Small (non-teardrop) Off-road travel trailer

[Flip_5]

I'm hoping someone can give me an idea if something like this exists. What I'm looking for is a small off-road travel trailer (under 3500lbs), with a single queen bed, an indoor bathroom with shower, and a slide-out outdoor kitchen. I only have found the Black series Classic-12. While this checks most of my boxes, it is a tad bit heavy for my Jeep Wrangler with a max towing capacity of 3500 lbs. I also don't need something quite as heavy duty with the suspension. I most likely won't be going on trails or serious off-roading with it, but want something with a bit more capability than the mass produced offerings like the No-Bo or Geo-Pro by Forest River and the like. Maybe something with Timbren axle-less suspension and large 33" tires. The Classic-12 would be perfect but with a dry weight of 3300 lbs, it doesn't leave much capacity for gear.

Any other options, or am I looking for a unicorn?
Thanks,
Flip

[deltabravo]

profdant139 wrote:
Vangard looks very interesting ...But their website lacks floorplans and detailed specs, as far as I can tell. I've already written to them to ask for more details.

The Patrol is the one I'd want. I saw it in person a few years ago at the NW Overland Rally.

If you study the photos enough, you can figure out how it's laid out (floorplan).
The nice thing about the Patrol is the bathroom and shower in the back. It was a lot of cabinet / closet storage space too.

[Grit_dog]

mr_andyj wrote:
I had a 14 footer with tandem axles.... go figure.
The guy that bought it had an old-school Nissan Hardbody with 4 banger and he towed it off uphill just fine.

I’m sure anyone can come up with any one off example to “refute” something for the sake of refuting it.
Fact remains, little campers generally don’t come with tandem axles and they don’t need them. And the OP would be s ucking sidewalk with his rig and any tandem axle TT I’ve seen.
That said,someone will refute that too, so I’ll go first. I used to tow our approx 6000lb wake boat with my 1974 CJ5 with a straight 6.
(Out of the garage because it was too tight for the truck. And once, down the road a couple miles to the local ski club lake).
But thanks for sharing your unique experience...

[profdant139]

Vangard looks very interesting -- well done, DB! But their website lacks floorplans and detailed specs, as far as I can tell. I've already written to them to ask for more details.

[deltabravo]

vangard4x4.com/

[Edd505]

KZ Sportsman with the off road package.
KZ Sportsman

[mr_andyj]

I had a 14 footer with tandem axles.... go figure.
The guy that bought it had an old-school Nissan Hardbody with 4 banger and he towed it off uphill just fine.

[ISBRAM]

A couple that we camp with bought an Airstream Basecamp 16x last year and they love it. Small size and good ground clearance, they tow it with a 2020 Toyota Tacoma with a V6 engine no problem. I was surprised how much room it has inside for such a small trailer.

[Grit_dog]

You guys are talking tandem axle trailers and the OP is trying to find, at most, a 16-17' trailer and that will be a challenge for any stock-ish Wrangler, both from a power standpoint as they're pretty anemic under the hood and don't handle loads well.

I'll tow about anything with anything and got the pleasure of hooking my ultralight aluminum single axle enclosed V nose snomachine trailer to a 4 door JK.
Had 2 4 wheelers and hunting gear for 2 in it. So 3klbs or less and loaded with appropriate tongue weight.
It was a total pooch flat footed to run 65mph on basically flat roads (at altitude though) and wouldn't have wonted to go any faster anyway from a stability standpoint.

20' + and tandem axles is out of a Wrangler's league, period.

[Kavoom]

There are actually some very short dual axle trailers out there. You will have to go 25 feet minimum with a Murphy bed but if it is only two people that might work. Or you can get them even with a sideways trailer queen with a slide out dinette and bunks at around 23 to 25 feet about minimum.

[mr_andyj]

You say, no serious off-road or trails, just dirt roads...
Then, what is wrong with the No Bo trailer, seems it would be overkill for regular dirt roads?
Unless you plan some serious real off-roading, then most any small trailer will work I would think. Small trailers will not have a lot of blank walls to flex, all the walls are built with cabinets or something on the inside that will support it.
Any of the Teardrop style trailers should work for you and if n any way are intended for any off-road use then should hold up, but I have no experience with any.
No shower so you would have to do an external shower and research the van life people who have learned that small spaces and bathrooms do not go well together.
There is no perfect camper, always compromises and longings for unicorns.

[profdant139]

Thanks! Much appreciated.

I wish they made really small trailers with tandem axles, but I think that the dual wheel wells would cramp the already-scarce storage space in a tiny trailer.

We wanted a trailer that would fit on our driveway and found the Fun Finder X-139 -- no storage fees! And we modified it for gentle off-road use. Just got back from two weeks of boondocking in Utah.

But this is not a "serious" off-road trailer. We have to drive a lot slower on forest roads than we would with a real off-road unit.

[mr_andyj]

profdant139 wrote:
Andy, I am going to display my ignorance, so here goes -- why would a dual axle have better clearance?..y.

Dual axle will effectively shorten the trailer in that there is less trailer in front of and behind the tire, so less trailer hanging out in space to catch on steep angles or rocks or transitions to hills/flats.
With two axles, one wheel can fall into a hole and dangle while the other wheel carries the load and keeps the trailer from dipping down. All those potholes in the dirt will not rock the trailer since the distance the two wheels in tandem span is greater than the length of the dip or hole.
The trailer will be more stabile .
The trailer will be harder to turn on pavement, but on dirt it will not matter.
There are probably other reasons too, but this is the short of it.
There are pros/cons, but in general most serious off-road trailers of any size will use tandem axles.

[Kavoom]

"I'm hoping someone can give me an idea if something like this exists. What I'm looking for is a small off-road travel trailer (under 3500lbs), with a single queen bed, an indoor bathroom with shower, and a slide-out outdoor kitchen. I only have found the Black series Classic-12. While this checks most of my boxes, it is a tad bit heavy for my Jeep Wrangler with a max towing capacity of 3500 lbs. I also don't need something quite as heavy duty with the suspension. I most likely won't be going on trails or serious off-roading with it, but want something with a bit more capability than the mass produced offerings like the No-Bo or Geo-Pro by Forest River and the like. Maybe something with Timbren axle-less suspension and large 33" tires. The Classic-12 would be perfect but with a dry weight of 3300 lbs, it doesn't leave much capacity for gear."

This is close https://www.jayco.com/tools/archive/2020-jay-flight-slx-7/175rd/ well except for the tires and you are NOT going to get that large a tire so cross that off your list. Here is a video on the "baja" version. It's close. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v-f6c60bjT8 The suspension is standard leaf, but you can flip the axle as they do on a different version of the Jayco and you can put 15 inch knobby "off road" tires like they have on that different version... Your wish list seems to be not too worried about budget. You might have to do a little bit on this one, but even adapting the suspension a bit, it is in your ball park I'm thinking...

[profdant139]

Andy, I am going to display my ignorance, so here goes -- why would a dual axle have better clearance?

I have a single axle because that is the way my trailer was made. But I would prefer dual -- a greater margin of safety in case of a blowout.

I should add that we take our trailer into the darndest places -- rocks the size of volleyballs, potholes the size of kettle grills, ruts a foot deep (really), deep sand, mud, snow, and ice. But we go very, very slowly. Very.