Weight Stabilization Kit for T@b 320S and Subaru Outback

K4sailing

Hi!  Excited T@b newbie here.  I purchased a 2016 T@b 320S to pull behind my 2017 Subaru Outback.  Although the hitch was installed by a reputable hitch company and meets specs for height, weight, I felt every road bump pulling it home.  So, decided to get a weight stabilization kit as I read it would protect the car as well as smooth out the bumps.  I'm not sure what type to get.  Was looking at a Reese Light Duty (400 lb) kit but they seem to be hard to get.  I would most appreciate any comments/tips, suggestions regarding weight stabilization systems for my light weight system.  Thank-you!

Verna

You may only need a hitch tightner. It looks like a U-bolt with a metal strap between the sides.  Weight distribution hitches are not recommended on the “C” frame of the T@B’s. Search for weight distribution hitches of WDH here on the forum.

From Amazon:

Tampakayaker

Those plates help a lot.

There is also this hitch ball on Amazon

CURT 40047 RockerBall Cushion Hitch Trailer Ball 7,500 lbs, 2-Inch Diameter, 1-Inch Shank

• INCREASED COMFORT. The RockerBall trailer ball absorbs jerking, jarring, rattling and noise at the coupling point, unlike a traditional metal-on-metal trailer connection, providing a more comfortable ride for driver and passengers

K4sailing

Thank-you very much for the comments!  I don't know what a c-frame is and did not know Weight Distribution Kit is not recommended for the T@b. (I have sooo much homework to do.)   But love this forum already!

pthomas745

Here we go:  pictures and descriptions of frame types: https://tab-rv.vanillacommunity.com/discussion/10555/what-type-of-frame

jcrystal

Which model and what is the towing capacity for your Subaru?

K4sailing said:

Hi!  Excited T@b newbie here.  I purchased a 2016 T@b 320S to pull behind my 2017 Subaru Outback.  Although the hitch was installed by a reputable hitch company and meets specs for height, weight, I felt every road bump pulling it home.  So, decided to get a weight stabilization kit as I read it would protect the car as well as smooth out the bumps.  I'm not sure what type to get.  Was looking at a Reese Light Duty (400 lb) kit but they seem to be hard to get.  I would most appreciate any comments/tips, suggestions regarding weight stabilization systems for my light weight system.  Thank-you!

VictoriaP

K4sailing said:

Hi!  Excited T@b newbie here.  I purchased a 2016 T@b 320S to pull behind my 2017 Subaru Outback.  Although the hitch was installed by a reputable hitch company and meets specs for height, weight, I felt every road bump pulling it home.  So, decided to get a weight stabilization kit as I read it would protect the car as well as smooth out the bumps.  I'm not sure what type to get.  Was looking at a Reese Light Duty (400 lb) kit but they seem to be hard to get.  I would most appreciate any comments/tips, suggestions regarding weight stabilization systems for my light weight system.  Thank-you!

The unibody construction of the Subaru Outback (and Ascent) bars the use of any weight distribution kit as well. This is specified in the owner’s manual for your vehicle. Even an anti sway bar can damage your car, something I found out later, though I did get away with that on mine for a short time. Realistically, a hitch tightener and rocker ball mount are your only options with that particular car.

The best way to improve your towing experience is to add more weight to the trailer tongue. A 225-275 lb tongue weight seems to be the sweet spot for good towing among Tab owners around your model year that I’ve talked to. However, the 2017 Outback you have is limited to just 200 lbs tongue weight regardless of engine type (also found in your owner’s manual). Make sure you know how to weigh your trailer tongue, you can easily damage the Outback if you overload the back end with too much weight on the hitch. 

