Your best Travel Trailer choice for for TV with max towing capacity of 3,500 Lbs

[Jeppo]

Hi there,

The title says it all. You best pick with the biggest pro and the biggest con.

I am looking forward to discover more TT that are not easy to find on the internet and learn from your own experience!

Jeppo

[arlee453]

We started with a vehicle with a 3500 rating with a popup camper. Frankly we had a bigger popup than we really should have, considering that the tow rating of a vehicle is based on only one passenger and no cargo in the vehicle. For the weight, we definately got the most features/size/space from the highwall popup.

Also, the popups have a low height which makes them, lb for lb, easier to tow than a traditional TT. We have a family of 6 and needed all the room we could squeeze in.

We had a flagstaff HW27SC. Slept all of us pretty comfortably, and big bonus of the Highwall vs the traditional Popup is that it also had a 'real' toilet with black tank, not just a cassette. It also had a nice slide out with the dinette that helped make a lot more room to move.

Now, the caveat... if you think you will really get into this camping thing, then you may as well wait until you can upgrade your tow vehicle and just jump right into a larger TT unit. Popups are fine for the occasional camper, but it wasn't long before we figured out we would be happier with less popping up and down and more storage space. About 5 months after we got the popup, I traded in the van for an expedition, and needless to say the next upgrade was to trade in the popup for a 'real' Travel Trailer.

In hindsight, it was a good way to ease into camping, as my husband was not as excited about camping as I was, as he had some not-so-great experiences with backed up toilets, etc as a kid. I don't really regret starting small and trading up, but would have saved us a lot of $$ if we had just started by getting a larger tow vehicle and traditional TT in the first place.

[crasher]

An R-pod may be another good choice especially if you want something with a better bathroom and kitchen space than a popup. Look up the specs on the Forest River factory website.

[arlee453]

Ditto to wincrasher's suggestion.

When we were shopping for our last TT, I spend a LOOOT of time on the forest river, inc website looking at floor plans.

Then when I found one I liked, I'd google the model number and see if I could find a dealer website that had pictures of the interior, etc of the actual unit. That definately helped us narrow down our choices.

[MtnGuy]

I would suggest a small folding camper. A conventional upright will tax the engine on many of the vehicles that have a 3500 lb. towing capacity.

A small pop-up, or 1 of the smaller A-frames. Depending on how many passengers and what extra cargo is in the tow vehicle, you will probably need to keep the trailer weight under 3000 lbs., ready to camp.

[robert elling]

Get a Casita. They are made in Texas, and you purchase at the factory. The walk around takes 1.5 hours. They are easy to tow with a half ton pick up, and are no wider than the half ton pick up. No tow mirrors needed.

Down side, they can sleep 2 comfortable, 3 on the dinette table when it is made up. The trailer is fiberglass.

[crasher]

Actually, it should be coming into a good time to buy an entry level family type camper - summer is officially over and you may catch a deal on something left over from the season. Good luck!

[bikendan]

nearly every full-height TT/HTT that has a GVWR of 3500 or less, has extremely low cargo capacities.
the manufacturers draw customers in with the 3500 number, hoping that they don't look at the CCC number. and they don't tell them that the weights of so-called "options" also have to be added into the CCC, therefore lowering it even more. things like: awning, oven, microwave, spare tire, battery and so on.

just a warning, look at the CCC numbers and hitch weight of trailers in this weight category.
you won't be happy.

[crasher]

Originally Posted by bikendan

nearly every full-height TT/HTT that has a GVWR of 3500 or less, has extremely low cargo capacities.
the manufacturers draw customers in with the 3500 number, hoping that they don't look at the CCC number. and they don't tell them that the weights of so-called "options" also have to be added into the CCC, therefore lowering it even more. things like: awning, oven, microwave, spare tire, battery and so on.

just a warning, look at the CCC numbers and hitch weight of trailers in this weight category.
you won't be happy.

What are you talking about?

Check out these specs on the r-pods. - they weigh around 2000 with cargo capacity of around 1000lbs. Hitch weight around 200lbs.

http://www.forestriverinc.com/LiteTr...specifications

That's alot of stuff to put in a little trailer! And a good choice in what the OP is asking about.

[bikendan]

Originally Posted by wincrasher

What are you talking about?

