New or used for first trailer? What to look for, what to avoid?

[Civilguy]

Originally Posted by Jon in AZ

You can order new cushion covers from Scamp, replace carpet, make new curtains, and steam clean the headliner to appease your wife.

Did you say "please" your wife Jon?

[Jon in AZ]

Originally Posted by Civilguy

Did you say "please" your wife Jon?

It's complicated...

[vintageracer]

I suggest you seriously consider finding a somewhat local to you (300 mile radius) "Egg" trailer rally that has a "Trailer Trash Tour" where you can tour some of the participants trailers all in one spot and get a real look at many of the different "Egg" trailers, what people do to their trailers, see the different sizes/styles of trailers and most importantly TALK to the owners about their likes and dislikes about the trailer they currently own.

No Pressure, No Salesman and really good time spent learning about "Egg" trailers from your new friends!

[thrifty bill]

Yes, even though we started RV camping in the mid 1980s, we decided to go small with a molded FG trailer two years ago.

We ended up going "too small" for us, so we are on our second molded trailer. I really wanted to see how it worked for us before dropping serious money into a trailer. I guess it worked good enough as we upgraded to a 19 foot Escape.

I think we will stick with this size for a while. Some of the things that led us to the 19 foot Escape is getting a big bed (queen size) and a big four person dinette separate from the bed. Sooner or later, the weather will be bad, so having room inside the trailer so you can just hang out for a while is ideal.

If you have never RV'd before, figuring out what works best for you can be challenging! Bed size is important, and most FG trailers have small beds. The old standard was 44 inches wide, thats barely over a twin bed size! The longer the trip, the more it matters. Our last trip was a month. Our next trip will be 3 to 4 weeks.

Pretty much all molded trailers are small, some are really small! Molded trailers tend to be narrower than stick built trailers, and shorter too! Its an acquired taste! Our earlier experience was with a medium sized fifth wheel. We ended up with a one ton dually to pull that trailer. We didn't want to go that crazy this time, that led us to molded trailers.

FWIW, our small molded trailer was a 17 foot Casita, which is not very small in the world of molded trailers, but too small for us.

BTW, our last trip we camped at this place in Idaho. City owned RV park, right on the Snake River, great location.


- Riverside RV Park - City of Heyburn

[Gilda]

Another way to try out trailers before purchasing is to "borrow" one for overnight. Perhaps you know someone with a trailer or you'll meet someone at a "trailer meet". If they trust you, you could borrow/rent their trailer and maybe even their tow vehicle too. At the least, you could ask for a "spin" around the campground with the owner so they could show you how to tow, park and set up. We have a couple places in California that rent out Scamps. There are some trailers, usually immobile, posted on vacation rental sites such as AirBNB. There are even RV sharing sites like AirBNB. Think creatively.

As for us, we are very glad to have purchased a 13' Scamp in 2011. While we were limited to this size because we have a Subaru Legacy sedan, we have been very happy with out trailer. Here we are, 6 years out, and only now do we experience minor maintenance issues. We will keep the trailer and upgrade our tow vehicle to a Subaru Crosstrek soon because it has higher clearance, can drive off-road and looks "cool".

[Famous Frank]

Now there is a loaded question. Although I don't yet own a travel trailer, I have trailered for many years and tens of thousands of miles. What I've found and many folks don't think of is the shape of the trailer. I have towed many trailers in the 1200 to 1500 lb weight. Usually flat bed car trailers, boats or utility trailers. All with no problem behind my Toyota Matrix, also with a 1500 lb limit. Hook up and RV and it's a totally different story because the RV has the aerodynamics of a refrigerator with the door open. The width and height make a huge difference in the vehicle being able to tow the RV. Wind resistance is unbelievable!

If you can afford a new or nearly new RV, go for it. You can then enjoy traveling and camping and not fixing, repairing, and paying for repairs, especially if you are not mechanically inclined. Just my 2 cents. I'm with your wife!

Maybe I'm weird but if I purchased a used one, I'd then want to change out all the cushions and mattresses for new ones. Right away, a new chore and a big expense. Life is short and the last I heard, it's getting shorter all the time.

Frank

[honda03842]

I'm the Outlier. We towed a Scamp 16 or equivalent for 7 years all over North America with our 2004, 4cylinder, manual transmission Honda CRV without a single issue. It proved a good tow vehicle and amazingly reliable. We traded it in with 250,000 miles and never a single driveline repair.

Really it was a great combo and got great mileage. It obviously was not a speed demon but easily kept up with traffic.

It should easily handle a Scamp 13.

[Evergreengirl]

Lots of good advice here and I will only add that if you decide to buy used, be skeptical of many sellers' claims as to the weight of their trailers. A lot of folks have never actually weighed them and are really just guessing or going by wildly optimistic manufacturers' specs (which are often for bare bones trailers with no "optional equipment" like a stove or fridge). Check out the "Trailer weights in the real world" thread to get a more accurate idea of what these little trailers weigh.

[Mitzi Agnew-Giles]

heck out YouTube for videos on What To Look For when Buying a USED RV. Absolutely scared me into only going for new. We bought our new to us tow vehicle several months after ordering the LilSnoozy. First MAJOR camping t rip was the month of June from S FL to Nova Scotia and Newfoundland. 4 cats and DH in a 17 foot Snoozy!! Except for discovering the cats knew how to slide the plastic cover barring the inside of the trailer from the screen door handle, all was good. Of course, I enforce the 3-4 outfit and do laundry as needed rule.

[rbryan]

Back in the day lots of folks towed pretty much anything with anything. I recall my parents towing a 60's Aristocrat with an old Plymouth. There is no way that combo was within the towing capacity limits, but they did it anyway.

Some still do. I've seen CRVs towing trailers as large as a 17 foot Casita. When you broach the subject, the response is usually along the lines that there hasn't been a problem.

I'm in the camp that believes it isn't about whether a specific person encountered a problem with a particular trailer and tow - it's about whether or not you are within the capacity limits established by the manufacturer.

There are a number of reasons why exceeding the limits is a bad idea, most of which have been debated ad nauseum here and on other forums. You decide whether the capacity limits are really limits or just suggestions.