Overland Trailers - first-hand experience: the Good, the Bad and the Ugly

[tjZ06]

Hey OB folks, I'm looking for your first-hand experience with an Overland trailer. I'm currently kicking-around the idea of an overland trailer for use with my WJ but would love some real world feedback.

My rationale for a trailer is as follows:

• The WJ is a great, relatively small size - but that means less storage space than say a JLUR and more importantly it's just not going to work out well for me to sleep inside
• With sleeping inside mostly ruled out, I started thinking about RTTs, but I think I'd only consider a hard-shell (for a few reasons, mostly just that soft-shells look like a PITA to cover/uncover and setup... especially being about 7' in the air if it were on my Jeep). With the WJ being smaller most hard-shells are too big for it, leaving really only the iKamper SkyCamp Mini (which is a definitely an option for me) but even that is still going to be way up in the air
• I've built my WJ with a very flexy, somewhat long-travel (at least compared to stock, it's no Trophy Truck or anything) suspension. This is great for offroad performance, but has the downside of not making it ideal to put a heavy hard-shell RTT on top of, nor ideal for over-loading the back with too much weight
• Maybe I just want one because they're darn neat... lol

So far I've used a good old ground-tent, and I've been relatively happy with that solution. However, the typical downsides of a ground tent do come to mind:

• With the ground tent I need to find and clear a good, relatively flat spot
• Setup and breakdown are more extensive, which is not really a big deal for staying in one spot, but not awesome when moving daily
• The tent I've been using doesn't retain heat well, tent options that do retain heat well are way bulkier and would take up too much space in the WJ (and take even longer to setup/breakdown)
• If you arrive at camp in inclement weather setup is no fun (same for breaking down camp)

So, all of that has me thinking about a trailer. If I were to do a trailer, it'd be a "square drop" that I'd sleep in, vs. the style you use a RTT on. I figure if I'm doing a RTT I'll just put it on the WJ despite the drawbacks I mentioned above (again, I'd go with the smallest hard-shell I could find). I like the idea of pulling up to camp, getting the trailer relatively level, and boom camp is ready. Obviously there's a bit more to it, opening up a galley and such, but in bad weather or when you arrive at camp late you can basically get out of the Jeep, get into the trailer, and you're set for the night. Of course, there are downsides - and that's where I'm very curious about all of your collective experiences.

So, OB:

• Have you overlanded with a trailer?
• If so, do you still use it?
• If you stopped using a trailer, why?
• What did you like about having an overland trailer?
• What didn't you like?
• If you were buying again, what would you do differently or change about the trailer itself?
• What type of trails and camping did you do with your trailer?
• Were there situations where you found the trailer limiting you?

Thanks for any input and advice!
-TJ

 

[Truckee]

I have owned an off-road trailer, complete with kitchen, heater, etc. It was great for trips like Death Valley... certainly more luxurious than just an RTT.

What's not to like? Capability is more limited... you have to be a bit more cautious when exploring new areas and maybe doing a bit more research prior to your trip. It's not the easiest to turn around on a trail. You might even have to un-hitch it. In CA, you are legally limited to the two slow lanes on the freeway. That means no-carpool lanes too.

I sold it because I wasn't using it much (work schedule). Had I had it during Covid, I would've used it a lot! Also, storing it was a bit of work for me. Generally, my preferred method of camping is with a hard shell RTT and more technical trails. But, yes, I would buy another in the future. It's a great choice for overlanding trips.

I would recommend you rent one before you take the plunge. Here is one outfit in SoCal. http://www.rentoffthegrid.com/off-road-teardrop-trailer/

 

[smritte]

