Anyone tow with a Subaru?

prof_fate · 03-07-2016, 03:59 PM

Have a 2014 outback and rated for 3000ish pounds (depends on source, country, etc).
Seems most pop ups are well under so that's not a concern.
Subaru says any trailer over 1,000 needs brakes.

Just wondering if anyone has towed with a subaru and what experiences they've had, good or bad.

Oaklevel · 03-07-2016, 04:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by prof_fate

Have a 2014 outback and rated for 3000ish pounds (depends on source, country, etc).
Seems most pop ups are well under so that's not a concern.
Subaru says any trailer over 1,000 needs brakes.

Just wondering if anyone has towed with a subaru and what experiences they've had, good or bad.

Ya Subarus are junk....... Sorry towing a 5x8 utility trailer empty (less than 1000 lbs) blew the head gaskets. It was a 2011 just over 100K just had the timing belt and water pump replaced 6 months prior........... Both head gaskets and the radiator went.......... Subaru Customer Service gave us a bunch of lip service and they said it was normal for the head gaskets on any car to go at 100K. We traded it ...The dealer fixed it and it blew up again on the new owner..........

Sorry can ya tell I do not recommend towing anything with a Subaru.....

I do recommend if you keep it over a 100K when you replace the water pump & timing belt do the head gaskets too.

**RedLdr1** · 03-07-2016, 04:30 PM

Subaru is a little sneaky on their published tow ratings. With Subaru it isn't just about total weight but the limited tongue weight. When we had our 2011 Outback 3.6 the advertised tow capacity, with the OEM hitch, was 3,000 pounds...but with a maximum of 200 pounds tongue weight. That effectively limits you to 2,000 pound towing with the standard recommended 10% of the trailer weight on the tongue. I just looked at the Subaru website and that is still the listed ratings for the optional OEM Outback hitch.

As far a electric brake controller Subaru does not provide a pre-wired plug and play interface so you will have to the run wires for it. The weight at which trailer brakes are required varies by state. Some are as low as 1,000 pounds. There are threads here on the forum, or at AAA, with the state by state requirements.

I never towed a RV with our Subie. The A-Frame we wanted weighed too much more than our Outback could safely handle, IMHO, so we ended up trading our Subie in on a larger SUV. We did tow a lightly loaded, small 5"X8" U-Haul trailer a few times between Atlanta and Orlando, and it did fine with that trailer. Our gas mileage took a 6MPG hit but it wasn't a white knuckle experience by any means.

Hope this helps...

prof_fate · 03-07-2016, 04:42 PM

Pa says 3,000 and up for trailer brakes..i have a 6x12 cargo trailer GVW rated 2990..so no brakes. Haven't weighed it but my truck pulls it no problem of course. brakes are not an issue - but a 1/2 ton truck has big brakes.

subaru says any trailer over 1000lb needs brakes.
I've seen tow ratiings as high as 4,000 lbs.

170hp is plenty of power for 4k pounds...weight of vehicle shouldbe fine too. Not sure on hitch capacity..have to check that out more. I Have a class 3 frame mounted receiver on it.

our last camper was a 1966 apache...the first popup, very light and small., towed it with our 2003 windstar, never knew it was back there, never had an issue. But it was alum, 5x6' total size, no plumbing, elec..esentially a pickup box with slide out beds and a canvas tent on top.

As for headgaskets..this is my second subaru. first was a 2008 outback bought used at 40k miles..at 66k it needed headgaskets...made a deal wtih the dealer to trade it in on a new one. cheapest way out of the thing. it had all sorts of issues over the 2 years i had it.

this one has been better - other than the original tires are bald at 24k miles...never had name brand tires wear out so fast.

I don't have any wiring on the subaru or i'd try my cargo trailer...on a windy day i know it's back there on the truck..figure it would be worse on the subaru but a pop up wouldn't be 8' tall (from the road).

B and B · 03-07-2016, 04:57 PM

My step daughters father towed a uHaul trailer about 300 miles round trip. His brand new Subaru was 2 months old and the tranny, brakes, rear axle were replaced. He flipped a 6 month old car and the dealer friend wholesaled it to dump it.

Kenny kustom · 03-07-2016, 04:58 PM

Pop goes the head gasket

2016 Sabre 36QBOK
2015 Ram 3500 CUMMINS

aceinspp · 03-07-2016, 05:21 PM

Definitely something to stay away from. Later RJD

jlgail4309 · 03-07-2016, 06:03 PM

maybe a little tent trailer. They maybe 500 pounds .

mike.t · 03-08-2016, 12:46 PM

Think i'll just read replies.

prof_fate · 03-08-2016, 01:13 PM

hmm..this list has TWO subaru's on it. 10 Best Towing Vehicles That Aren't Trucks | Autobytel.com
granted 6 cyl models.

