Might as well start a discussion on it. Trailer hitch discussions can go here (do aftermarket fit, and so on), and I'll start out with the Subaru hitch and this particular Wilderness specific panel that will elevate your trailer hitch experience.
UPDATE: the trailer hitch panel part has been revised, is now part number L101SAN620 as noted in post 29. Most of the stuff here still applies.
Wilderness Trailer Hitch Panel
Subaru has introduced a new panel, part number L101SAN610, specific for the Wilderness model using the Subaru trailer hitch. It is currently listed as $39.95 MSRP... and is labeled as “Trailer Hitch Fascia Pane”. The initial instruction manual was released today.
The good news is that it IS pre-cut. You don't have to do the funky cutout that's in the instructions for the existing Subaru trailer hitch.
The other good news is that you must remove the entire rear fascia, AND you get to hone your plastic cutting skills because a cutout of the rear fascia is still required to install this trim panel!
Things to note:
ok - on with the fun stuff... screen shots!
Pull the entire bumper baby!
![514140]()
make sure you tape together and double check the dimensions of the template that is so large it's printed on 4 different pages of the instructions. Hey, at least they included the scale measurement on the pages on this first edition... it was missing on the initial release of the 2020 trailer hitch template
![514141]()
now, after you've honed those scaled template making pinteresty skills... on to the tracing and cutout! Use more of your favorite tape. The little punch looking thing is supposed to be a marker. No indication of color, so I'll assume black isn't the best choice here. Note the emphasis of marking with the smaller dotted lines vs dashed ones. The instructions say that you've marked the edges of the template and "noting that the cut will travel straight back along the dotted lines at the bottom surface of the fascia". I guess you can eyeball the line perpendicular down to the edge.
![514142]()
Switching your pinteresty tool kit icon to the cutting tool, cut that flashy new bumper!
![514143]()
clean the surface on this optical illusion, guessing at which side you are supposed to clean. It's not marked like above, no indication of inside / outside. The clue that it is now the outside surface is reading the later steps. One visual clue is the little hole for the plastic clip is drawn differently - when they are two circles, one inside the other, it's the outside, the inside just has the one circle there. that's consistent with other drawings in other instruction manuals. This will likely be edited to indicate with words "outside of fascia shown" or even the step 6 title - adding the word outer or outside, depending on how you want to word that step title.
![514144]()
Next, you fit the panel into place to use as a template to drill some holes... this is a good illustration showing the difference in how the outside vs inside plastic fasteners are shown... top is outside, you have the two concentric circles (maybe it looks like an installed fastener?)... and then the bottom one with the one circle. Also the inside views are more symmetrical, vs the odd perspective of the outside view of that fastener area. No matter- this will need edits indicating which surface of the fascia this panel is touching.
note the molded in clip on the inner surface at the top of the panel... a bad cut will not have that fit as nicely in place. There's two sided tape on the part, so that molded clip only positions the panel at the top most portion of the cutout before you drill some holes in your bumper...
![514149]()
Using your pinteresty marker of indeterminate color... mark some spots. Drill baby, drill!
![514150]()
Put the panel back in place, put your pins in, remove the plastic on the tape and make sure it sticks to the fascia
![514151]()
there is a small cable tie anchor that is taped on at the end. Not sure why it's this last step... why it's not molded in already, why it's not put in before you tape everything down... it IS below that molded in clip on the underside of the panel, so you wouldn't be able to put it where it would interfere with installation... but, there ya go. Also this is the inside of the fascia, not the outside... the illustrations flip back and forth with no indication of where it is... obvious to some, won't be to others that have only seen this for the first time.
it's more interesting for showing the wire you pushed out of the way earlier so you didn't cut through it when making your monster hole in the bumper... and it shows the width of the hole.
![514152]()
Instructions attached... have at it.
UPDATE: the trailer hitch panel part has been revised, is now part number L101SAN620 as noted in post 29. Most of the stuff here still applies.
Wilderness Trailer Hitch Panel
Subaru has introduced a new panel, part number L101SAN610, specific for the Wilderness model using the Subaru trailer hitch. It is currently listed as $39.95 MSRP... and is labeled as “Trailer Hitch Fascia Pane”. The initial instruction manual was released today.
The good news is that it IS pre-cut. You don't have to do the funky cutout that's in the instructions for the existing Subaru trailer hitch.
