Off-road Camper Trailer for family of five

Jayco makes a TT with "Canadian Specs" out of their facility in Idaho. Extra insulation including underneath their TT's.

 

Intech Sol Horizon Rover seems like a more refined trailer. Has a wet bath with black tank, 3350 dry weight and about the same cost as a Mantis.

 

I went through all this myself but need 3 adults and a kid. The only options I have found that may work are a Black Series Classic 12 with an extra bunk added (I have seen a video where a place did it with a HQ12 on youtube). It has a giant king bed that can fit three. The other is the Antishanty with the pop up and dual queens. The classic 12 is 40K and the Antishanty really depends on the options but is probably similar. The Antishanty has the ability to be a small toy hauler at the cost of refinement but the Classic 12 has a Indoor and outdoor shower with a toilet. Classic 12 also has a outdoor kitchen where anti shanty has a indoor. Looking at the Classic 12 it will be really easy to add a indoor burner sink combo in place of the dumb bowl sink it has. I think the Classic 12 is at the top of what I can tow with a 2017 TRD OR. The Antishanty would not be a problem with weight. I am not going to trade my truck in for a full-size. I will find a solution that works for the Tacoma. Long wait on the Anishanty where as the Classic 12 is rare but available. Antishanty is better for cold weather since the the Classic 12 would need external tank heaters.

https://www.blackseriescamper.com/pop-up-campers/classic12.html
https://antishanty.com/explore-trailers/

 

Escape, Bigfoot, Oliver and Casita are where you should be looking. Black Series are overpriced, low quality and shit construction. A travel trailer that is big enough to comfortably live and work in does not mesh with a travel trailer than can go offroad much further than a relatively smooth gravel/dirt road. Rather than paying for overhyped offroad capability that isn't actually usable pay for build quality and actual four season capability.

 

I have to say I've been impressed by the Casitas. Those are quality for the money.

 

I have been looking, for quite some time, for a trailer in a similar class as you seem to be considering. Specifically, I have landed on a similar evaluation between the EOS-12, OP15, and Mantis. Because of that, I thought you might want to see my analysis, so far.

While there are many functionality similarities that keep each of these on my personal "short list" ... I thought you might benefit from me pointing out a couple of differences (that were important differentiators for me at least). My points below, in no particular order, include what I personally consider to be advantages of one over another. Your priorities/requirements may be different, of course:

1) The OP15 has a black water tank, while the EOS-12 & Mantis do not (they have cassette toilettes and gray tanks only). Depending upon your black-water-or-not philosophy (which seems to be somewhat polarizing), this could be either an advantage to OP15 or advantage to Mantis & EOS-12

2) The wet bath in the Mantis is kind of lack-luster (tiny size + being right next to the kitchen + occupying the same space as a "work area" for the kitchen). The wet bath in the EOS-12 is dedicated and feels much more like a "room" than just a corner with a flimsy privacy curtain. The wet bath in the OP15 is similar. Advantage: EOS-12 & OP15

3) The OP15 (5150 lbs dry) is substantially heavier than the Mantis (3500 lbs dry, for "Overland Edition" ... 3000 lbs for the non-Overland) or the EOS-12 (3700 lbs dry). Advantage: Mantis & EOS-12 (for having more "headroom" on the towing capacity of a (V6) Tacoma ... something that I tend to think is always a good idea for the longevity of the vehicle)

4) The OP15 is almost 2' shorter (ball to bumper) than the EOS-12 and the Mantis. Advantage: OP15 for garage-ability/storage

5) The OP15 and the EOS-12 both stand at about 8'10" closed (unless you omit the AC unit on the EOS-12, in which case it gets a little shorter). The Mantis is much more "garage-able" in a "normal-height" garage door (it is 6'9" closed). Advantage: Mantis for garage-ability/storage

6) The OP15 has a novel slide-out back-end design which allows it to accommodate a king-size bed. Advantage: OP15 (if you have a larger stature and need that for comfort; for me personally, I do not)

7) The Mantis has an indoor kitchen ... the OP15 and the EOS-12 both have slide-out outdoor kitchens. Advantage: that depends on how much value you put on being able to cook inside (i.e., in case of inclement weather); for me personally, it isn't a priority and both the OP15 and EOS-12 have what I consider to be more functional kitchens, albeit outside ... so I personally give the advantage to them.

8) The EOS-12 has a fully-insulated cabin-wall construction and heated/insulated tanks ... making it much stronger of a contender in "shoulder season". Advantage: EOS-12 (unless the OP15 has such too, I couldn't find a statement to that effect though)

9) The EOS-12 has an on-board air suspension system. Allowing for adjustable ride-height and stiffness ... and leveling options. Advantage: EOS-12

10) The EOS-12 has, as an option, a factory-installed DC-powered A/C unit (i.e., power-able even when boondocking). I believe the Mantis and OP15's A/C unit is shore-powered only. Advantage: EOS-12

11) The EOS-12 has a fairly cool technology solution for control & monitoring of all its systems (i.e., monitors batteries and tank levels, lighting, fan, heat, A/C, inverter, music and speaker zones): a custom portable Garmin tablet ... which also allows for viewing of the trailer's rear-facing camera, remotely from inside the tow vehicle. Advantage: EOS-12

12) Price. Mantis $ < OP15 $$ < EOS-15 $$$

13) Availability of each probably varies. Timeline might be a deciding factor for you.

I agree with others that the Mantis looks a bit funky. But I don't mind it. I mean, it doesn't look Cybertruck-funky ... just a little odd.


Which am I leaning toward? I still don't know for certain. I have seen both the Mantis and the EOS-12 in-person. I have an EOS-12 on reserve (due primarily to its execution of the wet bath (over the Mantis) and my general impressions of its overall build quality) which should be completed at the beginning of 2023. But until then, while I wait, I am still looking around trying to validate that selection.