Check out these specs on the r-pods. - they weigh around 2000 with cargo capacity of around 1000lbs. Hitch weight around 200lbs.

r-pod Lite Travel Trailer Specifications by Forest River

That's alot of stuff to put in a little trailer! And a good choice in what the OP is asking about.

i guess you didn't completely read my post above yours:
nearly every full-height TT/HTT

unless you are considering the egg-shaped R-pod, a full-height TT.

[Jeppo]

Thank you all. Please let's focus on the topic of this forum (I know I sound a moderator): your best choice with biggest pro and con. Keep your other suggestions/comments for other forums.

So far we have:
@ flagstaff HW27SC
@ rPod
@ casita

Jeppo

[bikendan]

Originally Posted by Jeppo

Thank you all. Please let's focus on the topic of this forum (I know I sound a moderator): your best choice with biggest pro and con. Keep your other suggestions/comments for other forums.

So far we have:
@ flagstaff HW27SC
@ rPod
@ casita

Jeppo

my vote is for the R-pod 176T. very versatile trailer, use the canvas bunk end or turtle and use the bunk beds, for quick overnite stops.

[MtnGuy]

Originally Posted by Jeppo

Thank you all. Please let's focus on the topic of this forum (I know I sound a moderator): your best choice with biggest pro and con. Keep your other suggestions/comments for other forums.

So far we have:
@ flagstaff HW27SC
@ rPod
@ casita

Jeppo

The high walls are great little trailers, but they tend to be heavier that the tradtional pop-ups.

The smaller rPods and Casitas may work, but you are still pushing a lot of wind going down the road which will tax the engine.

The bigger HWs, rPods, and Caistas all have GVWR over 3500 lbs....that is why I didn't mention the Trailmanor Sport Deck models.

[Kaytee1206]

What about the Camplite trailers from LivinLite? We had a popup made by them that was really light. We would pull it around with my 4 cylinder wrangler. They are pretty basic and made of all aluminum but they will give you a lot of camper for little weight. Their website is livinlite.com

There are also egg campers made here is Michigan. They are fiberclass and small but I have always loved them. Their website is eggcamper.com

[Happy Vibe]

I would also look at the Vcross vibe. We have a 6501 that we tow with a 3500 lb rated TV.
As there are no real options (there all mandatory options? ?) my yellow sticker weight was 2850 and loaded for camping 3200 - 3300 ( measured on a cat scale) . This trailer is 7 ft wide so the frontal area is less. It also has the largest cargo area I have seen on a trailer this size.

[geo m]

Hello.this is my first post.my wife and I purchased a 6504. Vibe last month.we pull it with a 2005 Chevy Colorado 2wd z71 crew cab. The trailer weighs 3390lbs(truck rated at 4000lb tow capacity) .so far everything seems fine pulling.e2 hitch and heavy duty trans cooler.our dealer let me test pull the trailer prior to purchase.(did not have elect brakes or hitch at that time) but was impressed with the way the trailer handled.I would imagine that the 6501 being lighter than the 6504 would do good for a vehicle with 3500 towing capacity.

[F and E Damp]

The US tow weight ratings are a joke, probably caused by manufacturers' trepidation about accident claims.

Unfortunately they are legal numbers that you violate at your peril (denial of insurance claims, etc.). As an example, my 03 Kia Sedona is rated at 3500 pounds max tow weight. It has the 3.5L V6 and 5-speed automatic transmission.

The exact same vehicle in the UK (and the rest of Europe as far as I know) is rated at 3000 Kg. Even with a smaller 2.7L diesel it's still rated for 3000 Kg (6600 pounds). The UK Ford Focus, identical to the one sold in the US, is rated to tow a 3200-pound trailer!

[crasher]

Anything you can stand in is full height.

The OP is looking for something other than a pop-up if I understand him right.

I did see an old Hi-Lo the other day - that may also be a good alternative. Not sure they make them new these days. But crank them up, and they are just like a hard-sided trailer. The one I saw was almost 30' long though. But I think most were in the 20=25' range. Someone may be able to comment if they were heavy or not.

[MtnGuy]

Originally Posted by wincrasher

I did see an old Hi-Lo the other day - that may also be a good alternative. Not sure they make them new these days. But crank them up, and they are just like a hard-sided trailer. The one I saw was almost 30' long though. But I think most were in the 20=25' range. Someone may be able to comment if they were heavy or not.

The Hi-Lo's were heavy. They went out of business several years ago.

That is why I suggested the Trailmanor Sport Decks in my previous post # 13. A hard sided folding trailer. The 19 RD model has a enclosed bathroom with shower. I like the deck on the back.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kkd34ekEzpw

Expensive, though.