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Wednesday, May 5, 2010

Legacy's one of the "Best Family Cars in 2010" and Thoughts from a New Mommy



Awards continue to rain down on Subaru vehicles this year!

Most recently, the Subaru Legacy is one of the cars Parents Magazine and Edmunds.com picked as the Best Family Cars in 2010. The 2009 Forester was on this list last year, too. As a new mommy (to 5 month old Makenzi), this is no surprise to me.

It's so funny how your view of cars changes when you start carting around your own tiny human. When I started in the automotive industry, I took a liking to fast cars that looked sexy and garnered the attention of men. In fact, I have to admit that my bright red, turbocharged, sport packaged, windows-tinted car played a role in meeting my husband.

Now, with Makenzi on board, priorities have changed. Of course, safety is paramount. I don't just mean in protecting us if the car is in an accident (although my Legacy has plenty of that (click here to view some videos of how the Legacy held up even in 2000 compared to other cars out there--Dateline NBC Offset Crash Test 1999-2000 Midsize Sedans IIHS), I mean what the car does to make sure I don't get in an accident at all. VDC (vehicle dynamic control) is a must in accident avoidance in all types of weather. All wheel drive is also a necessity because in winter you can't afford to be stuck somewhere with an infant in the car.

What you might not realize is how much space someone who is 25" long and weighs just 15 lbs can take up. Between a stroller, a diaper bag, the huge boxes of diapers you buy, the high chair you need to get, the exersaucer you want to bring on a long trip, etc. you're requiring a whole lot of cargo room! Heaven forbid your spouse wants to come along, too. This forces you to think a lot about how space is used in cars.

Oh, and those little humans aren't cheap to have around. So cost is always a factor, not just in the price of the car but in maintainance and fuel economy. The Legacy CVT (an automatic transmission) now gets up tp 31 miles per gallon (yes, it is still all wheel drive!)

So, I have to wholeheartedly agree with the Parents Magazine/Edmunds.com distinction--the new Legacy is safe, has the space where you need it, and is a tremendous value. Those are all important to this parent!

(But I'm thinking that I'm glad the Legacy is as attractive as it is and is still available with a manual transmission, even if those aren't allowed to be requirements anymore!)