Which size cargo trailer is best?

[SoulRaven]

I am starting to lean towards a cargo trailer and there are 2 sizes that I am sure that my 2014 Ford Escape can tow. It has a 3,500 tow rating and is setup from the factory with hitch etc. with 4 pin connector for lights.

Plain Ol' Trailers has the 5X8 at 840 lbs empty, and the 5X10 at 980 lbs empty. I can't decide if I should stay at the smaller one or get the one with the extra 2 feet. I am not planning on building anything heavy inside. I want to set it up with basic cot and mattress, maybe some 3 drawer Sterlite containers, and just simple non cluttered things. Of course if I like traveling and staying in it, and it is convenient as well as comfortable I may build some more permanent fixtures.

The inside is only 5 foot high so I will have to stoop just a little because I am 5' 6". I don't want to have it extended up another 6 inches because I want it to be about the same height as my Escape. The 5 foot width should be good and not stick out either. That way I can keep everything tucked within my tow vehicle.

Also I am going to have the factory put in a 15"x24"slider screened window on each side of the trailer for ventilation (2 total). I am going to install a fantastic fan myself because they will only install one with an electric package. I think I can handle that.

Oh, and I am thinking that I will just have the one single real door and not have a side door installed. The bed will be running lengthwise along the inside and I will have room to walk by it when I enter from the rear.
I want to try to keep it simple and keep expenses down at the same time.

So, I would appreciate any ideas and suggestions about the cargo trailer idea I am considering.

Thanks
Steve

 

[highdesertranger]

couple of things. trailer brakes I feel are a must especially with such a small tow vehicle. as far as your door can you lock and unlock from inside? most standard cargo trailer doors can only be locked from the outside, which means if you are on the inside it's easy for someone to lock you in. highdesertranger

 

[Every Road Leads Home]

I'd go the 5x10, you won't notice you're towing an extra 2 feet as far as weight is concerned but you'll def notice it when you're setting up the inside.

 

[SoulRaven]

couple of things.  trailer brakes I feel are a must especially with such a small tow vehicle.  as far as your door can you lock and unlock from inside?  most standard cargo trailer doors can only be locked from the outside,  which means if you are on the inside it's easy for someone to lock you in.  highdesertranger

I am not wanting to setup trailer brakes for this . I am going to try to hold the weight to around 1,500 lbs. The Escape weights 3,600 lbs. So, I don't think the 1,500 lbs of trailer is going to be pushing it (the Escape) very much. I am not going to be driving the same towing it as I would without it. 

I have thought about the locking the door situation and haven't really figured that out yet. Any suggestions?

 

[SoulRaven]

I'd go the 5x10,  you won't notice you're towing an extra 2 feet as far as weight is concerned but you'll def notice it when you're setting up the inside.

Yeah, the weight difference is not much. The size of the length doesn't include the V nose of the trailer. So I will gain that as well. I am trying to keep the weight down as much as possible. But, I am considering more seriously the 5x10.

 

[GotSmart]

This is the most sane set up I have seen.  

https://vanlivingforum.com/Thread-Masterplumber-s-cargo-trailer-conversion

 

[Optimistic Paranoid]

I am not wanting to setup trailer brakes for this . I am going to try to hold the weight to around 1,500 lbs. The Escape weights 3,600 lbs. So, I don't think the 1,500 lbs of trailer is going to be pushing it (the Escape) very much.  I am not going to be driving the same towing it as I would without it. 

Do you really think that if a 5 year old kid chases a ball into the street in front of you, you're going to be able to stop in as short a distance without trailer brakes as you would WITH trailer brakes?

Sorry, but that whole "I don't need trailer brakes cause I'll just  drive extra careful when I'm towing!"  is one of my hot buttons.

 

[highdesertranger]

that extra 1500 lbs IS GOING TO make a difference in your stopping distance. there is no way it can't. this will be especially noticeable going down hill on a long grade, on a winding mountain road. I also think that 1500 lbs for a total weight on a trailer that weighs 840-980lbs empty is very optimistic. highdesertranger

 

[masterplumber]

Steveway, I would have brakes added at the factory, even if you don't put the controller in the tow vehicle right away. I tow mine with 3/4 and 1 ton trucks and I'm going to add brakes as soon as I upgrade the axle. If you do a layout similar to your Runaway trailer you should be able to keep the weight low enough, but you'll definitely have to watch it. My trailer weighed 980 lbs empty when new. Now with it built out and loaded for a trip it is right at the 3500 lb limit of the axle, hence the reason for wanting to upgrade. Also, I would have a 7 pin plug added to your tow vehicle. The 4 pin only has enough for the required lights. You'll want a large power lead to charge the trailer battery while driving, and then it will also have enough plugs for future brake controller. When I was younger I towed a lot without trailer brakes and there were more close calls than I would care to admit even being hyper-vigilante

Good luck and I look forward to seeing what you do. Oh yeah, I would go with the 5x10 also just for a little more wiggle room.

