Travel Trailer Debate- Experienced Opinions Wanted

[OldButStillJeeping]

Respectfully, to the OP; I don't think you've got enough truck.

I've pulled a few toyhauler /travel trailers around in my time. And I've found that RV Dealers will sell a 35 foot toyhauler to a guy driving a Tacoma.

I haven't found, and I've been looking, for a travel trailer that has an onboard generator, an indoor kitchen, and a real toilet with a black tank; For the Gladiator. I found tear drop or 'off road rated' trailers, but the kitchen is outside and the toilet is a cassette style.

I tow our 30 foot toyhauler with the RZR inside, (total weight about 11,500 lbs) with a 3/4 ton truck.

I just don't think that you can bring all the convenience of home while camping in a JT without lots of sacrifices.

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[OldButStillJeeping]

I don’t know man. All this travel trailer discussion really makes me wonder if it’s even remotely worth the hassle, family or not. Between members on the forum here and my parents, traveling with a TT really sounds more like job than a vacation.

I say bring a big ass tent with the appropriate camping gear wherever you’re going. Book hotels/AirBNBs for the most part and when you and your family are up to it, rough it out in the tent like a few Boy Scouts. That way, whoever is driving doesn’t have to worry about the 2 ton+ hunk of glass fiber, metal, and propane behind you at 65 mph.

I know I simplified something more complex but I think it’s worth a try to travel without the TT. Also my parents have F-250 and still hate dealing with the TT. It could all be personal preference though, idk.

Very true. It's so much work to travel with our toyhauler and F250. Unless we're planning on 3 or more days, we just don't do it.

Get a tent and camping supplies and go for it, caveman style.

 

[aj8544]

I don’t know man. All this travel trailer discussion really makes me wonder if it’s even remotely worth the hassle, family or not. Between members on the forum here and my parents, traveling with a TT really sounds more like job than a vacation.

I say bring a big ass tent with the appropriate camping gear wherever you’re going. Book hotels/AirBNBs for the most part and when you and your family are up to it, rough it out in the tent like a few Boy Scouts. That way, whoever is driving doesn’t have to worry about the 2 ton+ hunk of glass fiber, metal, and propane behind you at 65 mph.

I know I simplified something more complex but I think it’s worth a try to travel without the TT. Also my parents have F-250 and still hate dealing with the TT. It could all be personal preference though, idk.

We’ve done the tent thing for years and rented more airbnbs and $300/night hotels than I can count. My wife and 2 girls are just so much more comfortable having running water- and ac isnt so bad either, nor is the outdoor beer fridge! I don’t find the towing or set up of the travel trailer to be much work at all. Way less than loading camping gear and setting up tents etc… Even the packing for a trip is nothing. When we bought the trailer we fully furnished it with everything we need for a trip- separate dishes, towels, bathroom supplies, coffee pot etc… so we arent having to pack that every time. It stays loaded and plugged in at home, fridges are cold and ready to go. When we are preparing to leave on a trip all we need to add is food and our clothes. Our trailer has power everything- jacks, stabilizers etc… We are fully set up at a site in less than 30 minutes with no sweat. I literally couldnt unpack suitcases in a hotel as fast.

On our last trip our neigbors were a tent site- and they were already setting up when we pulled in. I was fully set up and drinking a beer watching them sweat and fight over their tent while their kids were screaming and crying that it was too hot. Once they were finally done they came over and asked to use our outdoor shower to clean up. I felt so bad for them I gave the guy a beer and offered up half my firewood. It took me a few days to figure out where they were all going every night when they piled into their truck and left for 45 minutes… the bath house.

As for hotels and airbnbs I’ve never stayed in one that felt like home. A camper is your space that you are used to. You know what you will have when you show up-no surprises and disappointments. Every other year we rent a massive beach house with my wife’s entire family- multi million dollar homes. We have had more than one trip ruined by broken ac units, poor sleeping arrangements, warm refrigerators etc…

I can see how some might not be a good fit for rving. Im a hands on do it myself type of person, the work of setting up sewer connections, water and electric is nothing to me. Others might find that to be a pain. Ive towed my whole life so towing and maneuvering our travel trailer is nothing either… To sum all that up we feel the travel trailer is by far the best, lowest stress way to travel with our family.

