Survey/Question of 13 ft Trailer Owners

[Steven Tonnesen]

I recently bought a U-Haul 13 which I tow with my 1992 Volvo 940 Turbo Sedan. I love this trailer! It is built solid like a truck. If you can find a U-Haul, buy it, but watch out for rotted floors! It has no bathroom, but came with a porta-potty, which I have not yet used. (I use WAG bags instead and highly recommend them) The previous owner installed a window mount 5000 btu AC in a piece of plywood replacing the port window. This works pretty well although a trailer this size could probably do with a 1000 btu unit even in Florida.

My previous trailer was a Scamp 16 that did have a shower/toilet combination. I like this one much more. It tows more easily of course, the only slight disappointment being the lack of a front window prevents me from using the rear view mirror to see through the trailer as to what is behind me. I have not traveled much with it yet, as my primary purpose in getting it was just to have a job-related place to stay a couple nights per week, but I'm looking forward to some Florida camping this winter.

Caution though... these are not designed for large and heavy people. The dinette is a tight fit getting in and out. I am 5'9" 175 lbs and have no problems, but the former owner told me that several heavier prospective buyers had come to look at it and could not even get into it at all.

For those owning a 13, and towing it with smaller, less powerful, tow vehicle*, I would be interested in your impressions regarding performance, fuel economy (maybe mpg towing/not towing), and handling for the 13 footers. Please mention what you're using, of course!

Anyone downsizing like I am considering will hopefully chime in w/ comments how they handled the adjustment as well.

I am considering a unit with no bathroom or shower (use of flushing porta-potty), and having a couch (sitting and eating) as well as a dinette (permanent bed) such as a Casita Patriot Standard. I want a furnace, fridge, and an air conditioner, and a place to install a small 700watt microwave in addition to a 2-burner stove.

I tend to drive more than I "camp," with enroute nights spent at truck stops, WalMarts, and Rest Areas, and favor boondocking at relatively primative NFs whenever possible.

Bob
*TVs considered:
My current Jeep Wrangler, my Volvo 740 wagon, or perhaps a small 4X4 SUV like a Rav4 or CR-V

[Steven Tonnesen]

By the way, if you want a vehicle with a great turning radius, get a Volvo. I have a '92 940 and the small turning radius is amazing. It really helps when backing up.

Booker -

**The ability to do a uie at the end of a dead end road never gets old!**

Off topic, but THAT is my biggest complaint about my F-150. I need 1/2 a football field (NFL, OR CFL - take your pick) to pull a U-turn. The turning radius SUX!!!

ok - rant off.

[jim munson]

I would buy (if my driveway was longer) a 16' Casita with the 2 captains chairs and side dinette.
I hate dealing with sewer and water stuff but Casitas probably more comfortable. I have had a Scamp for 9 years (13') and wished I could get out of the bad weather manyatime and have a comfy reading spot.

[floyd]

I would buy (if my driveway was longer) a 16' Casita with the 2 captains chairs and side dinette.
I hate dealing with sewer and water stuff but Casitas probably more comfortable. I have had a Scamp for 9 years (13') and wished I could get out of the bad weather manyatime and have a comfy reading spot.

how's this for reading comfort?It's the wraparound conversion on our 13 Scamp. [Eggy-Sue]

[Roger H]

I tend to drive more than I "camp," with enroute nights spent at truck stops, WalMarts, and Rest Areas, and favor boondocking at relatively primative NFs whenever possible.

Bob
*TVs considered:
My current Jeep Wrangler, my Volvo 740 wagon, or perhaps a small 4X4 SUV like a Rav4 or CR-V

Bob, over the years I've owned and towed two Scamp 13's, a UHaul 13, a Trillium 4500, a Scamp 16 CD side-dinette, a Burro 17, a Love Bug II 18', a Bigfoot 17, and a Bigfoot 25. I've towed with an '80 Dodge Omni, a '79 Jeep CJ-7, a '77 Volvo 245, and more recently a '92 Toyotoa 4 cyl 4WD short wheelbase compact truck, a '94 Toyota 6 cyl extended cab 3.0l V64WD Compact Truck, a '97 T100 3.4l extended cab 4WD, an '02 Tundra 3.4l extended cab 4WD, a Y2K Ford Excursion 4WD with a V10, and my current '07 Titan V8 with a 9500 lb tow capacity.

I've combined a variety of these tow vehicles and trailers.

Let me make some overarching generalizations from this experience.

First is that the larger tow vehicles are much more comfortable towing. Second is that the Excursion got essentially the same mileage towing a small trailer as did the Toyota compact trucks with the 4cyl and 6 cyl engines. Naturally, all the 4 cyl vehicles were able to tow were pretty much the 13' trailers, but I was amazed at how poor the gas mileage was with a towed load.