Googling i'm not finding any complaints about subaru's and towing or head gaskets..usually if there is a common problem it's easy to find discussions online. And my last suby had a head gasket fail so I'm sure there's an issue.

SuicideSaints · 03-08-2016, 01:35 PM

The payload of the 2015 subi outbaks show up to 1100#s and about a 6900# gcwr. A smaller tent trailer maybe.....

What are you trying or thinking of towing?

**Flybob** · 03-08-2016, 01:52 PM

I have an Outback and love it, however I would never tow at TT with it. The dealer option hitch is a 1 1/4 " receiver. You can buy aftermarket 2" hitches, but that dos not mean vehicle can handle load. I installed a 2" hitch on mine for a bike rack and the mounting will not support a 2400 lb TT. I know on mine that I can feel the difference with two additional adults especially on hills.

prof_fate · 03-08-2016, 02:25 PM

small pop up..haven't started shopping yet.

Quote:

Originally Posted by SuicideSaints

The payload of the 2015 subi outbaks show up to 1100#s and about a 6900# gcwr. A smaller tent trailer maybe.....

What are you trying or thinking of towing?

mtnlvr · 03-08-2016, 03:22 PM

I used to tow my 2014 Outback (4 cyl.) several trips at 325 miles or so w/ a full U-Haul & going up the mtn. home at 7,000 ft. elev. I never had a problem- it did fine.

Evereddie · 03-08-2016, 03:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Oaklevel

Ya Subarus are junk....... Sorry towing a 5x8 utility trailer empty (less than 1000 lbs) blew the head gaskets. It was a 2011 just over 100K just had the timing belt and water pump replaced 6 months prior........... Both head gaskets and the radiator went.......... Subaru Customer Service gave us a bunch of lip service and they said it was normal for the head gaskets on any car to go at 100K. We traded it ...The dealer fixed it and it blew up again on the new owner..........

Sorry can ya tell I do not recommend towing anything with a Subaru.....

I do recommend if you keep it over a 100K when you replace the water pump & timing belt do the head gaskets too.

I have to agree with you. had several subarus and they somehow are misrepresented as being a good car. Head gaskets, oil leaks, and constant wheel bearing replacements are in your future if you buy a Subaru. I'm just sayin'.

mtnlvr · 03-08-2016, 06:26 PM

Where I live in the mtns., there are loads of Subarus-about 1 in 4 ratio. They are well loved here.

**bikendan** · 03-08-2016, 06:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mtnlvr

Where I live in the mtns., there are loads of Subarus-about 1 in 4 ratio. They are well loved here.

yea, they are really popular in the NW, but i don't see them towing anything.

mwaite49 · 03-09-2016, 04:33 PM

At 25,000 miles my transmission was replaced in a 2014 Subaru Outback.

It was rated for 2700 lbs towing and had trailer brakes installed. My trailer was a Flagstaff Mac trailer that had a trailer weight of around 1900 lbs. I towed at reasonable speeds, didn't floor it but did have a couple of long towing days as well as towing over mountains in the West. We don't carry much gear so we were under "towing capacity" I asked the Subaru people often about towing this and perhaps adding a transmission cooler and they seemed to think it wasn't a problem. When the warning lights came on and I pulled the Subaru with the trailer hooked up into the service area everyone suddenly told me it was too much to be towed.

There is not a gauge to record transmission temperature to even know if the transmission temp is getting too hot. My Outback seemed to tow fine and the oil temp gauge never showed a problem.

My opinion is Subaru Outback's are not made for towing the majority of popup's. My transmission repair was under warranty but buying the Outback expecting to tow a normal sized tent trailer was a costly mistake. I've learned a lot about towing weights from this forum and now know that the vehicle towing ratings are only one factor.

mike.t · 03-09-2016, 04:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mtnlvr

Where I live in the mtns., there are loads of Subarus-about 1 in 4 ratio. They are well loved here.

No doubt because all wheel drive. How many of those tow?

Kuba · 03-10-2016, 08:51 AM

Had numerous Subies and never a single problem, from Forester, to Legacy, Wrx Sti, and now 3.6L tribeca. I also own a chevy pickup that tows my 23' boat and 27' TT. Never had issues with berings, head gaskets etc. All, and i mean all smoked little blue at startup for around 15-20 seconds - boxers are common for that. All my subies got to 200k without doing anything. No timing belts etc. There is a reason why subies are popular in snow infested areas. They're the best at that. As for towing with one, i would never tow with a Awd vehicle. Too much wear on awd power train, not efficient.

As for the post about transmission not having a gauge, i call it BS. Every subaru has red AT Temp light on dash, turn your keys to light up dash lights and you will see.

Also, if towing a small utility trailer, or going on long trips with your Subie, you can pull AWD labeled fuse, that will disable awd, and make your Subie FWD only

saving you some money on mpgs

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