Tow Bar for 90's Legacy(s)

[legacy93wagon]

So since a quick search revelaed nothing on " tow bar"  figured it was OK to start a thread.  Figured with plenty of friend's who have trucks, and genrally doing all sorts of stupid things  it would be a good idea to have tow bars on my subarus. Seems like it would make it a lot easier to get home if a buddy with a super duty could just hook up and tow me home VS calling a tow. ( at 300 miles between major towns tows get expensive) 

 

 

So the question :

 

Anyone use a harbor freight  tow bar on their Subaru ? 

 

I plan to use one on my 1993 2.2 legacy and my 1998 subaru outback legacy. 

 

This is the product I am looking at: 

 

http://www.harborfreight.com/5000-lb-capacity-adjustable-tow-bar-94696.html

 

 

Thanks for looking and contributing. ( open thread  so long as relatively on topic its good :0D )

[Bushwick]

That's a universal tow bar. You'll probably have to weld something to the subframe so that bar can connect to it, plus you'll likely have to cut out some of the bumper cover so it actually fits.

 

If you aren't getting stuck every weekend, it'd be cheaper to rent a u-haul dolly if/when the need arises. U-haul has issues to renting to people in Ford Rangers due to the Firestone tire issue in the early 00's being a liability, but normal F150 and similar shouldn't be an issue. Rent one for $50 or whatever they run now, put your car on it, get it home, then return it.

 

If you plan on breaking down constantly, find a cheap, beat up dolly used. U-haul sometimes auctions off older ones, so that's a possibility too. 

[AdventureSubaru]

I own one of those. Towed subies probably a dozen times. No issues. reviews have reported the bar itself bending under heavier loads/extremes so I take it easy.

 

Legacies (95-04 anyway which i've pulled) you have to pull the bumper cover and drill 2 holes (there are 2 existing already on the bumper) and bolt it together.

 

Keep in mind this only works for manual transmission. Otherwise you need an auto transport trailer/flatbed for an automatic. Or tow dolly and disconnect the rear driveshaft and hold it to the side with a bungee cord or something.

[Bushwick]

^Can't you put the fuse in to force FWD on auto? That disengages the rear. Also, are you saying you leave the tow bar assembled 24/7? Or you pull bumper cover, bolt it up, and toss cover in the rear? Then unbolt after towing and reattach bumper cover? Is that a lot of work?

 

If the bar is a cheap metal, you can get an arc welder at Harbor Freight for $150 or less if it's on sale. I bought one and it's actually pretty good for what it is. You can't even get most hired welders to touch projects for that price. I run the thinnest sticks in it and up to 1/4" it's great. Anyways, you can buy some square tube at Lowe's for roughly $10 a bar, and if you have a dremel, buy the "reinforced" cut off discs or get larger ones for a $30 angle grinder and the var is cake to cut. Grind back a few spots on the tow bar and weld in some reinforcements. Can even double the bar if needed. If talented enough, you could even make your own tow bar out of a heavier walled bar stock and weld a receiver to it. I used that arc welder and some square tubing to make a custom rear tower strut brace that came out nice. It welded that thickness great. 

[mikaleda]

^Can't you put the fuse in to force FWD on auto? That disengages the rear.

The rear is already disengaged when the engine is off since hydraulic pressure is what actuates the center diff clutches IIRC.

The problem is towing an auto on the ground even with just the rear wheels on the ground will continue to turn parts that are always engaged with no fluid flow to lubricate anything. Really easy way to burn up your transmission.

 

So no you don't want to tow auto awd on a dolly without disconnecting the driveshaft to the rear end.