Rant - looking for a travel trailer

[johnsoax]

I wish some manufacturer made the trailer I was looking for. I have 4 children, and I use a SUV to carry the family. And from all the threads I constantly see here, and on other sites, I'm not the only one looking.

Right now I use a popup to fit everyone and still be able to carry all the gear we need. And for the type of camping we do, it is annoying to have to setup and tear down every day as we travel to our destination. Then when we are at our destination, we have to do a smaller setup and tear down everyday to convert tables and couches to beds to fit everyone.

Someone should be able to design a trailer that will give me 3 or 4 individual beds for the kids and a larger bed for my wife and I while still letting us have our gear for less than 550 lbs of tongue weight.

My vehicle is a pretty typical SUV that has a 550lb tongue weight and a towing capacity of 7700. Once I put all the gear in a trailer, I can pull the weight, but everything that has a floor plan we can use has a tongue weight that requires a 2500 or 3500 truck to pull it, before the gear is even in the trailer.

Why can't someone make something for larger families that fits the smaller vehicles that most people drive nowadays.

I know there are Hybrid trailers. If I wanted to deal with tenting issues, I would stay with the popup.

We want to be able to have a nice base camp for destination camping and be able to stop at places on the way there to make lunch/use the bathroom/ and sleep in the camper without deploying everything (stealth road camping).

Airstream used to build something like this, but they have gone $$$ high end, and super heavy. I can find much older trailers that might work, if I could actually find one for sale...

Anyone have any ideas?

[krobbe]

qtla9111 wrote:
Great video unfortunately, another downside to the U.S. market because in Europe they are big on diesel cars and SUVs. No need to defend the market, it's just that it is behind the rest of the world for some unknown reason.

Practical Caravan's Land Rover Discovery 4 3.0 SDV6 HSE tow car review
Read more at http://www.practi...

The US isn't behind the Europeans in anything! Some of us like larger vehicles and RVs. That doesn't make us behind anyone. That makes us Grand!

[johnsoax]

qtla9111 wrote:
As an SUV owner I understand some of the frustration the OP is going through. There are some legitimate points. It is obvious that the rv manufacturers pay little attention to the vehicle market and the growing number of SUVs. Some people like pickups and some don't.

I prefer an SUV as it holds up to nine passengers when not towing, gets decent gas mileage and can also pull my rv. You don't see many if any 24ft TTs with two slideouts.

Someone on page two mentioned the European market and with reason. The U.S. is way behind other markets and it's not just Europeans, it is also the Japanese and the Chinese.

Why would I want to go out and buy a new tow vehicle when there should be something manufactured to cater to the SUV market? Going out to buy a pickup to accommodate an rv is like putting the cart before the horse. Makes no sense.

I think the reason we are seeing this dilemma is because rv manufacturers realize how gullible the consumer market is. They can produce anything they want cheaply and people will find a work around to make it fit even if it means buying a new vehicle. Crazy.

Thank you, I agree.

[krobbe]

[Sarc]Land Rover... Ick! Ship it back across the pond and get yourself a real SUV![Sarc]
Or continue to tow a popup that's within the Land Rover ratings. Tea anyone?

[rbpru]

After 10 pages I am not going to add anything new. By now you know you have run into the laws of physics.

If you replace our PUP’s cloth with hard sides, add storage for food and clothes, include a real bathroom, cupboards and kitchen, then water tanks, frame and suspension to hold it all; my 22 foot 2500 lb. Palomino PUP that sleeps 8 becomes a 5000 lb. dry weight Dutchmen Lite that sleeps 5, if one is shorter than 62 inches.

I must admit, some people are happy with some strange TV and TT combinations.

[qtla9111]

Great video unfortunately, another downside to the U.S. market because in Europe they are big on diesel cars and SUVs. No need to defend the market, it's just that it is behind the rest of the world for some unknown reason.

Practical Caravan's Land Rover Discovery 4 3.0 SDV6 HSE tow car review
Read more at http://www.practi...

[qtla9111]

Great video unfortunately, another downside to the U.S. market because in Europe they are big on diesel cars and SUVs. No need to defend the market, it's just that it is behind the rest of the world for some unknown reason.

Practical Caravan's Land Rover Discovery 4 3.0 SDV6 HSE tow car review
Read more at http://www.practi...

[chracatoa]

Ah, the large SUVs. Too large for daily use, too small for nice trailers...

[Lantley]

johnsoax wrote:

Lantley wrote:
When you become a serious/dedicated camper you will make the necessary changes,adaptations and compromises to obtain a capable tow vehicle and a RV that matches it.

As someone who has been camping in mutiple forms for over 30 years, this comment is breathtaking in its arrogance.

If you would meander into the Folding camper forum you will see I am not alone, by far.

How many Land Rovers have you seen towing anything much larger than a pop up in the USA in those 30 years?
The rest of the RV world has figured out there are more capable RV tow vehicles than a land Rover, however 30 years later you haven't and consequently have created your own limitation.

Arrogance is blindly/mistakenly believing the Land Rover is a worthwhile RV tow vehicle. You have boxed yourself in due to the shortcomings of the Land Rover. You are in denial and refuse to believe that the Rover has any shortcomings. That denial has led you to blame the whole scenario on the RV industry.
Good Luck with your hunt for that elusive Land Rover compatible model. Since you have not sorted any of this out in 30 years.
I doubt you will figure out anything anytime soon until you recognize your RV struggles are self inflicted.

