Compare the2023 Subaru LegacyVS 2022 BMW 4 Series Gran Coupe

For enhanced safety, the front and rear seat shoulder belts of the Subaru Legacy have pretensioners to tighten the seatbelts and eliminate dangerous slack in the event of a collision and force limiters to limit the pressure the belts will exert on the passengers. The BMW 4 Series Gran Coupe doesn’t offer pretensioners for its rear seat belts.

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 4 Series Gran Coupe doesn’t offer a back seat reminder.

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 4 Series Gran Coupe doesn’t offer a whiplash protection system.

Over 200 people are killed each year when backed over by motor vehicles. The Legacy Sport/Limited/Touring has standard Reverse Automatic Braking that uses rear sensors to monitor and automatically apply the brakes to prevent a rear collision. The 4 Series Gran Coupe doesn’t offer backup collision prevention brakes.

To provide maximum traction and stability on all roads, All-Wheel Drive is standard on the Legacy. But it costs extra on the 4 Series Gran Coupe.

Both the Legacy and the 4 Series Gran Coupe have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, 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, rear cross-path warning and driver alert monitors.

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 vehicle-to-vehicle front crash prevention system, its standard vehicle-to-pedestrian front crash prevention system, and its standard headlight’s “Good” rating, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety grants the Legacy its highest rating: “Top Safety Pick Plus” for 2022, a rating granted to only 81 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The 4 Series Gran Coupe has not been tested, yet.

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

There are over 80 percent more Subaru dealers than there are BMW dealers, which makes it much easier should you ever need service under the Legacy’s warranty.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2021 Auto Issue reports that Subaru vehicles are more reliable than BMW vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Subaru 4 places higher in reliability than BMW.

The Legacy Sport/XT’s standard 2.4 turbo 4-cylinder produces 5 more horsepower (260 vs. 255) than the 430i Gran Coupe’s standard 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder.

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 4 Series Gran Coupe doesn’t offer a boxer engine configuration.

On the EPA test cycle the Legacy gets better mileage than the 4 Series Gran Coupe:

To lower fuel costs and make buying fuel easier, the Subaru Legacy uses regular unleaded gasoline. The 4 Series Gran Coupe requires premium, which can cost 20 to 55 cents more per gallon.

The Legacy has 2.9 gallons more fuel capacity than the 4 Series Gran Coupe (18.5 vs. 15.6 gallons), for longer range between fill-ups.

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 4 Series Gran Coupe doesn’t offer a CVT.

The Legacy has a standard space-saver spare tire so you can replace a flat tire and drive to have the flat repaired or replaced. A spare tire isn’t available on the 4 Series Gran Coupe; it requires you to depend on its run-flat tires, which limits mileage and speed before they are repaired. If a run-flat is damaged beyond repair by a road hazard your vehicle will have to be towed. Some tire options on the 4 Series Gran Coupe don’t have a run-flat feature, either.

For better maneuverability, the Legacy’s turning circle is 2.6 feet tighter than the 4 Series Gran Coupe’s (36.8 feet vs. 39.4 feet).

The Subaru Legacy may be more efficient, handle and accelerate better because it weighs about 300 to 400 pounds less than the BMW 4 Series Gran Coupe.

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 4 Series Gran Coupe doesn’t offer active grille shutters.

Because it has more passenger and cargo room, the EPA rates the Legacy a Large car, while the 4 Series Gran Coupe is rated a Compact.

The Legacy has 14.5 cubic feet more passenger volume than the 4 Series Gran Coupe (105.5 vs. 91).

The Legacy has .8 inches more front headroom, .9 inches more front legroom, 2.9 inches more front shoulder room, .6 inches more rear headroom, 4.6 inches more rear legroom and 3.1 inches more rear shoulder room than the 4 Series Gran Coupe.

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 4 Series Gran Coupe doesn’t offer an exterior PIN entry system, and its BMW Assist can’t unlock the doors if the vehicle doesn’t have cell phone reception or the driver can’t contact the service.

Consumer Reports® chose the Subaru Legacy as its “Top Pick,” the highest scoring vehicle in its category, based on reliability, safety and performance.

The Subaru Legacy outsold the BMW 4 Series by 28% during the 2021 model year.