towing a Legacy AWD

[Bruce]

I plan to buy a 95 Legacy wagon which will be used for some parts and
then for resale. My concern is how to tow it. I have read that AWD can
only be towed with all four wheels off the ground. I also recently
heard that it can be towed on a car dolley (with the two wheels up and
two rear wheels on the pavement) if the drive shaft is disconnected.

I would like to tow it with a car dolley but not if it will damage the
AWD system.
What advice can you give me on this topic.

Thanks,

Bruce

 

[Carl 1 Lucky Texan]

I plan to buy a 95 Legacy wagon which will be used for some parts and
then for resale. My concern is how to tow it. I have read that AWD can
only be towed with all four wheels off the ground. I also recently
heard that it can be towed on a car dolley (with the two wheels up and
two rear wheels on the pavement) if the drive shaft is disconnected.

I would like to tow it with a car dolley but not if it will damage the
AWD system.
What advice can you give me on this topic.

Thanks,

Bruce

Manual tranny (no LSD in the rear) can be towed all 4 on the ground.
Mkae certain the tires are all the same with proper inflation.

Auto tranny - I dunno, probably with the DS disconnected as you say.
What a hassle.

Carl

 

[Ralph E Lindberg]

I plan to buy a 95 Legacy wagon which will be used for some parts and
then for resale. My concern is how to tow it. I have read that AWD can
only be towed with all four wheels off the ground. I also recently
heard that it can be towed on a car dolley (with the two wheels up and
two rear wheels on the pavement) if the drive shaft is disconnected.

I would like to tow it with a car dolley but not if it will damage the
AWD system.
What advice can you give me on this topic.

My 95 has a fuse that can be removed to disconnect the rear axle. Then
you can use a dolly/tow-truck. The manual says something about towing
for short distances (under 50 miles) and slow (under 45). I don't 100%
recall, since I don't use it as a "toad" and a friend has a car trailer
if it was dead.

Obviously it's a manual, if it was Auto, trailer is it.

--

 

[Bruce]

Sorry to omit that point. It is an automatic.

Thanks

 

[Carl 1 Lucky Texan]

Sorry to omit that point. It is an automatic.

Thanks

The problem arises from the center differential built into the auto
tranny. It's 'default' condition is 4WD, so, without the engine pumping
the tranny fluid around and the Duty C Solenoid being controlled by the
computer, 'torque bind' will build up in the drivetrain and the easiest
place for slippage to occur is the center diff clutch pack. It would
likely be destroyed. Even if you remove the driveshaft, things are iffy
due to lack of transmission fluid being circulated.

I dunno

Carl

 

[Bugalugs]

The problem arises from the center differential built into the auto
tranny. It's 'default' condition is 4WD, so, without the engine pumping
the tranny fluid around and the Duty C Solenoid being controlled by the
computer, 'torque bind' will build up in the drivetrain and the easiest
place for slippage to occur is the center diff clutch pack. It would
likely be destroyed. Even if you remove the driveshaft, things are iffy
due to lack of transmission fluid being circulated.

I dunno

Carl

But if the rear drive shaft was removed ???

You only have the back wheels and the dif going round.

 

[Carl 1 Lucky Texan]

But if the rear drive shaft was removed ???

You only have the back wheels and the dif going round.

Let's see, the fronts are on the dolly right? Should be OK then with the
tailshaft disconnected running the rear wheels on the ground. Guess i
got confused somewhere.

Carl

 

[Rebecca Wagaman]

My 95 has a fuse that can be removed to disconnect the rear axle. Then
you can use a dolly/tow-truck. The manual says something about towing
for short distances (under 50 miles) and slow (under 45). I don't 100%
recall, since I don't use it as a "toad" and a friend has a car trailer
if it was dead.

Obviously it's a manual, if it was Auto, trailer is it.

