New or Used Travel Trailer

[California Steve]

Around April 1st my wife and I will start shopping for a trailer.  We'll be looking for one with a walk around queen bed or twin beds of at least 31" width.  I'd like the trailer to be under 25' feet long and our budget is $20,000.  For a TV I plan to buy a used late model Ford F150 with Eco-Boost.  Two trailers I have considered but ruled out are Lance and Chalet, both have had problems with build and warranty service: I've read some horror stories about them.  I want to get something well made, ideally light weight and aerodynamic, as I am not thrilled about getting under 14 mpg while pulling the trailer.  One trailer manufacturer I am still considering is EverGreen.  Does anyone know about their quality and reputation?  What other trailers fit the budget and the criteria of well made, light weight, and, aerodynamic?  I may be asking for too much in my criteria, so feel free to weigh in on that! 

 

[donn]

I am not thrilled about getting under 14 mpg while pulling the trailer. 

Then you might as well stop right now.  Pulling a load of bricks behind any vehicle is not going to return you much more than 10MPG towing.  And in a lot of cases less than even that.  From reading most Eco owners that actually pull a trailer are lucky to see 11 on most days.  Empty apparently they do quite well if driven easy.  Size of the motor has little to do with towing fuel economy.  Frontal area is the biggest factor that kills MPG.

 

[California Steve]

Then you might as well stop right now.  Pulling a load of bricks behind any vehicle is not going to return you much more than 10MPG towing.  And in a lot of cases less than even that.  From reading most Eco owners that actually pull a trailer are lucky to see 11 on most days.  Empty apparently they do quite well if driven easy.  Size of the motor has little to do with towing fuel economy.  Frontal area is the biggest factor that kills MPG.

Well, I do want an RV so I won't stop.  I thought one could get better mileage than 10 by driving at 55, pulling with a truck that gets pretty good mileage, and, pulling a light weight aerodynamic trailer.  Granted that 14 is way better than I could get, and I can't afford a nice diesel truck.  [/b]

 

[Gary RV_Wizard]

A truck that gets good mileage empty isn't necessarily the most economical when towing. It's a complex dance to balance the power necessary for efficient towing with the much lighter demands of a near-empty truck. Ford claims to have achieved this balance with their F150 Eco Boost model (turbo charged) and that might work ok with a fairly light trailer. I think the real key, though, is to get one with a transmission that provides enough gears to mate the available engine power to the load. But as Cal-Steve says, the frontal area of a trailer is going to kill mpg no matter what you do - you are moving an awful lot of air out of the way in every mile traveled. That's why keeping the speed down is so important - wind resistance increases with the square of the speed.

Take a look at the V-Cross series of trailers from Forest River. They are low and aero-shaped in the front. Might be something there you like.
http://www.forestriverinc.com/vcross/

 

[jje1960]

Best of luck as you set out preparing for your RV experience.  I do think your expectations are a bit over optimistic with "as I am not thrilled about getting under 14 mpg while pulling the trailer" however, you should be able to achieve an average of about 12 if you are prudent.  Let's face it, the most aerodynamic of units is still a brick going down the road, loaded with all of 'stuff' for your vacation enjoyment!  From my perspective, I would not be worrying about the MPG at this point, if you are... Maybe this adventure is a bit doomed....  It's just plain expensive when you look at it, no matter what configuration you choose.  Yes, pulling a 19' trailer with an SUV is less expensive than pulling a 40' 5Ver with a 1 ton diesel, however not that much.  What are we talking about with mileage, and extra $50-$150 for the trip?  I'd say anyone really wanting to RV it is going to upgrade over and over anyway, if they are going to stick with it, MPG at this point should be the least of your concern.  Again, good luck, hope you find the right outfit and configuration for next season!

 

[donn]

I'm not trying to pour water on your dreams, however like Gary mentioned there is a fine dance getting decent towing and non towing fuel economy.
For example, my setup.  No one would thing a one ton dually diesel with 4.10 rear end ratio pulling a 13,500 pound fiver down the road would get decent fuel economy.  But the facts are I can get 10.5 to 11.5 towing MPG.  While my frugal brother towing a Jayco 17 foot ultralight with a Eco-boost only gets 10.  My fiver has probably double the frontal area of his Jayco.  Yet I get better fuel economy.  If you really want to see 14MPG you might look at a tent trailer to go along with your light pickup.  Otherwise expect 10, and if you get better you get a bonus.