I just want to make sure the weights are right. Honestly I would love to take some of the overlanding roof top tent and even ground tent setups I see on here over a scale, I bet alot of people would be surprised to find they are way over their trucks payload ratings too.

 

[aj8544]

Respectfully, to the OP; I don't think you've got enough truck.

I've pulled a few toyhauler /travel trailers around in my time. And I've found that RV Dealers will sell a 35 foot toyhauler to a guy driving a Tacoma.

I haven't found, and I've been looking, for a travel trailer that has an onboard generator, an indoor kitchen, and a real toilet with a black tank; For the Gladiator. I found tear drop or 'off road rated' trailers, but the kitchen is outside and the toilet is a cassette style.

I tow our 30 foot toyhauler with the RZR inside, (total weight about 11,500 lbs) with a 3/4 ton truck.

I just don't think that you can bring all the convenience of home while camping in a JT without lots of sacrifices.

Im for sure pushing the limit. But realistically not sure what truck would be better. 6100lbs fully loaded seems silly to pull with a 3/4 ton, and I dont want the everyday punishment of one as my daily driver. Any 1/2 ton with many options- particularly any offroad capability has no more payload than my JT. Again control and stability feel very very good.

Just for kicks how much payload do you have to spare with the 3/4 ton and 11,500lb rig?

 

[DailyMoparGuy]

We’ve done the tent thing for years and rented more airbnbs and $300/night hotels than I can count. My wife and 2 girls are just so much more comfortable having running water- and ac isnt so bad either, nor is the outdoor beer fridge! I don’t find the towing or set up of the travel trailer to be much work at all. Way less than loading camping gear and setting up tents etc… Even the packing for a trip is nothing. When we bought the trailer we fully furnished it with everything we need for a trip- separate dishes, towels, bathroom supplies, coffee pot etc… so we arent having to pack that every time. It stays loaded and plugged in at home, fridges are cold and ready to go. When we are preparing to leave on a trip all we need to add is food and our clothes. Our trailer has power everything- jacks, stabilizers etc… We are fully set up at a site in less than 30 minutes with no sweat. I literally couldnt unpack suitcases in a hotel as fast.

On our last trip our neigbors were a tent site- and they were already setting up when we pulled in. I was fully set up and drinking a beer watching them sweat and fight over their tent while their kids were screaming and crying that it was too hot. Once they were finally done they came over and asked to use our outdoor shower to clean up. I felt so bad for them I gave the guy a beer and offered up half my firewood. It took me a few days to figure out where they were all going every night when they piled into their truck and left for 45 minutes… the bath house.

As for hotels and airbnbs I’ve never stayed in one that felt like home. A camper is your space that you are used to. You know what you will have when you show up-no surprises and disappointments. Every other year we rent a massive beach house with my wife’s entire family- multi million dollar homes. We have had more than one trip ruined by broken ac units, poor sleeping arrangements, warm refrigerators etc…

I can see how some might not be a good fit for rving. Im a hands on do it myself type of person, the work of setting up sewer connections, water and electric is nothing to me. Others might find that to be a pain. Ive towed my whole life so towing and maneuvering our travel trailer is nothing either… To sum all that up we feel the travel trailer is by far the best, lowest stress way to travel with our family.

I just want to make sure the weights are right. Honestly I would love to take some of the overlanding roof top tent and even ground tent setups I see on here over a scale, I bet alot of people would be surprised to find they are way over their trucks payload ratings too.

Yea those are really good points. Especially the “felt like home” statement. You can really build some cool memories with your family in an RV over time, which makes it pretty cool unlike hotels/AirBNBs.

 

[Dreaded1]

I purchased the JT with the sole purpose of towing a TT. We like to mountain bike and hike. The group we go out with always stays for the weekend. I got my gf in tent twice last year and she said No more.