I towed my first Scamp 13 with my CJ-7 for many, many miles. I was young and foolish. Knowing what I know now, I'd NEVER tow anything with a Jeep CJ or YJ... or for that matter tow with anything with a wheelbase of less than about 120 inches. If you're towing with something less than that, trailer brakes are a MUST on any size trailer.

So... my recommendation is to tow with a tow vehicle of adequate size and specifications to tow the rig you want. You may find something that always gets 15mpg, both towing and not, but that is comfortable and has adequate power. If you're towing all the time, why get a small tow vehicle that may get 30 mpg commuting, but only gets 15mpg towing anyway and is inadequate to handle the load, small, has less cargo capacity and less comfortable?

Your mileage may vary.

Roger

[J.S.Lahm]

I presently use a 17ft Casita for my travels, but because I normally go solo now (small trailers are too confining for my wife), I am looking at downsizing to a 13ft unit to allow me to use a smaller tow vehicle for variety (like my Jeep Wrangler) or fuel economy.

For those owning a 13, and towing it with smaller, less powerful, tow vehicle*, I would be interested in your impressions regarding performance, fuel economy (maybe mpg towing/not towing), and handling for the 13 footers. Please mention what you're using, of course!

Anyone downsizing like I am considering will hopefully chime in w/ comments how they handled the adjustment as well.

I am considering a unit with no bathroom or shower (use of flushing porta-potty), and having a couch (sitting and eating) as well as a dinette (permanent bed) such as a Casita Patriot Standard. I want a furnace, fridge, and an air conditioner, and a place to install a small 700watt microwave in addition to a 2-burner stove.

I tend to drive more than I "camp," with enroute nights spent at truck stops, WalMarts, and Rest Areas, and favor boondocking at relatively primative NFs whenever possible.

Bob
*TVs considered:
My current Jeep Wrangler, my Volvo 740 wagon, or perhaps a small 4X4 SUV like a Rav4 or CR-V

I tow a 13' U Haul with an '08 Honda Element, trailer follows along perfectly, only know it is back there going up hills & then no big deal. I get about 22 mpg, observe speed limits, etc. Element tow limit 1500 lbs, H Haul [at] 900. Just made first longer trip, only issue is backing up [at] night as I can't see where i am going! Will get a couple reflectors to put at my "traget". Other than that no problems at all. I am interested in modifying for more comfort, front bench/bunk not real comfortable for either intended use. I kept bunk up for storage. Made bed of dinette, kept it that way, cooked/ate outside plan on modifying to half unmaking bed in a.m. so i can use table in rain. Have no furnace, potty or stove, will install new stove top soon. Have old a/c in 1/2 rear window, thinking of adding top a/c unit & replaceing missing solar unit. Anyone replaced U Haul solar units? Haven't looked into other models as I am at top of my towing limit now. I will usually go somewhere & stay a bit, can always stop along road as well, if need be. Rretire in 33 days - then will be out there more & farther!!! Jan

[bobinyelm]

Thanks all for the great comments!

I think I am beginning to think that I am NOT crazy for wanting to downsize, possibly getting a 13ft and keeping the 17 while I make up my mind between them.

One would not think that the difference between 13 and 17 is a big jump (especially when I admit that at one point I owned a 32ft Kit Road Ranger w/ a 14ft slide-out!), but a 17 obviously requires a whole-step-up in tow vehicle to handle the extra 1000-1200 pounds of towed weight, and double-or-more hitch weight of the smaller 13ft trailer.

Right now my main TV is a 1-ton Ford Powerstroke diesel van (that I originally bought for the 10,000# Road Ranger*), which I love for its interior room, and because it gets 18mpg towing my "heavy" 17ft Casita, but it's noisy and not much fun after unhooking to drive solo, plus it won't get me off-road. I also have a Cherokee 4X4, and while a lot of folks use 'em for 17ft Casitas, it seems marginal (but would do the 13 fine), though it rides rough and gets crappy fuel economy even empty (18 or so), and worse towing (14).

The Volvo would make a very reliable, comfortable TV for highway use (long trips where I would take a 13 as a mobile bedroom), and it sounds like even with barely over 100hp, it does the job (though if I could find a mint 745/945 turbo I'd buy it in a heartbeat).

Now, I guess I need to start looking around to see what I can find in a 13ft class. With the economy, maybe some decent buys will pop up.

Please don't stop the comments! I love reading them and have learned a bit from every one I've read here. You guys are GREAT!!

Bob
*One tow of the Road Ranger told me that it was just too much of a hassle to ever tow except for seasonal use!

[CliveAlive]

...
(though if I could find a mint 745/945 turbo I'd buy it in a heartbeat).
...

Me too!

[Michelle A]

Hi There,
I have a 2007 Subaru Forester XT (4cyl turbo). I was very concerned about excessive wear and tear on the Forester, and did a lot of research before we bought our old 13 foot boler. After travelling over 6,000 kilometers with the pair... I'm very impressed. Gas mileage is great. I sometimes forget that we're towing a trailer sometimes. We keep our speed at about 110 kms/hour, for the sake of our old boler... believe me the car is capable of much more. We can pass other vehicles at speeds well over that, if need be.