 

[Lou Schneider]

Then there's the Trailmanor collapsing travel trailers.  They might not be quite what you're looking for, but you can't beat the way they reduce frontal area drag.

 

[waltben]

I'm not trying to pour water on your dreams, however like Gary mentioned there is a fine dance getting decent towing and non towing fuel economy.
For example, my setup.  No one would thing a one ton dually diesel with 4.10 rear end ratio pulling a 13,500 pound fiver down the road would get decent fuel economy.  But the facts are I can get 10.5 to 11.5 towing MPG.  While my frugal brother towing a Jayco 17 foot ultralight with a Eco-boost only gets 10.  My fiver has probably double the frontal area of his Jayco.  Yet I get better fuel economy.  If you really want to see 14MPG you might look at a tent trailer to go along with your light pickup.  Otherwise expect 10, and if you get better you get a bonus.

Got a similar TV, but a larger (& heavier) 5er and get 11 to 13 with an AeroShield deflector.  The truck will get close to 20 by itself doing 60 - 65 on level 4 lane.  Bottom line, if you want to tow anything of size, you'd be far better off getting a diesel.

 

[kennyshark]

Never mind gas mileage, a walkaround queen bed in a 25' travel trailer is a stretch. Our Tracer 2640 ultra lite has a queen bed which You can slide around, which is OK with Tammy and I, the bathroom on the other hand is nice and big, so is the shower, very important, for US. Now as far as gas mileage goes My 2013 GMC with a 5.3L V-8 and a 6 speed gets 14.3 average, daily driving. Add the 7500Lb Tracer and We get 9.3 average. These are real world numbers, Im just throwing them out there so You get a better idea of what You are looking for.

 

[JCZ]

You could probably get a bit better mileage pulling a molded fiberglass trailer (Casita, Scamp, Escape, etc.) but you're not going to get a walk around bed in one of those.

 

[warsw]

Something you might think about is getting a small 5th/W. For some reason I always seem to be able to get better MPGs pulling a 5th/W than a TT and for the same size and amount of room you have a lot less trailer hanging behind the truck. Just a thought.

As far as trailer brand there are a lot of decent trailers out there. I have had really good luck with the Keystone brand and they make several models that are 1/2 ton towable.

 

[Old Blevins]

You didn't mention it in the body of your post, but the Subject "New or Used Travel Trailer" brought a thought to mind.  If the objection to the low mileage is mostly the cost impact (and I recognize there are environmental and social impacts as well), you might consider a 3-5 year old used trailer.  If you tow, say, 5,000 miles a year, the difference in cost between 10 mpg and 14 mpg is about $500/year.  By buying used, you can save enough money to pay for quite a few years of that difference.  And if you shop carefully, you can get one in good condition that has had the bugs worked out of it by the previous owner.  Them's my $0.02. 

 

[Mopar1973Man]

I know there is may people that like diesel trucks but I've got my 2002 Dodge Ram 2500 diesel and my 30' Jayco Eagle and been averaging 12-14 MPG towing and about 19-22 MPG just truck. Something to think about might look into the different power plant. As for my combo the floor plans and specs are in my signature if you want to peek.

 

[bmf24]

Mine is a 26' with a queen bed in front and bunks in the back.  you can walk to both sides of the bed, but its only about a foot-foot and a half of space.
towing- it tows great but the truck is defiantly working pulling it.  might as well be pulling a parachute behind me.  i havent had the chance to travel with it much yet but the couple time i did go i was 9-10 mpg. 

 

[bmf24]

and as far as new or used, its all personal preference. 
i bought used.  it looked like new, very well kept.  and at half the price of new, it leaves room to do some improvements/ upgrades. 

 

[Desertfront]

I have a nissan Frontier that gets 21 hwy. when it put the 8 foot wall behind it, (a Viking 14R),  12 mpg is the best I ever got and that's driving as if there were a raw egg under the gas pedal.

 

[bttravel]

Layton Joey 22' with front "walk around" bed, awesome kitchen breakfast bar arrangement, slide with dinette and sofa and nice bathroom with lots of storage. About 6300lbs behind a Ram 1500 4X4 Hemi, 3.5 gears. Avg about 10 to 10.5 towing, 17 - 19 empty, depending on foot position on gas pedal  : I'm with the majority, find the floorplan you like within reason and get your own 10 mpg. 

 

[Frizlefrak]

OP hasn't been back in almost a month....did we scare him off?  The reality of 8-9 MPG with a gas TV does that for some folks.  I hope not....he'd be missing out on a lot of fun.