Show what you tow!

fruitcakesa

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Feb 18, 2007
Location
Vermont
TDI
04 jetta 5 spd wagon

fruitcakesa

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Feb 18, 2007
Location
Vermont
TDI
04 jetta 5 spd wagon

nayr

Veteran Member
Joined
Mar 26, 2013
Location
Colorado
TDI
2014 Audi Q7


Getting ready to go to Idaho/Oregon/Wyoming for some Totality on Monday, will be back home in a Week
 
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Stealth TDI

Pre-Forum Veteran Member
Joined
Feb 13, 1998
Location
Newport News, VA
TDI
2017 GTI APR Stage 3 (395 hp/376 lb-ft)
Added a cargo box to my trailer for an upcoming trip to Ikea (some of the boxes are too long for my compact trailer):

Is it just me, or does this look like a photon torpedo, as depicted in "Star Trek VI, The Undiscovered Country?" ;)




It rides so close to the car that it may even be more aerodynamic than no box at all...


It barely clears the back of the car during my infamous "stunt parking."


I'll do a round of fuel economy testing to see the difference between trailer-only, trailer with cargo box, and box on rooftop (no trailer), and share my findings. :)

Write-up about the box at https://stealthgti.com/2017/08/23/yakima-showcase-15/.

Scott
 

kjclow

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Apr 26, 2003
Location
Charlotte, NC
TDI
2010 JSW TDI silver and black. 2017 Ram Ecodiesel dark red with brown and beige interior.
Have you checked inside the pod for Spock?
 

nayr

Veteran Member
Joined
Mar 26, 2013
Location
Colorado
TDI
2014 Audi Q7


Just spent a week towing the Cricket around Yellowstone after watching Totality in Idaho, I've fallen in love with this Audi.. zero regrets ditching the MK6 after this epic trip w/the family.
 
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kjclow

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Apr 26, 2003
Location
Charlotte, NC
TDI
2010 JSW TDI silver and black. 2017 Ram Ecodiesel dark red with brown and beige interior.
Each time I look at your pictures, I think what a strange looking trailer. I just read one of the reviews of the Cricket and am impressed by how well it was thought out.
 

fruitcakesa

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Feb 18, 2007
Location
Vermont
TDI
04 jetta 5 spd wagon
04 towing 03 towed
Final GVW 6440 lbs before unloading
4080 lbs after.
Other than having to pull the trailer up my steep, loose, gravely driveway with my tractor [the car would just spin its wheels], it rolled down the road with plenty of power.
 

nayr

Veteran Member
Joined
Mar 26, 2013
Location
Colorado
TDI
2014 Audi Q7
Each time I look at your pictures, I think what a strange looking trailer. I just read one of the reviews of the Cricket and am impressed by how well it was thought out.
It is weird looking, but its designed to squish down on the front so it meets a SUV roofline and width, your not towing a big wall behind you.. got 22mpg @ 65mph which is about what I get in the City on average..

I rented it, only complaint is I really dislike the kids bunking above me.. Son tried to drink some water laying down (not enough room to sit up), he choked on it and then spit it all over us and our bedding below.. None of the kids can get out of bed and go to the bathroom or take a drink without us getting out of bed too.

Were going to be buying a camper with the 3.0L Settlement money, wont be this one.. too much money for what you get, I'll get an A-Frame popup (hard sided) w/front toy hauler, aircon, heater, microwave oven for half the price of this camper.
 

Oo-v-oO

Veteran Member
Joined
Jul 30, 2000
Location
Live Free or Die, USA
TDI
98 Jetta Expired... Now 2000 Golf & 2002 Golf
The towed may be the tower, soon.



If things work out, I may be taking the 2000 Golf TDI in the picture above to pick up and drag home a 2002 Golf TDI with the tow dolly. It will be about an 1,100 mile round trip if so.
Should be a fun trip.
 

kjclow

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Apr 26, 2003
Location
Charlotte, NC
TDI
2010 JSW TDI silver and black. 2017 Ram Ecodiesel dark red with brown and beige interior.
It is weird looking, but its designed to squish down on the front so it meets a SUV roofline and width, your not towing a big wall behind you.. got 22mpg @ 65mph which is about what I get in the City on average..
I rented it, only complaint is I really dislike the kids bunking above me.. Son tried to drink some water laying down (not enough room to sit up), he choked on it and then spit it all over us and our bedding below.. None of the kids can get out of bed and go to the bathroom or take a drink without us getting out of bed too.
Were going to be buying a camper with the 3.0L Settlement money, wont be this one.. too much money for what you get, I'll get an A-Frame popup (hard sided) w/front toy hauler, aircon, heater, microwave oven for half the price of this camper.
We've started looking at he full sized RVs. The one we really liked is 32 feet IIRC. Comes in at adout 9000 pounds. It's going to be for retirement, so got to have comfort. At least according to the wife.
 

romad

Top Post Dawg
Joined
May 27, 2011
Location
Prescott, AZ
TDI
2005 Jetta GLS Wagon "Cranberry"
We've started looking at he full sized RVs. The one we really liked is 32 feet IIRC. Comes in at adout 9000 pounds. It's going to be for retirement, so got to have comfort. At least according to the wife.
What class, A, C?
 

