If the Subaru Legacy were a Star Trek character, it’d surely be Spock. It’s eminently logical, prioritizing practical matters like comfort, safety and utility with a Vulcan-like lack of emotion or passion. It will win no awards for style, and its relaxed demeanor is the opposite of a high-strung sports sedan. But most family car buyers are looking for practicality, as the popularity of crossovers demonstrates, and here they will find it.

Many midsize sedans have become sleeker in the years since crossovers became dominant, emphasizing their car bona fides with design flourish. Not so the Legacy, and that’s partly because it shares its platform with Subaru’s popular Outback, which straddles the line between SUV and wagon. Both were redesigned for 2020, though their visual styles didn’t change much.

The 2021 Subaru Legacy comes with standard all-wheel drive and a host of safety and tech features. It’s sure-footed and confident, even on rough surfaces, though it’s more of a quiet cruiser than a sports sedan.  Alex Kwanten

The two cars share many components, including their engines and standard all-wheel drive (AWD) system, but the Legacy swaps the wagon body, lifted suspension and adventurous body cladding for a subtle, unadorned sedan shape.

Being so closely related to a crossover wagon, the Legacy is about two inches taller than competitors like the Nissan Altima and Toyota Camry, two of the few all-wheel drive midsize alternatives. At 190 inches long, it’s also smaller overall than most midsize rivals, accentuating its plain-and-tall look. The Legacy isn’t ugly, but don’t forget where you parked if you’re leaving it at the airport because it doesn’t leave much of a visual impression.

Inside it’s a different story. The Legacy feels open and airy and its space is used very efficiently. Forward vision is excellent, with slim A-pillars that don’t block as much of the view as some other cars. The Legacy’s seats are comfortable and supportive, and there’s plenty of head and leg room. The Subaru is roomier inside than the Altima and Camry in both dimensions, front and rear.

Expansive forward vision, comfy seats and good ergonomics and logical controls greet every Legacy driver. All but the base model get a massive 11.6-inch infotainment screen.  Alex Kwanten

The Legacy’s 15 cubic-foot trunk is marginally smaller than the Altima’s or Camry’s, and 1.7 cubic-feet shy of the Honda Accord. However, its bluff sides and large opening make better use of the space than many rivals. Logical.

The cabin is visually restrained too, but cleanly designed. On all but the base model, it’s dominated by an 11.6-inch vertical infotainment screen equipped with Subaru’s StarLink Multimedia Plus, which integrates cloud-based apps like Yelp and iHeart Radio. It’s a pretty display and the basics are easy to learn, but some functions are buried in menus and the HVAC portion of the screen is small. Helpfully, there are still physical controls for temperature and volume. 

Base models get a pair of stacked 7-inch infotainment displays that look much nicer than other base-grade infotainment setups in competing midsize sedans.

The sometimes-distracting nature of touchscreens aside, the Legacy gets top marks for safety, earning a Top Safety Pick+ designation from IIHS, and offering many active safety features. As the Legacy was redesigned in 2020, it’s only 2021 additions are safety related, with adaptive headlamps, a rear seat warning and new seatbelt warnings for all passengers becoming standard.

The Legacy’s trunk measures 15 cubic-feet, but the wide trunk opening and the minimizing of wheel well intrusion into the space makes it easier to use all of the volume than some other midsize sedans. Alex Kwanten

All models come equipped with Subaru’s EyeSight suite, which includes forward automatic emergency braking, lane departure warnings, adaptive cruise control and active lane centering. The adaptive cruise control works very smoothly and on well-marked highways the lane centering does as well. Even more gear is optional, including blind spot detection, rear cross-traffic alerts, reverse automatic emergency braking and a driver monitoring system.

Most Legacies are powered by a 2.5-liter four-cylinder engine making 182 horsepower and 176 pound-feet of torque. The top-spec XT models get a much punchier turbocharged 2.4-liter unit making 260 horsepower and 277 pound-feet. Both engines are mated to a continuously variable automatic transmission (CVT) with eight simulated gears and paddle shifters. 

CVTs sometimes blunt enthusiasm, but the Legacy’s works well. The 2.5-liter models feel a little underpowered, and a paddle-assisted downshift is necessary every now and then to pick up the pace, but it feels relaxed rather than slow. The 2.5 is also quieter and smoother than the previous-generation four-cylinder Legacy. The XT has enough power to kick the Legacy to 60 mph in just over six seconds, but the car is more of a quiet cruiser than a sports sedan, and the XT models get expensive.

The Legacy’s exterior isn’t much to look at, but it isn’t ugly either. The car’s adaptive cruise control and other safety systems uses cameras mounted at the top of the windshield to keep both car and driver informed. Subaru

The Legacy’s AWD system features standard torque vectoring which, to parrot an old Subaru commercial, transfers power from the wheels that slip to the wheels that grip, but in a highly controlled and instantaneous way. The system keeps the car stable and planted, with neutral but unengaging handling. The Legacy is more about getting to your destination quietly and safely than savoring the twists and turns on the way.

The 2.5-liter Legacy is rated at 30 mpg in combined driving, but we observed about 31 mpg in our testing. The XT delivers about 27 mpg. Both numbers are about average for the class, though the XT is a big improvement on the six-cylinder model in the Legacy’s previous generation.

The seven Legacy trims start with the $23,820 base model. It lacks the big touchscreen, comes with a cloth interior and 17-inch steel wheels, and safety gear beyond the Eyesight suite isn’t available. However, it’s several thousand dollars less than any other AWD midsize sedan and $800 to $2,500 cheaper than the base models of most competitors and even some considerably smaller cars like the Toyota Corolla, making it an excellent value.

The Premium ($26,070) adds a 10-way adjustable power driver’s seat, heated seats, dual-zone automatic climate control system, 4G LTE Wi-Fi capability and a six-speaker audio system. The Sport trim ($28,020) gets black 18-inch alloys, cosmetic and upholstery upgrades, LED fog lights and push-button start. Blind spot detection is optional on the Premium and the Sport, with the latter also adding available rear automatic emergency braking.

The Legacy Sport offers black 18-inch alloys and a spoiler, among a few other look-faster cosmetic upgrades.  Subaru

The Limited ($30,820) layers on leather trimmed upholstery, power seats for both front passengers, a 12-speaker Harmon Kardon audio system and heated rear seatbacks. It also includes reverse automatic emergency braking, blind-spot warning with lane change assistance and rear cross traffic alerts. 

The Limited XT ($35,370) adds the more powerful engine, a power moonroof, heated steering wheel, navigation and driver monitoring. The top-of-the-line Touring XT ($37,070) includes chrome exterior styling upgrades, Nappa leather-trimmed upholstery, three-mode ventilated front seats and a 180-degree front view camera. All prices include a $925 destination fee.

With a Top Safety Pick+ rating from IIHS and a five-star overall rating from NHTSA, the Legacy’s crash test evaluations are top notch, and all that safety gear goes a long way towards helping drivers avoid contact in the first place.