Subaru Levorg 2016 car review

There’s only one spec available in the New Zealand market, but don’t worry it’s the best. The 2.0GT-S has all the goodies that you’d expect from a top of the range Subaru. It boasts similar sizing and features to the 5th generation Legacy, yet it did take me back to the days of driving a WRX sports hatch.

The Levorg was a pleasure to drive. Its power delivery was smooth and it had nice turbo acceleration. The well-engineered, Subaru Lineartronic, CVT transmission perfectly matched the famous 197kW, 2.0L, direct-injection, turbocharged, boxer engine. After making good use of the sport mode and paddle shifters, I was very impressed with the transmission operation. It even took a fair bit of concentration to discover that the transmission was in fact a CVT!

Got the blues

I love the colour blue, so I loved the interior. Everything from the blue stitched interior trim, to the illuminated instrument display created a very fresh look. The borderless infotainment screen was easy to navigate and you can customise the extra top dash display to show a digital gauge, fuel information, analogue clock, plus other handy features. Space isn’t an issue as you can configure the stylish rear seats to create extra space for the adventurous soul or extravagant shopper. Adults can be seated quite comfortably in the back seats as well, and the centre arm rest doubles up as one of the many beverage holders found throughout.

All the assist and safety features within the Subaru made achieving a 5-star ANCAP rating easy. The Levorg includes Subaru’s third generation EyeSight® safety technology, and the handling department is taken care of by fitting Bilstein suspension.

The exterior styling is very sleek and the gaping intake in the bonnet gives a hint of the power that lies within. The front resembles the Impreza, but the rear styling throws a Legacy element in to the equation.