Picked up 2016 Vibe Extreme lite 224rls

[COcamping]

Was wondering if anyone else has one?

Also, have been making a host of small changes/mods to improve and clean up some issues from the factory and that are more in line with our use of primarily boondocking in CO.

I will post pictures and descriptions as soon as possible of the mods.

[Wiscampsin]

Welcome from Wisconsin and congrats on your 2016 Vibe Extreme lite 224rls.

[jgourlie]

Congrats on your new trailer, I can't wait to see your mods

[foretm]

Congrats on the new 224RLS... I have my eye on one of these and been researching it heavily. Would love to hear your thoughts on the unit and mods as you get to them.

[COcamping]

Here are some of the initial mods:


Added a velcro strap to keep the bedroom door from swinging into the way constantly.



removal of bracket below wondow curtains. With the plastic l bracket gone, we can actually rest our arms on the backs of the cushions when sitting in the dinette.


Added a door holder and removed the stock door shock so the door opens all the way now.


added carpet steps so the dog won't kill herself when going in and out. Threw away the springs and tied securley with sailing rope.


dual battery boxes, screwed to frame, handles cut off on one side each so they fit exactly, then zip tied the cables and used the straps just in case.


Added a battery disconnect. also added the 'hot' wire so the emergency brakes will still work in the switch is in the off position when towing.


moved the spare over and added a Curt reciever hitch for the bike rack. 350lb tongue weight, 3500 towing...so we should be good.

Still need to add invertor for a TV and an extra water tank under the front bed. We like to boondock most of the time and the wife likes to fall asleep to a TV and then have it automatically turn off w/o running generator.

[jgourlie]

Wow those are some great mods. Thanks for sharing

[foretm]

Originally Posted by COcamping

Here are some of the initial mods:

Added a door holder and removed the stock door shock so the door opens all the way now.

I'm with you on this one... I prefer to have the door open all the way too!!

Originally Posted by COcamping

dual battery boxes, screwed to frame, handles cut off on one side each so they fit exactly, then zip tied the cables and used the straps just in case.

Added a battery disconnect. also added the 'hot' wire so the emergency brakes will still work in the switch is in the off position when towing.

Very nice job on the battery boxes, looks great. Love the idea of the battery disconnect as well!!

Originally Posted by COcamping

moved the spare over and added a Curt reciever hitch for the bike rack. 350lb tongue weight, 3500 towing...so we should be good.

Are those the specs on the hitch or the bumper? Looks good. Nice list of mods. Overall how do you like the camper so far?

[dustman_stx]

Everything looks good except for the bike rack plan- I'd rethink that one. Most of those receiver bike racks have a good bit of play in them. With the weight of the bikes hanging out away from the bumper and bouncing, plus the weight of the spare, you're asking for trouble. The bouncing is the main culprit in ripping bumpers off. Just think about driving a nail. You definitely can't push one into a piece of wood, but with the force of a hammer in motion, you easily can. If you insist on continuing this route, I recommend getting a BAL Hide-a-spare and moving the spare tire under the camper. And use straps, tie downs or some other means to remove any play in the bikes to keep them from bouncing up and down.

[COcamping]

Originally Posted by dustman_stx

Everything looks good except for the bike rack plan- I'd rethink that one. Most of those receiver bike racks have a good bit of play in them. With the weight of the bikes hanging out away from the bumper and bouncing, plus the weight of the spare, you're asking for trouble. The bouncing is the main culprit in ripping bumpers off. Just think about driving a nail. You definitely can't push one into a piece of wood, but with the force of a hammer in motion, you easily can. If you insist on continuing this route, I recommend getting a BAL Hide-a-spare and moving the spare tire under the camper. And use straps, tie downs or some other means to remove any play in the bikes to keep them from bouncing up and down.

Thank you for the heads up on the bumper. The hitch is rated, not sure about the bumper and Forest River does not return calls, emails, or provide specs.

I think I will keep the receiver for now, but keep a very close eye on the bumper for any signs or play.

[dustman_stx]

Originally Posted by COcamping

Thank you for the heads up on the bumper. The hitch is rated, not sure about the bumper and Forest River does not return calls, emails, or provide specs.

I think I will keep the receiver for now, but keep a very close eye on the bumper for any signs or play.

Watch the welds on each end. Most likely failure point will be the steel just around those welds. Problem is, once it starts to go, it will likely go rather quickly.

