Hi KingDad - Long time Toy Hauler owner here.
We've owned two toy haulers, and both of them were/are big. There are a lot of variables to look at, but one general rule is that the bigger the hauler, the less impact the toys will have on towing.
Our first hauler was a 30' bumper pull (Weekend Warrior FS2600). We owned it for about twelve years and traveled plenty with it both loaded and unloaded. My truck at the time was a RAM 2500 Cummins. The truck pulled the trailer well, but I could definitely tell the difference when I was "heavy" or not. Loaded up for a week long trip, we would have five bikes in the hauler, plus 120 gallons of water, a full bed of firewood, and however much gas fit in the fuel station (I don't remember anymore). Honestly, the bed full of firewood was the biggest factor in being "heavy".
I had a good Reese Dual Cam anti-sway hitch and it worked well, but I could definitely feel the big rigs push us around on the road.
Again though, having bikes in the garage or not didn't ever make a difference in the handling. The trailer was long enough with enough weight up front (and the axles were placed just right) that having the bikes in the garage or not really didn't impact us.
That was then.
Now we're HUGE. We have a 44.5' fifth wheel and a full ton dually to tow it. We're a big slow dumb pig cruising down the road. We cruise great though. The whole thing handles way better than the shorter bumper pull did.
The fiver is so heavy that it makes zero difference whether the garage is full or empty. Our two fresh water tanks are over the axles, the three waste tanks are in front of the axles, and the two fuel tanks are in the rear. I honestly can't feel any difference between a loaded garage or not. Same goes for full or empty fuel tanks, or full fresh vs full waste tanks. The fiver is heavy, period.
I've camped with two people who had the side-loading toy haulers and both of them absolutely HATED the experience. The bikes were right there in the living area and it made a mess. The geometry of the ramps was also completely different than a rear ramp, and the angle was always too steep to be comfortable going up or down. If the trailer wasn't on perfectly level ground, then the side ramp was always tweaked too far out of square to be comfortable with. With a rear ramp though, you can easily block one edge of the ramp if the ground is uneven from side to side, and you can jack up the nose to make the rear angle less steep.
My advice is to study the weight capacities closely and look at the layout of the tanks and inside furnishings with respect to the axles. Also look for user groups for that brand and look for feedback from actual owners.
My guess is that your trike will be so heavy that any hauler designed to carry that much weight will also be designed to tow well whether it's empty or full.
The two most common misconceptions that I see about toy haulers is:
* How could you load a motorized vehicle into your RV without the whole thing constantly stinking of gas?
* You can never tow a toy hauler without the toys loaded in the rear, because it won't have enough tongue weight when it's empty.
The first point is definitely not true unless you actually leak/spill gas all over the place. Our side-by-side car has big tires and there's definitely a tire smell while it's loaded, but there is zero smell back there once you unload the toys. Opening that ramp lets a ton of air into the space, and any possible smell is 100% gone by the time you've unloaded the toy(s) and all the other stuff (chairs, bbq, etc.).
And the second point is hyperbole. Yes, you will see a difference in the numbers if you weigh the tongue/pin full vs. empty, but the delta isn't as large as you'd expect and it rarely translates into a noticeable difference in handling.
There are definitely units out there that were engineered poorly and they're too close to capacity even unloaded, but those are rare. Just make sure to pick a manufacturer who has been building toy haulers for more than a year or so.
I hope this helps.
2014 RAM 3500 Diesel 4x4 Dually long bed. B&W RVK3600 hitch โข 2015 Crossroads Elevation Homestead Toy Hauler ("The Taj Mahauler") โข <\br >Toys:
- 18 Can Am Maverick x3
- 05 Yamaha WR450
- 07 Honda CRF250X
- 05 Honda CRF230
- 06 Honda CRF230