Towing with a minivan

[lexi]

Hi I'm looking for a camper to tow with a minivan and I have a family of four. I have been looking at a Trailmanor but it seems to be a little too heavy to tow and I was wondering if I had other options. Thank you for any responses.

[Robin G]

lexi, do you know your Van's tow capacity? You also have to take into consideration that some vehicles tow caps go down for every passenger in the vehicle. Check your Owners manual all the info should be there, then let us know and we can suggest a trailer that might meet your family's needs but at the very least your vehicles needs.

[Roger C H]

Well you have come to the right place

Eggs are towable with small cars that can tow 2000#. Look in the owner's manual of your vehicle.

There are many discussions in this website about weight and towing capacity.

I personally feel that 1500# capacity is insufficient.

With 4 people in your family, you may want larger than a 13', although there are 13' eggs which will sleep 2 adults and 2 children.

Good luck in your search! You can start by looking here: http://www.trilliumrv.com/

[lexi]

My tow rating is 3500 pounds. What is better the egg camper or the scamp?

Well you have come to the right place

Eggs are towable with small cars that can tow 2000#. Look in the owner's manual of your vehicle.

There are many discussions in this website about weight and towing capacity.

I personally feel that 1500# capacity is insufficient.

With 4 people in your family, you may want larger than a 13', although there are 13' eggs which will sleep 2 adults and 2 children.

Good luck in your search! You can start by looking here: http://www.trilliumrv.com/

[Frederick L. Simson]

What kind of Minivan do you have?

I tow with a 2003 Honda Odyssey LX Minivan

Originally posted by 2003 ODYSSEY Owner's Manual
Towing Equipment and Accessories
Weight Distributing Hitch
If the total trailer weight is more than 1,850 Lbs (840 Kg), you must also use a weight-distributing hitch. This device transfers weight from the vehicle's rear wheels to the front wheels, and to the trailer's wheels. Carefully follow the hitch maker's instructions for proper installation and adjustment.
Sway Control
If the total trailer weight exceeds 2,000 Lbs (900 Kg), you should install a sway control device to minimize swaying that can occur in crosswinds and in normal and emergency driving maneuvers. Your trailer maker can tell you what kind of sway control you need and how to install it.
Trailer Brakes
Honda recommends that any trailer having a total weight of 1,000 Lbs (450 Kg) or more be equipped with its own electric or surge-type brakes.
Total trailer weight:
The maximum weight you can tow depends on several factors. See chart below for limits for your towing situation. Towing a load that is too heavy can seriously affect your handling and performance.
Tongue Load:
The weight that the tongue of a fully loaded trailer puts on the hitch should be approximately 10 percent of the trailer weight. Too little tongue load can make the trailer unstable and cause it to sway. Too much tongue load reduces front-tire traction and steering control.
Maximum Total Trailer Weight:
Number of Occupants-----------------------------------Equipped with transmission cooler
Including Driver*-----------------------------------------and power steering fluid cooler
-----2-------------------------------------------------------------3,500 Lbs (1,580 Kg)
-----3-------------------------------------------------------------3,350 Lbs (1,520 Kg)
-----4-------------------------------------------------------------3,200 Lbs (1,450 Kg)
-----5-------------------------------------------------------------3,050 Lbs (1,380 Kg)
-----6-------------------------------------------------------------2,900 Lbs (1,310 Kg)
-----7---------------------------------------------------------------650 Lbs (295 Kg)**
*Based on 150 Lbs (70 Kg) per occupant
**Weight limited to avoid exceeding rear GAWR
Gross Vehicle Weight Rating (GVWR)
The maximum allowable weight of the vehicle, all occupants, all cargo, and the tongue load is:
5,665 Lbs (2,570 Kg)
Gross Axle Weight Rating (GAWR)
The maximum allowable weights on the vehicle axles are:
2,833 Lbs (1,285 Kg) on the front axle, and
2,845 Lbs (1,290 Kg) on the rear axle.
Gross Combined Weight Rating (GCWR)
The maximum allowable weight of the fully loaded vehicle and trailer is:
8,265 Lbs (3,750 Kg) with the proper hitch and fluid coolers.