 

[SoulRaven]

that extra 1500 lbs IS GOING TO make a difference in your stopping distance.  there is no way it can't.  this will be especially noticeable going down hill on a long grade,  on a winding mountain road.  I also think that 1500 lbs for a total weight on a trailer that weighs 840-980lbs empty is very optimistic.  highdesertranger

I agree with what you are saying about more weight is going to affect my stopping distance. So what if I was going to tow something around 1,100 lbs? Using your theory that would also require aux brakes as well, because I am towing something that is going to make a difference in my stopping distance.
Now....say I take that 1,100 lb amount of weight and load up the inside of the Escape with it? That would surely make a difference in my stopping distance as well wouldn't it? What can I do to compensate for the extra weight now? The only choice I have there is to adjust my driving habits just like I would if I were towing that amount behind me.

By the way....the Escape is allowed to have 1,100 lbs of cargo loaded inside it.

Besides, most states only require trailer brakes if you are towing in excess of 3,000 lbs. What's that about?

And I do appreciate your concern on this but I am not going to install trailer brakes on something weighing a lot less than my tow vehicle. And I agree that the stopping distance will be reduced. I just don't feel that the small amount of risk justifies doing it.

 

[SoulRaven]

Steveway, I would have brakes added at the factory, even if you don't put the controller in the tow vehicle right away. I tow mine with 3/4 and 1 ton trucks and I'm going to add brakes as soon as I upgrade the axle. If you do a layout similar to your Runaway trailer you should be able to keep the weight low enough, but you'll definitely have to watch it. My trailer weighed 980 lbs empty when new. Now with it built out and loaded for a trip it is right at the 3500 lb limit of the axle, hence the reason for wanting to upgrade. Also, I would have a 7 pin plug added to your tow vehicle. The 4 pin only has enough for the required lights. You'll want a large power lead to charge the trailer battery while driving, and then it will also have enough plugs for future brake controller. When I was younger I towed a lot without trailer brakes and there were more close calls than I would care to admit even being hyper-vigilante

Good luck and I look forward to seeing what you do. Oh yeah, I would go with the 5x10 also just for a little more wiggle room.

Thanks for the advise but if I go the CT route, I am not going to put the brakes on it. I am going to be towing 1\2 (vehicle manufacturer and most states limits) what the rating is and I will never go over much more than that. If...and this a big if.....I would get pretty close say within a few hundred lbs( trailer weighing 2,500 lbs??) to the limit I would for certain add brakes.

I am also going by what I have towed with it before. Of course the Runaway only weighed about 1,200 lbs after I set it up with everything, solar panels, batteries, tools, appliances, etc. I never knew it was there unless I looked in the mirror. Stopping was no problem. And I also towed the popup that I owned for a very short time. Same thing, never knew it was there. And it weighted 1,600 lbs empty. I was really surprised. The Escape is a pretty stout vehicle for being a CSUV. Plus, it gets about 30 mpg. Of course that is highway, but it only drops about 1 or 2 mpg in the city. And when I was towing the Runaway it still held an impressive 25 mpg.

Yes, 5x10 is looking more like what I would want.

 

[Almost There]

Whatever size you do decide on, Please, please make sure that you test drive each of the trailers BEFORE you purchase! And that includes backing it up not just pulling it.

Different manufacturers make each of their trailers differently  in terms of balance, tongue length (which affects both towability and backing it up). Two seemingly identical trailers will handle radically different on the road. I cannot emphasize this enough. I have my own favorite brand of trailer but it's at the high end of the price range. I won't tow anything else after trying out a few of them.

As to what size you need, take some interior measurements and do a layout, either for real in a driveway or to scale in paper. You've been camping before so you basically know what you need to take with you. Make sure it can all fit without having to constantly move things around. Trust me, moving things several times a day to access other stuff gets really, really old in short order.

And another vote for trailer brakes from me. I will be towing my small cargo trailer across Canada this coming spring but it will be a one time trip only to get me moved to the west coast. The van is way bigger than it and I'll still have to watch what I'm doing. If I was going to be towing it on a regular basis, it WOULD get brakes installed. I towed a larger trailer with brakes for years and I sure miss those things.

Also, keep in mind when you're loading the trailer and the vehicle that the GVWR is the absolute TOTAL of everything IN the vehicle and towed behind it. That includes you, all your stuff, the spare tires, water, gas, etc. etc. etc. I say this because a lot of people think that the tow rating is only for what's out behind you and load the vehicle to the rafters with all the heavy stuff and try to call it good! It's not!!

 

[highdesertranger]

what is the downside to trailer brakes that make you not want them? just curious. highdesertranger

 

[SoulRaven]

Whatever size you do decide on, Please, please make sure that you test drive each of the trailers BEFORE you purchase! And that includes backing it up not just pulling it.



As to what size you need, take some interior measurements and do a layout, either for real in a driveway or to scale in paper.


