Compare the2023 Subaru LegacyVS 2023 Infiniti Q50

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 Infiniti Q50 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 Q50 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 Q50 doesn’t offer knee airbags.

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 Q50 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 Q50.

The Legacy’s optional driver alert monitor detects an inattentive driver then sounds a warning and suggests a break. According to the NHTSA, drivers who fall asleep cause about 100,000 crashes and 1500 deaths a year. The Q50 doesn’t offer a driver alert monitor.

Both the Legacy and the Q50 have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, 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.

For its performance in IIHS driver-side and passenger-side small overlap frontal, moderate overlap frontal, updated side impact, headlight, and daytime pedestrian crash prevention testing, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety grants the Legacy the rating of “Top Safety Pick” for 2023, a rating granted to only 53 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The Q50 does not qualify as a “Top Safety Pick.”

There are over 3 times as many Subaru dealers as there are Infiniti dealers, which makes it much easier should you ever need service under the Legacy’s warranty.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2022 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Subaru vehicles are better in initial quality than Infiniti vehicles. With 13 fewer problems per 100 vehicles, JD Power ranks Subaru higher than Infiniti.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2022 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the long-term dependability statistics that show that Subaru vehicles are more reliable than Infiniti With 2 fewer problems per 100 vehicles in the first three years of ownership, J.D. Power ranks Subaru higher than Infiniti.

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 Q50 doesn’t offer a boxer engine configuration.

On the EPA test cycle the Legacy gets better mileage than the Q50:

In heavy traffic or at stoplights the Legacy’s engine automatically turns off when the vehicle is stopped, saving fuel and reducing pollution. The engine is automatically restarted when the driver gets ready to move again. If the conditions warrant or the driver wishes, the system can be manually disabled at any time for the duration of a trip. The Q50 doesn’t offer an automatic engine start/stop system.

To lower fuel costs and make buying fuel easier, the Subaru Legacy uses regular unleaded gasoline. The Q50 requires premium, which can cost 20 to 55 cents more per gallon.

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 Q50 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 Q50; 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.

For better handling and stability, the track (width between the wheels) on the Legacy is 1.7 inches wider in the front and 1.9 inches wider in the rear than the average track on the Q50.

The Subaru Legacy may be more efficient, handle and accelerate better because it weighs about 200 to 250 pounds less than the Infiniti Q50.

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 Q50 doesn’t offer active grille shutters.

Because it has more passenger and cargo room, the EPA rates the Legacy a Large car, while the Q50 is rated a Mid-size.

The Legacy has 5.5 cubic feet more passenger volume than the Q50 (105.5 vs. 100).

The Legacy has 2.3 inches more front hip room, 1.4 inches more front shoulder room, .4 inches more rear headroom, 4.4 inches more rear legroom, 2.3 inches more rear hip room and 1.3 inches more rear shoulder room than the Q50.

The Legacy has a much larger trunk than the Q50 (15.1 vs. 13.5 cubic feet).

The Legacy’s power parking brake sets with one touch and releases with one touch or automatically. The Q50’s parking brake has to be released manually.

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 Q50 doesn’t offer an exterior PIN entry system, and its Emergency Call with Automatic Collision Notification can’t unlock the doors if the vehicle doesn’t have cell phone reception or the driver can’t contact the service.

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 Q50’s headlights are rated “Marginal.”

Both the Legacy and the Q50 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 Q50.

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 Q50 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 Q50 doesn’t offer wireless personal charging.

Insurance will cost less for the Legacy owner. The Complete Car Cost Guide estimates that insurance for the Legacy will cost $7280 to $13825 less than the Q50 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 49.53% to 51.53% of its original price after five years, while the Q50 only retains 43.31% to 44.42%.

According to The Car Book by Jack Gillis, the Legacy is less expensive to operate than the Q50 because typical repairs cost much less on the Legacy than the Q50, including $365 less for a muffler, $51 less for a starter, $194 less for fuel injection, $72 less for a fuel pump, $217 less for front struts, $126 less for a timing belt/chain and $963 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 $28167 to $35191 less than for the Infiniti Q50.

Consumer Reports® recommends both the Subaru Legacy and the Infiniti Q50, based on reliability, safety and performance.

The Subaru Legacy outsold the Infiniti Q50 by almost five to one during 2022.