Is that related to this? http://www.drive.subaru.com/Fall05_QuickStops.htm :
"If you have a Subaru vehicle with a temporary spare and an automatic
transmission, using the spare requires a visit to the fuse box under the
hood. Consult your Owner's Manual, where it explains that the insertion of a
spare fuse in the FWD connector defeats AWD to help prevent drivetrain
damage. Just remember to take out the fuse once a conventional tire is
installed."

Rebecca

 

[Carl 1 Lucky Texan]

Is that related to this? http://www.drive.subaru.com/Fall05_QuickStops.htm :
"If you have a Subaru vehicle with a temporary spare and an automatic
transmission, using the spare requires a visit to the fuse box under the
hood. Consult your Owner's Manual, where it explains that the insertion of a
spare fuse in the FWD connector defeats AWD to help prevent drivetrain
damage. Just remember to take out the fuse once a conventional tire is
installed."

Rebecca

They are related in that they are protecting the same device from
potential damage - the center differential in the tailshaft of the
automatic transmission.

Carl

 

[Michael Pardee]

They are related in that they are protecting the same device from
potential damage - the center differential in the tailshaft of the
automatic transmission.

Carl

A thought - if pulling the fuse disables the AWD, could it be the center
diff really isn't doing anything when the ignition is off?

Mike

 

[Body Roll]

A thought - if pulling the fuse disables the AWD, could it be the center
diff really isn't doing anything when the ignition is off?

That's a dangerous assumption to make. The opposite could be true just
as well.
It takes what? An extra five minutes for an experienced tow guy to get
the dollies under the wheels that would've been otherwise dragging on
the pavement. I did not time
mine with a stopwatch, but it felt rather quick three years ago when I
had to tow my older
Legacy. My recommendation is to use a tow service affiliated with an
autoclub, such as triple A.
This way if a Luddite with a tow truck messes up a center diff or
anything else
on your precious set of wheels there is always someone to sue besides
the Tows R'Us.

I once saw a 1wd Legacy with a salvaged title that started its life as
a 2wd,
but something happened with the center diff that it had to be removed
somewhere along the
way.

Anyhow, all this discussion provided me with a useful insight on the
reasons some Subs
show up for sale :-[

Thanks.

 

[Carl 1 Lucky Texan]

A thought - if pulling the fuse disables the AWD, could it be the center
diff really isn't doing anything when the ignition is off?

Mike

PLACING the fuse IN the FWD drive position sends a CONSTANT 12V to the
Duty C Solenoid, so regardless of any slippage detection no (or very
little) power is sent to the rear wheels, so you can drive with the
donut spare on. 0V (as when the ignition is off) is 4WD. Under normal
conditions, the C solenoid is pulsed to yield some fractional torque
split as determined by base mapping and slippage detection(60/40, or
25/75 or 75/25 as conditions demand).
If you need it towed ask for a flatbed. You may need to wait longer but
the cost should be the same. As for pulling driveshafts, whether or not
running the engine while being towed or other weird ideas will work
under odd circumstances I'll leave to others to speculate. Check your
manual, check the Subaru website or ask the guys at www.usmb.net and
www.nasioc.com what they have 'gotten away with' by deviating from the
manual's suggestions.

Carl

 

[Michael Pardee]

PLACING the fuse IN the FWD drive position sends a CONSTANT 12V to the
Duty C Solenoid, so regardless of any slippage detection no (or very
little) power is sent to the rear wheels, so you can drive with the donut
spare on. 0V (as when the ignition is off) is 4WD. Under normal
conditions, the C solenoid is pulsed to yield some fractional torque split
as determined by base mapping and slippage detection(60/40, or 25/75 or
75/25 as conditions demand).
If you need it towed ask for a flatbed. You may need to wait longer but
the cost should be the same. As for pulling driveshafts, whether or not
running the engine while being towed or other weird ideas will work under
odd circumstances I'll leave to others to speculate. Check your manual,
check the Subaru website or ask the guys at www.usmb.net and
www.nasioc.com what they have 'gotten away with' by deviating from the
manual's suggestions.

Carl

That explains a lot - thanks!

Mike