Also, keep in mind when you're loading the trailer and the vehicle that the GVWR is the absolute TOTAL of everything IN the vehicle and towed behind it.

I won't get to test drive the trailer because I am ordering it online. They have been in business for 17 years and I am picking it up after it has been manufactured. Of course I will only be putting a small deposit on it to get it started. If it is not to my approval I will make them bring it up to standard before paying them. But you are right in that I have never towed a cargo trailer with it. So that will be a little bit of a chance. But I had never towed the Runaway or Popup either. Thanks for the heads up!!

I have done a layout somewhat and and sure that everything will fit well. I am basically going to do the same sort of layout that I did in the Runaway. Everything fit pretty good there. The problem with it, was it was too small. The CT will be better in that aspect for sure. Although it will still be about 6" shorter than me. I will have to stoop just a little.

Yes I am aware of the weight ratings. What ever is added has to be taken off elsewhere.
These are all good things to consider.

 

[SoulRaven]

what is the downside to trailer brakes that make you not want them?  just curious.  highdesertranger

In this instance, I just feel that the extra expense and alteration and adding of more apparatus to my vehicle is not worth what I am doing and towing. Like I said, if I was getting close a 2,500 lb range of weight, I would seriously consider it. But I don't feel that I will ever be going over the 1,500 or so lbs that I will be at.

 

[29chico]

Trailer brakes are not just about keeping your stopping distances reasonable, it is just as much, if not more so, about keeping the trailer behind the tow vehicle.

Since I am a big fan of having the trailer that I am towing stay behind my rig, both of my trailers have brakes on them. 

Granted, great thrills can be had by not having your trailer stay behind your rig.  Great liability issues also.

Please don't get me wrong, I'm an adrenaline junkie, I just prefer to get my thrills on the mountain bike or motorcycle (in the dirt) and do so in places where I'm unlikely to injure others.  To each their own, providing they are able and willing to pay the price for their actions...

 

[Almost There]

I won't get to test drive the trailer because I am ordering it online. They have been in business for 17 years and I am picking it up after it has been manufactured. Of course I will only be putting a small deposit on it to get it started. If it is not to my approval I will make them bring it up to standard before paying them. But you are right in that I have never towed a cargo trailer with it. So that will be a little bit of a chance. But I had never towed the Runaway or Popup either. Thanks for the heads up!!

There is no such thing as 'standard' except what the specific manufacturer sets up as being 'their' standard.

Some trailers, particularly small ones, will tow like a piece of shit and be absolutely impossible, even for the most experienced driver to back up. It's all in the design of the trailer.

Sorry, but longevity of remaining in business has little to do with how well a trailer is made. Look at some of our car manufacturers as an example of that....

If you can't test drive your own trailer, IMO, you should at least test drive an identical one to the size that you're thinking of ordering. Also it really should be tested with some weight in it, because, once again, different trailers behave radically differently when loaded.

 

[Every Road Leads Home]

Here's my opinion for what it's worth......trailer brakes should be the law for any trailer even if it's 200 lbs. They're not only for stopping and slowing down faster, they could literally save your life if your trailer starts to do a fish wobble.....like when a tire blows out on a single axle trailer. Having those trailer brakes will slow the fish tailing down considerable to help get it back under control as well as stop the rig much faster. Or if the trailer detaches, it can actually stop, I saw a small trailer....probably 6x10 detach from a Cargo van while I was eating lunch on an outside deck at a restaurant and I'd be surprised if he was going over 30 mph and that trailer whipped the van around like a rag doll until he hit a telephone pole 50 yards down the street. By the time he hit the pole he was only going about 15mph but had he had brakes there would have been no hitting of the telephone pole. Not to mention all the damage the disconnected tongue on the trailer did to the back of the van. Opened it up like swiss cheese.

I call trailer brakes cheap insurance......for around 1000 bucks for the trailer brakes and brake controller in your truck.....you could save your life, someone else's life or just prevent a huge trip altering headache.

 

[GotSmart]

In this instance, I just feel that the extra expense and alteration and adding of more apparatus to my vehicle is not worth what I am doing and towing. Like I said, if I was getting close a 2,500 lb range of weight, I would seriously consider it. But I don't feel that I will ever be going over the 1,500 or so lbs that I will be at.

5 feet in a panic stop is someones life in the road. 

Brakes keeping the two vehicles straight when a semi is going by is YOUR life. 

trusting govt rules written by a corporation vested in selling cheap vehicles is a bad gamble.

 

[Optimistic Paranoid]

I hesitate to jump back into this thread because I don't want it to look like I'm "piling on".

And I certainly don't claim to be the worlds greatest expert on trailer towing.

My understanding is that if your trailer starts fishtailing, the easiest and safest way to bring it under control is to reach over and hit the button on the trailer brake controller that activates the trailer brakes. While keeping your foot off your vehicle's brake pedal and keeping your speed steady.

How you stop fishtailing if you don't have trailer brakes, I do not know.

Anyway, good luck whatever you decide to do.