I have two. One is an M-100 with an RTT, the other is a small hard side. The difference is, the M-100 will go places my other wont. The weight difference isn't much. The M-100 fully loaded is 1500# and the hard side is almost 2k.
The M-100 I have had forever, the RTT....10 years? maybe. I loved it for the portability and comfort. The problem was wind and I got tired of climbing in and out. I built the hard side last year and love it. Yea its a bit heavier but the comfort is better. I've stayed in both close to sub zero and high winds. The RTT has seen snow, and heavy rain. Over all the hard side wins.
Sleeping in an RTT is almost like sleeping in a tent you cant stand up in. The advantage to a ground tent is, your on the ground. No ladder. The advantage of an RTT is your not on the ground. easier to find a camp spot when you don't care if its flat. It I was going to have a ground tent, it would be an OZ tent. several of my friends have them.
Now with the hard side, I have a bit more comfort, virtually no setup and tear down. Its small enough to use if im on the move and nice enough for a base camp.
Whatever you choose, as was posted above, rent/borrow one. If you buy something, keep the weight down. In my opinion keep the loaded weight as far below 2500# as you can. Some of the ones out there are way too heavy.
In my sig below, you will see my build thread for my hard side. Somewhere in the beginning I think I have a pick of my M-100 for comparison.

 

[NMBruce]

I have used a trailer now for 6 years, mostly to just carry gear. With 3 or 4 people in a JKUR or GX470, there is not much room for anything else and those where really long trips to Alaska and the Arctic Ocean.
This Spring I will be adding a clam shell tent, Alpha ll tent, cost was good $1900, plus it looks easy to open and close and a hard covered.
Like you, I dont want to climb up to the top of a vehicle and so by going on my trailer, it will be only 4.5 feet off the ground. Should I not need the trailer, I will be able to put it on a half rack in a pickup bed.

 

[tjZ06]

I have owned an off-road trailer, complete with kitchen, heater, etc. It was great for trips like Death Valley... certainly more luxurious than just an RTT.

What's not to like? Capability is more limited... you have to be a bit more cautious when exploring new areas and maybe doing a bit more research prior to your trip. It's not the easiest to turn around on a trail. You might even have to un-hitch it. In CA, you are legally limited to the two slow lanes on the freeway. That means no-carpool lanes too.

I sold it because I wasn't using it much (work schedule). Had I had it during Covid, I would've used it a lot! Also, storing it was a bit of work for me. Generally, my preferred method of camping is with a hard shell RTT and more technical trails. But, yes, I would buy another in the future. It's a great choice for overlanding trips.

I would recommend you rent one before you take the plunge. Here is one outfit in SoCal. http://www.rentoffthegrid.com/off-road-teardrop-trailer/

Thanks for the input, and your experiences! I've towed a lot, well still do. I'm used to being limited on lanes and the reduced speed limit, so that doesn't bother me too much - but is a good point for sure. Agreed, a trailer is going to be difficult when you have to turn around. At least I have lots of trailer towing/backing experience, and like you said with a smaller trailer like I'd be considering, one option is to jack-knife it, unhook, turn the rig around, then hook back up jack-knifed the other way.

Thanks for the link on the rental, I might have to look into that more! I wish they were in NorCal, but I bet I can find something up here too.

I have two. One is an M-100 with an RTT, the other is a small hard side. The difference is, the M-100 will go places my other wont. The weight difference isn't much. The M-100 fully loaded is 1500# and the hard side is almost 2k.
The M-100 I have had forever, the RTT....10 years? maybe. I loved it for the portability and comfort. The problem was wind and I got tired of climbing in and out. I built the hard side last year and love it. Yea its a bit heavier but the comfort is better. I've stayed in both close to sub zero and high winds. The RTT has seen snow, and heavy rain. Over all the hard side wins.
Sleeping in an RTT is almost like sleeping in a tent you cant stand up in. The advantage to a ground tent is, your on the ground. No ladder. The advantage of an RTT is your not on the ground. easier to find a camp spot when you don't care if its flat. It I was going to have a ground tent, it would be an OZ tent. several of my friends have them.
Now with the hard side, I have a bit more comfort, virtually no setup and tear down. Its small enough to use if im on the move and nice enough for a base camp.
Whatever you choose, as was posted above, rent/borrow one. If you buy something, keep the weight down. In my opinion keep the loaded weight as far below 2500# as you can. Some of the ones out there are way too heavy.
In my sig below, you will see my build thread for my hard side. Somewhere in the beginning I think I have a pick of my M-100 for comparison.

