Compare the2022 Honda AccordVS 2022 Subaru Legacy

Safety
Warranty
Reliability
Engine
Fuel Economy and Range
Environmental Friendliness
Brakes and Stopping
Tires and Wheels
Suspension and Handling
Chassis
Passenger Space
Cargo Capacity
Towing
Ergonomics
Economic Advantages
Recommendations

Safety

© 1999 - 2024Advanta-STAR Automotive Research, all rights reserved. This vehicle comparison and all of the content in it are provided only by license from Advanta-STAR Automotive Research Corporation of America (“Advanta-STAR”). If you are not a legally licensed user of this vehicle comparison, it is against federal law to access it, copy it, forward it, or use it in any manner whatsoever. Any unauthorized use of this vehicle comparison is a violation of U.S. and international law and is punishable criminally and civilly. Removal of this watermark/notification without prior written license and approval received from Advanta-STAR is an agreement, understanding, and/or stipulation by the person(s), entities, agents, attorneys, and any other persons involved in the removal of this watermark/notification (including but not limited to Search Optics, LLC and any and all parent entities, sister entities, and subsidiary entities of Search Optics, LLC and/or any other entity, agent, attorney, and persons related in any manner to Search Optics, LLC) to: 1) an agreed upon amount of liquidated monetary damages of a minimum of $1,250,000.00 US Dollars in favor of Advanta-STAR; 2) the jurisdiction and enforcement of any legal claims associated with this matter asserted by Advanta-STAR in the United States Federal District Court in Portand, Oregon; and 3) service of process of any legal claims asserted by Advanta-STAR associated with this matter may be accomplished by First-Class Postage by the United States Postal Service or comparable service. XPYNN-M34HG 2a06:98c0:3600::103 2024/05/04

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

Using vehicle speed sensors and seat sensors, smart airbags in the Accord deploy with different levels of force or don’t deploy at all to help better protect passengers of all sizes in different collisions. The Accord’s side airbags will shut off if a child is leaning against the door. The Legacy’s airbags don’t have smart features and will always deploy full force.

Compared to metal, the Accord’s plastic fuel tank can withstand harder, more intrusive impacts without leaking; this decreases the possibility of fire. The Subaru Legacy has a metal gas tank.

Both the Accord and the Legacy have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, front 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 parking sensors and rear cross-path warning.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does 35 MPH front crash tests on new vehicles. In this test, results indicate that the Honda Accord is safer than the Subaru Legacy:

	Accord	Legacy
	Driver
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Neck Injury Risk	23%	26%
Neck Stress	184 lbs.	281 lbs.
	Passenger
STARS	5 Stars	4 Stars
Chest Compression	.4 inches	.6 inches
Neck Injury Risk	34%	43%
Neck Stress	140 lbs.	147 lbs.

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

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 Honda Accord is safer than the Subaru Legacy:

	Accord	Legacy
	Front Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Abdominal Force	152 G’s	216 G’s
	Rear Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Spine Acceleration	62 G’s	62 G’s
Hip Force	428 lbs.	581 lbs.
	Into Pole
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Max Damage Depth	13 inches	14 inches
Spine Acceleration	34 G’s	38 G’s

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

Warranty

There are over 68 percent more Honda dealers than there are Subaru dealers, which makes it much easier should you ever need service under the Accord’s warranty.

Reliability

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2021 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Honda vehicles are better in initial quality than Subaru vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Honda 17th in initial quality. With 18 more problems per 100 vehicles, Subaru is ranked 24th.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2021 Auto Issue reports that Honda vehicles are more reliable than Subaru vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Honda 3 places higher in reliability than Subaru.

Engine

The Accord’s standard 1.5 turbo 4-cylinder produces 10 more horsepower (192 vs. 182) and 16 lbs.-ft. more torque (192 vs. 176) than the Legacy 2.5i’s standard 2.5 DOHC 4-cylinder.

As tested in Car and Driver the Honda Accord 1.5 turbo 4-cylinder is faster than the Legacy 2.5i 2.5 DOHC 4-cylinder:

	Accord	Legacy
Zero to 30 MPH	2.7 sec	3 sec
Zero to 60 MPH	6.6 sec	8 sec
Zero to 100 MPH	16.2 sec	22 sec
5 to 60 MPH Rolling Start	7.2 sec	8.6 sec
Passing 30 to 50 MPH	3.9 sec	4.5 sec
Passing 50 to 70 MPH	4.9 sec	5.8 sec
Quarter Mile	15.1 sec	16.2 sec
Speed in 1/4 Mile	97 MPH	88 MPH

Fuel Economy and Range

On the EPA test cycle the Accord gets better mileage than the Legacy:

			MPG
Accord
	FWD	1.5 turbo 4-cyl.	30 city/38 hwy
		Touring 1.5 turbo 4-cyl.	29 city/35 hwy
Legacy
	AWD	2.5 DOHC flat-4	27 city/35 hwy
		2.4 turbo flat-4	24 city/32 hwy

The Accord has a standard cap-less fueling system. The fuel filler is automatically opened when the fuel nozzle is inserted and automatically closed when it’s removed. This eliminates the need to unscrew and replace the cap and it reduces fuel evaporation, which causes pollution. The Legacy doesn’t offer a cap-less fueling system.

Environmental Friendliness

In its Green Vehicle Guide, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rates the Honda Accord higher (7 out of 10) than the Subaru Legacy (3 to 7). This means the Accord produces up to 24.5 pounds less smog-producing pollutants than the Legacy every 15,000 miles.

