Compare the2022 Subaru LegacyVS 2021 Volvo S60

In the past twenty years hundreds of infants and young children have died after being left in vehicles, usually by accident. When turning the vehicle off, drivers of the Legacy are reminded to check the back seat if they opened the rear door before starting out. The S60 doesn’t offer a back seat reminder.

The Subaru Legacy has a standard driver’s side knee airbag mounted low on the dashboard. The knee airbag helps prevent the driver from sliding under the seatbelts or the main frontal airbag; this keeps the driver better positioned during a collision for maximum protection. A knee airbag also helps keep the legs from striking the dashboard, preventing knee and leg injuries in the case of a serious frontal collision. The S60 doesn’t offer knee airbags.

To provide maximum traction and stability on all roads, All-Wheel Drive is standard on the Legacy. But it costs extra on the S60.

Both the Legacy and the S60 have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact 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, daytime running lights, 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 Volvo S60:

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

Subaru’s powertrain warranty covers the Legacy 1 year and 10,000 miles longer than Volvo covers the S60. Any repair needed on the engine, transmission, axles, joints or driveshafts is fully covered for 5 years or 60,000 miles. Coverage on the S60 ends after only 4 years or 50,000 miles.

There are over 2 times as many Subaru dealers as there are Volvo dealers, which makes it much easier should you ever need service under the Legacy’s warranty.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2020 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Subaru vehicles are better in initial quality than Volvo vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Subaru 27th in initial quality. With 23 more problems per 100 vehicles, Volvo is ranked 31st.

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 Volvo vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Subaru 17th in reliability. With 18 more problems per 100 vehicles, Volvo is ranked 25th.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2021 Auto Issue reports that Subaru vehicles are more reliable than Volvo vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Subaru 10 places higher in reliability than Volvo.

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 S60 doesn’t offer a boxer engine configuration.

On the EPA test cycle the Legacy 2.5i CVT gets better fuel mileage than the S60 T6 AWD 4 cyl. (27 city/35 hwy vs. 21 city/32 hwy).

To lower fuel costs and make buying fuel easier, the Subaru Legacy uses regular unleaded gasoline. The S60 requires premium, which can cost 20 to 55 cents more per gallon.

The Legacy has 4 gallons more fuel capacity than the S60 FWD’s standard fuel tank (18.5 vs. 14.5 gallons), for longer range between fill-ups. The Legacy has 2.6 gallons more fuel capacity than the S60 AWD’s standard fuel tank (18.5 vs. 15.9 gallons).

The Legacy has a standard continuously variable transmission (CVT). With no “steps” between gears, it can keep the engine at the most efficient speed for fuel economy, or keep it at its peak horsepower indefinitely for maximum acceleration. The S60 doesn’t offer a CVT.

The front and rear suspension of the Legacy uses coil springs for better ride, handling and control than the S60, which uses transverse leafs springs in the rear. Coil springs compress more progressively and offer more suspension travel for a smoother ride with less bottoming out.

The front grille of the Legacy 2.5i uses electronically controlled shutters to close off airflow and reduce drag when less engine cooling is needed. This helps improve highway fuel economy. The S60 doesn’t offer active grille shutters.

As tested by Car and Driver while at idle, the interior of the Legacy Sport is quieter than the S60 Momentum (40 vs. 42 dB).

Because it has more passenger and cargo room, the EPA rates the Legacy a Large car, while the S60 is rated a Compact.

The Legacy has 9.5 cubic feet more passenger volume than the S60 (105.5 vs. 96).

The Legacy has 2 inches more front headroom, .5 inches more front legroom, .2 inches more front hip room, 2 inches more front shoulder room, .1 inches more rear headroom, 4.3 inches more rear legroom, 1.4 inches more rear hip room and 2.9 inches more rear shoulder room than the S60.

The Legacy has a much larger trunk than the S60 (15.1 vs. 11.6 cubic feet).

The engine in the Legacy is mounted longitudinally (North-South), instead of sideways, as in the S60. This makes it easier to service and maintain, because the accessory belts are in front.

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 S60 doesn’t offer an exterior PIN entry system, and its Volvo On Call can’t unlock the doors if the vehicle doesn’t have cell phone reception or the driver can’t contact the service.

To shield the driver and front passenger’s vision over a larger portion of the windshield and side windows, the Legacy has standard extendable sun visors. The S60 doesn’t offer extendable visors.

Insurance will cost less for the Legacy owner. The Complete Car Cost Guide estimates that insurance for the Legacy will cost $455 less than the S60 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 S60 only retains 40.05% to 43.62%.

According to The Car Book by Jack Gillis, the Legacy is less expensive to operate than the S60 because typical repairs cost much less on the Legacy than the S60, including $124 less for a water pump, $424 less for a muffler, $68 less for front brake pads, $72 less for a starter, $187 less for fuel injection, $433 less for a fuel pump and $69 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 $15543 to $31300 less than for the Volvo S60.

Consumer Reports® recommends both the Subaru Legacy and the Volvo S60, based on reliability, safety and performance.