02 TS - Towing a tent trailer

1) Subaru states that all trailers must have brakes. 2) You are right to be careful, Sub is a great vehicle, but for towing I use a truck (I have towed with a Sub though). 3) You might be ok towing this, but keep the loading light (ie don't fill the car and the trailer with everything you can fit in) PS Prodigy is a great brake controller, yes you will need one of them too

I've towed a 2-place snowmobile (est. 1500 lb ?) trailer with the '02 WRX wagon (5SPD) I used to have, using the factory (TS) hitch. The trailer did _not_ have brakes. No real issues as long as you made sure the trailer was tongue-heavy (prevents fish-tailing), and took it easy on the down hills. Don't think I'd want to tow something a whole lot heavier than that, tho, especially w/o trailer brakes. For comparison, a 3 rail motorcycle trailer with two Honda XRs on it (est. 800lb ?) was practically unnoticeable.

ByeBye! S.

Steve Jernigan KG0MB Laboratory Manager Microelectronics Research University of Colorado (719) 262-3101

Hello:

I have a Coleman Taos tent trailer. It is about 1000 lbs. I've towed it with a Subaru Loyale and a Subaru Legacy Wagon.

The Loyale (93hp!) was a brave little car, and did its best, but it wasn't *close* to powerful enough. Also the brakes weren't anywhere near being up to the task; on a long downhill run coming into Fundy National Park, the brakes were *smoking* and had faded away to nothing at the end of the hill... Scary! Obviously completely inappropriate. We next bought a Subaru Legacy Wagon, 165hp, 2000 lb towing capacity. We thought it would be a fine tow vehicle; the dealer said, "No problem". Experience has showed me that this wasn't true. :( We used it on three big trips: to the West Coast two years ago, and 2 trips to the East Coast. For our trailer it seemed to have enough power, although it struggled a bit on the Cabot Trail in Cape Breton in some of the really steep spots. No problem with the brakes, either. But...it had a problem with the tongue weight of the trailer; after the long trip to the West coast (we live in Southern Ontario), the back tires were worn unevenly from the suspension being overloaded. Even though the trailer is only *supposed* to weight 1000 lbs and the Subie is rated to 2000 lbs, it works out to a whole lot more weight in the real world with the trailer packed and the wagon packed and two kids and two adults. I would add one other piece of information: we thought the Subie could be fine if we installed air bags in the springs to help with the tongue weight. However, the suspension design of the Subie prevents the use of any kind of air bags or such-like devices to add stiffness to the rear suspension. So...you can't overcome that limitation. Also, in neither Subie were we able to see over the top of the trailer, which was very awkward when backing, and not a good thing in general when driving. (Although the Outback is slightly raised, you *might* just be able to see over the back...) We bought a Toyota Sienna this past summer, and I am looking forward to our summer trip to the West coast in a vehicle more appropriately suited to pulling our tent trailer. It'll be nice to be able to see behind us for once, as well! :) Not what you want to hear, I'm sure. But, this has been my personal experience.

P.S. You might want to post in alt.rv.pop-up-trailers - lots of towing experts there!

Happy Camping! Coleman Taos 2000 Toyota Sienna 2004

While you can plan on hills, and slow as needed, you can't plan on emergency stops, which is why I urge trailer brakes (see the other response)