At 19:30 05 February 2005, Marc Ramsey wrote:
Greg Arnold wrote:
Several posts in this thread have mentioned the Subaru
Outback. It
appears to have a rather large distance between the
rear axle and the
tow hitch. I wonder how that affects handling?

One of the partners in our Duo tows it with his Outback,
and he's
indicated that the combo works fine. I've been tempted
to get one
myself, but I'd likely opt for the Forester, which
has a larger
specified tow capacity (2500 lbs, I believe), and looks
like it has less
overhang.

Marc

Interesting difference - in the UK the Outback has
a towing limits of 1800 to 2000lbs and the Forester
1500 to 200lbs, both depending on the precise model.
The Forester is based on the Impreza chassis which
is a size down from the Legacy/Outback. I had a Legacy
which was a good tow car and have been considering
another or a Forester (if I can't get my 16 year old
Mercedes 4WD system fixed).

It is always puzzling to listen in the the US tow car
discussions because there seem to be reports of problems
towing with cars that we regard as excellent in Europe.
My only hypothesis is that it is because of the softer
suspension set ups preferred in the US market. I
have seen an LS7 towed around Europe with a Peugot
205 and used a 1400cc 75 hp Honda Civic Shuttle myself
one year which made a super stable towcar because of
its wide wheel base and firm suspension.

John Galloway