If you’re going to tow with a marginal vehicle like any Outback prior to the 2020 Subaru model year when those limits were raised, you will need to very aggressively manage your trailer, tongue, and payload weights on every trip. Getting the loading wrong on the trailer will lead to sway and bounce if it’s tongue light, and damage the car if it’s tongue heavy. That 200 lb limit means you won’t be able to load a whole lot up front without exceeding your tongue weight limit. It also will make it very difficult (potentially impossible) to reach the ideal 10-15% tongue to trailer weight ratio that leads to a smoother towing experience. Meanwhile, your payload includes everything and everyone inside or on top of the car, plus that tongue weight...which means what you can’t fit in the trailer due to weight may or may not work in the car either. 😕

I hated parting with my 3.6r more than I can express, but two trips convinced me that a 200 lb tongue weight limit really is not appropriate for towing a Tab 320s, though the older Dutchman era Tabs may be fine due to their lighter weight. Keeping that car meant I couldn’t add a dual battery setup, or carry my spare tire up front. Forget a bike rack too. Weighing my tongue, I was at 185 lbs even lightly loaded, and was carrying my groceries in the car instead of the fridge because 4 days of food & drink for one person took me over the 200 lb limit. The stress and aggravation and white knuckle towing experience due to the overly light tongue once I learned even the sway bar wasn’t safe to use just wasn’t worth it to me.

(Note: the 2020 and later Outback base engine has a 2700 lb overall limit and 270 lb tongue, the XT turbo models have 3500/350. Still can’t use WD hitches or sway bars, but can handle the higher tongue weight needed to make those unnecessary.)

K4sailing

I have 2.5L Outback with CVT (continuous variable transmission).  Tow cap is 2,700 lbs, reduced to 1,350 lbs if over 5 miles of uphill grade in temps over 104 degrees F.  

Although I had surge brakes installed on the car to match the electric brakes in the trailer, it's now clear that the tongue weight will be a continuing problem.  Plus, I had missed the part in the manual explaining that the weight limit includes what's in the car.  Expect I'll just try some short local trips while weighing options for upgrading the tow vehicle.  Guess this is called newbie-itis.

Thanks for the great comments!  

VictoriaP

@K4sailing I feel your pain...been there, done that. It’s frustrating, because 2700 lbs, while a little low, is adequate for the Tab. It’s just the stupid tongue weight limit, and there’s simply no way to change that. A hitch tightener will eliminate some of the bumping and noise of towing and is well worth trying in the meantime, but it can’t help with the potential for sway. The anti sway bar made a big difference for me, but once I understood that using one could eventually cause cracks in the unibody, I had to give that up.

To tow as safely as you can within the limits of your current setup in the meantime, start by figuring out your tongue weight once loaded for travel. This article will help: https://www.etrailer.com/faq-how-to-determine-trailer-tongue-weight.aspx Scroll down to the bit about using a bathroom scale, and use the method in Figure A of the image. The trailer tongue must be level and at the same height you tow at, so make sure to check that when weighing. Honestly, I’ve done a ton of experimenting with how loading things in different places affects tongue weight, and you may need to do the same to figure how how to stay below 200 lbs without putting too much weight in the back of the trailer (that will also increase sway issues). I have a Boondock, which is a bit heavier than yours, so hopefully your tongue weight will be a few pounds lighter to start with and you’ll at least be able to put food in your fridge!

Next, just to clarify: because your trailer has electric brakes, you need an electronic brake controller. Surge brakes operate by a totally different method, and your 2016 Tab doesn’t have them. I’m assuming you had the brake controller installed already, so you’ll need to become very familiar with how to manage trailer sway using the controller, because being tongue light makes you much more prone to sway at higher speeds or in windy conditions. Whatever manual control piece goes with your specific controller needs to be mounted in a location where you can easily reach it while driving, because when sway occurs, you can’t be fumbling for that. Every controller is different, so familarize yourself with yours, and then practice using it. I have the Prodigy RF, which has a tethered handheld that kinda looks like a CB radio microphone. The Curt Echo uses your cell phone for manual control and a big virtual button on screen. Others have a dash mounted turn knob. I use a phone vent mount to keep mine right next to the steering wheel, and I practiced reaching for it every time I passed or was passed by a semi on the freeway, without the trailer connected at first, just to get that motion as automatic as possible. If sway occurs, you may instinctively stomp on the brakes, and that’s exactly the wrong thing to do. You need to let off the gas and employ just the trailer brakes via the controller. The manual for your controller should have instructions, but if not, there’s plenty of videos and articles out there that can help you figure this out.

