Great report thanks for sharing.



I would bet your all up trip weight was more than 2000lbs based on your description and the weights Ive towed Id guess you were closer to 2500lbs. For long trips I found 1800lbs to be about the max weight were the higher speed highway trips and head winds are still OK vs performance. In my case lower profile enclosed sleek 8.5ft wide 26ft hitch to tail etc. In that case I ran 16mpg at 65-70mph with a slight head wind. My truck under the same conditions but packed heavier will typically return 15-16mpg.



Having said that a recent camping trip with 5 people, water, wood gear and food for 6 days + my 4x6 900lb trailer crossing Sonora Pass which has 14% and no joke 26% grades returned 14mpg average the pass was 9000ft and the 14 and 26% grades were in the 8000+ft altitude range. Our 2.5L OB would have been crawling at walking speed and begging for mercy with just 2-4 people and the empty 900lb trailer. The 4.7L V8 in the truck was fine 2500-3000rpm in 2nd gear doing 15-30mph keep in mind the road in those steep sections was 25-30mph max even in a sportscar due to the switch backs and 180 degree turns. The 3.6 wouldnt have been any different given cooling would have been the primary issue with any subaru packed beyond basic gear for 2-4people with no trailer. Infact we saw a 2.5L Impreza which was doing about 8-10 mph in 1st gear with two people and two backpacks in the back on the 26% climb.



If your curious this is highway 108 in CA which is just north of Yosemite which runs East West over the Sierras. We spent 6 days just north west of Mono Lake in the Virgina Lakes area.