2008 Kia Rondo EX V6 & Scamp 13' Standard Layout 2 Big Bed - Will it work?

[rdickens]

Dean,

I think that getting started now is a great idea. By the time that you are ready to retire, after some experience, you will have a better idea what
you truly want and need in a rig.

I think that your Rondo could easily handle a minimal Scamp13 Layout1
like ours, but I think that you might be unhappy with the towing experience
of a Rondo pulling a Layout 2 with all of the proposed equipment that you
listed. ( I also noticed that you didn't list the "option 1" equipment .... refrigerator, screen door, silverware drawer, etc.)

I thought that our 2011 CRV is/was just "adequate" for pulling our Layout 1
with much less of the "heavy stuff".

The CRV has a tow rating of 1500 lbs, 180 hp @ 6800 rpm, and torque
of 163 lb-ft @ 4400 rpm.

Although Kia apparently rates your Rondo as capable of towing 2000 lbs,
unless I am mistaken, the Rondo horsepower and torque are not very
different than our CRV (182 hp @ 6000 rpm & 182 lb-ft @ 4000 rpm).
I guess that the Kia has a sturdier frame and suspension?

By comparison, I think that a Honda Pilot and a 2014 Ford Escape have
these horsepower and torque ratings:
2008 Honda Pilot = 244 hp @5750 rpm .... 240 lb-ft @ 4500 rpm
2014 Ford Escape 2.0L EB = 240 hp @ 5500 rpm .. 270 lb-ft @ 3000 rpm

I would suggest eliminating the AC (but prep the trailer for AC in the
future), the furnace (an electric space heater is more than enough), the
awning (a CLAM Traveler screen room is cheaper and sturdier), the power
range hood, the TV antenna (a separate Mohu Leaf antenna is sufficient),
the 2nd propane tank (not really needed for most cases), the sink in the
bathroom (the kitchen sink is only a couple of steps away), the propane
gauge (they aren't all that accurate - pour boiling water down the side of
the tank and look for the frost/condensation line), and the Scamp-supplied
wheel on jack (the one that Scamp wanted to sell had no pin to lock it
onto the jack like the footpad had. You can buy one that pins on at
Camping World or other trailer supply places.)

The AC unit that Scamp uses for all sizes of their trailers is 13,000 BTU.
A fellow that you met at LBL told me that his 13,000 BTU unit on a
Scamp 13 "would freeze out an Eskimo". At LBL, you missed a demo
on how to temporarily install a 5,000 BTU window AC into the back sliding
window of a Scamp 13 or 16. You would not travel with it mounted there,
but you would be able to mount it and use it for those times when you are
camping for a while in high heat and humidity ... or maybe just use
a portable AC unit from Home Depot or Lowes.)

Scamp wanted about $900 for an awning. We paid just over $200 for
the CLAM Traveler Screen room/tent. On July 18th of this year at 4:00 AM,
an unexpected storm front came through our campsite. A friend had left
his awning up with the poles staked into the ground. Unfortunately, his
door and the awning were facing into the 65 mph wind and it ripped the
stakes out of the ground, threw his awning up over his trailer, and almost
completely destroyed the aluminum poles and supports. Our CLAM screen
tent stood up to the wind and was completely undamaged.

Unless you plan to camp in pretty cold weather without any electricity, an
electric space heater is usually a better option. Omitting the furnace gives
back some precious storage space in a 13 foot trailer. For cold weather and
non-electric sites, there are 20 degree sleeping bags or some "Mr Buddy"
propane heaters.

For configuring a Scamp13 trailer for towing behind a "just adequate" tow
vehicle, the valuable questions become: 1) How many times will we go
camping per year? and 2) How many times would the "whatever-option"
be truly needed or at least highly desirable.

Many of us consider the 3-speed in+out Fantastic Fan (or Maxx-Fan or
other) to be essential. With it, pulling night air in through the windows
or blowing air down on the bed, you may find that AC is rarely needed.

For storing clothes and gear, get all of the cabinets that you can. You may
also need some fairly flat storage tubs (Rubbermaid?) with tight-fitting lids
for storing gear under the 54" bed or (in dinette-mode) for taking outside
and sliding underneath the trailer and out of the elements.

Just my two cents worth based on our recent 2 years of experience. Since
your wants and needs could be entirely different than ours, as always, YMMV.

Good luck with your decisions!

Ray

[rdickens]

BTW -

It was late last night and I realized this morning that I hadn't explained the
the recommendation against the power range hood.

It isn't only about the weight. It is about "usable" counter space. (We got
the fiberglass backsplash panel behind the stove instead.)

Scamp 13 trailers (and especially the 54" bed models) are very short of
usable counter space. That is reason for getting a stove top cover and a
really stable sink cover. We put an electric Cuisinart 4-cup stainless steel
coffee maker on the stove top cover and/or an Oster convection toaster oven there.

I suspected that the powered range hood would hang down into that space
and make it difficult or impossible to put the convection/toaster oven there
..... or a microwave oven .... or anything else.

The stove top cover that Scamp supplies is really taller than what's needed
to protect the burners and knobs. (TomK put his stove top cover on a table
saw and shortened it a bit to reclaim some of that wasted vertical space.
I will either be doing the same or building a new stove top cover out of
some wood scraps around here.)

The sink cover that Scamp supplies slides around on the sink and is a
bit unstable. Tom drilled holes in his and attached some rubber feet to
stabilize it. I cheated and simply bought an adjustable Camco sink cover
from Amazon.com. We sometimes open the silverware drawer and place
the old Scamp-supplied sink cover on top of the drawer edges to provide
a little more food prep counter space.

My wife would like a fold-down or fold-up counter extension on the
stove-side of that cabinet that would hang out over the sofa bench.
With Layout 2, you will have a fiberglass wall there and wouldn't have
that option.

With a 13 foot trailer, we have learned to view every inch of space as
precious. It's maybe a bit like the HGTV show "Tiny House - Big Living".

As many others before us have found out, with a 13 foot trailer, it is
all about organization and reducing unnecessary items and weight.

Although we have more "stuff" that we could take, we try to anticipate
our requirements and limit ourselves to pretty much only what is needed
for the circumstances of each individual trip.

Good luck on your decisions.

Ray