Where each one leads
Mercedes-Benz C-Class
- Against cars of the same year, the Mercedes-Benz C-Class comes out better in New York safety inspections (fails 38% less often than average) than the Subaru Legacy (fails 5% less often than average).
- New Mercedes-Benz C-Class cars registered in Europe in 2022 average 116 g/km of CO₂ on the WLTP test, against 174 for the Subaru Legacy in 2022.
Subaru Legacy
- Against cars of the same age, the Subaru Legacy comes out better at its first MOT test (passes 6% more often than average) than the Mercedes-Benz C-Class (passes 1% more often than average).
- Fewer Subaru Legacy cars in the Netherlands carry an illogical odometer record (3.1% against 4.5%).
Too close to call: NHTSA overall safety rating.
Only measures that do not depend on how many cars were sold: pass and failure rates against cars of the same age, ratings, fuel use and CO₂. How we compare
At a glance
| Mercedes-Benz C-Class | Subaru Legacy | |
|---|---|---|
| Model years in the US safety record | 1991–2012 | 1987–2025 |
| New cars registered in Europe | 1,573,424 (2010–2022) | 47,660 (2010–2022) |
| Licensed in the United Kingdom | 342,811 | 3,879 |
| On the road in the Netherlands | 78,492 | 2,918 |
| In traffic in Finland | 49,488 | 4,539 |
EEA new-car registrations (CC BY 4.0) · DVLA licensed vehicles (OGL v3.0) · RDW (CC0) · Traficom (CC BY 4.0) · generations: Wikidata (CC0).
Reliability and problems
| Mercedes-Benz C-Class | Subaru Legacy | |
|---|---|---|
| UK MOT first-time pass rate | 80% | 62% |
| … against cars of the same age | +1% | +6% |
| New York safety inspections failed | 1.1% | 1.7% |
| … against cars of the same year | −38% | −5% |
| Illogical odometer records (NL) | 4.5% | 3.1% |
| US owner complaints | 192 | 3,185 |
| Most complaints about | Electrical system | Electrical system |
| Model year with most complaints | 1995 (49) | 2005 (184) |
| US recall campaigns | 6 | 81 |
| Manufacturer service bulletins | 73 | 6,256 |
| NHTSA defect investigations | 11 | 23 |
Complaint, recall and bulletin counts grow with the number of cars sold and are not adjusted for it. UK MOT: DVSA anonymised MOT results (OGL v3.0); New York: DMV inspections; complaints, recalls, bulletins and investigations: NHTSA (public domain); odometer: RDW (CC0).
Safety
| Mercedes-Benz C-Class | Subaru Legacy | |
|---|---|---|
| NHTSA overall rating | 5★ (2021) | 5★ (2025) |
NHTSA New Car Assessment Program, most recent rated model year (public domain).
Fuel, emissions and price
| Mercedes-Benz C-Class | Subaru Legacy | |
|---|---|---|
| Official combined fuel use, Canada | — | 9.0 l/100 km (2024) |
| Real-world use in Europe, diesel hybrid | 6.0 l/100 km | — |
| Real-world use in Europe, petrol hybrid | 8.5 l/100 km | — |
| Real-world use in Europe, diesel | 6.3 l/100 km | — |
| Real-world use in Europe, petrol | 10.9 l/100 km | — |
| Official CO₂ of new cars in Europe | 116 g/km | 174 g/km |
| Average power of new cars in Europe | 152 kW (203 hp) | 123 kW (165 hp) |
| Average mass in running order | 1,818 kg | 1,453 kg |
| Dutch list price when new (median) | €54,166 | €42,363 |
| Average odometer in Finland | 248,000 km | 254,000 km |
Canada: NRCan Fuel Consumption Ratings, most frugal version of the latest year (OGL Canada). Europe: EEA monitoring of new-car CO₂ and on-board fuel meters (OBFCM), CC BY 4.0. Price: RDW catalogue price (CC0). Finland: Traficom (CC BY 4.0).