Recommendation towing capacity advice 3500 lbs

[wehner06]

We have a 2004 Toyota Sienna towing capacity 3500 lbs. We are looking at purchasing a KX Sportsmen Classic 18rbt. My husband is leaning towards this one, for some reason I'm not convinced.



Do you have a recommendation on a hybrid travel trailer that will be okay to tow with our vehicle? We are not in the market for a new vehicle right now. We have a pop up but it has had problems with leaking. I like the combination of trailer pop up with a separate bathroom.



Do you have one you like? I like the idea of an oven but is it an over kill?



What do you have in your hybrid trailer that you like and what could you live without.



Thank you in advance for your help.

[bikendan]

wehner06 wrote:
To Hybrid Owners do you like the air conditioner in the roof or the wall? Does one work better that the other? Does one leak less than the other?

wall a/c's are a somewhat new thing for hybrids and are only found on the smallest ones made. they aren't 13.5k a/c's, like all the other roof type ones.
the first ones with wall mount a/c's had some leakage issues but the manufacturers apparently came up with a fix, a drip tray i think.

[wehner06]

To Hybrid Owners do you like the air conditioner in the roof or the wall? Does one work better that the other? Does one leak less than the other?

[PAThwacker]

All rv appartus leak, are currently leaking, or have leaked.

[atreis]

I don't have either, but found one of the Jayco's online that had a picture of the weight sticker - looks like it's around 3100 unloaded, which is pushing it (doable, but would require careful loading).

The Sportsman 18rbt has a dry weight of 2696 - I couldn't find a picture of a sticker online showing the real shipped weight... Guesstimating, perhaps 2800? Anyway, likely much lighter than the Jayco.

Both companies have a good reputation for hybrids.

FWIW, knowing nothing more than this, I'd pick the KZ. 🙂

[wehner06]

Thank you everyone for your input. You have been giving some good food for thought. Right now we are kicking it all around. We have a 2004 Toyota Sienna All wheel drive all the time with towing capacity of 3500 lbs. We are entertaining getting a hybrid travel trailer. We are looking to see if anyone has any input on 2009 Jayco, Jay Feather Ex-Port series M-17C or the Kz SPORTSMAN Classic 18 RBT. Does anyone have either one? Do you like one over the other? Lisa

[Campfire_Time]

bikendan wrote:

camp-n-family wrote:

Then perhaps you're not reading enough posts. We're on our second hybrid. The first we bought new, owned for 10 years. Never a leak due to the design or beds. A small leak on a roof seam which can and does happen to any trailer.

Our current hybrid is in its second season. No leaks.

There you have 3 examples of no leaks.

There are always exceptions. Give it time 😉

how much more than nearly 8 years would that be?:h

10 years in my case. Apparently he glossed right over these facts. Seems folks who have experienced troubles really want to believe their experience is the rule and not the exception. The reality is that hybrid bed leaks are not as prevalent as some people want to think they are.

[bikendan]

camp-n-family wrote:

Then perhaps you're not reading enough posts. We're on our second hybrid. The first we bought new, owned for 10 years. Never a leak due to the design or beds. A small leak on a roof seam which can and does happen to any trailer.

Our current hybrid is in its second season. No leaks.

There you have 3 examples of no leaks.

There are always exceptions. Give it time 😉

how much more than nearly 8 years would that be?:h

[poppin_fresh]

My 2005 Starcraft hybrid has zero leaks, which is the reason I bought it.

While it is a 3500lb GWVR trailer and seems like it would be a good fit for a minivan, I would hesitate about doing it.

What I notice with the small single axle campers is that the manufacturers set them up to be tongue heavy to reduce weight on the axle. This would be a deal breaker for most minivans which ride on soft suspension.

I haven't weighed my trailer, but I would guess that my trailer loaded (lightly) is close or over 500lbs on the tongue.

[camp-n-family]

Then perhaps you're not reading enough posts. We're on our second hybrid. The first we bought new, owned for 10 years. Never a leak due to the design or beds. A small leak on a roof seam which can and does happen to any trailer.

