New Forester, First Outing

[Carol H]

Originally Posted by Bobbie Mayer

But I'm surprised you had it in the early 90s,

Yup the 92 Subaru Legacy had it as did both my 97 and 2000 Outbacks. Actually this is the first Subaru I have owned without it... only because getting it with a manual transmission was not an option its model year.

[ruscal]

The drum emergency brakes used in rear disc brakes are much smaller than old drum brakes designed for stopping, but I wouldn't worry about damaging them just from holding the car and trailer on a hill. Just do a test to see if they have the holding power you need on a steep hill. Wear should only be a factor while slipping the brake, but you are really dumping the brakes pretty quickly, so not much slip. Your clutch will be taking most of the abuse of hill starts, since it will need to be feathered for smooth starts. My Jeep wrangler has those tiny e brake shoes, and holds the car by itself, but I have not tested to see if it will hold car and trailer on the steep. So far I have used 4wd low range for really steep starts which works well.
Russ

[Raz]

Originally Posted by ruscal

So far I have used 4wd low range for really steep starts which works well.
Russ

Subaru sells that.........in Australia.

[MyronL]

We have been close to buying our 16 ft Scamp a new Subaru. Everything about the Subaru appeals to us but a recent visit to the dealership provided zero information on towing. They just were not prepared with answers. That surprised us and raised an immediate red flag. (!) Which model would be best? Does Subaru even supply hitches? Outback or Forester?...etc.

[Bobbie Mayer]

Subaru does do a hitch but both times I bought one they recommended an after-market hitch but that could be because unless you order one you aren't likely to find one with a factory hitch. I think Outback has the higher towing capacity but you'd have to check. Toyota Rav4 V6 is another vehicle to consider.

[Carol H]

Originally Posted by Myron Leski

We have been close to buying our 16 ft Scamp a new Subaru. Everything about the Subaru appeals to us but a recent visit to the dealership provided zero information on towing. They just were not prepared with answers. That surprised us and raised an immediate red flag. (!) Which model would be best? Does Subaru even supply hitches? Outback or Forester?...etc.

You need to know 1st what your 16' actually weighs loaded. I don't think you will find any 16' Scamps that meet the Foresters tow specs so the Outback is your only option. Having said that there are also only a few 16' ' Scamps that fall into the Outback's tow soecs as well. due to their layout & options many are well over the Outbacks 200 lb tongue limit.

I have towed a 16' Sidebath Scamp with an Outback for 5 years, thousands of miles & it does well with it but I need to be very careful about what I load & don't load in the trailer & how I loaded what I do load in order to keep within Subaru's specs & to have a solid safe tow. Mine has no AC & only one propane tank & I never travel with water in the tanks.

I love my Subaru it's actually my 4th one but due to the tongue weight limitations I will be replacing it in the not to distant future, as much as I don't really want to with a vehicle with the ability to take a higher tongue weight in order to have an even safer & more solid tow for those times I travel on the Freeway at higher speeds.

As far as hitches go as far as I am aware Subaru only started to offer factory hitches a few years ago and its only a class I which is of no use for a 16' Scamp but you can take the car to any hitch installer & they will have a hitch that fits the Subaru nicely and meets the 16' requirements. Subaru also requires that you have brakes on anything you tow over 1000lbs so you will need to have the hitch installer run the brake wire as well as that is not part of the standard towing pre wiring that comes from the factory found on either the Forester or Outback.

As I said I love Subaru's & i am nit overly happy with the thought of changing vehicle makes. As folks here will tell you I'm the first to say that the Outback is a good tow vehicle. In fact way better than some here seem to think. I am for the most part very happy with how it tows my 16'. Did 12000 miles last year alone with no problems but if starting from scratch I would look for something with a higher tongue weight limit if I was planning to tow a 16'.

By the way if anyone suggest to you that you can over come the tongue weight limitation by using an equalizer hitch it's important to note Subaru's. Manual states they are not to be used on their vehicles.

[Roger C H]

Getting back to Hill Holders, wouldn't the HH be bad for the throw-out bearing in the clutch?

My model Subaru doesn't have Hill Holder. When the rig starts to roll on a slight hill, I sometimes just engage the electric trailer brakes with the controller. This also assures me that the trailer brakes still work.

[Bobbie Mayer]

Something I don't understand on all the tongue-weight issues. If you have a single axle trailer why not just redistribute the weight? Or is too much of it fixed in some of these trailers for that to help?

[Raz]

Hello Myron, how are things in the old country( I grew up in central Jersey). I don't want to start the " can it tow a ..." debate since we know where that goes but if I had a 16 ft, I would want an Outback over a Forester.

Roger I can't see a reason the Hill holder would have any effect on the throwout bearing. The only time the hh is an issue is when you want to start on a steep hill with the trailer and need to slip the clutch to start. Only the clutch plate and the flywheel are effected.

Bobby, to get my tongue weight down I stored the front table (15 lb) on the back bed and put my travel tools (5 lbs) in the tow vehicle behind the front seat. I am at about 200 lbs before we add water to the tank. To seriously lower my tongue weight I would move the battery behind trailer axle. Luckily I didn't need to do that.

