I just got back from my first weekend towing Tipitina (550 Ultra) with our new Subaru Ascent. It was 142 miles of towing roundtrip from Baltimore to Greenbrier State Park in western Maryland. My main reference for comparison is our 2011 Subaru Outback 4 cylinder (2.7L?). I had towed the trailer ~ 6500 with our Outback and I think that trailering that much took it's toll on the Outback. We had a radiator go out followed by a blown head gasket (which thankfully Subaru covered as it happened just after the radiator repair).
Towing with the Ascent (which I've tentatively named "Big Mighty") is a very different experience. In terms of acceleration and stopping, you barely notice the effect of the trailer. Going up long grades (for the East coast anyway), it did not rev up very high. I was able to keep the adaptive cruise control on 70 for the ride out and never thought it was pushing the engine too much. The engine by the way is a 4 cylinder 2.4L Turbo which produces 277 lb/ft of torque with a continuous variable transmission. I do notice a good bit of rattling when I go over bumps. I will be looking for some method to dampen the rattle.
Some of the new safety/convenience features make it a much better driving experience than our older Outback. The adaptive cruise control with "Eyesight" is a really nice feature. I like to just set the speed around the speed limit and let the computer speed up or slow down depending on the car in front. I also like the lane keep assist. It is like an extra hand gently guiding you to the middle of the lane if you get careless or distracted. That said it is no where near an "autonomous car". I've experimented several times going around curves and seeing if it would basically steer for me - it doesn't do that much at all. For those with older tow vehicles, having Apple Carplay (or Android Auto) is really nice as well. Google maps now works with Apple Play and it's nice having an 8 inch screen to work with. Blind spot detection is also really nice to have. The reverse brake assist feature is annoying when trailering but can be disabled fairly easily.
On the trip back, there was non-stop heavy rain, so I went slower (5-10 mph below limit) and felt that the vehicle handled the conditions very safely. The ascent is several inches wider than the Outback which has one unfortunate effect of throwing much more water up the sides of the trailer. I am glad that I knew of this potential problem and checked to see how much water came up through the door vent. It was substantial! I removed the mattress and mopped it up with a towel. I'd guess between 1-2 quarts of water found their way into the cabin. I've left the vent fan running for the next day or so to try to really dry things out. I'm not sure what's the best solution here - I think I will install OEM mudflaps first. In retrospect, I should have taped the vents shut but didn't think to do it at the time. I'm trying to recall what others have done (Wax ear plugs?)
There is quite a bit more storage space in the back compared to the Outback. I was able to place our clam travel tent behind the second row. I also was able to haul nearly all of our gear in the back of the ascent whereas much of that would have gone in the teardrop before. I loaded up most of the gear last night before the rains hit so that I could just pull down the Kelty 16 tarp and put it in a contractor bag and hit the road this morning.
For mileage, I got 20 mpg on the way out and 21 on the way back (going slower). The car is too new to me to report non-towing mileage but has EPA estimate of 26 highway.
Although it's only been on one outing, I'm very happy with the Ascent as a tow vehicle.
Towing with the Ascent (which I've tentatively named "Big Mighty") is a very different experience. In terms of acceleration and stopping, you barely notice the effect of the trailer. Going up long grades (for the East coast anyway), it did not rev up very high. I was able to keep the adaptive cruise control on 70 for the ride out and never thought it was pushing the engine too much. The engine by the way is a 4 cylinder 2.4L Turbo which produces 277 lb/ft of torque with a continuous variable transmission. I do notice a good bit of rattling when I go over bumps. I will be looking for some method to dampen the rattle.
Some of the new safety/convenience features make it a much better driving experience than our older Outback. The adaptive cruise control with "Eyesight" is a really nice feature. I like to just set the speed around the speed limit and let the computer speed up or slow down depending on the car in front. I also like the lane keep assist. It is like an extra hand gently guiding you to the middle of the lane if you get careless or distracted. That said it is no where near an "autonomous car". I've experimented several times going around curves and seeing if it would basically steer for me - it doesn't do that much at all. For those with older tow vehicles, having Apple Carplay (or Android Auto) is really nice as well. Google maps now works with Apple Play and it's nice having an 8 inch screen to work with. Blind spot detection is also really nice to have. The reverse brake assist feature is annoying when trailering but can be disabled fairly easily.
On the trip back, there was non-stop heavy rain, so I went slower (5-10 mph below limit) and felt that the vehicle handled the conditions very safely. The ascent is several inches wider than the Outback which has one unfortunate effect of throwing much more water up the sides of the trailer. I am glad that I knew of this potential problem and checked to see how much water came up through the door vent. It was substantial! I removed the mattress and mopped it up with a towel. I'd guess between 1-2 quarts of water found their way into the cabin. I've left the vent fan running for the next day or so to try to really dry things out. I'm not sure what's the best solution here - I think I will install OEM mudflaps first. In retrospect, I should have taped the vents shut but didn't think to do it at the time. I'm trying to recall what others have done (Wax ear plugs?)
There is quite a bit more storage space in the back compared to the Outback. I was able to place our clam travel tent behind the second row. I also was able to haul nearly all of our gear in the back of the ascent whereas much of that would have gone in the teardrop before. I loaded up most of the gear last night before the rains hit so that I could just pull down the Kelty 16 tarp and put it in a contractor bag and hit the road this morning.
For mileage, I got 20 mpg on the way out and 21 on the way back (going slower). The car is too new to me to report non-towing mileage but has EPA estimate of 26 highway.
Although it's only been on one outing, I'm very happy with the Ascent as a tow vehicle.
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