[qtla9111]

As an SUV owner I understand some of the frustration the OP is going through. There are some legitimate points. It is obvious that the rv manufacturers pay little attention to the vehicle market and the growing number of SUVs. Some people like pickups and some don't.

I prefer an SUV as it holds up to nine passengers when not towing, gets decent gas mileage and can also pull my rv. You don't see many if any 24ft TTs with two slideouts.

Someone on page two mentioned the European market and with reason. The U.S. is way behind other markets and it's not just Europeans, it is also the Japanese and the Chinese.

Why would I want to go out and buy a new tow vehicle when there should be something manufactured to cater to the SUV market? Going out to buy a pickup to accommodate an rv is like putting the cart before the horse. Makes no sense.

I think the reason we are seeing this dilemma is because rv manufacturers realize how gullible the consumer market is. They can produce anything they want cheaply and people will find a work around to make it fit even if it means buying a new vehicle. Crazy.

[johnsoax]

itguy08 wrote:

johnsoax wrote:

MOST SUVs have this limitation. So RV manufacturers should build around it. But they don't. The majority of potential customers are often told they need to buy a bigger truck to pull what they need/want. Yet the only time they need a bigger vehicle is to pull a camper. With popups basically going away, this is an issue that will most likely push campers into an even smaller niche market.

The engineering works for what I want, I just can't find anyone that makes it.

Not sure on the SUV but run the #'s against what the manufacturer says and go from there....

People said I was crazy thinking about our unit (Open Range LT272RLS, 35' long, 32' box, under 8k according to it's yellow sticker, under 10k gross) and towing it with our 2011 F150 Ecoboost with Max Tow. From Ford I've got 1800+ lbs Payload, a 11,300 tow capacity.

Dealer set us up with a 14,000b Equalizer hitch as we are new to this.

Well, we got the trailer and I figured worst case would be I'd upgrade if need be. Have about 200 miles on it and it tows fine. A little bouncy on the back roads but I've still got the P-rated tires on it and all stock. On the interstate it's fine. Have been passed by semis, cars, trucks, etc. At 65 MPH its stable. At 70 (fastest I've gone) it's also stable. On a windy day there was a little motion back and forth but even the semi in front of us was showing signs as well.

We've got some longer trips planned later this summer and we'll see how well it does and I'm thinking maybe air bags to make the bounciness a little better but so far I'm pleased with it. Is it the BEST? Probably not. Is it working well? Yup.

So run the #'s and let that guide you. If it fits within what the manufacturer says, you should be fine. But if you are on the edge, prepare for a vehicle upgrade.

Good luck on your trip! We did 3000 miles with the popup, one reason we are looking for something different, and could barely feel it through MO, KS, OK, TX, LA, AL, MS and KY. The hills in TN were fun due to a thunder storm, but still way more than enough power for the inclines.

[itguy08]

Dupe

[itguy08]

johnsoax wrote:

MOST SUVs have this limitation. So RV manufacturers should build around it. But they don't. The majority of potential customers are often told they need to buy a bigger truck to pull what they need/want. Yet the only time they need a bigger vehicle is to pull a camper. With popups basically going away, this is an issue that will most likely push campers into an even smaller niche market.

The engineering works for what I want, I just can't find anyone that makes it.

Not sure on the SUV but run the #'s against what the manufacturer says and go from there....

People said I was crazy thinking about our unit (Open Range LT272RLS, 35' long, 32' box, under 8k according to it's yellow sticker, under 10k gross) and towing it with our 2011 F150 Ecoboost with Max Tow. From Ford I've got 1800+ lbs Payload, a 11,300 tow capacity.

Dealer set us up with a 14,000b Equalizer hitch as we are new to this.

Well, we got the trailer and I figured worst case would be I'd upgrade if need be. Have about 200 miles on it and it tows fine. A little bouncy on the back roads but I've still got the P-rated tires on it and all stock. On the interstate it's fine. Have been passed by semis, cars, trucks, etc. At 65 MPH its stable. At 70 (fastest I've gone) it's also stable. On a windy day there was a little motion back and forth but even the semi in front of us was showing signs as well.

We've got some longer trips planned later this summer and we'll see how well it does and I'm thinking maybe air bags to make the bounciness a little better but so far I'm pleased with it. Is it the BEST? Probably not. Is it working well? Yup.

So run the #'s and let that guide you. If it fits within what the manufacturer says, you should be fine. But if you are on the edge, prepare for a vehicle upgrade.

[johnsoax]

therink wrote:
Unsubscribe from this mess. Apparently the OP didn't like what they heard.

Thanks for your........ Help?

[johnsoax]

The 2306 triple bunk seems about perfect, as does the Lance, pending its actual tongue weight.

Now to find a used 2306, as they don't make that option new anymore. Sadly, the Murphy bed looks pretty awesome, but you can't have both the Murphy bed and the triple bunks due to water heater placement.

[Lobout]

johnsoax wrote:
Lucky you. I've been checking craigslist about every day since April. Trailers like I want sell out in a mater of hours. The bigger ones stay on for days.

I'm glad you found what you are looking for.

Guess It helps that I bought it in January, before most people start looking to buy one.. Good luck with your search.