Escape 5.0TA fifth wheel
Anyone have one or know someone that does? I have been planning on a truck camper because I could not find a small enough fifth wheel. But this looks like it would still get into most of the older par...
Forum Discussion
In our search for a light trailer/5th wheel, the wife and i visited the Escape factory and took a tour of the facility and production line (we're about a half hour drive away). Also chatted with the co-owner while there. A couple comments:
- 5th wheel and trailers are intended to be light, but I found them to be less "solid" than anticipated. Any movement by anyone inside makes the whole trailer shake. They appeared security set up in the lot, but perhaps they weren't (and we went through a half dozen).
-site says the 5th is v6 towable, but I sure wouldn't expect to tow 5100 lbs on the freeway and uphill with a v6. I tow a 4300 lb trailer with a 6.2l Sierra and it has to be in 5th gear on the flat. I expect, though the narrow footprint would mitigate some of that issue.
- expected the insulation to be more substantial. Perhaps naively, I thought they would have something like expanding foam between the walls but I found a thin sheet of that silver reflective stuff (not sure of the name) with an air space on either side).
- quite narrow, at 7'4" wide. Great for towing mph though and I didn't find it that confining.
- wet bath, so you don't get a separate shower. May not be a big deal to some.
- quite pricey for the size, and a lot of options come at a price (i.e. insulated windows are in the multiple hundreds). Take a look at the list.
- and weird thing, I have since seen a number of these trailers in my area and being pulled down the road. Almost every one had the exterior with that "hazy" surface, as if the gell coat had lost it's shine. This may be older models that may have had a different exterior treatment than the current models.
- during the tour, the workmanship looked good and because it is still a relatively small shop, the QC is pretty high.
- impressed with the co-owner and staff that I met. Committed to a good product and knowledgable.
Having said all that, except for the price, I likely would have purchased one (travel to/from Denver Co a lot on interstates and the narrow size would be much better to tow than the wind sail we have).
Regards,
Marv
- 5th wheel and trailers are intended to be light, but I found them to be less "solid" than anticipated. Any movement by anyone inside makes the whole trailer shake. They appeared security set up in the lot, but perhaps they weren't (and we went through a half dozen).
-site says the 5th is v6 towable, but I sure wouldn't expect to tow 5100 lbs on the freeway and uphill with a v6. I tow a 4300 lb trailer with a 6.2l Sierra and it has to be in 5th gear on the flat. I expect, though the narrow footprint would mitigate some of that issue.
- expected the insulation to be more substantial. Perhaps naively, I thought they would have something like expanding foam between the walls but I found a thin sheet of that silver reflective stuff (not sure of the name) with an air space on either side).
- quite narrow, at 7'4" wide. Great for towing mph though and I didn't find it that confining.
- wet bath, so you don't get a separate shower. May not be a big deal to some.
- quite pricey for the size, and a lot of options come at a price (i.e. insulated windows are in the multiple hundreds). Take a look at the list.
- and weird thing, I have since seen a number of these trailers in my area and being pulled down the road. Almost every one had the exterior with that "hazy" surface, as if the gell coat had lost it's shine. This may be older models that may have had a different exterior treatment than the current models.
- during the tour, the workmanship looked good and because it is still a relatively small shop, the QC is pretty high.
- impressed with the co-owner and staff that I met. Committed to a good product and knowledgable.
Having said all that, except for the price, I likely would have purchased one (travel to/from Denver Co a lot on interstates and the narrow size would be much better to tow than the wind sail we have).
Regards,
Marv
