I'm wondering... Does anyone know if a camper exists than is 845 lbs or less? My car is only rated for that much (wonderfully fuel efficient) but doesn't have much towing capacity.
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I'm wondering... Does anyone know if a camper exists than is 845 lbs or less? My car is only rated for that much (wonderfully fuel efficient) but doesn't have much towing capacity.
Sounds like a fried tranny waiting to happen.
I think it's called a tent :)
What type of car and is that pulling weight or tong weight
look into motor cycle tent campers, no fried tranny!
A'van Weekender - Not sure how many you'll find in N.A.Quote:
Originally Posted by FishingMonkey
Microlite Trailers - Multiple options
ProLite Eco12 & ProLite Mini13 - Multiple options
Taylor Coach Compact Trailers - Multiple options
A Liner Lil Demon - Discontinued, may find used
Don't forget to factor in the weight of passengers and other gear when calculating what your vehicle is rated for.Quote:
Originally Posted by FishingMonkey
Not sure what car you have but I recommend motorcycle campers because of their very low profile and little drag do to wind resistance, and are very light, you will still get you great gas mileage.
Had a friend with a compact car that was rated to tow many of them full top campers and he fried his transmission going up a steep grade, they will heat your little transmission up quick. It also pulled his car all over the road on windy days going down highway, I recommend whatever you get to tow before you buy.
That's a good piece of advice right there.Quote:
Originally Posted by darren123
You never mentioned what you wanted out of the camper.
I just bought one and wanted to go about as light as possible with the following amenities:
1) Hard shell. Did not want a pop up for ease of being able to pull over a sleep with minimal setup. This has already been valuable on a few trips. Similarly didn't want a tent trailer/hybrid. I've spent lots of time tenting and still will, but the dampness/noise aspect wasn't appealing for a trailer.
2) Fill size bed; Queen or Double
3) Small table for eating
4) Toilet w/shower
5) Sink/fridge
Everyone has a different definition of a travel trailer, this was mine and these are what I consider to be minimal for a 'mobile-home'
The ultralights having all these qualities were 1800-2200 lbs (dry). A non ultralight was generally 3300-3500 lbs (dry).
I was in the market for a tow vehicle as well. If I went non-ultralight, I was looking at a medium to large truck or large SUV to comfortably pull it. Non-ultralights were much easier to come by and cheaper used, however the initial cost of the vehicle was higher, so was fuel, and I live in the city, so a smaller vehicle was desired.
The ultralights were much harder to come by (especially used and $$$$), but I held out and decided on 2013 Ford Escape 2.0 Ecoboost 4WD. With tow package, rated for 3500 lbs.
Luckily I found this trailer locally. Not super cheap, but only 2200 lbs dry and all the features I wanted.
https://fbcdn-sphotos-b-a.akamaihd.n...47548053_n.jpg
It's been great for my partner and I. My escape gets ~9.0-9.5 l/100 km (26-28 mpg) mixed driving, and then 12-15 l/100 km (15-19 mpg) when towing (highly dependent on speed). Already had it to the east coast.
Anyway, that doesn't specifically answer your question, but may give you some insight into what it might take to get into a 'small' trailer with full amenities.
Commonly known as MGVWR (sticker inside drivers door) manufacturers gross vehicle weight rating, but this does not include the trailer. Sometimes (on trucks anyway) you'll get the MCVWR the C stands for combined including weight in vehicle and trailer.Quote:
Originally Posted by terrym
Not gonna get much at that weight..lolQuote:
Originally Posted by CptSydor
Yeah, I was worried about that :DQuote:
Originally Posted by Fishy Wishy
It's a 2013 Focus. It's a great car, but there's a long story behind why I picked it and not something a bit beefier.Quote:
Originally Posted by greatwhite
I'll check 'em out. Thanks Oddmott.Quote:
Originally Posted by Oddmott
And thanks everyone else too.
I thought you were talking about a person who wouldn't fit in the tent. :) :silly:
I had a focus FM, and i'd be pretty leary about making it tow anything. Although, back when i was working in media I did load mine down with almost 2000lbs of papers (a minor emergency to get them off a broken down delivery truck) and it never hiccup'd. Not the same as hauling a trailer though.Quote:
Originally Posted by FishingMonkey
My wife's cousin uses a 2008 focus to haul their regular crank-up tent trailer. It's quite heavy so they took the trailer and car to a friend mechanic who actually added an axle to the trailer and put a custom towing package on the focus to ease the strain. They've driven from Peterborough to North Bay area and Peterborough to Nova Scotia with no problems yet.
Theirs is a manual though, so i'm sure that's helped a bit.
You should be able to find a small popup in that range. The wind resistance of the hard bodies pretty well rules them out.
