subaruguru Posted May 18, 2007 Share Posted May 18, 2007 hey guys i have been thinking........and thinking..........about this old wagon that i have that is pretty well striped it has rear struts but i took the diff out and the axls off so its just the hub and i am thinking of cutting the front of the car off like behind the front doors or behind the back doors but any ways im going to make a trailer for my turbo wagon anbd my off road wagon that way i can throw all my camping and tools and all in it and still have a clean car to ride in not alot of space in the back any how with my 12 inch subs and box i think it will be cool any one got any ideas maby ill make it a little camper kinda like to sleep in when i go camping. :burnout: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
northguy Posted May 18, 2007 Share Posted May 18, 2007 What will it weigh? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hondasucks Posted May 18, 2007 Share Posted May 18, 2007 I thought about doing that with my old 84 wagon, I was going to cut it in half right in front of the rear doors, so it still had the rear doors, and then cap the front with plywood or something, and attach some steel to the rear suspension for the trailer tongue to be welded to, so it'd still have the hatch and the side doors, but then I decided it had too much rust in the undercarriage to mess with it, so I stripped it and sent it to the junkyard. I saved the 2WD rear suspension out of the car that got the 4WD setup out of that wagon, and someday I'm going to make a trailer out of it :-P Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daeron Posted May 19, 2007 Share Posted May 19, 2007 I have thought about it, and MY idea would be to chop the engine bay off, replace the windshield with some sheet metal, and smooth the entire leading edge somewhat. This would keep it slightly more aerodynamic; since the subarus are not supposed to be towing a trailer anyhow, the idea of a boxy trailer, made from most of a second car (read: weight concerns) makes me hesitate a little. BUT, I like the idea. Gut the interior and rebuild it with some plywood into whatever you need. you could even make it so that you could sleep back there in a pinch. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
subaruguru Posted May 19, 2007 Author Share Posted May 19, 2007 OK the wheels are in motion (PUN) lol i am gona do it got some free steel for the toung i am gona cut off the engin bay put my toung on it maby mount a spar tire ther on it then i will leave the windows in it im gona put the old scool round curtan rods so thay can be curved and run them around the top and botom of the front and back windows.then put them on each door kinda like the moble homes so it can have privacy i am stripping everyhting out of the inside xept the trimm that covers the sharp edges the dash is going the seats front and back,console,ebrake handle, all the shifter holes and e brake hole will be filled in the windows will be able to open and close the back doors might get welded shut and just have front to get in. the hach will be able to open to load stuff in i am gona make the back a cargo spot and the front between the drop off from the rear seat spot and the fire wall i will build a light weight frame for eather an air mattress or a foam mattress i am going to hook the tail lights up to a plug in the front so i can have soob blinkers tail and brake lights i will put a wire from the dome light to the trailer plug for a hot so i can use it if needed. well thats pretty much it i am goinf to be moching it up on paper i will take pics every time something new happens and along the way suggestions are welcoome any time thanks guys Rob:burnout: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daeron Posted May 19, 2007 Share Posted May 19, 2007 You are leaving the windshield in place? In time, it might be better to cover that over, since it represents a pretty serious spot for being broken.. But whatever, it's your beast I have wanted to see someone do this for a LONG time; do you have a camera to take pictures of the process??? Good luck, and keep us posted! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
subaruguru Posted May 19, 2007 Author Share Posted May 19, 2007 will do i wish i could get it done by wcss9 but lol with ym funds that wont happen it will problably take me about a month grrr stupid mcdonalds Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZRX Doug Posted May 19, 2007 Share Posted May 19, 2007 Man..if you keep it intact all the way forward to the A pillars, you're gonna have a serious amount of tongue weight, gutted or no. The trailer wheels are just gonna be too far rearward for anything resembling balance with something like 80% of the trailer being ahead of the axle center line. If it were my project, I'd hack it just forward of the B pillars and fill the void with 1/4" styrofoam insulation covered with a layer of fiberglass. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gloyale Posted May 19, 2007 Share Posted May 19, 2007 Man..if you keep it intact all the way forward to the A pillars, you're gonna have a serious amount of tongue weight, gutted or no. The trailer wheels are just gonna be too far rearward for anything resembling balance with something like 80% of the trailer being ahead of the axle center line. If it were my project, I'd hack it just forward of the B pillars and fill the void with 1/4" styrofoam insulation covered with a layer of fiberglass. I was thinking that about tongue weight too. Cut off at the B pillars and use the hood as the new front wall. Slightly angled Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