SilverGhost

Veteran Member
Joined
Mar 25, 2005
Location
Back in So Flo - St Lucie
TDI
'05 Golf - totaled :(, wife's '13 Beetle - buy back, TDIless
@kjclow - I suggest you rent several different styles and go to a few RV gatherings to get a feel for what you will want. Something I have learned since getting our EggCamper.

Jason
 

jason_

Veteran Member
Joined
Jun 2, 2014
Location
michigan
TDI
2015 s wagon dsg
I went to the solar eclipse and met someone at a fuel station in a big rv, a lot of ambient noise and didn't pay attention to decals.

As I pumped I kept watching, eventually seeing him getting out and grabbing a gasoline hose.

I yelled "oh my God!"

He looked back angrily and said " yeah.... 8...."

I left the conversion at that.

Sent from my One using Tapatalk
 

kjclow

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Apr 26, 2003
Location
Charlotte, NC
TDI
2010 JSW TDI silver and black. 2017 Ram Ecodiesel dark red with brown and beige interior.
What class, A, C?
No, I'm talking about a hard sided trailer towing with a pickup. At least for a brand new set up, that's the cheaper way to go and still try to keep to two vehicles. Although if I had to choose and the money, I'd jump in a Winnebego View with the Sprinter diesel. Comparing that model side by side to the Ford front is like shopping at Walmart versus Saks Fifth Avenue.

Winnebego has a couple of strong points from my background. When we were kids, my dad used to haul trailers from them in Northcentral Iowa back to the local dealer in Northeastern Nebraska. Since I have strong Iowa roots, I'd like to support an Iowa business. The class A pusher frames are built by John Deere. One of they ways they've survived.

@kjclow - I suggest you rent several different styles and go to a few RV gatherings to get a feel for what you will want. Something I have learned since getting our EggCamper.

Jason
I just read that same recommendation from KOA. We are considering doing that for RAGBRAI next year. We can bike all day and then have hot showers and sleep with AC!

Here's one we are considering. https://winnebagoind.com/binaries/content/assets/brochures/2016/instinctflyernov2015_v3.pdf The bottom model is what we're thinking so we can take kids and grandkids with us some of the time.
 
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SilverGhost

Veteran Member
Joined
Mar 25, 2005
Location
Back in So Flo - St Lucie
TDI
'05 Golf - totaled :(, wife's '13 Beetle - buy back, TDIless
After seeing a few horrid stick builds I wouldn't buy one unless it was a used bargain (or sat on lot and deeply discounted). A $45k camper this year has gone for $15k next year.

Besides there is a reason Air Stream and most fiberglass campers hold their value. Because you notice they are the ones on the road 30, 40, 50+ years later.

Just my opinion from my research. But that Winnie looks gorgeous inside! My wife is jealous ;)

Jason
 

kjclow

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Apr 26, 2003
Location
Charlotte, NC
TDI
2010 JSW TDI silver and black. 2017 Ram Ecodiesel dark red with brown and beige interior.
We priced in the South Bend area (Middleburg, IN) where a lot of the trailers are built. Since they aren't hauling them, the prices are $10-15K off msrp. Camping World in NC, has discounts of around $8K. Paying a little extra for the nationwide service could be worth it.
 

PB_NB

Veteran Member
Joined
Nov 20, 2007
Location
Vancouver, B.C.
TDI
1999 New Beetle
We went with an all aluminum Camplite trailer made by Liv'in Lite.

Ours is a 2011 13 foot that has a dry weight of 1620 lbs. No wood at all. Aluminum inside and out. If water gets in, it can get out through the aluminum extruded floor planks.

It even has a single sheet of aluminum as the roof membrane.

Unfortunately, Livin Lite was bought by Thor and then absorbed by Northwood so now the Camplites are heavier and some wood has found its way into the construction. They are also a lot heavier now. I don't think the beetle would be happy pulling an extra 1000 lbs.

