Subaru Levorg 2016 Review

Subaru Levorg GT, GT-S and Spec B
Local Launch
New England, NSW

In the never-ending quest to find new names that are legally kosher and don't sound rude in foreign languages, Subaru has boldy gone with a concocted name that has a certain Star Trek Next Generation quality about it... LeVar Burton captured and assimilated by the Borg perhaps?

Anyway, silly name aside, the Levorg is a beaut car. It's undeniably a better packaged family car than the WRX that shares its drivetrain.

There's more room for rear-seat occupants than practically any vehicle in the Subaru range this side of an Outback or Liberty, but the enthusiast driver isn't forgotten. The Levorg goes hard and is fun to fling into bends. Take into account the inherent active safety of its all-wheel-drive underpinnings and you have a car that's a seriously good, all-round package.

Subaru’s trademark boxer engine delivers solid performance right up to the redline, but is also very refined. At cruising speed it's not conspicuously loud, but it does generate the beat typical of a WRX engine when the driver is hoofing it.

At low revs, down to 1500rpm or less – and in keeping with horizontally-opposed engines generally – it doesn't labour or carry on. It's an engine that loves to spin up to the redline as well; you don't have to keep it there for decent performance. There's torque available almost anywhere in the rev range.

Subaru has produced the goods matching this engine to the CVT in the Levorg. The transmission doesn't behave the way CVTs frequently do. There's no droning from the engine, and the changes (for the artificial steps) are even executed with a nominal level of shift shock when the engine's operating under heavy load.

The engine accelerates as the car gathers pace too, so it feels – and sounds – less like a CVT, more like a high-geared automatic. The only glitch? Very occasionally it gets confused and the drivetrain surges slightly as it adjusts torque and ratios at the same time to maintain the stepped-transmission feel.

About the only other real objection to the CVT is the whine that becomes intrusive on the overrun from higher revs. There's also some whine from the CVT when the Levorg is accelerating – especially if the driver is using the transmission manually with the shift paddles. All that said, the transmission is nowhere near as noisy as the XV's.

Over the course of the drive program between Port Macquarie and Tamworth, the Levorg was returning figures of around 14L/100km when given a hiding. But the figures were still falling (at just above 10L/100km) by the time we’d done some more sedate highway miles and were handing the test vehicles back.

For owners unlikely to punish it every day, the Levorg should use fuel at a sparing rate. Subaru recommends 95 RON for the Levorg.

Tyre-related noise and vibration was worse in the Spec B than the base-grade GT, but the wind noise was worse still. Since it was a blustery day, I would reserve judgement until there's an opportunity to test the Levorg in a seven-day road test scenario.

The base-grade GT rode more comfortably than the Spec B model, which crashed through on several occasions during the drive program.

Quite simply, the suspension of the Spec B (and GT S also) is just too firm. The Bilstein-equipped cars are real weekend track weapons, but most owners would quickly tire of the punishing ride on anything less than well maintained suburban roads during the week.

For its part the base level GT is not the complete answer either. It certainly rides better, and it is still fun (in fact, it turns in every bit as responsively and there's slight roll-related weight transfer at the rear contributing to that) but the higher-grade variants do provide better grip.

The GT S and Spec B also come with nicer seats. Whereas the GT's seats are flat and lacking support under the thighs, the seats in the Spec B were better shaped and bolstered, wrapping around like the seats in a WRX or STI. In short, the base variant's seats are fine for general duties around town, but not much else.

And for a car approaching $43,000 to purchase, the base-grade Levorg should come with electric adjustment for the front seats. Even in the case of the better-specified Levorg GT S (and the top-shelf Spec B variant) the driver still has to pull a bar up at the front of the seat to adjust it fore and aft.

The driving position in the Levorg is conventional Subaru -- basically that of an Impreza/WRX. Controls are properly located and the instruments are easy to read, but there's a plethora of switchgear on the wheel, making it all look very busy.

My co-driver didn't even notice the S/I drive button on the lower right spoke of the steering wheel, despite looking for it.

Given the Levorg's Impreza/WRX design origins, it came as no surprise that there were no adjustable vents in the rear. At least there was plenty of rear-seat legroom and headroom however. Around 10cm of open-air kneeroom for me with an adult seated in front – also enjoying plenty of legroom.

Space is  where the Levorg is at a real advantage – even over the fourth-generation Liberty that Subaru will tell you was the inspiration for the newer car. Subaru has even revealed the precise difference in measurement: Fourth-gen Liberty 60mm, fifth-gen Liberty 115mm – and Levorg 85mm. And headroom was generous in the Levorg too, even in the Spec B model with its standard sunroof.

Being a wagon, the Levorg will be called upon to carry loads from time to time. In that regard it's a useful, practical package with finger pulls in the luggage compartment for the folding rear seats, which sit almost flat when lowered. There's no spare tyre underneath, but the load floor still sits high, due to the drivetrain components for the rear wheels.

The Levorg has been assembled with care, featuring soft-touch and textured plastics throughout, along with piano gloss decorative trim. Controls like the wipers and indicator stalks are softly damped in use and the doors close quietly and with little thrust required.

When it comes to safety, ANCAP has already settled on a five-star score for the Levorg, and the Subaru also comes standard with EyeSight v3.0, which I found to be set up better for taking a racing line through a corner without reacting the way the previous version did. It suggests that the EyeSight learning curve is beginning to plateau, and the system is much less aggravating than it has been in the past.

All up, the Levorg is a very convincing package – especially for those who are already inclined to the Subaru brand. Compared with its three obvious competitors (see below), the Levorg holds the advantage, whether in terms of pricing, packaging, performance or traction.

But about those seats in the GT...

2016 Subaru Levorg GT (GT-S and Spec B) pricing and specifications:
Price: $42,990 ($48,890, $52,890) plus on-road costs
Engine: 2.0-litre turbocharged petrol flat four
Output: 197kW/350Nm
Transmission: Continuously variable
Fuel: 8.7L/100km (ADR Combined)
CO2: 201g/km (ADR Combined)
Safety Rating: Five-star (ANCAP)

Also consider:
Renault Megane GT220 Premium (from $42,500 plus on-road costs)
Skoda Octavia RS 162TSI (from $41,390 plus on-road costs)
Volkswagen Golf R Wolfsburg Edition (from $58,990 plus on-road costs)