There are other options. Last year we used Outdoorsy.com a couple of times to rent campers. You have to arrange a campsite and trailer. The trailer owner will tow and deliver the camper to the site, set it up and take it down for you. It worked out well for us the 2 times we used it last year.

 

[LostWoods]

Im for sure pushing the limit. But realistically not sure what truck would be better. 6100lbs fully loaded seems silly to pull with a 3/4 ton, and I dont want the everyday punishment of one as my daily driver. Any 1/2 ton with many options- particularly any offroad capability has no more payload than my JT. Again control and stability feel very very good.

Just for kicks how much payload do you have to spare with the 3/4 ton and 11,500lb rig?

IMO the reason it's not silly is because that size trailer just won't exist behind that 3/4 ton. Nothing wrong with oversizing and not having to worry about anything and that always gives you headroom moving forward. I don't know any dudes who bought trailers to appease family that didn't upgrade to something a bit larger at some point.

I see very little reason to get a half ton these days other than budget. I mean the difference is miniscule now to the point even the F-650 uses the same cab as the F-150 so you're not really gaining space. The only real differences off road are a slightly longer chassis on the 3/4 ton but you also get solid axles that can be set up to be a bit more capable without adding track width.

 

[Sleighman]

I usually don't comment on these things because key board warriors will go on the attack. You need a bigger truck. Running 80% usually equates to being over weight. But let's take 80% throw in some wind on a trip and you have a crash injuring your family because you wanted to stretch the capabilities of the Gladiator. I am a retired Trooper so speaking from experience of working crashes with TT. The number one thing I observed was the driver did not have enough truck. #1. Buy a smaller TT or #2 rethink your tow vehicle. Just because the Gladiator can pull it out of the driveway doesn't mean it will be safe.

 

[eaglerugby04]

Yea I completely knew it was going to be pushing it buying the camper we did. However, with soon to be 3 kids my wife and I felt this was the smallest we could go that was worth getting. Considered models with no slides that were much lighter, but that extra space is priceless with young kids. After several trips I’m 100% confident we bought the perfect camper. It feels so much larger inside than a 22ft box should.

Honestly I think the main issue is the way the axles are set up on the camper. They are a standard tandem, not wide spaced, and are in the rear half of the large slideout. Dry weight was only 5120, but with almost 700lbs of dry tongue weight- much higher dry tongue weight than most campers in that weight range. Im not at all unhappy with how it tows and if I were like most ppl and never weighed it I probably wouldnt think it was an issue.

I fully get this decision. With 3 kids I had not choice but to go big. I got the smallest trailer I could for my family. its heavy, but some 18ft ultralight would have already been causing us problems.

I watched some youtube videos and tounge weight on these things is all over the place. Even way off of the manufacturers spec sheets some times by a lot. I think big truck RV had one a few weeks ago and it was shocking how very similar trailers could vary by so much.

 

[H_pipe]

Yea those are really good points. Especially the “felt like home” statement. You can really build some cool memories with your family in an RV over time, which makes it pretty cool unlike hotels/AirBNBs.

Both of you guys hit the nail on the head.

 

[Fcmalie]

I usually don't comment on these things because key board warriors will go on the attack. You need a bigger truck. Running 80% usually equates to being over weight. But let's take 80% throw in some wind on a trip and you have a crash injuring your family because you wanted to stretch the capabilities of the Gladiator. I am a retired Trooper so speaking from experience of working crashes with TT. The number one thing I observed was the driver did not have enough truck. #1. Buy a smaller TT or #2 rethink your tow vehicle. Just because the Gladiator can pull it out of the driveway doesn't mean it will be safe.

I agree, I'm attempting to convince my wife that we either do a well equipped tent trailer or if we go full travel trailer then her and the kids will have to go in her Wrangler while I tow the trailer. Trying to keep my total trailer weight under 5k.

 

[OldButStillJeeping]

Im for sure pushing the limit.

Just for kicks how much payload do you have to spare with the 3/4 ton and 11,500lb rig?