Check out these: Really cool with the electric roof and all the windows!
Safari Condo
 

nayr

Veteran Member
Joined
Mar 26, 2013
Location
Colorado
TDI
2014 Audi Q7
Spent the last week camper shopping, I found a really nice model at one camper lot that would be great for Cars.. If I still had my Golf this would had been damn near perfect:
http://aliner.com/campers/ascape/

I really liked that it had a full sized door, conked my head on that cricket far too much.. Also comes with an attached awning.. was much cheaper than the cricket and even lighter, plus you get heating, air conditioner, and a toilet which is very uncommon for lil car campers.. (Cricket had none of those things)

I found our camper, Wolf Pup Toy Hauler.. goodbye fuel economy but it has everything that makes my wife happy and everything that makes me happy.. plus its so cheap I can forget about fuel economy with the budget camper.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jgw25xuzRog

Once the fix is out for the Gen2 3.0L I'll be buying that with the payout, almost outright.
 

kooyajerms

grocery getter
Joined
May 5, 2004
Location
Pomona, Southern California
TDI
97 B4V (mine), 11 x5 35d (hers) 04 V10 (that one you want), 2014 Q7 (mom's) 74 Shasta 1400
Took the Shasta out with my mom's Q7 for Labor Day Weekend. Didn't want any strange Touareg Gremlins getting us in the 105*F weather.
Power wasn't an issue, but we did end up with around 15-16MPG going 65mph, I'm surprised the 3.0 didn't do better. The short trip with the V10 we were pulling 12-13MPG doing the same drive.

So All that wagging the dog and swaying we talked about on the JSW.... I can still feel some swaying going on. It's not as significant, but to say it wouldn't wag me I can't be confident in it. Didn't fill the tank with any water either way, so the load was fairly even and the trailer was level with the drop hitch.

Do you think there is something about the suspension (probably the original leafs and beam down there from the look of things) on the Shasta that could make it so unsteady? I sped up a bit whenever I felt it start swaying and that steadied it out, but I really did think doubling the towing weight and fixing the level issue was going to prevent any more issues. No air suspension on the Q7, but there is on the Touareg.

Maybe that's just the way a single axle vs double axle feels in general? I am a towing newbie after all.
the twinzies



swapped drophitches from the Touareg to the Q7, so the Shasta stands like this.

 
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nayr

Veteran Member
Joined
Mar 26, 2013
Location
Colorado
TDI
2014 Audi Q7
load the tongue down heavier, possibly add anti-sway hitch setup.. that rear deck on shasta looks like it could cause you to incorrectly load that thing.. mebe give it some shocks if your loading the tail up.. Wind with a large trailer can always cause issues and the anti-sway hitch setup will help alot even with a small camper.

With the Q7 factory tow package you can load 660# on the tongue, much more than a car.. make sure your trailer is sufficiently nose heavy with most of the weight right over the axle.. AirBags help alot if your squatting but properly balancing the load with 10-15% of the weight on tongue ensures pretty stress free towing.

Electric brakes can help alot if you dont already have em.. if you get tail wagging reach down and tap on the trailer brakes and it should bring it it back in line.
 

kjclow

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Apr 26, 2003
Location
Charlotte, NC
TDI
2010 JSW TDI silver and black. 2017 Ram Ecodiesel dark red with brown and beige interior.
I found our camper, Wolf Pup Toy Hauler.. goodbye fuel economy but it has everything that makes my wife happy and everything that makes me happy.. plus its so cheap I can forget about fuel economy with the budget camper.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jgw25xuzRog
We looked at their rockwood trailers. Nice set ups and seem well built. Have fun!
 

nayr

Veteran Member
Joined
Mar 26, 2013
Location
Colorado
TDI
2014 Audi Q7
originally I was eyeing the A Frame toy hauler but Wife nixed that idea once we got inside one in person.. Counter tops were laughably low, door was super skinny.. no way to get our big Pyrenees in there to sleep.. The Wolf Pup keeps it simple, super simple basic beds/kitchen but a large open floorplan for dogs and hauling ample gear/toys.. I really wanted to keep the roofline lower than the Q7 but had to give up on that..

Anyone wanting to buy a camper should rent a few first, you really have no idea what you want until your out there.. Renting the Cricket was very educational for us, we decided a full size door was worth saving us from concussions, full hvac was a must as the newborn was not tolerating the high afternoon temps, kitchens are over-rated as its nicer to cook outdoors but having a good sink and grey water is very nice in bear country (no hauling dish water to bathrooms), We also had to spend one night in an overflow parking lot and unloading alot of stuff just so we could sleep really sucked and induced anxiety.. also being able to pack up the night before and roll out of camp at crack of dawn without waking everyone up was a huge plus.. We didnt have the dogs with us on that trip and we learned a tiny lil micro-camper was not going to cut it.. floorspace is worth alot, otherwise all the beds end up being storage.
 
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kooyajerms

grocery getter
Joined
May 5, 2004
Location
Pomona, Southern California
TDI
97 B4V (mine), 11 x5 35d (hers) 04 V10 (that one you want), 2014 Q7 (mom's) 74 Shasta 1400
load the tongue down heavier, possibly add anti-sway hitch setup.. that rear deck on shasta looks like it could cause you to incorrectly load that thing.. mebe give it some shocks if your loading the tail up.. Wind with a large trailer can always cause issues and the anti-sway hitch setup will help alot even with a small camper.

