Towing my race car with the WRX

wagonracer · 08-03-2008, 02:05 AM

Yeah I know..... it's nuts, but I put a hitch on the wagon today and wired it up for tow lights. I'm going to be flat towing my Porsche racer with the wagon

My reasoning goes like this:
It's a Subaru
It has a great suspension on it
I'm easy on clutches (got 115k out of the OE)
New clutch installed last month
I take really good care of my brakes (and always carry spares)
I can't afford another vehicle
I can't afford a gas guzzler
I can't repeat the weekend at Gateway (St. Louis) with a spun rod bearing and no way to get home.
I can race the Porsche and smoke the M3s and Vettes in Time Trials with the tow vehicle (how many people can do that ?)
I can sleep in the wagon
I can tow a small trailer for other occasional needs

I am taking my chances with going over tow capacity. The factory rating is 2000 with a class 1 hitch. The race car weighs 2400, but I'm flat towing, so there's pretty much no tongue weight. I believe that if driven easy, the drive train and brakes are up to the task. Driven hard, I could be risking big problems. I'll only tow twice this year (I think) and depending on how it goes, will reevaluate for next season.

Life is an adventure

newtothegame · 08-03-2008, 02:14 AM

Hey wagon, good luck with both the towing and the racing. Snap a few photos of the subie towing the Porsche.

sleepr · 08-03-2008, 01:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by newtothegame

Hey wagon, good luck with both the towing and the racing. Snap a few photos of the subie towing the Porsche.

Definitely snap a few photos, that's got the makings of a great marketing campaign...

suddenthomas · 08-03-2008, 03:31 PM

Don't have to justify yourself to use tow the car and have fun. Your not the first using your Subie for towing. Its not as bad as the Camaro towing a 22ft boat that I saw in Colorado.

mosc · 08-03-2008, 04:00 PM

I think they raised the tow rating to 2500lbs on the 2.5L models, didn't they? Just saying, the frame should handle 2400lbs just fine.

wagonracer · 08-04-2008, 01:54 AM

I'm driving 1300 miles to Chicago on Thurs to pick up the race car, then back to Hastings NE to race on Fri., and home after the weekend. I'll have a pretty good idea how well the set-up is going to work, with over 1300 tow miles (mostly flat until I get close to home, where the mountains are) Should be a blast, and maybe a just little tiring

Oh, and to add to the danger of it all, I'll have about 400 lbs of spare parts and tools in the car too. Any guesses on what my tow mpg will be ??

mosc · 08-04-2008, 10:51 AM

I'd get a 4-wheel hitch and not one of those 2-wheel thingies that put stress on the tow vehicle (sounds like you might already have this?). Other than that I think it'd be fine.

How fast do you drive on the highway? That's the real question. If you go 70 the whole way, I say 23mpg.

wagonracer · 08-04-2008, 12:38 PM

I'm using this puppy Draw-Tite Adjustable Tow Bar, 5,000 lbs. 2480 : Trailer hitch bike rack and trailer hitches - etrailer.com and magnetic lights. The hitch on the car is a Curt bolt on, class one. It bolts where the rear tie downs mount on the frame rails. It also relocates the outside exhaust hanger.

wagonracer · 08-04-2008, 11:23 PM

I hooked up the hardware to my buddies racer (same as mine) and pulled it around a bit today. It felt good, but kicked back a little in turns. I think I'll soften my rear sway bar to remedy that (it's on full stiff, from the last track outing) I'm ready for a road trip.... 2600 miles plus a weekend of racing Sha-frickin'-Zam !!

LiL Shoaf · 08-05-2008, 08:35 PM

Did you wire up electric trailer brakes?? Might be needed to slow all that momentium.

turmic · 08-05-2008, 11:12 PM

It actually increased the tow capacity too. If the trailer has brakes....I read that in the owners manual.

wagonracer · 08-06-2008, 11:25 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by LiL Shoaf

Did you wire up electric trailer brakes?? Might be needed to slow all that momentium.

I'm flat towing the car (no trailer) and towed vehicle braking systems get a little spendy. There's a really simple mechanical one though, that I might invest in if I feel like I need it after this trip. Readybrake RV Tow Bars and RV Surge Braking Systems for Car Towing - Night Shift Auto