My SUV is 12 years old so my family is in the market for a new vehicle. Over the next couple of months, we’ll be test driving and sharing our experiences on our road to purchasing kid-friendly transportation–the good, the bad and the ugly. Because really, isn’t family travel a bit of all three?
I’ve never driven a Subaru so I was game when they offered to have me drive the 2015 Legacy for a few days. However, when the car pulled up to my house, I astutely observed, “That’s not a Subaru.” Admittedly, my only associations with Subaru have been with the Forester and Outback, a.k.a. The Official Cars of Boulder (or it would appear that way because it seems the majority of the population owns one).
But I was happily schooled that Subaru does, indeed have an updated, sleekly designed midsize sedan. Over the next five days, we put the 2015 Legacy to the test.
Day 1: Around Town. I took my husband to lunch and ran errands with the kids. I became acquainted with the Lane Change Assist and every time I’d swerve out of my lane, the Lane Departure was alerted. Apparently, I swerve a lot as my husband liked to point out…and the Subaru made me more aware of my sub-par driving. I’d like to think it made me safer, too.
Day 2: Local Adventure. Girl’s day hiking at Chautaquau in Boulder and birthday lunching. Really liked the EyeSight Driver Assistance System with enhanced camera performance, which alerts the driver when they are getting too close to another vehicle to help prevent collisions. Because when you’re distracted with your gal pals, it’s good to have someone else watching out for you.
Days 3, 4 and 5: Road-trip! I drove with my friends to Snowmass for Mudderella. There was plenty of room for four adults and their luggage, no small feat (the Legacy boasts the largest passenger cabin in its category). The car also got great fuel efficiency. I appreciated the EyeSight that monitors any traffic ahead and alerts passengers of any upcoming braking.
(See all our adventures here).
Disliked:
The all-new 2015 Legacy has new safety and infotainment technology that helps keep traveling distance and prevents accidents. However, we did not find the GPS unit easy to operate. My technologically-savvy husband couldn’t figure out how to program an address into the unit, nor could my friends on our road-trip. We ended up just setting up the Bluetooth through my iPhone and having Siri guide us through. Of course, a quick reference to the manual would have provided GPS instructions but I’ve never encountered a vehicle where the basic functionality wasn’t intuitive.
Overall, I really enjoyed the Legacy. Of course, it would not be a practical replacement for my SUV but my husband and I are seriously considering it when he needs to replace his sedan in a few years. For more information about Subaru, go to subaru.com or follow them at facebook.com/subaruofamerica.
Author: Amber Johnson
Amber is the founder and editor of Mile High Mamas, travel writer and former columnist for The Denver Post. She is a passionate community builder and loves the outdoors. She has two awesome teens and is happily married to a man obsessed with growing The Great Pumpkin.
Lana
WE live in Boulder and drive a Subaru. I guess that means I’m a Lemming? Hahaha! We love it.
Sandra
We love the lane assist but our family rule is when I wandering out of my lane five times, my husband takes over. 🙂