Looking forward to going through your build thread for our hard-side, and thanks for your input and advice. The trailer I'm looking at is about 2,600lbs - but would be right around 3k loaded. My Jeep was rated at 6,500lbs towing stock, and some things are better than stock for towing (cooling system greatly improved, overall gear ratio even in 2WD HI is better than stock) but others are not ideal (softer, higher-travel suspension).
For a lot of the reasons you pointed out, IF I do a trailer it'd be a hard-side tear/squaredrop that I'd sleep IN. Sure, something like your M-100 with a RTT would have the RTT probably 3-4' lower than having it ON my WJ, but it's still climbing up/down, noisy in wind, etc. I'm not going to go to the expense and hassle of a trailer to still have those drawbacks. I'm doing a ground tent now, so I'm used to the noise in wind and whatnot, but if I'm going to dump the $ into a trailer I'd like to really make it worth it.

I have used a trailer now for 6 years, mostly to just carry gear. With 3 or 4 people in a JKUR or GX470, there is not much room for anything else and those where really long trips to Alaska and the Arctic Ocean.
This Spring I will be adding a clam shell tent, Alpha ll tent, cost was good $1900, plus it looks easy to open and close and a hard covered.
Like you, I dont want to climb up to the top of a vehicle and so by going on my trailer, it will be only 4.5 feet off the ground. Should I not need the trailer, I will be able to put it on a half rack in a pickup bed.

Before I went full-bore on my WJ build I really considered building some sort of pickup (something like a diesel Colorado ZR2) for the exact reason you mentioned: hard-shell RTT on a half, or even bed-rail level rack in the back. 4-4.5' off the ground isn't too bad, but a RTT on my WJ would be over 7' to the base (my WJ doesn't clear by a ton going into my garage with a 7' door, then you have the added height of the rack/mount system etc.). I guess I could look at it like "what's another 2.5' really?" It's just a couple more steps on the ladder, really. But I still think it'd just be annoying being up that high, and it's a lot of weight that high up on a softly sprung, flexy build.


As for some of the other points, I do have RV access on the side of my house with room for an Overland trailer, so storage is not a problem. My thought would be to keep the trailer fully stocked with all the gear I need for a trip, literally including clothes, bedding, all my camp gear, *and* food. Obviously I wouldn't keep perishables in it long-term, but I could have it stocked with Mountain House, jugs of potable water, cans of chili, that sort of stuff so I could hitch up and go last-minute with absolutely ZERO prep. If I was so inclined I could stop by a grocery store on the way out of town for fresh foods, but it wouldn't be required. Obviously you could argue I could also do that with my WJ... but when you start trying to have that much stuff in it ALL the time it's completely totally packed and isn't great for any other use (I like to drive it when I can for other purposes, though it's not my true "daily driver").

...then again, maybe I'm just making more excuses to justify a trailer to myself. ;)

-TJ

 

[liamthered]

I have a NoBo 10.6 overland trailer. It's a little bigger than a king-size bed with walls, roof, and wheels. A little bigger then some of the small offroad trailers, but very nice in that there is little to no setup for camping, but it's small enough to get deep in the trail. We mostly drag it as far as we can go, then setup a base camp and explore from there with our rig.

 

[Glacierdog]

I have owned an off-road trailer, complete with kitchen, heater, etc. It was great for trips like Death Valley... certainly more luxurious than just an RTT.

What's not to like? Capability is more limited... you have to be a bit more cautious when exploring new areas and maybe doing a bit more research prior to your trip. It's not the easiest to turn around on a trail. You might even have to un-hitch it. In CA, you are legally limited to the two slow lanes on the freeway. That means no-carpool lanes too.

I sold it because I wasn't using it much (work schedule). Had I had it during Covid, I would've used it a lot! Also, storing it was a bit of work for me. Generally, my preferred method of camping is with a hard shell RTT and more technical trails. But, yes, I would buy another in the future. It's a great choice for overlanding trips.

