Subaru Forester: Trailer hitch (dealer option) / Connecting a trailer

- Ball mount
- Hitch pin
- Safety pin
- Hitch receiver tube
- Insert the ball mount into the hitch
receiver tube.
- Insert the hitch pin into the hole located
on the hitch receiver tube so that the pin
passes through the ball mount.
- Insert the safety pin through the provided
hole on the hitch pin securely.
- Check the ball mount assembly by
pulling on it to make sure it does not come
off the hitch receiver.

- Hitch ball installation point
- Hooks for safety chains
- Use only a hitch ball that is appropriate
for the ball mount and your trailer. The
hitch ball must be securely installed on the
ball mount.
- Connect your trailer to the hitch ball.
- Connect the trailer and the hitch with
safety chains that will hold the trailer’smaximum gross weight. The chains
should
cross under the trailer tongue to prevent
the tongue from dropping onto the ground
in case it should disconnect from the hitch
ball. Allow sufficient slack in the chains
taking tight turn situations into account;
however, be careful not to let them drag on
the ground.
WARNING
Do not connect safety chains to any
part of the vehicle other than the
safety chain hooks.

Hitch harness connector
- Connect the hitch electrical wire harness’s
black four-pin electrical wire connector
to the towing trailer’s wire harness.
- Confirm proper function of the hitch
electrical wire harness by individually and
combination activating the brake, stop and
turn signal lights on the trailer.
NOTE
Always disconnect the trailer electrical
wire harness before launching or retrieving
a watercraft.
If not towing a trailer
- Remove the ball mount from the hitch
receiver tube.
- Place the dust cap over the four-pin
connector of the hitch electrical wire
harness to protect against possible damage.
- Occasionally lubricate terminals of the
four-pin connector using terminal grease.
Your vehicle is designed and intended to
be used primarily as a passenger-carrying
vehicle. Towing a trailer puts additional
loads on your vehicle’s engine, drivetrain,
brakes, tires and suspension and has an
adverse effect on fuel economy...
Other information:
Emergency Locking Retractor (ELR)
The driver’s seatbelt has an Emergency
Locking Retractor (ELR).
The emergency locking retractor allows
normal body movement but the retractor
locks automatically during a sudden stop,
impact or if you pull the belt very quickly
out of the retractor...
NOTE
This section is applicable to the following
components.
Rear passenger’s seatbelt (windowside)
The pretensioner sensor also serves as
follows.
SRS frontal airbag sensor
Side impact sensor
Rollover sensor
If the sensor detects a certain predetermined
amount of force during frontal or
side collisions or rollover accidents, any
seatbelt that has a seatbelt pretensioner is
quickly drawn back in by the retractor to
take up the slack so that the belt more
effectively restrains the seat occupant...