subaruguru Posted May 20, 2007 Author Share Posted May 20, 2007 ok i have stripped everythign put of the car and even with the front clip on it still i can lift it by my self so i dont think that when i cut it off it will be any more heavy and wehne i put cargo or anything in it i will load it to the back so no strain will be on it when im towing it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
newsoobdude Posted May 26, 2007 Share Posted May 26, 2007 Get some pics up. I might be joining you on a similar project or 2 so I can tow my bike around before my Brat is done and have another one for camping w/ my bike and Brat (when done). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
newsoobdude Posted May 29, 2007 Share Posted May 29, 2007 Heres my ideas Trailer one- Trailer two- Comparison- Trailer one is for my dirt bike and will have operational rear doors for storage under the floor. Trailer two is for moving junk around and will have the hatch welded shut (figure giant wheel barrow) and rear quarters extened 6 inches. What do ya'll think? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
subaruguru Posted May 29, 2007 Author Share Posted May 29, 2007 that looks grat love the primitiv photo shop lol i am in the middle of putting a new clutch in my turbo wagon and will get pix soon this is great having someone els who is doing it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZRX Doug Posted May 29, 2007 Share Posted May 29, 2007 I think you guys are looking at a mess of handling issues..you've got way too much trailer ahead of the axle centerline, and you're (presumably) going to be using the stock independant rear suspension instead of a solid axle. Either of these two things alone would make for a squirrely tow, but when ya put 'em both together and use a poor little Soob for the tow vehicle, you're looking at a recipe for disaster, IMHO. The high tongue weight caused by the poor axle placement is gonna make your tow-car squat in the rear, which causes front-end wander..when your tow car starts hunting around the lane, the trailer is naturally gonna have to follow it, and the IRS will cause trailer wallow, with the trailer wheels pointing in two different directions as they jounce & rebound independantly of one another..this will lead to the tow car wandering more, which will lead to the trailer wallowing more..ya see where I'm going with this? It's a vicious circle, and in a car like a Subaru (read: LIGHT & easy to shove around and not particularly thick skinned for passenger protection) the idea of letting the trailer do the driving is a tad scarier than usual. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
newsoobdude Posted May 29, 2007 Share Posted May 29, 2007 I think you guys are looking at a mess of handling issues..you've got way too much trailer ahead of the axle centerline, and you're (presumably) going to be using the stock independant rear suspension instead of a solid axle. Either of these two things alone would make for a squirrely tow, but when ya put 'em both together and use a poor little Soob for the tow vehicle, you're looking at a recipe for disaster, IMHO. The high tongue weight caused by the poor axle placement is gonna make your tow-car squat in the rear, which causes front-end wander..when your tow car starts hunting around the lane, the trailer is naturally gonna have to follow it, and the IRS will cause trailer wallow, with the trailer wheels pointing in two different directions as they jounce & rebound independantly of one another..this will lead to the tow car wandering more, which will lead to the trailer wallowing more..ya see where I'm going with this? It's a vicious circle, and in a car like a Subaru (read: LIGHT & easy to shove around and not particularly thick skinned for passenger protection) the idea of letting the trailer do the driving is a tad scarier than usual. I definately agree with the trailer axle placement but, thats why the more I look at it the more I want to do trailer number 2, just longer on the rear overhang (as long as it take to make my bike fit). It's a shame my mike won't fit w/o hanging over with the trailer being from the B pillar back. As for the IRS, haven't gotten that far and might just rob some FWD rear "axle" and shove it under their. This is what I was thinking- Mind you the tongue will start right infront of the cut off and (hopefully) extend no more than three feet (I'm thinking tent trailer style). We'll see what happens when I start cutting everything up and I definately see your point Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
subaruguru Posted August 11, 2007 Author Share Posted August 11, 2007 yeah i think im gonna cut mine infront of the b pillar and leav the roof on ti then make ita cargo trailer:Flame: because of my new hatchXcab i wont have as much inclosed storage so i will cut my trailer car in two peices the cut will be right infront of the b pillar, leaving the rear doors on it amea wall and put a toung on it this will put the axle in the middle of the setup:). i am also thinking that i could make ita camp trailer just make a flip out frame for a bed to lay on ans it can hang out the back of the car. i will photoshope and show Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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