The other good news is that you must remove the entire rear fascia, AND you get to hone your plastic cutting skills because a cutout of the rear fascia is still required to install this trim panel!
Things to note:
- this is an initial release of the instructions, it will be edited quickly for things like the incorrect part number on page 1 (the part numbers are correct on the page footers, but not on the first page header).
- a cutout still needs to be made - roughly 15" across and about 9" down. It's not as complex as the template provided with the subaru trailer hitch.
- The cutout / using a preformed small panel is a potential problem. If the cut is too big then the trailer hitch fascia pane won't line up properly (there is a bend). That will leave gaps.
- no depiction of a removable lower smaller fascia - the entire rear bumper fascia is removed and is being worked on (cut). I've never installed one, I assume this is how it is.
- not all illustrations are clear on if it's the inside or the outside of the fascia (when doing the work you might know), but subaru has edited the corresponding trailer hitch installation guide multiple times to show the inside/outside of the fascia when working with the template. I expect this to be edited similarly at some point. a few of the diagrams indicate if it's the inside surface, but not all the diagrams. And it switches back and forth depending on the step.. inside, outside, inside, outside. It will likely get edited once service departments ask questions about it when following the steps.
- The part that is glued/pinned in place covers the cut so even a rougher cut would have a nice trim piece over the top of it. won't show as badly as the little trim provided with the regular trailer hitch kit would.
- The updated part now uses some small push pins to retain it in place, this can help prevent gaps in the finished product where the tape wasn't provided on the trailer hitch fascia pane (I suppose you could put extra tape on the part where subaru didn't provide tape).
- because it's not a smaller part that is being worked on - undoing a mistake is not as easy as the non wilderness model. Mess up the cutout, and the entire rear fascia needs to be replaced.
ok - on with the fun stuff... screen shots!
Pull the entire bumper baby!
make sure you tape together and double check the dimensions of the template that is so large it's printed on 4 different pages of the instructions. Hey, at least they included the scale measurement on the pages on this first edition... it was missing on the initial release of the 2020 trailer hitch template
now, after you've honed those scaled template making pinteresty skills... on to the tracing and cutout! Use more of your favorite tape. The little punch looking thing is supposed to be a marker. No indication of color, so I'll assume black isn't the best choice here. Note the emphasis of marking with the smaller dotted lines vs dashed ones. The instructions say that you've marked the edges of the template and "noting that the cut will travel straight back along the dotted lines at the bottom surface of the fascia". I guess you can eyeball the line perpendicular down to the edge.
Switching your pinteresty tool kit icon to the cutting tool, cut that flashy new bumper!
clean the surface on this optical illusion, guessing at which side you are supposed to clean. It's not marked like above, no indication of inside / outside. The clue that it is now the outside surface is reading the later steps. One visual clue is the little hole for the plastic clip is drawn differently - when they are two circles, one inside the other, it's the outside, the inside just has the one circle there. that's consistent with other drawings in other instruction manuals. This will likely be edited to indicate with words "outside of fascia shown" or even the step 6 title - adding the word outer or outside, depending on how you want to word that step title.
Next, you fit the panel into place to use as a template to drill some holes... this is a good illustration showing the difference in how the outside vs inside plastic fasteners are shown... top is outside, you have the two concentric circles (maybe it looks like an installed fastener?)... and then the bottom one with the one circle. Also the inside views are more symmetrical, vs the odd perspective of the outside view of that fastener area. No matter- this will need edits indicating which surface of the fascia this panel is touching.
note the molded in clip on the inner surface at the top of the panel... a bad cut will not have that fit as nicely in place. There's two sided tape on the part, so that molded clip only positions the panel at the top most portion of the cutout before you drill some holes in your bumper...
Using your pinteresty marker of indeterminate color... mark some spots. Drill baby, drill!
Put the panel back in place, put your pins in, remove the plastic on the tape and make sure it sticks to the fascia
there is a small cable tie anchor that is taped on at the end. Not sure why it's this last step... why it's not molded in already, why it's not put in before you tape everything down... it IS below that molded in clip on the underside of the panel, so you wouldn't be able to put it where it would interfere with installation... but, there ya go. Also this is the inside of the fascia, not the outside... the illustrations flip back and forth with no indication of where it is... obvious to some, won't be to others that have only seen this for the first time.
it's more interesting for showing the wire you pushed out of the way earlier so you didn't cut through it when making your monster hole in the bumper... and it shows the width of the hole.
Instructions attached... have at it.