I would recommend you rent one before you take the plunge. Here is one outfit in SoCal. http://www.rentoffthegrid.com/off-road-teardrop-trailer/

I appreciate your well thought out input on this topic. My wife and have been talking about a trailer, since we are getting up in age and trying to haul a 60# dog up a ladder into a RTT just does not sound like fun. We are also taking into consideration it could be our bug-out accommodation should we experience a fire evacuation order like what happened during the summer of 2020. While a trailer would not be a long-term solution, it could keep us safe for a week or so providing we had access to utilities.

 

[Billiebob]

TearDrop,SquareDrop. Yes. For me the only way to camp.

Couple up Friday, buy some food and beer leaving town, DONE

We keep clean clothes, swim, hiking, rain gear in the trailer so other than food, come Friday we are leaving home within 15 minutes.
Find a spot to park, even late in the dark you just roll into bed, zero setup.
Morning, wake up to rain, roll out of bed, drive away.

Security, it is all hardwall and lockable. Youcan "sleep" anywhere and not draw attention after dark.
Sunday night, even early Monday, drop the trailer and go to work, worry about food and laundrywhrn you get home and setup for the next weekend.
There is never anything to dry out. It parks where a CRV fits. And, behind anything bigger than a CRV, you barely know it is there.

There is nothing to pack away in the off season, nothing to find next season.
The bed stays made up, All the utensils, cooking stuff, cooler, headlamps, everything just stays packed in the trailer.
Secure and protected from the weather, but we do park it under a roof in the winter.

If yer handy you can build one for under $2K. My trailer new was $1100. The box all in with stain was &800.
It took 3 weeks to build, 4 years later I am still tweaking it, the joys of building rather than buying.

Mine is based on an open deck trailer with 8" sides. If my TJR can get thru, the trailer drags thru too.
My box is glued and screwd OSB, 1x4, 2x4. No insulation. And the roof is translucent semi trailer roofing.
I'd never buy a factory built RV trailer.... Most are far too complex, way too many moving parts.... and way too expensive.



Hiker Trailers I'd consider because they are simple and affordable.
Even their entry Highway version at $6K has plenty of clearance for forestry toads and cross country to a camping spot.

Home - Hiker Trailers - Custom Teardrop Trailers

www.hikertrailers.com

The trailer is following me here..... if its not too expensive........

 

[tjZ06]

TearDrop,SquareDrop. Yes. For me the only way to camp.

Couple up Friday, buy some food and beer leaving town, DONE

We keep clean clothes, swim, hiking, rain gear in the trailer so other than food, come Friday we are leaving home within 15 minutes.
Find a spot to park, even late in the dark you just roll into bed, zero setup.
Morning, wake up to rain, roll out of bed, drive away.

Security, it is all hardwall and lockable. Youcan "sleep" anywhere and not draw attention after dark.
Sunday night, even early Monday, drop the trailer and go to work, worry about food and laundrywhrn you get home and setup for the next weekend.
There is never anything to dry out. It parks where a CRV fits. And you barely knowit is there behind anything bigger than a CRV.

There is nothing to pack away in the off season, nothing to find next season.
The bed stays made up, All the utensils, cooking stuff, cooler, headlamps, everything just stays packed in the trailer.
Secure and protected from the weather, but we do park it under a roof.

If yer handy you can build one for under $2K.

Well said, thank you. Those are basically all of the reasons IF I do a trailer, it'll be a Tear/Square drop. I understand the other styles if you have a family and just need the gear space, but 99% of my Overlanding trips I'll be solo in my rig (with friends in their own rigs), so I *can* fit everything in my Heep. So, something like a M-100 build with a RTT or one of those Smittybuilt trailers while they give me ton of gear space don't have the advantages you named.

