I'm trying to find the perfect "Couples Trailer" for just me and
my wife.
These are some things I think I want:
- Queen-size bed - Murphy be nice, prefer North/South bed
- Full bathroom - not a wet bath - separate toilet and shower (wife demands this)
- Under 4,000 lbs - towing with my 2002 Lexus LX470 SUV, 6,000lb tow capacity
- Prefer 7' to 7.5' wide so I can see the rear more easily.
- When not in use, it will be parked outside in driveway - no shelter - water, sun deterioration?
Love to dump the dineete table and replace with a Sofa.
Don't want to overtax my SUV.
Great question, and we spent over one year of increasingly careful research to arrive at the answer to the same question. Our solution: 2016 Coachmen Freedom Express 192 RBS. Our answer will not necessarily be someone else's solution, but after our first 16 months of use over 4500+ logged miles, we are as happy as can be. That said, the rig misses on a couple of your specs: weight and width.
(1) Re. weight - our experience has been that when loaded up with gear, groceries, clothes and all of the stuff we have needed - for up to 18 camping days - our CAT scale weight for the trailer comes in regularly between 4600 - 4700 lbs. Tongue weight also ends up being 480 - 520 lbs. I mention those numbers just to let you know that for the two of us and our dog we are carrying virtually everything we have found we could use on a trip. Everyone's lifestyle is different, however, so take our experience in the context of your own.
(2) Re. width - our rig's exterior width is 8' and does not pose a problem. Often, though not always, we make use of towing mirrors we strap on to our Honda Ridgeline's factory mirrors.
I have no idea of the towing capabilities of your Lexus. But I'm sure you know that you will need to carefully investigate all of the pertinent data points on towing that are discussed in your owner's manual. What you discover might eliminate the 192 RBS.
If it is still in the game, you will be happy with the queen size bed and the sofa on the "mini-slide." For us, anyway, we have really enjoyed our sofa as a relaxing place to watch TV and to enjoy meals. Not exactly sure about your desire for "Full bathroom - not a wet bath - separate toilet and shower." Our bathroom, though small, suits us just fine if for no other reason than it is functional!
I see that fellow poster and 192 RBS owner "Sound Guy" has posted and given you a link to his photo library of his rig. I encourage you to examine those.
Finally, our rig "lives" outside year round in a parking space on our heavily wooded property. Even with lots of shade, I was very concerned with deterioration caused by UV radiation. So we purchased from Wal-Mart a reflective tarp that was large enough to cover the entire roof area and extend over the front cap down to the diamond plate area. We use several bungee cords to anchor the tarp to the trailer's frame. Now, that does not cover the sides nor rear walls, but we are blessed with heavy woods and lots of shade in our part of SE Texas, so we are aided by that.
Apologies for the lengthy response, but since the 192 RBS wasn't on your target list, I thought I might take a shot at it making the cut.
Good luck!