It's been a few years since I checked the numbers at the scales and checked my trucks rated capability. So I don't have the exact figures. But I had it down that's it's just barely capable considering the specs, when I checked it all years ago.

Approximately...
I'm within 500 lbs of the rated max tow of about 12,000lbs. I think payload rating is around 2,000 lbs, with a tongue weight at about 1,000 lbs. So we can carry about 1,000 lbs payload including the occupants and such, after factoring the tongue weight.
My F250 is gas SRW. SRW diesels rate about the same in all categories except towing capacity is way way higher... closer to 20,000 lbs.
So, in my case, I don't have too much truck, not by any stretch.

I know you're talking about a 6000 lb trailer, and a JT. Yet when you factor in the water, food, clothes, occupants in the truck, etc, etc. You're pushing the limits. Most likely you'll be way over.
That being said, folks pull travel trailers at over the rated weight and payload limits all the time. I just give them a wide berth when passing them on the highway.
It's not that it can't be done. It just can't be done within the JT's rated capacity.

It's your safety.

Edit:. Let me add this:
My toyhauler is about 6,500 lbs, Empty. It's 30' long and is aluminum walled and considered 'ultra light'. It's payload is about 4,800 lbs. With the side by side at about 2,000 lbs, full fresh water tanks and fully loaded for boon docking, ( which is only what we do..) it weighs in at just over 11,000. So, if you take away the toyhauler part and the weight of the RZR and the 33 gallon built in fuel cell, then all the other craps weight,; (food, beer, clothes, dishes, pots pans, fresh water.... ) is close to 1,300 lbs.

 

[aj8544]

Thanks everyone for all the input-Im honestly surprised with most of the responses so far. I really didnt think 300lbs over gvwr was that big if a deal, its less than 5%. Especially considering all other weights (axle ratings, gcvwr, tow rating) are in check. Im really torn because I have around 1500 miles of experience towing this setup relatively comfortably. Ive been on everything from dirt roads to 4 lane interstate, up and down severe grades through the adirondack mountains, pulled in wind and rain etc… without thinking this felt anything but stable and controlled. My temps have been good- trans in the 201-205 range, and Ive been getting around 10mpg.

Considering the air bags helping the rear suspension I figured I was good, just not quite legally good. Lots if thinking to do!

 

[OldButStillJeeping]

Thanks everyone for all the input-Im honestly surprised with most of the responses so far. I really didnt think 300lbs over gvwr was that big if a deal, its less than 5%. Especially considering all other weights (axle ratings, gcvwr, tow rating) are in check. Im really torn because I have around 1500 miles of experience towing this setup relatively comfortably. Ive been on everything from dirt roads to 4 lane interstate, up and down severe grades through the adirondack mountains, pulled in wind and rain etc… without thinking this felt anything but stable and controlled. My temps have been good- trans in the 201-205 range, and Ive been getting around 10mpg.

Considering the air bags helping the rear suspension I figured I was good, just not quite legally good. Lots if thinking to do!

Take it to a truck stop scale. Pay the few bucks and be informed.
If you're within the rated capability; Please, let us know!

I'll sell my Super Duty and buy a trailer like you have!

God bless, and safe travels. See you on the trail.

 

[SteveA]

I've owned a small Rpod 179 for the purpose of pulling behind my older Wrangler since 2017, 400lbs tongue and 3350 totally loaded. It (the Wrangler) did ...."ok". After purchasing the Eco Gladiator I preformed a test pulled with my loaded car hauler, 4850lbs with 500lb tongue. Jeep is mostly stock with a 1" level lift spacer and rear coil bags. I was blown away with how well the Gladiator passed the "test". The hauler is within a few lbs of a travel trailer I've had my eye on for awhile now but the wrangler would have been way under spec'd. So, yesterday I ordered a loaded Lance 1995. A bit spendy but a fantastic option for the light Gladiator trucks IMO as the come dry at 390lbs hitch and 4265 gross unloaded.
Lance Lance 1995 Travel Trailer - The 1685's bigger brother features walk around queen bed. (lancecamper.com)

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