Thanks,
TJ

 

[grubworm]

I have a NoBo 10.6 overland trailer. It's a little bigger than a king-size bed with walls, roof, and wheels. A little bigger then some of the small offroad trailers, but very nice in that there is little to no setup for camping, but it's small enough to get deep in the trail. We mostly drag it as far as we can go, then setup a base camp and explore from there with our rig.

yeah, its a fun camper to use

 

[tjZ06]

Do those NoBos hold up to *real* off road use? I'm not talking the Rubicon or anything, but what about trials something like:






-TJ

 

[grubworm]

Do those NoBos hold up to *real* off road use?

no. i paid around $13k for it new versus the real "off-road" campers like they have in australia for $40-60K, so you get what you pay for. it's OK for maintained gravel and dirt roads, but definitely not for the roads you had in your pics.
i mainly have it as a base camp that i can lock up and leave at a camp ground and it has a/c...that's worth half its cost right there
i pull it with a nearly stock tundra, so that tundra isn't going on anything too rough, either

 

[Retired]

I really enjoy my SoCal 459 Krawler. Picked it up April 1, 2018.
With a trailer in California you are forced to travel in the slow lane. Doesn't bother me to much as it slows you down so you get to see the sights better. I first had a 2000 wj with the 4.7 on 35 with 4.56 gears. Just didn't have the power needed for the teardrop. Then I picked up a 2018 Colorado ZR2 diesel. Best choice I ever made. Plenty of power, great mileage. Had a cbi bed rack at first then changed to a shell. The shell keeps things in the bed cleaner as everything outside can get extremely dirty on the trail. My wife and I like setting up camp for a couple days, take the truck out exploring.
At first I babyed the truck and teardrop but after a few years I'm comfortable towing on tougher trails. Any trailer is going to limit you, so plan your trips. I'm not going rock crawling with it, yet. I've thought about selling it but enjoy to much to let it go. Small enough I keep it in my garage at home. We can pull up to a spot and climb in if needed even on a trail. Pulls easy, sometime forget it's back there. I've looked in the mirror once or twice and wondered who was following me so close.

 

[Retired]

 

[liamthered]

Do those NoBos hold up to *real* off road use? I'm not talking the Rubicon or anything, but what about trials something like:



-TJ

No. Not really. Forest service roads and such mostly is what they are good for. Nothing to technical. But they are great for getting to the area you want to explore and using as a base camp for further exploration. Kind of an in between a camp trailer and a RTT.

We have it mostly because my wife cant climb a ladder with her knee braces and canes, and crawling I to a ground tent is very difficult.

This allows us to do mild trails and camp.

 

[1Louder]

The good ( I sleep indoors and could care less about the elements), the bad (quality trailers aren't cheap), the ugly (there is no ugly)

BLONDIE!!!! YOU SON OF A .......

 

[tjZ06]

no. i paid around $13k for it new versus the real "off-road" campers like they have in australia for $40-60K, so you get what you pay for. it's OK for maintained gravel and dirt roads, but definitely not for the roads you had in your pics.
i mainly have it as a base camp that i can lock up and leave at a camp ground and it has a/c...that's worth half its cost right there
i pull it with a nearly stock tundra, so that tundra isn't going on anything too rough, either

Yeah, I guess I knew that was the answer before I asked. I don't think I want something that big or "full featured" anyway. But thanks again for taking the time to answer my questions.

I really enjoy my SoCal 459 Krawler. Picked it up April 1, 2018.
With a trailer in California you are forced to travel in the slow lane. Doesn't bother me to much as it slows you down so you get to see the sights better. I first had a 2000 wj with the 4.7 on 35 with 4.56 gears. Just didn't have the power needed for the teardrop. Then I picked up a 2018 Colorado ZR2 diesel. Best choice I ever made. Plenty of power, great mileage. Had a cbi bed rack at first then changed to a shell. The shell keeps things in the bed cleaner as everything outside can get extremely dirty on the trail. My wife and I like setting up camp for a couple days, take the truck out exploring.
At first I babyed the truck and teardrop but after a few years I'm comfortable towing on tougher trails. Any trailer is going to limit you, so plan your trips. I'm not going rock crawling with it, yet. I've thought about selling it but enjoy to much to let it go. Small enough I keep it in my garage at home. We can pull up to a spot and climb in if needed even on a trail. Pulls easy, sometime forget it's back there. I've looked in the mirror once or twice and wondered who was following me so close.View attachment 187290View attachment 187291

