Compare the2024 Subaru LegacyVS 2024 Honda Accord

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 Accord doesn’t offer a whiplash protection system.

The Legacy has all-wheel drive to maximize traction under poor conditions, especially in ice and snow. The Accord doesn’t offer all-wheel drive.

Both the Legacy and the Accord 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, 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 131 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The Accord has not been fully tested, yet.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2023 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Subaru vehicles are better in initial quality than Honda vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Subaru above average in initial quality. With 5 more problems per 100 vehicles, Honda is rated lower.

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 Honda With 4 fewer problems per 100 vehicles in the first three years of ownership, J.D. Power ranks Subaru higher than Honda.

The Legacy Sport/XT’s standard 2.4 turbo 4-cylinder produces 56 more horsepower (260 vs. 204) and 30 lbs.-ft. more torque (277 vs. 247) than the Accord Hybrid’s standard 2.0 DOHC 4-cylinder hybrid.

As tested in Car and Driver the Legacy Sport/XT 2.4 turbo 4-cylinder is faster than the Accord Hybrid 2.0 DOHC 4-cylinder hybrid:

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 Accord doesn’t offer a boxer engine configuration.

Both the Legacy and the Accord have a standard automatic start/stop engine feature to stop unnecessary fuel waste and pollution at stoplights and heavy traffic. All Legacys have a standard disable switch for the system, so a driver can keep the engine from shutting off when the vehicle stops temporarily. A disable switch for start/stop is only offered on the Accord 1.5T.

The Legacy has 5.7 gallons more fuel capacity than the Accord Hybrid’s standard fuel tank (18.5 vs. 12.8 gallons), for longer range between fill-ups. The Legacy has 3.7 gallons more fuel capacity than the Accord’s standard fuel tank (18.5 vs. 14.8 gallons).

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

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 Accord are solid, not vented.

The Legacy stops much shorter than the Accord:

The Legacy’s front to rear weight distribution is more even (58% to 42%) than the Accord’s (59.9% to 40.1%). This gives the Legacy more stable handling and braking.

The Legacy Limited handles at .85 G’s, while the Accord EX pulls only .81 G’s of cornering force in a Motor Trend skidpad test.

The Legacy Limited executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver quicker than the Accord Sport-L Hybrid (27.1 seconds @ .62 average G’s vs. 27.9 seconds @ .58 average G’s).

For better maneuverability, the Legacy’s turning circle is 1.6 feet tighter than the Accord’s (36.8 feet vs. 38.4 feet).

The Legacy is 4.6 inches shorter than the Accord, making the Legacy easier to handle, maneuver and park in tight spaces.

As tested by Car and Driver while under full throttle, the interior of the Legacy Sport is quieter than the Accord EX (73 vs. 76 dB).

The Legacy has .5 inches more front legroom, .1 inches more front hip room, .2 inches more front shoulder room and .9 inches more rear shoulder room than the Accord.

To allow full utilization of available cargo room, the Legacy’s trunk lid uses concealed beam hinges that don’t intrude into the trunk. Its intrusive beam hinge reduces the Accord’s useful trunk space.

The Legacy’s standard folding rear seats are split to accommodate bulky cargo. The Accord’s standard single piece folding rear seat is not as flexible; long cargo and a passenger can’t share the rear seat.

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

The Legacy Limited/Sport/Touring’s front and rear power windows all 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 Accord’s rear power window switches have to be held the entire time to open or close them fully.

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

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 Accord doesn’t offer cornering lights.

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 Accord offers an automatic rear view mirror, but its side mirrors don’t dim.

On extremely cold winter days, the Legacy’s optional (except Base/Premium) heated steering wheel provides comfort, allowing the driver to steer safely and comfortably before the car heater warms up. The Accord doesn’t offer a heated steering wheel.

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