[COcamping]

Were heading out for the first shakedown trip later today.

So far the issues that we have found (while still in the driveway)

1. hinges on the stove top were bent because someone tried to open the top glass cover with force the wrong way. ( I can fix this, but will do it after the trip)

2. Had to reattached the insanely poorly designed spring/plastic strip that goes under the slide out. I think this has been addressed in other posts about the 268rks model as well. When we pick it up, the plastic strap was hangin 1" about the wheel, one good bounce and it could have caught, broke, and wrapped around a wheel while driving!

3. OF course the unit was not winterized despite being charged for it

4. We know this because the water pump didnt' work due to loose connections and vacuum leaks. System connections have been tightened now and work.

5. Looked at the low water drain and overflow tube for the fresh tank. They are cut waayyy too low to the ground and semi solid mounted. Will need to trim up 6"-8" before any offroad boondocking so we don't rip the tank connections off.

6. The black/grey drain is way too high under the trailer. About 16" in from the side. along with the handles, the only way to reach it is to literally lay on the ground under the trailer to attach the sewage hose and pull the handles. That definately needs to be fixed somehow - just haven't figured out how yet.

Other than those little items, we will see how the next couple days go and report back then. Cheers!

[Dave53]

I would strongly recommend Not to use the rear bike rack. Speaking from a very bad experience.

[COcamping]

Back from the shakedown trip and unfortunately found a major issue.

The freshwater tank dumped over 1/2 it's volume (approx 20gal) approximately on the gentle tow up into the mountains.

It's not an indicator issue, pretty sure it came out the overflow, but could not see as we were towing to verify.

So, since the underside is sealed, still can't get an answer from Forest River or the dealer, not sure what is wrong or how to proceed.

Anyone else have this issue?

thanks

[COcamping]

Got a call back from the dealer and it is going in. The tank draining issue is probably due to an overflow hose that needs to be re- routed. It will be gone for a week and will post an update when I get it back.

[COcamping]

update on the freshwater tank issue. According to the dealer (from Forest River), the overflow tube is hard plumbed and goes sideways and then straight down so there is a siphon effect that occurs. They have stated that Forest River will NOT correct and that dumping half the water when towing is ok!

Also, I was cautioned repeatedly against any fix myself so as not to void their warranty. There is a simple obvious solution, but if anyone is considering this trailer and dry camping you will need to correct the issue yourself before it is usable.

Other than that we are happy with the trailer

[OregonKen]

Originally Posted by COcamping

update on the freshwater tank issue. According to the dealer (from Forest River), the overflow tube is hard plumbed and goes sideways and then straight down so there is a siphon effect that occurs. They have stated that Forest River will NOT correct and that dumping half the water when towing is ok!

Also, I was cautioned repeatedly against any fix myself so as not to void their warranty. There is a simple obvious solution, but if anyone is considering this trailer and dry camping you will need to correct the issue yourself before it is usable.

Other than that we are happy with the trailer

How is that possible? You can't siphon water from the top of a tank no matter how the hose is routed outside the tank. The hose must be extending down into the water or the inlet is positioned so that it is getting sloshed with forceful water a significant amount of the time, right?

I'm interested because I may be seeing this too! Just found the tank empty twice but haven't verified how much we started with. Next time I'll know!

[porkchopjack]

Why do you have two batteries ? Do you do a lot of boon docking? I have the same trailer and it only has one battery. Just wondered mine shows a hook up for two batteries. But dealer only installed one.

[porkchopjack]

I also have a 2016 224 vibe. Have been going over it the last week to clean up the factory items that were loose or not installed very good overall the trailer is not to bad. Mine does not have the electric fridge wish it did. I do not like the 3 ways takes to long to get them cold? Pulling it with my 2015 Ford F150 ECO did OK wanted to move around a little bit but hope the E Rated tires I am installing this week will take care of it. Going to Branson in a few days wanted everything checked out real good. So FAR so GOOD.

[COcamping]

We pretty much only boondock, but are actually doing the trip to Yellowstone next week.

Had a complete tire failure on the highway last weekend due to the ridiculous stock tires. Have four new tires now.

[Evergreen Pilot]

We are seriously considering the 224 RLS as well. One of my primary concerns with this trailer though is the heater not being ducted, especially with the location of the heater outlets and the solid bedroom doors. Have you had any issues with the heat not making it to both ends of the trailer?