The 2008 Subaru Legacy 3.0 R Limited makes for a good car in a variety of driving conditions, but its cabin tech tops out at a decent navigation system, with only a passable stereo.
Although not huge on cabin tech, the Legacy drives very well in different conditions. We were comfortable driving it in traffic and also had fun on twisty mountain roads.
The Legacy comes in a number of trim levels, with our 3.0 R Limited being the top of the line. As such, it is well-equipped with a standard six-disc changer and navigation system.
The 3-liter engine in the Legacy is a horizontally opposed six cylinder. Other Legacy models use 2.5-liter horizontally opposed four-cylinder engines, some turbocharged and some not.
There are a lot of buttons on the steering wheel, but the ones integrated into the spokes are nicely finished. Other buttons between the spokes are less well-designed, and don't always seem necessary.
With the five-speed automatic, we preferred the manual shift mode. We also found that in second gear, we could get the car up to 50 mph without hitting the red line.
Subaru's mode control knob lets you put the car into Intelligent, Sport, or Sport Sharp modes. We didn't find a great difference between Sport and Sport Sharp, and preferred using the manual shift mode for the transmission.
The stereo has an auxiliary input in the center console, with a convenient wire pass-through, letting you plug in an MP3 player and keep it in the cup holder.
The navigation system includes these points-of-interest categories. You can also enter addresses by telephone number, freeway entrance, and from the map.
