Compare the2024 Subaru LegacyVS 2024 Hyundai Sonata

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 Hyundai Sonata doesn’t offer pretensioners for its rear seat belts.

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 Sonata 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 for objects to the rear and automatically applies the brakes to prevent a collision. The Sonata doesn’t offer automatic braking for stationary objects directly to the rear.

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

Both the Legacy and the Sonata have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver knee 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, rear cross-path warning and driver alert monitors.

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 98 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The Sonata has not been 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 Hyundai vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Subaru above average in initial quality. With 3 more problems per 100 vehicles, Hyundai is rated lower.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2024 Auto Issue reports that Subaru vehicles are more reliable than Hyundai vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Subaru 5 places higher in reliability than Hyundai.

The Legacy Sport/XT’s standard 2.4 turbo 4-cylinder produces 69 more horsepower (260 vs. 191) and 96 lbs.-ft. more torque (277 vs. 181) than the Sonata’s standard 2.5 DOHC 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 Sonata doesn’t offer a boxer engine configuration.

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

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 Sonata doesn’t offer an automatic engine start/stop system.

The Legacy has 2.6 gallons more fuel capacity than the Sonata (18.5 vs. 15.9 gallons), for longer range between fill-ups.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) certifies the Subaru Legacy as a “Super Ultra Low Emissions Vehicle” (SULEV). The Hyundai Sonata is only certified to “Ultra Low Emissions Vehicle” (ULEV) standards.

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 Sonata doesn’t offer a CVT.

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

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 Sonata are solid, not vented.

For better traction, the Legacy has larger tires than the Sonata (225/55R17 vs. 215/55R17).

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 Sonata doesn’t offer active grille shutters.

The Legacy has .9 inches more front hip room, .2 inches more front shoulder room, 4.7 inches more rear legroom, .4 inches more rear hip room and 1.3 inches more rear shoulder room than the Sonata.

The front step up height for the Legacy is 1.5 inches lower than the Sonata (13.5” vs. 15”). The Legacy’s rear step up height is 1 inches lower than the Sonata’s (14” vs. 15”).

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 Sonata’s useful trunk space.

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

The Legacy Premium/Sport/Limited/Touring offers a remote vehicle starting system, so the vehicle can be started from inside the driver's house. This allows the driver to comfortably warm up the engine before going out to the vehicle. The climate system will also automatically heat or cool the interior. The Sonata doesn’t offer a remote starting system.

When two different drivers share the Legacy Limited/Touring, the memory seats and mirrors make it convenient for both. Each setting activates different, customized memories for the driver’s seat position and outside mirror angle. The Sonata doesn’t offer a memory system.

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

When the Legacy Limited/Touring is put in reverse, both rearview mirrors tilt from their original position. This gives the driver a better view of the curb during parallel parking maneuvers. Shifting out of reverse puts the mirrors into their original positions. The Sonata’s mirrors don’t automatically adjust for backing.

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

Both the Legacy and the Sonata 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 Sonata.

Standard air-conditioned seats in the Legacy Touring keep the driver and front passenger comfortable and take the sting out of hot seats in Summer. The Sonata doesn’t offer air-conditioned seats.

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 Sonata doesn’t offer a heated steering wheel.

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