Car of the Year Awards: Our Legacy

The quality-plus Subaru Legacy tames more than the roads. It's beaten a field of impressive contenders to take our Car of the Year award, says motoring editor ALASTAIR SLOANE.

The Subaru Legacy is the New Zealand Herald's 1999 Car of the Year. It sits on a pedestal above a top 10 list of vehicles, all of which were launched in New Zealand in the past 12 months.

The top 10, in alphabetical order, includes the mainstream categories - small cars, big cars, luxury cars, stationwagons and four-wheel-drives.

"The Herald award is brilliant, it's made my year," said Wallis Dumper, the head of Subaru New Zealand. "Long may the awards continue. Next year is the new Subaru Impreza. We can only hope for more."

The Legacy - the wagon was launched in New Zealand in January and the sedan in April - is responsible for Subaru's record sales this year.

Both models come with a choice of three horizontally opposed four-cylinder engines of 2.0, 2.2 and 2.5 litres capacity. The 2.0 litre unit is turbocharged, the 2.2 and 2.5 are naturally aspirated.

The Legacy oozes quality in an understated, almost modest way. The fit and finish, inside and out, is exemplary. Interiors are roomy, with a comfortable, bach-at-the-beach feel and its all-wheel-drive system and suspension set-up tames every road surface between Takapuna and Timbukto. Perhaps most of all, its reliability is renowned.

Australian crash-testers gave it another gong the other day when it marginally bettered the 40 series Volvo as the safest car in its class. The Legacy costs between $39,990 and $45,990.

"Subaru is recognised as a great brand and the challenge for us now, especially with the depreciating dollar against the yen, is to keep the brand strong," Dumper says.

"We have price rises from January but we've got a huge initiative next year to focus further on the brand, to make sure people want to buy a Subaru and that the resale value of the cars remains strong.

"The Legacy is certainly a great vehicle, but the award also goes to the dealer team and my own staff - they are the ones who helped achieve it."

Subaru finished the 1998-99 financial year in third place in Japan, behind Toyota and Honda. The result prompted London's Financial Times to name Subaru as the world's most improved car company. Earlier it topped the JD Power international poll for customer satisfaction.

AUDI S3: The best hatchback money can buy, inside, outside and underneath. It is powered by a turbocharged 1.8-litre four-cylinder engine, a variant of the motor found in the Volkswagen Golf. The S3 delivers oodles of oomph, all of it to all four wheels through a six-speed manual gearbox and a Haldex clutch, capable of distributing 100 per cent of the power to either the front or rear wheels. It stops quicker than most cars, too, thanks to hi-tech brakes. Cost: $75,900.

BMW 323i COUPE: More appealing visually than anything else in the carmaker's lineup. More fun than anything else, too - save for the awesome M5, the most complete car on the road. The coupe's interior design, from a driver's point of view, brings man and executive machine together like no other. The two-door, powered by 2.5-litre straight-six engine, is everything BMW advertises it to be. If it's a powerful, agile sports coupe you want, there is none better. Cost: $79,000 to $83,000.

DAIHATSU MIRA: The modern Mini, only better built, more reliable and more comfortable. The Mira is powered by a three-cylinder twin cam 1-litre engine, which thrives on the throttle. There are many good small, city-type vehicles about, but the Mira is a genuinely fun package. It can get a bit skittery in the wet - again like the old Mini - but nevertheless it has plenty of raw appeal. Daihatsu calls itself the world's small car expert. Cost: $13,600 to $15,600.

HONDA S2000: Combines classic front engine/rear-drive layout of sports cars of yesteryear right down to its red starter-button, with an engine of tomorrow. Beats the hugely entertaining - and considerably cheaper - Nissan 200SX. There is much about the S2000 which appeals - its chassis, slick manual gearbox and snug cockpit. But the brilliant 2-litre engine is the car's heart and soul. It produces 176kW at 8300 rpm, more kilowatts per litre than any naturally aspirated car engine on the road. Cost: $67,000 to $71,000.

HYUNDAI SONATA: Genuine surprise and a giant leap forward for the Korean carmaker. Hyundai cars have always been seen as bread and butter products, reliable certainly but aimed at the fleet and budget buyer. The bigger Sonata goes many steps further, offering build quality, a solid feel and ride and handling once far beyond Hyundai's skill. But the jury's out on the car's peculiar Korean styling. The top-range V6 model is the pick, with everything that opens and shuts. Cost: $28,990 to $40,950.

JAGUAR S-TYPE: Talk of it being the spiritual successor to the 1959, Mark II ignores the original model's considerable appeal. In fact, the S-Type looks cumbersome parked alongside the Mk II, its high waistline in particular dragging down the rear. But that's where comparisons must end. The S-Type is a superb car to drive, its accurate steering and computer-controlled suspension improving with every urge of its Ford-built engine. The interior feels pretty good too. Cost: $98,000 to $139,000.

LAND-ROVER DISCOVERY: Most heavyweight four-wheel-drives corner like Marge Simpson's hairdo. But not the new Discovery. It uses an electronic system called active cornering enhancement, which limits body roll to the point where the Discovery corners like a car. The new model comes with reworked diesel or petrol engines. Inside it remains a thing of beauty. Acclaimed British designer Sir Terrance Conran mapped out the interior in the 1989 original. The 1999 model stays true to his pen. Cost: $69,000 to $89,000.

MERCEDES-BENZ S-CLASS: Dazzling development, chockablock with technology and computerised aids and an outstanding example of front engine/rear-drive geometry and dynamics. Seats with pulsating air chamber and fans keep occupants relaxed and cool, fuel-saving device enables V8 models to run on four cylinders up to 130 km/h, airmatic suspension combines air setup with a damping system which adapts to the road's surface and takes into account the car's payload ... the list goes on. Cost: $164,900 to $279,000.

MITSUBISHI DIAMANTE: The bigger Mitsubishi sedan has been a favourite for years, ever since the days of traffic cops and the V3000 model. Still highly competent, but more so with a first-class suspension setup and new 3.5-litre V6 engine mated to an "intelligent" automatic transmission. The power is kept in check by a traction control system aimed at stopping the careless driver from going backwards through a hedge. The well-built range has four sedans and two stationwagons. Cost: $39,350 to $49,650.

RENAULT CLIO: This set a benchmark for value for money. The five-speed 1.4-litre manual model went on sale mid-year with four airbags, air-conditioning and ABS anti-lock brakes - for $21,990. Buyers rushed dealers and more than 20 cars were sold in a couple of days. Rivals are still talking about the impact the Clio's price had on the market. Sales have continued but not at such a frenzied pace. Styling can polarise. Clio offers good ride, good interior and good backup. Cost: $21,990 to $25,990.