With the Q7 factory tow package you can load 660# on the tongue, much more than a car.. make sure your trailer is sufficiently nose heavy with most of the weight right over the axle.. AirBags help alot if your squatting but properly balancing the load with 10-15% of the weight on tongue ensures pretty stress free towing.

Electric brakes can help alot if you dont already have em.. if you get tail wagging reach down and tap on the trailer brakes and it should bring it it back in line.
Nothing on the rear on the trip. It is already nose heavy, it would be more than abnormal to load the tongue to capacity with a 1600# trailer. Only added 100 pounds over the axle. All tips we worked on for the JSW already.

No plans to buy a WDS HItch setup considering the multiple vehicles.

the electric brake trick was already on my list but haven't bought that controllers.
 

nayr

Veteran Member
Joined
Mar 26, 2013
Location
Colorado
TDI
2014 Audi Q7
Does it have radials on it? I went from 4ply Bias tires @ 30psi to 8ply Radials that were balanced @ 50psi and that made my lightweight trailer trailer track behind me like a champ, even at high speed or taking corners.. You'd be surprised how much better a rig will tow if you step up the tires well beyond actual capacity.. plus its insurance from a catastrophic blowout.
 

Oo-v-oO

Veteran Member
Joined
Jul 30, 2000
Location
Live Free or Die, USA
TDI
98 Jetta Expired... Now 2000 Golf & 2002 Golf
Left work and headed directly to VT yesterday afternoon. Rolled into the driveway at about 10:30 after putting on about 300 miles, half of it with this in tow.



It's a 5x8 with a 2,000 lb GVW. Trailer weight is listed as 400 lbs so payload is around 1,600, depending on decking and sides. Has 5.30x12 tires.

Obviously needs some fixing up, but I only paid $160 for it. I have a bunch of 5/4 deck boards that were on my 6x12 landscape trailer for decking when I bought it that will work perfect for deck and sides on this one. Wiring needs to be checked out, hitch needs to be mounted properly or replaced with the correct one, and the leaf spring bushings are shot but despite that it pulled really well if a little noisily.
Tucks in behind the Golf pretty nice, only the fenders and wheels are wider than the car and then not by much.

It is made by On The Road, Inc. This is a small company in Warren, Maine that is a trailer distributor as well as manufacturer of their own line of trailers. This exact trailer has been made for years and is still for sale on their website, for $1,645:
http://www.on-the-road.net/2017-on-the-road-new-utility-trailer-me-i1311894

Should be a very good match to the car when I'm done rehabbing it.

The Bosal towbar and lighting wiring with a powered converter fed from the accessory plug in the cargo area worked great.
 

PB_NB

Veteran Member
Joined
Nov 20, 2007
Location
Vancouver, B.C.
TDI
1999 New Beetle
Does it have radials on it? I went from 4ply Bias tires @ 30psi to 8ply Radials that were balanced @ 50psi and that made my lightweight trailer trailer track behind me like a champ, even at high speed or taking corners.. You'd be surprised how much better a rig will tow if you step up the tires well beyond actual capacity.. plus its insurance from a catastrophic blowout.
I second that!

Put new Carlisles radials on and had the worst experience ever. Switched to low profile BF Goodrich XL Tires and the ride is much tighter.

I think the wagging has something to do with the sidewalls of the tires. The Carlisle radials were squishy at 50 psi. The BFG's are super stiff at 45 psi. The Carlisles are 80 series and the BFG's are 40 series. Naturally, they will be stiffer.

Tongue loading on these little trailers really needs to be between 200 and 300 lbs. I took everything out of the trunk including the spare tire and put it in the trailer towards the front. Same load just better utilized on the tongue rather than in the trunk.

Heading down to Olympia and then to the Wash coast at the end of September for some camping and a charity bike ride. Looking forward to dragging the trailer down the I-5.
 

kooyajerms

grocery getter
Joined
May 5, 2004
Location
Pomona, Southern California
TDI
97 B4V (mine), 11 x5 35d (hers) 04 V10 (that one you want), 2014 Q7 (mom's) 74 Shasta 1400
Considering we moved up from the JSW to the Q7 on this trip, i think I'm doing everything "right" , I'm gonna go with your suggestions and change out those 4 ply tires.

I had some 8 ply on Amazon ready to go for months, 2 New Grand Ride/Power Towing Trailer Tires ST 225/75R15 10PR Load Range E - 11017 … https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00KSLJR46/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_tai_7dlSzb8XMNC28 But maybe I look for some nice low profile bf goodrich's like PB_NB. Any benefit either way on these 15 inch steelies? Trailer 8 ply vs a real road tire with a strong but thinner sidewall?

Cheers fellas
 
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