Brakes and Stopping

The Accord stops much shorter than the Legacy:

	Accord	Legacy
70 to 0 MPH	162 feet	174 feet	Car and Driver
60 to 0 MPH	109 feet	128 feet	Motor Trend

Tires and Wheels

For better traction, the Accord Sport/Touring’s tires are larger than the largest tires available on the Legacy (235/40R19 vs. 225/55R17).

The Accord’s standard tires provide better handling because they have a lower 50 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the Legacy Base/Premium’s standard 55 series tires. The Accord Sport/Touring’s tires have a lower 40 series profile than the Legacy Sport/Limited/Touring’s 50 series tires.

For better ride, handling and brake cooling the Accord Sport/Touring has standard 19-inch wheels. The Legacy’s largest wheels are only 18-inches.

Suspension and Handling

The Accord offers an available driver-adjustable suspension system. It allows the driver to choose between an extra-supple ride, reducing fatigue on long trips, or a sport setting, which allows maximum control for tricky roads. The Legacy’s suspension doesn’t offer adjustable shock absorbers.

The Accord has vehicle speed sensitive variable-assist power steering, for low-effort parking, better control at highway speeds and during hard cornering, and a better feel of the road. The Legacy doesn’t offer variable-assist power steering.

The Accord’s drift compensation steering can automatically compensate for road conditions which would cause the vehicle to drift from side to side, helping the driver to keep the vehicle straight more easily. The Legacy doesn’t offer drift compensation steering.

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the Accord’s wheelbase is 3.1 inches longer than on the Legacy (111.4 inches vs. 108.3 inches).

The Accord Touring handles at .89 G’s, while the Legacy Touring XT pulls only .78 G’s of cornering force in a Motor Trend skidpad test.

The Accord Sport executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver 1.9 seconds quicker than the Legacy Sport (26.4 seconds @ .67 average G’s vs. 28.3 seconds @ .59 average G’s).

Chassis

The Honda Accord may be more efficient, handle and accelerate better because it weighs about 350 pounds less than the Subaru Legacy.

The Accord uses computer-generated active noise cancellation to help remove annoying noise and vibration from the passenger compartment, especially at low frequencies. The Legacy doesn’t offer active noise cancellation.

As tested by Car and Driver while at idle, the interior of the Accord EX-L is quieter than the Legacy Sport (39 vs. 40 dB).

Passenger Space

The Accord has .1 inches more front headroom, .2 inches more front shoulder room, .9 inches more rear legroom and .2 inches more rear hip room than the Legacy.

Cargo Capacity

The Accord has a much larger trunk than the Legacy (16.7 vs. 15.1 cubic feet).

With its sedan body style, valet key, locking rear seatbacks and remote trunk release lockout, the Accord offers cargo security. The Legacy’s non-lockable folding seat and non-lockable remote release defeat cargo security.

Towing

The Accord 2.0L Turbo offers up to a 1000 lbs. towing capacity. The Legacy has no towing capacity.

Ergonomics

The Accord EX-L/Touring’s standard easy entry system glides the driver’s seat back when the door is unlocked or the ignition is switched off, making it easier for the driver to get in and out. The Legacy doesn’t offer an easy entry system.

The Accord Touring has a standard heads-up display that projects speed, tachometer, warning and navigation instruction readouts in front of the driver’s line of sight, allowing drivers to view information without diverting their eyes from the road. The Legacy doesn’t offer a heads-up display.

If the windows are left open on the Accord the driver can close them all at the outside door handle. On a hot day the driver can lower the windows at the outside door handle or from a distance using the keyless remote. The driver of the Legacy can only operate the windows from inside the vehicle, with the ignition on.

The Accord’s standard speed-sensitive wipers speed up when the vehicle does, so that the driver doesn’t have to continually adjust the speed of the wipers. The Legacy’s manually variable intermittent wipers have to be constantly adjusted. The Accord Touring’s standard wipers adjust their speed and turn on and off automatically according to the amount of rainfall on the windshield.

Consumer Reports rated the Accord’s headlight performance “Very Good,” a higher rating than the Legacy’s headlights, which were rated “Fair.”

The Accord has a standard dual zone air conditioning allows the driver and front passenger to choose two completely different temperatures so people with different temperature preferences won’t have to compromise. This makes both the driver and front passenger as comfortable as possible. Dual zone air conditioning is only available on the Legacy Premium/Sport/Limited/Touring.

Economic Advantages

According to The Car Book by Jack Gillis, the Accord is less expensive to operate than the Legacy because it costs $691 less to do the manufacturer’s suggested maintenance for 50,000 miles. Typical repairs cost much less on the Accord than the Legacy, including $48 less for a water pump, $12 less for front brake pads, $67 less for front struts and $204 less for a timing belt/chain.

Recommendations

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

Motor Trend performed a comparison test in its May 2021 issue and they ranked the Honda Accord EX-L first. They ranked the Subaru Legacy Limited third.

The Accord was chosen as one of Car and Driver’s “Top Ten” for 25 of the last 27 years. The Legacy has never been a Car and Driver “Top Ten” pick.

The Accord 2.0T Sport was chosen as one of Automobile Magazine’s “All Stars” in 2018. The Legacy has never been an “All Star.”

A group of representative automotive journalists from North America selected the Accord as the 2018 North American Car of the Year. The Legacy has never been chosen.

The Honda Accord outsold the Subaru Legacy by over 8 to one during the 2021 model year.