Compare the2024 Subaru LegacyVS 2024 Genesis G70

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 Genesis G70 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 G70 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 G70 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 G70.

Both the Legacy and the G70 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 G70 has not been fully tested, yet.

There are almost 3 times as many Subaru dealers as there are Genesis 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 2024 Auto Issue reports that Subaru vehicles are more reliable than Genesis vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Subaru 12 places higher in reliability than Genesis.

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 G70 doesn’t offer a boxer engine configuration.

On the EPA test cycle the Legacy gets better mileage than the G70:

Regardless of its engine, the Legacy’s engine automatically turns off when the vehicle is stopped, saving fuel and reducing pollution. If the conditions warrant or the driver wishes, the system can be manually disabled at any time for the duration of a trip. Genesis only offers an automatic engine start/stop system on the G70 2.0T.

To lower fuel costs and make buying fuel easier, the Subaru Legacy uses regular unleaded gasoline. The G70 2.5T requires premium, which can cost on average about 82.8 cents more per gallon.

The Legacy has 2.7 gallons more fuel capacity than the G70 (18.5 vs. 15.8 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 G70 doesn’t offer a CVT.

In an emergency stopping situation, many drivers don’t press the brakes with enough force to stop the vehicle in the shortest distance. The Legacy has standard Brake Assist to detect emergency braking situations (by how hard and how quickly the brake pedal is pressed) and then automatically apply maximum braking immediately in order to help prevent a collision. The G70 doesn’t offer a brake assist feature.

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 G70 doesn’t offer active grille shutters.

As tested by Car and Driver while under full throttle, the interior of the Legacy Sport is quieter than the G70 (73 vs. 77 dB).

Because it has more passenger and cargo room, the EPA rates the Legacy a Large car, while the G70 is rated a Compact.

The Legacy has 9.6 cubic feet more passenger volume than the G70 (105.5 vs. 95.9).

The Legacy has .2 inches more front legroom, 1.8 inches more front shoulder room, .3 inches more rear headroom, 4.7 inches more rear legroom and 2.8 inches more rear shoulder room than the G70.

The Legacy has a much larger trunk than the G70 (15.1 vs. 10.5 cubic feet).

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 G70 doesn’t offer an exterior PIN entry system, and its Connected Care can’t unlock the doors if the vehicle doesn’t have cell phone reception or the driver can’t contact the service.

Insurance will cost less for the Legacy owner. The Complete Car Cost Guide estimates that insurance for the Legacy will cost $2345 to $7410 less than the G70 over a five-year period.

IntelliChoice estimates that five-year ownership costs (depreciation, financing, insurance, fuel, fees, repairs and maintenance) for the Subaru Legacy will be $18087 to $19356 less than for the Genesis G70.

Consumer Reports® recommends the Subaru Legacy, based on reliability, safety and performance. The Genesis G70 isn't recommended.

The Subaru Legacy outsold the Genesis G70 by almost two to one during 2023.