curves, the Legacy has standard adaptive headlights to illuminate around corners automatically by reading vehicle speed and steering wheel angle. The Altima doesn’t offer cornering lights.

When the Legacy Limited/Touring is put in reverse, both rearview mirrors tilt from their original position. This gives the driver a better view of the curb during parallel parking maneuvers. Shifting out of reverse puts the mirrors into their original positions. The Altima’s mirrors don’t automatically adjust for backing.

The Legacy’s optional rear and side view mirrors have an automatic dimming feature. These mirrors can be set to automatically darken quickly when headlights shine on them, keeping following vehicles from blinding or distracting the driver. The Altima offers an automatic rear view mirror, but its side mirrors don’t dim.

Both the Legacy and the Altima offer available heated front seats. The Legacy Limited/Touring also has standard heated rear seats to keep those passengers extremely comfortable in the winter. Heated rear seats aren’t available in the Altima.

Standard air-conditioned seats in the Legacy Touring XT keep the driver and front passenger comfortable and take the sting out of hot seats in Summer. The Altima doesn’t offer air-conditioned seats.

To quickly and conveniently keep personal devices charged without cables tangling and wearing out, the Subaru Legacy (except Base) offers an optional wireless phone charging system (Qi) in the center console. The Altima doesn’t offer wireless personal charging.

Economic Advantages

Insurance will cost less for the Legacy owner. The Complete Car Cost Guide estimates that insurance for the Legacy will cost $290 to $3415 less than the Altima over a five-year period.

The Legacy will cost the buyer less in the long run because of its superior resale value. The IntelliChoice estimates that the Legacy will retain 53.49% to 55.52% of its original price after five years, while the Altima only retains 40.1% to 42.03%.

According to The Car Book by Jack Gillis, the Legacy is less expensive to operate than the Altima because typical repairs cost much less on the Legacy than the Altima, including $151 less for a muffler, $20 less for front brake pads, $121 less for fuel injection, $28 less for a timing belt/chain and $206 less for a power steering pump.

IntelliChoice estimates that five-year ownership costs (depreciation, financing, insurance, fuel, fees, repairs and maintenance) for the Subaru Legacy will be $4608 to $7070 less than for the Nissan Altima.

Recommendations

Consumer Reports® recommends both the Subaru Legacy and the Nissan Altima, based on reliability, safety and performance.

Motor Trend performed a comparison test in its May 2021 issue and they ranked the Subaru Legacy Limited four places higher than the Nissan Altima SR.