subsince77 Posted July 15, 2008 Share Posted July 15, 2008 I have what may be a very subjective question. I have a two place bicycle rack and a storage box on top of my 97 OBW all the time. I also have a hitch mount bike rack that carries two bikes that I put on when I need it. It especially works well for my wife and I with two bikes on the highway - saves quite a bit of gas as opposed to two bikes on the roof. I also have a light trailer, probably weighs 250 pounds, that will carry 5 bikes. My wife and I and a friend often use our Subaru to go to triathlons. That means three people, three bikes and gear being hauled over mountain passes. I guess I never really thought the Subbie was made for pulling a trailer, so I am always a little concerned when we use it. However, it consistently gets better gas milage pulling the trailer with three bikes, then it does with two bikes on the hitch rack and one on top. My question is, does better gas milage tell the whole story? I have to assume that in some way (less drag) the car is working less pulling the trailer since it gets better milage. But do you think its still harder on the tranny or rear end or something to pull the trailer? The next race will require driving to Durango over three long, high, steep passes. I'd rather not ruin my car for a little gas milage. Whatchyall think? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nipper Posted July 15, 2008 Share Posted July 15, 2008 How heavy is the trailer. Anything on the roof will kill the gas mileage, where a trailer at highway speeds is essentially tailgating. So if it is smooth, it fits in the cars slip stream. The only thing about trailer towing is to use the heavy duty maintanence scheduale (which i think we should use all the time anyway). If you have an automatic, I would recomend a tranny cooler. The automatic takes the biggest beating on towing, its cheap insurance. nipper Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andyjo Posted July 15, 2008 Share Posted July 15, 2008 I Used to take a bunch of trips from mid-NH to northern NY, many times with a thule box, 2 kayaks, and 2 bike, all on the roof! And I'll tell you, i did NOT get very good milage, 1/2 the drive was highway, 1/2 was ~55mph. Although I never ran into any transmission issue with just junk on the roof (Even 4 Canoes once ). Once i started pulling the trailer, I got a tranny cooler, I did notice the trans shifted much better with the cooler, on the hard hills with the cooler. If the trailer is doesn't weigh anything, if it's Aluminum or something, i'd say go with the trailer for milage purposes, but if it's a heavy trailer, i'd go with the roof rack. Another thing you might want to think about is that a trailer can be annoying when you're parking/driving in conjested areas, whereas when stuff's on the roof.. it's just up there. Good Luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
subsince77 Posted July 15, 2008 Author Share Posted July 15, 2008 Its a manual transmission, and I run Valvoline synthetic in it. As I said, I think the trailer weighs around 250 pounds empty. A trailer is a little bit of a pain once in a while, but I find it much easier to work with overall than to have to deal with the hitch rack when getting into the hatch. I can't fit everything on top, and that would be my worst option as far as milage goes. I've been getting between 27 and 29 crossing passes with the trailer. With two bikes on top I usually get 23 or 24. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idosubaru Posted July 15, 2008 Share Posted July 15, 2008 drag is drag - if you're getting worse mileage then the car (engine, trans) is working against that drag (which is a function of Velocity squared). that your trailer is behind the car like nip said helps a ton. and that's essentially a linear function. so speed doesn't affect it. stuff on top is a killer, it adds an enormous amount of cross sectional area that your vehicle is seeing. you should strap a big sign to your back or bike and try going a ways as fast as you can. velocity squared....imagine that at highway speeds on your car. my wife and i have a 4 bike rack and it's awesome. we can take 4 people and 4 bikes anywhere. i always joke that we could conceivably fit 4 on there - 3 or 4 on the roof rack, 2 inside....10 bikes maybe?? would a 3 or 4 bike rack be a better option? if not then the trailer is a great option. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
subsince77 Posted July 15, 2008 Author Share Posted July 15, 2008 would a 3 or 4 bike rack be a better option? if not then the trailer is a great option. I don't think so, because adding more bikes on top wopuld just create more drag. As I said, putting two bikes on the hitch rack gives us MUCH better milage than 2 bikes on top. I use the roof rack locally all the time, because hitch racks get in the way of the rear hatch and are a real pain unless we are traveling and want the milage. I have at least one bike on the car nearly every day. The only other consideration is that pulling up some passes, like Red Mountain, you are only going 20 or 30 mph, so you are reducing wind drag, but if using a trailer, you're still pulling the weight. Anyway, enough of all that. There is no question that the trailer is easier and gets better milage than any of my other 3 bike options. I just always thought that pulling trailers was hard on vehicles that weren't really designed for it. But, I bought this one because it is pretty light, and I have pulled it quite a bit with the Subie. I just wanted to see what anyone thought and be sure I wasn't eating up my tranny. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nipper Posted July 15, 2008 Share Posted July 15, 2008 Look at it another way. THe sooby can take 5 passengers and luggage. You will have three passngers plus the trailer, and im sure your all under the model size for the avg passenger. Even with the trailer. Just do your fluid changes more often and youll be fine. nipper Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
subsince77 Posted July 16, 2008 Author Share Posted July 16, 2008 Sounds good. It's due anyway, so this will motivate me to change the trans and diff fluids in the next couple of weeks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idosubaru Posted July 16, 2008 Share Posted July 16, 2008 I don't think so, because adding more bikes on top wopuld just create more drag. oh my bad - i meant would a 3 or 4 bike HITCH MOUNTED RACK be a nicer option than the trailer? that's what my wife and I use - we have a 4 bike hitch mounted rack. it's super for us. i'm not a fan of pulling trailers unless i absolutely have to. that just comes down to preference though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
subsince77 Posted July 16, 2008 Author Share Posted July 16, 2008 oh my bad - i meant would a 3 or 4 bike HITCH MOUNTED RACK be a nicer option than the trailer? that's what my wife and I use - we have a 4 bike hitch mounted rack. it's super for us. i'm not a fan of pulling trailers unless i absolutely have to. that just comes down to preference though. Yeah, but when you pull up to the race with a loaded bike trailer, there is an inherent intimidation factor that reverberates through the parking lot. Since I only ever, at best, finish mid pack, it's my only chance to worry anyone. Once they see me swim, or bike or run for that matter, they know I'm no threat. I gotta get my digs in where I can! My wife on the other hand, nearly always places, and frequently wins her age group. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idosubaru Posted July 16, 2008 Share Posted July 16, 2008 my wife has placed a couple times too in her age group in some local triatholon's - it's not fair for me, they never let me place from the sidelines, i'm a great cheerleader. don't think she'll do too well now though unless they have "pregnant" age group. i understand intimidation or the mental aspect. lost in the finals, 11-10 in the tie breaker, of the state racquetball championships this year for the Mens Open division (highest). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mdjdc Posted July 16, 2008 Share Posted July 16, 2008 One other consideration is the integrity of the bikes for the trip. Most roof carriers have locking mechanisms on them and that gives security at rest stops. I used to use a hitch mount system until I was rear ended...twice!! After that I went with the roof system just for the safety of the bike. Luckily, I didn't have the bike on the rack when I got hit, but if I had I'd have lost my canondale. That would've hurt me more than a few miles to the gallon on trips. Also, I use a cargo box for vacation and this year it allowed us to make several stops for touring and not have the worry of stuff getting stolen out of the roof bag we used to use. Just another consideration. Plus, I really like the look of my car with two bikes on the roof. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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