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…
The last Subaru Legacy has rolled off the assembly line at the factory in Lafayette, Indiana.
The 2025 model is a Limited trim painted Magnetite Gray, and it will be sold normally rather than preserved somewhere.
It's the capstone on 36 years of production for a nameplate that saw many historic milestones for Subaru.
On September 12, 2025, the final Subaru Legacy sedan was driven off the line at the company's factory in Lafayette, Indiana. The last example was pretty typical for the nameplate. Painted Magnetite Gray, it was equipped with a 182-hp 2.5-liter flat-four, all-wheel drive, a nice stereo, and leather seats.
The last Legacy isn't exactly what you'd call exciting stuff, especially if you grew up with a poster of a bright blue WRX STI launching itself over a gravel hill on your wall and went on to name your children Colin and 22B. The Legacy hasn't really been a Subaru enthusiast choice for many years, neither fitting in with would-be rally car drivers nor plaid-wearing outdoorsy types.
However, the Legacy does leave behind a long [consults thesaurus] heritage. It was a game-changer for Subaru, and there have been plenty of interesting models over the years. It was the basis for the rise of the Outback from trim level to full-on nameplate, and there were more than a few years where the Legacy was exactly the kind of thing to have if Colin and 22B had outgrown the back seat of the WRX.
In one of the coolest—if not well-covered—publicity stunts, Subaru turned the Legacy into a record-breaking speed machine right out of the gate. Flying four specially prepared JDM-spec Legacy RS sedans direct from Narita airport to the United States, a team of 100 Subaru employees and engineers headed to the desert.
Incredibly, the record still stands, in the FIA category for 1.5- to 2.0-liter engines: 62,137 miles (100,000 km) at an average speed of 138 mph. The RS ran turbocharged 2.0-liter motors, and Subaru also entered it in rally racing right from the get-go. In 1993, Colin McRae notched up his maiden WRC win in a Legacy RS, first in a series of wins for Subaru that would eventually see him crowned World Champion.
The first Subaru Outback arrived in 1995 on the then-new Legacy wagon. It took just one year to get the recipe right: body cladding, big fog lights, a raised ride height. For a time, it was still just a trim level, and you could order it on the sedan.
Into the 2000s, the Legacy Outback really came into its own. An unexpected stealth wealth machine, it was often driven around the East Coast by old-money types, often with significant amounts of golden retriever hair in the back. Eventually, the trim was popular enough to be just called an Outback, and that's how things continue today.
For the fourth-generation Legacy, Subaru added a turbocharged 2.5-liter flat-four engine to the mix, one good for 250 horsepower. With a five-speed manual available, and both sedan and wagon variants, it was a pretty good time to be a rally fan shopping for an alternative to a Camry or Accord.
Best of them all was the Legacy spec.B, which got a bunch of WRX-style go-faster bits, though not any extra power. It received a bit of criticism at its price point, but it was both highly tunable and still looked respectable in the car park at work.
Turbocharging would eventually lead Subaru to its current practice of not selling anything other than four-cylinder engines, but for a long while, it offered a characterful flat-six. Smooth but with a bit of a growl, the six wasn't so much a performance option as it was a bit of a luxury.
The last hurrah for this motor was as a 3.6-liter engine in the Legacy 3.6R. Don't let the R fool you, as this Legacy's personality was way more retiree than racer. Still, outside of Porsche, who else offered a flat-six engine, let alone in a four-door family sedan?
As for the last Subaru Legacy built, that car won't be preserved as special but will be sent off to a dealer to be sold like any other Legacy. With a total production run of 36 years, numerous milestones reached, being a part of Subaru's increasing mainstream appeal in the 1990s and its outdoorsy image today, the Legacy can take a well-deserved rest. Turns out, Subaru gave its sedan the exact right name.
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