Roo 17 vs Apex 193BHS??? Which one do we choose?

[Kab517]

My family and I have recently started camping. We currently have a 2000 Fleetwood Wilderness Hybrid and well we've had nothing but issues with it and problems with water leakage. We bought it off craiglist last year and were so excited and dumb haha, because we trusted the man selling it who said "there's nothing wrong with it". It didn't help when we bought it my husband forgot to put a pin in the hitch and it came crashing into the car when we pulled out! Yeah.. talk about damage (to car and camper)! Anyway, We've decided to cut our losses and get a new one!

We have narrowed it down to the Rockwood Roo17 and the Apex 193BHS. two different campers, totally different feel to them both.

When we saw the Roo17.. we fell in love, plus it is a pretty loaded model, which is nice too. We love the hybrid style and look but are SO very worried about water leakage, condensation, the tents, and maintaining it because I feel like it does require extra work. Plus its noisier if you have loud neighbors at night and the early sunrise light comes in when trying to sleep.

The Apex is a brand I've never heard of before, we know nothing about reliability but it has what we are looking for and is about the same price, maybe slightly cheaper. The thing is, it has a slide. I know lots of issues can happen with slides, even at the dealership they said if its raining hard a little water may get in when closing the slide. That right there makes me worry. But, we have two small kids and its nice to be able to shut out the elements and shut out the noise at night. And with the slide out there's so much room, which we love!! Another concern is the weight. this camper is only 100lbs under our towing capacity. Is that ok??? I don't want to strain my van too much!

Anyway, We just need help with trying to decide which direction to go since we're newbies to all of this? Anyone have any input/thoughts/votes?? We'd really appreciate it!!!

[bikendan]

well, first you need to post what you're towing with.

i'm assuming it's a minivan, based on the "this camper is only 100lbs under our towing capacity" statement. this sounds like you have a max of 3500lbs. towing.

and it appears that if it is, you're looking at the Apex's fictional "dry" weight of 3350lbs. this is a fictional weight of a stripped-down trailer.
it's GVWR is 4606lbs., which means you must have a minimum of 5000lbs. towing capacity. the only minivan capable of this, was the Astro/Safari minivan.

now all this is meaningless if you meant you had a full size v-8 van.
if it is a minivan, the Apex is way too much trailer for it.

but based on your other statements, i'd vote against a hybrid.
we have loved our hybrid for nearly 9 years but you sound like there are too many things about them that you dislike.
DON'T buy a hybrid if you aren't in love with the idea of sleeping under canvas.

we do love it and that's why we've had ours so long.

but there are not very many TT's capable of being towed by a minivan.

[Kab517]

I am towing with a 2015 Odyssey, with a towing capacity of 3500lb.


I didn't think GVWR was the weight you go by because we don't travel with full water tank, etc. Even the people at the dealerships told us not to use that weight, you use the dry weight. Is that not correct?

[bikendan]

NO, that is not correct!

You're making the #1 newbie mistake, Believing the dealer.

The Apex's dry tongue weight already exceeds the Honda's max, before you even add a battery and 40lbs. of propane, without a WDH or cargo added yet.

And did you ask the dealer what the yellow sticker weight of the Apex is? That's what it weighed when it left the factory. I'll bet money that it's more than 3500lbs.

You need to find a trailer that has a GVWR of 3500lbs., to have any chance of towing a trailer.

[rsdata]

You may well be loading the van too much with two kids, their stuff and your stuff and adding 350# of tongue weight to the back of the van, not including another 50-60# for a WDH hitch. The UVW which includes LP gas for the ROO is 3116# published weight. The actual weight may be slightly higher or lower.

If you are talking about short trips on flat highways you might get it done... BUT I would not try pulling with your vehicle on long journeys especially on hills. THe frontal area of the ROO acts like a big wind brake.

Too close for my comfort on a ROO 17 and your tow vehicle

I have owned for 15 months a SHamrock 183 which is the duplicate of a ROO 183. My canvas does not leak, the morning sun is not that bad, condensation has to be dealt with when cool, rainy conditions exist. I use the bunk fans ON (or the AC) for white noise when noise outside bothers me. I luv the fact that I don't lose any inside space to beds on my hybrid.

You might consider a popup if you are not going to upgrade your tow vehicle soon.

[Loraura]

Agree. Look for a popup or a new tow vehicle.

[Vern]

x2 on comments #2, 4, 5 & 6 above. You have received solid advice here, Kab517.

[jhoppmann]

When we were looking, we narrowed it down to the Rockwood 2306 and Apex 193BHS. The Apex wouldnt be available until August so we found a 2306. Both have GVW of 4600. After our 1st trip towing with a Tacoma rated to tow 6400, I am selling the Tacoma and going to a full-size truck.

So I would agree that the 193 is too much. Hope that helps.

[PTLady]

When we purchased a travel trailer last year following the demise of our 1993 pop up, we toyed with a hybrid vs a travel trailer.
I think you will have more living space with the hybrid but for us, I was tired of the canvas and climbing up and down from the sleeping area as well as making the bed up.
We opted for the flagstaff microlite 25DS and haven't looked back.
Of course, we have the vehicle to tow it.
If you love sleeping under the canvas, then I would say the hybrid would be for you.
Good luck on your decision. We looked at many last year and it is always a challenge.