On pages 400-401 of the 2018 Subaru Ascent Owners Manual it states: NEVER exceed 45 mph when towing a trailer uphill on a hot days. On page 402 it states that the engine and transmission are relatively prone to overheating when towing uphill on hot days. I live in Northern Arizona and most of my trailer towing is in the summer and requires much uphill driving. Driving 45 mph is going to create issues with the flow of traffic. Just thought prospective owners wanting to tow might want to study the owners manual first before towing. Warranty will be void if the car is damaged due to towing. Again this is in the online owners manual at techinfo.subaru.com. It also says "Do not use a weight distributing hitch" on page 391. It takes two people to park the Ascent with trailer on a steep hill as the electronic parking brake is not strong enough to hold the car and trailer. How would a solo driver handle this without having a run away rig? I am having second thoughts on trailer towing with this new information. FYI
Owners Manual Cautions on Towing Speed Uphill
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This is standard wording also in 2018 Outback owners towing instructions...and probably most other Subaru’s ......not new to Ascent....but seems a bit strange that they strongly tout the towing ability in their advertisements without hesitating to mention restrictions...concerning to me as a consumer.
I may have seen, but cannot find, the GCVWR number on the higher Ascent trim levels....this is an important number to consider.
I was looking at the 2018 Chev Traverse High Country....has GVWR of something around 6150...a tow rating of 5000, BUT a GCVWR of approximately 10,250.....don’t see any 45 mph hot hilly condition warning in their owners manual. On the Chev...dry weight on the high end Traverse can be nearly 4900 lbs....so pulling a fully loaded trailer at 5000 lbs would leave almost nothing for load carrying in the car....maybe not even the driver!
Regarding the comment of it taking two people to park the rig on a hill: The driver applies and holds the brakes while the passenger gets out and chocks both the tires of the trailer AND the tow vehicle per the owners manual. One person cannot do this. Thus the risk of a run-away rig going downhill with a solo driver. It happens with new campers not chocking (blocking) the trailer tires and unhitching the trailer on an unlevel camping site. Very dangerous situation. Evidently the Electronic Parking Brake does not have braking forces of the old fashioned parking brake systems. So much for saving weight with this new system.
What is a "HOT" day?? That's a BS spec for a pretty dominate feature. EX. Person at Subaru dealer - Somethings wrong with my car - Service person - did you use it on a hot day? Cuz its hot out, no wonder you broke it.
Pretty much omits actually towing with it on the freeway in the summer.
The Ascent hitch is for a bike rack. Silverado's are for towing.
Pretty much omits actually towing with it on the freeway in the summer.
The Ascent hitch is for a bike rack. Silverado's are for towing.
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Neither hot or uphill?
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Typically hot in terms of vehicle cooling is when your in the 90’s and above outside temps. At those temps it starts to affect the cooling systems ability to shed heat. Add a hill climb at slow speeds with reduced air flow through the engine bay and you have added cooling challenges.
Subaru noted 102temps and 2+ mile climb the Outback owners manually had a reduced towing weight around 1300lbs in those conditions. All strictly related to cooling limits.
The Ascent owners manual is pretty generic on the towing section except for the reduce speed on long climbs. You would be surprise how many people think they should be able to drive up long hot mountain passes with zero worry about engine load and cooling capacity. I pass them all the time with and without trailers stranded on the side of the road with a cooked car. Same ones that were seen earlier blasting past everyone.
You don't put your car in park before you get out to play with your trailer?
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The parking brake notes are for newbies to boating and ramp launching on steep ramps. Basically you never assume the parking brake will hold the weight of the trailer and car. The comment about transmission in Park is pretty funny. The first thing you hear is the click of the parking pawl popping loose then the last thing is the car door giving you a beat down as your rig rolls over you. Seen that party trick about 4 times on the boat ramp in my life time.
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on page 159 it says "for the sake of safety, avoid driving with the moon roof fully open" What is that about?
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Seen one go on and old tranny in a car parked on a hill. Quite a distinct click-clunk...
...first thing we'd learn about towing back in the day was to NOT count on the little parking pawl, or that the gear it meshes with isn't worn, or that the actuator arm isn't bent causing an improper mating of the pawl and geartooth.
http://www.wildcatforums.net/forum/...75709349-broken-park-pawl-20161004_160031.jpg
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Meteors they can be dangerous. Just keep your lid closed and your safe. Tinfoil hats work too.
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That is the legal beagle's contribution to provide SOA cover if something happens when doing so....
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If cooling under load with high ambient temps limits net tow capacity, an additional transmission cooling unit may be the solution..... adding extra transmission cooling capacity is not uncommon. That being said..... change intervals for the transition fluid would have to be substantially reduced to protect the transmission's long term performance.
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The 5000lb rated Ascents already have a factory cooler nothing will add capacity even F550’s you need to watch temps when towing heavy in hot temps.
Probably to avoid being sucked out of the vehicle at high speed. After all, it does have a turbocharged engine.:tango_face_wink:
So, why didn't Subaru include a tranny cooler on the list of dealer accessories? Could it be the turbo / cooler get too hot? Not enough room?
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They do have a cooler thats the big difference between the 2000lb rated models and the 5000 lb rated models.
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this is exactly what I was afraid of when I ordered that big ole sunroof!:tango_face_surprise:tango_face_wink:
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