The factory installed Hitch receiver has a label that claims a limit of 3500 pound total trailer weight and 350 pound hitch weight. HOWEVER that only applies if there are only 2 persons (and no luggage) in the minivan. According to the chart above, your family of 4 drops the Trailer's total weight limit to 3,200 Lbs... and luggage would drop it even further.

[lexi]

I have a 2005 Sienna.

[Roger C H]

I said somewhere else on this website that I prefer as much fiberglass as possible because when you have wood, you have seams and joints and seams and joints will loosen over time.

Also, some FG mfgr's will attach interior features by bolting through the fiberglass shell. This makes places for water to leak into the trailer and the bolts conduct heat and cold so that you can get condensation on them in cold weather.

Others will use wood bonded to the inside of the shell with wood structure for strength. There are some that use metal, but again it is bolted. I see these loosening up eventually.

Wood looks nice, but I dislike its use by itself in structural applications. This is what 'stickies' do, and you know how we feel about them. he he.

Wood is used on all FG eggs around windows and in floors etc. This is okay because the wood is glassed to the shell.

[Tom Trostel]

Lexi,
You will find a great amount of information on Toyota Sienna towing at the link below.

http://siennachat.com/forum/index.php?PHPS...&board=10.0

[Robin G]

Personally I love the EggCamper, but that being said I don't know that they make it with bunks. Where the Scamp does have a bunk option as well as the Casita Spirit dlx has the bunk option. Are you looking to buy new or used? 13ft or 17ft? How old are your kids? As we all stated extra passengers take the tow cap down, luggage, bikes, camping chairs, ice chest, etc etc etc only add to that cap going down.

Asking about an EggCamper makes you think your looking at the 17fter's so you will have to be really careful not to exceed your weight caps. You want to have wonderful camping adventures with your family but it's best to do it safely.

Can you tell us what options you would like, such as bathroom, air, etc?
I would suggest maybe an older egg as they tend to start off weighing less than the newer ones.



To give you an idea, our 17ft Casita Freedom Dlx weighted in at 2800 pounds empty. We have a full bath, air, and then just the normal Casita stuff. I assume I hit (your) tow capacity on any given trip. My truck pulls 6500 pounds so I am well with in my tow cap. But with just two of us, all the crap it takes to go such as Lawn chairs, ice chest, food, clothing, lanterns, tool box, fishing gear I bet we are pushing 3200 easy..........

[Bruce Thomas]

My 2001 Chrysler Voyager with a 4cyl doesnt even notice my uhaul 13 much.... I believe i'm over it's ratings alot though . Bruce

[Bill MacDermod]

If room is a must I would go for the eggcamper, They are 6" wider than either the Scamp or the casita and very open. I must confess though, with a young family you just can't beat a popup with their big beds and the room inside. Once you get to be an empty nester its time for a fiberglass cuz we can get up several times a night without having to tromp 200 yards in the dark with a flashlight, I say that because like many we started in a tent in the late 60's and when we could afford camper the stickies were too expensive and the popups were a convenient between and even though there was a tremendous amount of canvas it was a true camping feel, the kids loved it, we slept the 2 kids on one big bed and we still had a big bed on the other end. great memories. Now we're making more by spending whats left of the kids inheritence, yayyy . We just returned from a 9 week jaunt through the South west and it was a very memorable trip. Next year we will either do around the Great Lakes or go back to Nova Scotia, haven't been there since the 1970's, bout time for a repeat

[lexi]

I read my manual and it said I could only tow 2000 pounds without the towing package on the van. I don't know why its so less aftermark, maybe it has something to do with the transmission. I'm looking at an Aliner or a Chalet since it does get cool at night. Does anyone know how they are? Thank you.

[Ray N]

I have an EggCamper and have to say that it really isn't made for a family of four. I guess if the kids are little two of them could sleep under the regular bed platform, but you would be stepping over them whenever you got out of bed, (see picture).
For four people, and if you need a bathroom, the 19' Escape would be great, but it might be pushing your towing capabilities.