Our current hybrid is in its second season. No leaks.

There you have 3 examples of no leaks.

There are always exceptions. Give it time 😉

[atreis]

Been towing this trailer with this Sienna since August of 2008 - 30-35K miles towing.

My above post wasn't conjecture - it was from actual experience with this vehicle towing this type of trailer over a period of several years.

BTW - no leaks with the bunk-end here either. (Had to re-seal the roof vent last summer though.)

[Campfire_Time]

camp-n-family wrote:

We have a pop up but it has had problems with leaking.

If this is your worry, you may want to reconsider getting a hybrid, they are notorious for leaking. Haven't seen or heard of one yet that hasn't leaked at some point. Usually the slanted front bunk into the cargo area below. Our old one never leaked when set up, just when it was closed up.

Then perhaps you're not reading enough posts. We're on our second hybrid. The first we bought new, owned for 10 years. Never a leak due to the design or beds. A small leak on a roof seam which can and does happen to any trailer.

Our current hybrid is in its second season. No leaks.

There you have 3 examples of no leaks. 😉

[KMP44]

wehner06 wrote:
We have a 2004 Toyota Sienna towing capacity 3500 lbs. We are looking at purchasing a KX Sportsmen Classic 18rbt. My husband is leaning towards this one, for some reason I'm not convinced.



Do you have a recommendation on a hybrid travel trailer that will be okay to tow with our vehicle? We are not in the market for a new vehicle right now. We have a pop up but it has had problems with leaking. I like the combination of trailer pop up with a separate bathroom.



Do you have one you like? I like the idea of an oven but is it an over kill?



What do you have in your hybrid trailer that you like and what could you live without.

I wouldn't want to pull any hybrid with a mini-van. If upgrading the tow vehicle isn't an option, maybe patch up the popup or upgrade it. Then go for a bigger trailer down the road. Our Coleman with the slideout dinette and 2 king beds had way more room than most small hydrids.

But - I totally agree with your line of thought. We absolutely liked the idea of keeping the tent ends after 13 years in the Coleman, but the bathroom, easier pack up & setup of the hybrid, more storage make the hybrid so much easier and more enjoyable.

On the oven - we use ours all the time. Got along fine without it in the popup, but we like having it.

We love the Roo, but there are several good brands out there - Jayco, Starcraft, Palomino Solaire to name a few.

If you like the tent ends, the hybrid is a great choice - and while there is always a potential for leaks, these trailers have improved greatly in the last few years and can last for many years.

But, make sure you have the right tow vehicle. Our friends bought a Jayco X17A with GVWR (max loaded weight) of 3500lbs to tow with a Nissan X-terra and are scared to tow it anywhere because of the strain on the engine & drivetrain. So it sits in the yard while they decide what to do... We held off a couple years until trading our Explorer for an F-150, and then went for a bigger hybrid. It was worth the wait! Good luck in the hunt.

[Chuck_S]

The tow vehicle is the paramount factor in towing.

Maximum towing capacity is computed with the tow vehicle EMPTY. Start subtracting the weight of passengers and cargo to find the towing capacity.

I'd not tow anything unless it was at least 1000 pounds LESS than the maximum towing capacity of the vehicle. Even my popup was 3500 pounds. I towed it with a 5500 pound max rated Explorer (back when the Explorer was a SUV). Towing my 5000 hybrid with the Explorer was unsatisfactory.

-- Chuck

[bikendan]

camp-n-family wrote:

We have a pop up but it has had problems with leaking.

If this is your worry, you may want to reconsider getting a hybrid, they are notorious for leaking. Haven't seen or heard of one yet that hasn't leaked at some point. Usually the slanted front bunk into the cargo area below. Our old one never leaked when set up, just when it was closed up.

well, i've posted many times here, that i've never had any leaks in the 7 and a half years i've owned my hybrid.
and i've seen many posts here from other owners that haven't had any leaks.
maybe you're only reading the posts of those having leaks and not the ones posted by us.