Looking for Light Light weight TM

[jdickey]

Suggestions for a TM around 2000 lbs. ???

 

[Bill]

The smallest current model is the 2518, which has a dry weight (not road or actual camping weight) of 2600 pounds.

In the past, there were some smaller short-duration models (I think a 2417 which had a dry weight around 2150 for the base model,) but they were unusual.

There was also a smaller model, the TrailMini, which had a "base weight" of 1850 (whatever that means), but again they are no longer made and hard to find.

What are you trying to do?

 

[jdickey]

I have a new Ford Maverick Hybrid pickup that only has a tow weight capacity of 2000lbs. I had a Trailmanor years ago and had a fullsize Toyota Tundra. I really didn't plan to tow anything with Maverick, as far as a camper, mostly just smaller lightweight items with a utility trailer. The Maverick gets 44mpg on highway!

 

[wbmiller3]

You'll have to go for an Rpod or something tiny like that instead.

 

[Bill]

Sadly, a tow rating of 2000 lb doesn't mean you can tow 2000 lbs for long days, at any altitude, up and down whatever hills and mountains you encounter. As with any mechanical thing, you need to leave some margin between what you intend to do, and the machine's eventual failure point. For a 2000 lb rating, a trailer weighing something like 1500-1600 pounds LOADED might be a realistic limit.

Beyond that, trailer manufacturers understandably publish the "Dry Weight" of a trailer, meaning the weight before the owner adds any options (like an air conditioner), and before the owner adds any of his own "stuff", like food, clothes, bedding, water, propane, tools, etc, that also increase the weight that your vehicle will have to tow. (Some mfrs, like Rpod, publish a UVW, which is similar to Dry Weight, though not substantially different. The lightest Rpod has a UVW of 2500 pounds.)

Beyond that, vehicle manufacturers are good at hiding the fact (though it is disclosed in the fine print) that their stated tow rating is reduced pound-for-pound by any weight you put in the tow vehicle itself, including cargo in the bed and people other than the driver.

And finally, I think your Maverick has a CVT. I recently asked my favorite professional transmission shop what they think of modern CVTs, and their answer was "Well, they bring us a lot of business". Take that however you want.

MPG is not the most important spec.

Bill

 

[Bill]

I didn't mean to sound like Debbie Downer. The Maverick looks like a great truck. I have talked to a number of owners, who love them, and I plan to buy one later this summer. I won't use it to tow a TM, but still my option choices are different. Gas engine, conventional tranny, AWD, and a 4000 pound tow package so I can pull my boat up the ramp and out of the water, and pull it into town if needed. I don't do a lot of miles, so MPG is not a concern.

Bill

 

[Bill]

There is a TrailManor Mini in NC for sale on the TMFriends Facebook site right now. Bet it won't last long.

Bill