Make sure you take the Ford to a tranny shop and have them install an aftermarket tranny cooler BEFORE you start towing, then check the tranny fluid for a burnt smell as you are travelling.
im not sure what camper it can pull, but it should be able to pull those pull up trailer campers, on a side note, i had the 2012 focus, last year, great car! very fuel efficient, and nice small engine, that can go from 0-140 km in no time!
A fried tranny will be the least of your worries,FM. Towing any trailer above the towing vehicles weight class (obviously in this case,anything larger than a small utility trailer) can throw you out of control. Besides,MTO inspectors or the OPP would take one look at that and be all over you like white on rice and who needs that noise?
There's no law saying you can't to tow a vehicle/trailer that is over the recommended limit of the "car" by the manufacturer.Quote:
Originally Posted by trimmer21
I'm sure there'd be a blanket law about generally unsafe driving or towing...
Unsafe driving, yes, but not for towing something that is heavier than the manufacturers recommendations. Weight laws only start coming into effect when in regards to Commercial Motor Vehicles.
I just bought a used Mazda5 (overall great passenger vehicle by the way) and got a little confused when reading specs and reviews and whatnot.
I remembered explicitly searching for info on its towing capacity. In the UK & Europe the 1.8L and 2.0L engines are rated to haul up to 1300lbs trailers without brakes. With brakes both versions are rated to haul 3000lbs.
But, here in Canada, the car (even with our larger 2.3L engine) is NOT rated for towing of any sort. It is given no towing capacity in North America.
Is it illegal for me to tow with it? No, there's a grey area according to MTO when I called just now. If nothing "bad" happens, I'm free and clear. If there's an accident or a perceived danger to others, I'm in deep doo-doo.
I'm an officer with the MTO. If you can show me the legislation I'll believe you. ;)
Who from the MTO did you talk to? A registration clerk at a privately owned office, which has nothing to do with MTO, other than taking your money for registrations and val tags? Just sayin.... most of them haven't a clue about laws.
The ONLY thing I can up up with where you may exceed, is weight on tires, and this is unlikely.
You mistake me. I didn't say there definitely was a law, only that - considering how we have laws for everything - i was pretty sure there'd be a blanket law that allowed MTO/OPP to lay charges in ambiguous towing situations.Quote:
Originally Posted by last5oh_302
And I just called the General Inquiry 1-800-268-4686 line with my question, as my car is currently in the shop for safety and my mechanic is looking at hitch kit options for me. lol
My only advice to you is that if you ever do get charged for something like that, take it to court!Quote:
Originally Posted by Oddmott
I'm amazed at some of the things I see towed behind small 4 cylinder cars, but there's no law against it. I wouldn't do it to my car however.
Edit: and any towed vehicle in Ontario that exceeds 1360 KG'S must have operating brakes of it's own.
I'm with you on towing with 4 cyls. I'd never put any considerable loads behind one, but a small cargo trailer and a single motorbike hauler are all i've got in mind.
Hey FishingMonkey... just track down one of these bad boys!
http://youtu.be/PGeUSjRMlQ4
That is soooo cool! :D
I thought you were talking about a camper who weighs 845 pounds. :) He/she won't fit in any trailer.
I didn't think you could tow anything with a Ford Focus.
13 ft boler is what you need just type in BOLER trailers and you will see a few different types.
Our tent is 12' x20' and weights about 60 lbs . It has more room than a 875 lb trailer .
Hey FM,
Here's the smallest/lightest camper yet!
http://www.collective-evolution.com/...-your-bicycle/
You'd probably have to weigh it down if towing it with a car... as i'd imagine something this light gets airborne at 80kph+.
The other thing to consider is insurance. If you are towing a trailer your vehicle isn't rated for and have an accident expect them to use that as an escape clause and refuse your claim. I see trailer accidents every summer from people who usually overload the tow vehicles and don't maintain axles/bearings/tires. But trailering capacity also covers braking capacity. You may get your vehicle up to highway speed but can you stop it safely in an emergency?Quote:
Originally Posted by trimmer21
I would recommend a small utility trailer and quality camping gear. The new tents are light and very well designed.
The Ford Focus is a great vehicle, why kill it by abusing it?
At 1360KG's trailers/towed vehicle must have working brakes.
There's another fairly small option listed on facebook through the Eganville-Cobden-Douglas 24/7 Yard Sale group.
1974 13' Trillium fiberglass camper
1300lbs
I saw the same thing when I bought a mazda3 years ago. European car had a towing capacity that I could live with, but the north American version, with more power had no towing capacity rating. I think it is just different regulatory bodies determining the standards and we are apparently more stringent?Quote:
Originally Posted by Oddmott
it was also interesting to note in Europe they had a diesel Mazda3, I would love to drive that....
I never did end up towing anything with that mazda, but it did well transporting decoys and canoes around for me.