[DavArl]

We just got home from picking up our new Lil Snoozy with our 4cyl 2010 automatic Forester. Going over 800 miles on interstates and thru the Smokies and Kentucky here is our mileage.

Towing: 16-17 mpg averaging 60-65mph
No tow: 26-27 mpg averaging 70-75mph

Tows like a champ.

Dave

[MyronL]

Just watched a how-to video on installing your $175 class 3 hitch, from etrailer accessories, online. Very informative, if daunting. Subaru sure don’t make it simple.

Got to drop the muffler down 4-5 inches, remove a heat shield, drill holes, snake in bolts, then after trimming the heat shield, bolt things into place, and you’re done. Makes me wonder about that thin unibody metal you slip the bolts through. So if without free access to a lift, (who does?) you do it on your back, upside down, after safely jacking up and propping the car a foot or two off the ground.

Bad news is then you need to convert the standard 4 pin to match the Scamp’s 7 pin.
Good news is my Scamp’s tongue weight, according to original manufacturer specs, dry, is 120 pounds,. I’ll be well within the 300 pound Outback max. My bathroom scale weighed in at um, 170, I think, so no worries.

More good news, Raz....... we hope soon to kiss NJ goodbye...moving to NM.

[Raz]

Originally Posted by Myron Leski

More good news, Raz....... we hope soon to kiss NJ goodbye...moving to NM.

I understand. Just remember, you can also kiss good Pizza goodbye. Here's my install.
http://www.fiberglassrv.com/forums/f...hed-52650.html

[Carol H]

[QUOTE="Roger C H"]Getting back to Hill Holders, wouldn't the HH be bad for the throw-out bearing in the clutch
/QUOTE]

Roger I think Subaru has that covered. The 3 I had with the hill holders spent most of their lives living on a big hill so that feature was used for the majority of their use :-) & all went many miles but none ever needed any clutch repairs.

[Carol H]

Originally Posted by Bobbie Mayer

Something I don't understand on all the tongue-weight issues. If you have a single axle trailer why not just redistribute the weight? Or is too much of it fixed in some of these trailers for that to help?

The issue is that although you can redistribute the weight to keep the tongue weight within the spec you also need to keep the tongue weight at a percentage of your total weight that is safe to avoid sway issues. I have weighed my 16' many times & it's packed very light - no AC no water no microwave etc & the lightest axle weight I have been able to achieve is 2300lbs axle weight so 10 percent on the tongue would be 230lbs which is over the 200 lb Subaru spec. Subaru does say you can go to 8 percent which I do & have not had any sway issues but I never go over 60 mpg as its a good bet if I did there would be a sway issue going downhill or over dumps. If traveling on freeways I will admit to pushing the tongue weight up over the Subaru specs - by about 40lbs or so ;-) if I wanted to do more than 60 mpg I know the tongue would need to go up in weight more than that to avoid sway.

As I said the car handles the trailer well but I know from having put many miles on my set up that having the ability to put a little more weight on the tongue would give an even better/safer tow. Thus why when asked I will suggest to those considering towing with a Subaru Outback that they keep it to a 13' for a *real good* safe solid tow.

[Carol H]

[QUOTE=
I’ll be well within the 300 pound Outback

NM.[/QUOTE]

300lbs ? Really? What model year do you have? If true That would be great news for me as it means I can stick with Subaru when I replace my current one,

[Chesley Sugg]

Originally Posted by DavArl

We just got home from picking up our new Lil Snoozy with our 4cyl 2010 automatic Forester. Going over 800 miles on interstates and thru the Smokies and Kentucky here is our mileage.

Towing: 16-17 mpg averaging 60-65mph
No tow: 26-27 mpg averaging 70-75mph

Tows like a champ.

Dave

Dave,

You mileage is right in line with mine. Drove 1400 miles to Backus from Raleigh NC to pick up a 13' Scamp and 1500 back. My tow vehicle is a 2009 Forester Turbo. Going thru the smokies and mostly interstates.

No tow: 27 mpg, 65-70 mph
Towing 1500lb scamp: 17 mpg, 60-65 mph

I am using a Factory class II hitch. Installs behind bumper "cover" and rides somewhat higher that aftermarket hitches. A little pricey (although I got mine used and saved half). Brakes on trailer and controller on car.

Handles fine.

Ches

[MyronL]

Originally Posted by Carol H

300lbs ? Really? What model year do you have? If true That would be great news for me as it means I can stick with Subaru when I replace my current one,

I just re-checked and it's news to me, too.

According to the official Subaru site the 2013 Outback Premium is available with a hitch rated max. tow of 2,700 lbs with the 2.5KL engine and/or 3,000 lbs. with the 3.6L engine, ...but .....only 200 lbs max. tongue weight, (for both, I guess, since they don't say). They also do not say what class is the dealer supplied hitch.

Can't find where I saw that 300 lb tongue weight data. Maybe wishful thinking? I know someplace I saw the 2012 Subaru dealer hitch was limited to a Class l.

My Scamp has no frig, no a/c, no sink, or shower. I also removed the big awning. By the way, if anyone wants it you can have it for peanuts.

Towing with my '96 Tahoe I hardly know Scamp is back there. If we get the Subaru I will however, hook up brakes.