Having given up a 15 foot sticky and retiring our old chevy truck for a the boler... it has been an adjustment for sure. I've learned to pack "creatively", the bed size is a bit tight for two people, and I really wish we had a front dinette because I hate setting up the bed every morning for breakfast. But... it's not intolerable and we've saved a lot of money on gas. If I could afford it, I'd have a new Trillium, Scamp or Casita in a second. The extra amenities are well worth the extra cash. Alas... my 34 year old boler will have to do for now, and try it's best to keep up with the speedy Forester without falling to pieces first.

I'm a big Subaru fan, and I'm glad that so many Subaru owners wrote in. They seem to have a better than most towing capacity... around 2,400 pounds. The Subaru and 13 foot combo seems to work well.

Cheers!

[ronsmith100]

nt

[Bruce Thomas]

I just picked up a uhaul 13 and plan on using my 2001 chrysler voyager.2.5 4cyl..in cooler months and my 67 Ranchero for nice weather. I think maybe the voyager will struggle a tad on hills etc..we'll see.....the Ranchero however....will laugh at hills etc.

[David & Leslie]

" You may find something that always gets 15mpg, both towing and not, but that is comfortable and has adequate power. "

I agree with Roger's comment here. We towed our Scamp13 many thousands of miles with a 6 cyl. Mazda MPV. It worked great (as long as we were savvy about weight) and we got 15+ mpg when towing; without the Egg we averaged 24 mpg. The MPV labored a bit on steep grades, but we managed with gearing down, etc.

As the Mazda (like us) began to show it's age, I lobbied hard for a full-sized van made in the USA. I had one for my commercial cleaning service years ago and loved the cargo space. Since we full-time in our Scamp, packing our life with us on the road, a tad more space was desireable. However, DH was askeered of that big V8 for fuel 'non-economy'.

Fast forward to June - Alert the media ... we did buy a slightly used Ford E350 Had searched everywhere for a used E150 ... not to be found, and this deal was too good. So, now we have "Overkyl" and I'm not afraid of hills anymore !!! But the very BEST part is ... we only dropped about 1 mpg towing with this new tug, which pleased DH no end. The flip side, of course, is without the Egg, we STILL get only 14 mpg - oh well. He has also come to love that the back of the van is now orderly and neat, no longer resembling the Clampetts on their way to Beverly Hills The seats are comfy and we're not bothered by the 'truck-like' ride or handling. So far, so good.

Bottom line - it isn't fun if it isn't comfortable. Good luck in your search - life is a 13footer is terrific! L 'n D

[Bill White]

I presently use a 17ft Casita for my travels, but because I normally go solo now (small trailers are too confining for my wife), I am looking at downsizing to a 13ft unit to allow me to use a smaller tow vehicle for variety (like my Jeep Wrangler) or fuel economy.

For those owning a 13, and towing it with smaller, less powerful, tow vehicle*, I would be interested in your impressions regarding performance, fuel economy (maybe mpg towing/not towing), and handling for the 13 footers. Please mention what you're using, of course!

Anyone downsizing like I am considering will hopefully chime in w/ comments how they handled the adjustment as well.

I am considering a unit with no bathroom or shower (use of flushing porta-potty), and having a couch (sitting and eating) as well as a dinette (permanent bed) such as a Casita Patriot Standard. I want a furnace, fridge, and an air conditioner, and a place to install a small 700watt microwave in addition to a 2-burner stove.

I tend to drive more than I "camp," with enroute nights spent at truck stops, WalMarts, and Rest Areas, and favor boondocking at relatively primative NFs whenever possible.

Bob
*TVs considered:
My current Jeep Wrangler, my Volvo 740 wagon, or perhaps a small 4X4 SUV like a Rav4 or CR-V

I'm new to the list and the 13' Scamp. Pulling it with a Volvo 745 5spd. non turbo. Headwinds mean using 3rd or 4th gear and 18mpg. No winds 5th gear 22mpg. Normal mpg is 30-32.
Bill

[Raya]

Hi Bill,

I tow with a Volvo red block too A 240 wagon with the B230F 4-cylinder like yours. Automatic transmission though 5-speed - I wish!!

I think my car makes a pretty good tow vehicle; very steady and stable feeling. I imagine the long wheelbase helps a lot, and I understand that the engine has a good bit of torque even though it's only 114 hp. It's no speedster on the hills though, as you say. Would be nicer with that 5-speed!

I haven't checked my mileage towing yet, although I would think your 18 or so would be about right. I get about 26-27 normally (auto trans takes a few mpg).

Works for me as the car is my daily driver, so the hit to mileage when towing is but a small percentage of the miles driven.

Raya

[Aids10]

Originally Posted by floyd

how's this for reading comfort?It's the wraparound conversion on our 13 Scamp. [Eggy-Sue]

Me Likey!