One other nuisance I forgot to mention. You cannot tow while using a donut spare tire on a Subaru (or any AWD vehicle), not even for short distances. This is also hidden in the Owner’s Manual. If you do not have a full size spare and you lose a tire while on the road, you will need to leave the trailer somewhere while you resolve the tire issue. If I recall, the gen5 Outback doesn’t have space for a full size spare, so you’ll need to think through how you would handle that issue. Some buy and carry a full spare on top of the roof, or loose in the cargo area. Some just make sure their roadside assistance will cover towing the trailer to a safe location. (The newest Outbacks have a full spare sized storage well, regardless of trim level, so I simply upgraded mine with the new car...which meant a little more weight added to my payload, but increased peace of mind.)

K4sailing

Oh Jeez!  Thanks so much for the info!  I used to tent camp when much younger - it was so easy (well.....as I recall:)  I have to laugh that I have jumped in (again) with-out knowing what I'm doing (my first camper).  But I am not planning to go back to tents - I love this little T@b.  I do have an electronic controller for the brakes but have not practiced sufficiently and it's located by the foot pedal. Supposed to set it so the trailer brakes, not the car.  I appreciate the link regarding tongue weight and your advice on the spare tire issue - very helpful!!  Sounds like you're happy w the XT in mountain country?  Good points - I'm in the midwest but want to take it through mountains eventually.  

GatorEgg

And as discussed many times on this forum you’ll see in your T@b manual WDH is not recommended on the 320 frame.

VictoriaP

@K4sailing Jury is still out for me on the XT as I haven’t personally towed with it; picked it up last fall and you have to break in the engine (1000 miles) before you can tow anything, plus had to get hitch and wiring done...by then, winter had set in. LOL We do have an entire thread dedicated to the 2020 Outbacks around here if you decide to look into that model. Others who’ve crossed both the Rockies and Cascades have found it does well...we’ll see what I think later this spring. If I intended to full time or even take say, a six week trip tooling around the country? I probably would have gone with the Ascent, which I test drove several times. But for my style of camping—solo and shorter trips—the XT should be fine, and I prefer it as a daily driver over a bigger SUV.

Regarding your brake controller: these typically do two things. They apply the brakes when you use the brake pedal (proportional, relative to how hard you are braking under normal driving conditions...the point here is to set it so that the trailer doesn’t slam on the brakes when you’ve barely touched the pedal), and in a towing emergency, it should have a manual control so you’re able to apply JUST the trailer brakes to stop the trailer from fishtailing. I suggest finding out what model you have and reading over the instructions thoroughly. Per Subaru, the trailer’s brakes must be used for any trailer over 1000 pounds, you can’t simply count on the car’s brakes, so you need to be sure the controller is correctly set for proportional braking and that you know how to activate the brakes manually for sway conditions. If the instructions don’t cover how to handle sway, there’s plenty of info via Google. Sway is no joke with a tow vehicle as light as the Outback, if it gets out of control, it can send you careening across the freeway or can roll your trailer.

K4sailing

Thank-you for the comments!!  I reread the T@b manual and saw no reference to WDS, so contacted NuCamp who did not take a position as it is an after market item.  They did say bolts were better than clamp style.  Right now, I am not planning to install with WDS or sway control.  Instead will work on ensuring proper loading for tongue weight, tire pressure, and will recheck the trailer brake controller.  That should buy me some time while I get up to speed on the T@b.