Looks like a very nice WJ, but I have to say I'm surprised you found the 4.7 was down on power for a small trailer. I believe your diesel Colorado should be 186/369 HP/TQ right? Stock my HO would have been 265/330 HP/TQ so I shouldn't be far behind in torque, a leg up on torque. I believe the diesels came with the 6 speed trans, not the 8 right? That extra ratio certainly helps you I'm sure (though my 545RFR technically has 6 forward ratios, but that's a whole other fun Chrysler engineering rabbit-hole, lol), and obviously the low-end torque of the diesel is much better suited to towing than the 4.7 that needs to rev a bit to access it's power and even its torque (which peaks up at 3600 rpm).

Anyway, my engine is a fresh rebuild (with some upgrades to address the 4.7 problem-areas like valve seats, oil drainback, head gaskets, sludging, etc.) and I've replaced basically everything associated with the engine too. It's another rabbit-hole, but I "had" to run an '08 intake manifold too which is said to be good for a little power and torque as well. Like you were I'm on 35"s, but I am running 4.88s (minor difference vs. your 4.56s, but every bit counts). I wasn't really expecting power to be a potential issue with the WJ. I know with the stock radiator cooling could have been, but I've also upgraded that (thicker core, all-AL, plus big dual-e-fan setup and shroud). I intend to add an auxiliary trans cooler (in addition to the in-radiator cooler) if I end up with a trailer.

I suppose the potential that I'll find power to be an issue is another good reason for me to rent one before I make the leap, for sure. I have access to a small trailer I could throw my RZR on (my other trailers are WAY too big for a WJ) and be probably around ~2,500lbs so I might just have to give that a try and make a run up Highway 80 to Donner Summit and see if the whole plan might just be a non-starter anyway.

Would you run the trails I posted above with your setup (since you're a CA guy, the ones with the WJ are Pardoe trail, or at least that area... the one with my truck is the road in to Lake Tamarack)? I would also like to setup a base camp, then go explore and do the "hard" stuff, but sometimes there are trails like those just to get to where I'd want to establish base camp.

I agree about slowing down not being a big issue. I've had various "toy hauler" trailers, box trailers, and RVs with trailers over the years and long ago somebody told me: whenever you get behind the wheel, remember you're on vacation - don't rush it. I try to stick with that mentality. I'm used to being in the slow lane, comfortable backing trailers up, etc. so I think that part of things will be minimally annoying for me.

Thanks for the input!!!

For fun, here's how my WJ sits now (pics above are old):


-TJ

 

[tjZ06]

No. Not really. Forest service roads and such mostly is what they are good for. Nothing to technical. But they are great for getting to the area you want to explore and using as a base camp for further exploration. Kind of an in between a camp trailer and a RTT.

We have it mostly because my wife cant climb a ladder with her knee braces and canes, and crawling I to a ground tent is very difficult.

This allows us to do mild trails and camp.

Gotcha, thanks for your input. Even though I would use it as a "base camp" mostly, the NoBo is just too big for my use-case and not going to work for the trails I have in mind.

The good ( I sleep indoors and could care less about the elements), the bad (quality trailers aren't cheap), the ugly (there is no ugly)

Sounds about right! Thanks.

-TJ

 

[Billiebob]

Do those NoBos hold up to *real* off road use? I'm not talking the Rubicon or anything, but what about trials something like:

View attachment 187293
View attachment 187294
View attachment 187295
View attachment 187300

-TJ

Towing on something like that just means you need to set/place the trailer wheels as carefully as you plan where the front tires go. And factory 4LO might not be slow enough. But asking someone "will it survive" is impossible to answer. Survival is up to the driver. Some people can break anything.

That said, the NoBo is an entry level, kinda cool, maybe capable forestry road camper. BUT the trails you show indicate your rear tires might climb rocks you missed with the front tires..... and the trailer regardless of who is driving is going to high center and drag over the rock.... or hang up and destroy itself. Regardless of the trailer it would take a skilled driver to get thru unscathed.

 

[Billiebob]

heres a cool starting point, an old semi sleeper
be hard to find a more durable, solid body