Garage-ability is a big issue for me as I have an HOA that forbids driveway parking of trailers. So, if I really loved the Mantis, then my search might be done (since, of these three, the Mantis is by far the most easily garage-able). But, in the end, I honestly don't. It's "ok" ... but I was hoping for better. Ultimately, I am "ok" with the one-time costs of any of these choices ... but, for me, it will probably come down to whether or not I decide that the ongoing storage costs are "worth" the differentiators of the less-garage-able EOS-12, or not.

The OP15 isn't really any more garage-able than the EOS-12 ... and it is substantially heavier, so I think it is probably off my personal list. It doesn't really add any capabilities that I care about for that additional 1450 lbs over the EOS-12. But I haven't seen one in-person. That would be nice to do, but I don't know that I will get around to it.

NOTE: The EOS-12 is a brand new product. They started taking reservations for them June 2021 and just started production of them earlier this year (2022) ... so it might be a while before you find any used. My vague memory is that Boreas is only making a dozen or two of them in 2022 ... with plans to further ramp up production higher in 2023.

I hope the above analysis helps you validate some of the comparisons I imagine you were doing, by yourself, between these particular models.

 

Check out Hiker Trailer. The Extreme Offroad is well built with rock sliders, fridge boxes, roof racks for awnings and RTT's.

Can add water (21 gallons), instant hot water (showers, dishes) and heat. We can even put an AC unit on top. Or do portable AC ports.

Under floor storage, rear tire swing out.

I have yet to see an EOR build go over $36,000.

GVWR is 2200 lbs. Tongue weight is typically around 150-170 depending upon how its equipped.


www.hikertrailers.com

 

Hey there, I'm late to this thread, but thanks for all of the alternative travel trailer camping solutions. I'm going to research those today. Does anyone else have good/bad/indifferent experiences with the Intech Sol Horizon? There's a used "Rover" model for sale near me that I need to make a decision on. The owner did a ton of upgrades that seems to have addressed any possible issues, including a dehumidifier that the person uses.

The main concern/issue we've read on other forums is that the Horizon (possibly any campers from this company) seem to be prone to condensation. I've read of some ridiculous amounts of condensation collecting/puddling and the beds getting wet. I've read others w/ no issues at all. Condensation build up could just be an issue w/ all campers in general too.

I also feel like this camper pushes the 3500 - 4000 pound weight which is the general consensus I've read for best results, safety, etc. (instead of towing the actual max limit of 6800 with the Tacoma).

If anyone here has any experience with this camper or advice, I'm all ears. Thanks in advance.
Cheers. Adam

 

I’ve recently stumbled across the Apex Nano 185BH. Which is actually meant to sleep 5 and a fraction of the cost. Any experience with this specific trailer?

 

@cameron172 that's a cool camper ... I like the bunk option and that would be better for my kids but ... we went with the used InTech Sol Horizon Rover model that I found nearby. Just had a 12 day trip through White Mountains, NH and Acadia, Maine. It was great and worked well for our family and my remote work. The Tacoma did good towing it. It def revved high, especially on long steep grades, but it didn't overheat or struggle too badly from what I could tell monitoring the OBD monitor. I am really wondering if I should have waited to find something lighter or maybe I just need to get a full size truck to keep on towing with more confidence ... Tundra?

 

Don’t have a Taco but have been going through the same decision process and enjoyed reading this thread. We decided to get an “overbuilt” off road trailer not to handle extreme off-road, but mainly because of the extremely poor build quality of just about every normal camper, and because washboard. Just about every FS road we’ve ever taken to a nice campsite is more than enough to slowly destroy most typical campers. We went through the same analysis, and found that many so called off road campers are too big and too heavy to really take anywhere at all challenging, and they seem to try and replicate typical rv interiors, which seem out of place in an adventure vehicle. So we nixed all the imports. Also wanted cold weather capability. EOS-12 was basically all that we could find with all the above. Sleeping positions aren’t a problem since you can get out without walking over each other, and we prefer outdoor kitchens 98% of the time. Can use a portable stove inside for the other 2% of times it’s too cold to go outside. DC AC and ability to even run heat on batteries were pluses. Key is it’s size and Boreas build quality with lifetime warranty on chassis and no wood anywhere. Picking ours up in a few weeks. Couldn’t find anything else to fit our needs any better.

 

Wow @Bluesky50 that camper looks awesome. It’s way over my budget but maybe one day. I hear ya on the specs of the campers and quality. Everyone I’ve talked to seems to say that all the campers all have some issues that happen with them. This EOS-12 offering lifetime warranty seems pretty encouraging though. Good luck with it!
After you take delivery and get your first trip done, let us know how it goes!

best of luck. Cheers
Adam

 

Ended up going for a ‘23 model with upgraded standard power to 500 plus Ah and a few other upgrades. Picking up later in the winter.

 

Did you end up getting the EOS-12? How do you like it?
Husband and I have been searching and this one seems to fit our needs— would love to chat with someone who has used one.

 

Great Post , I just spent 2 days with my brother shopping for a off-road trailer and best bang for the buck was the Winnebago Hike HLX and the Minnie HLX the interior of both were head and shoulders above the Competition.

Both were at blowout prices , unless you plan on going to slickrock or worse with your family I'd start there.

If you were 2 people go rooftop , dragging a trailer around limits your fun.

Good Luck.

 

All these mentioned as well as OBI are made by the same manufacturer in China

 

This Hiker Trailers XL 5x10 starts currently at $11,699.00.

The way it is pictured, is around $28,000.

I can sleep up to 6 adults, easily with this exact setup.

I can configure a Hiker to sleep up to 23 people, depending on the mix of kids and adults.

Really depends on if you want to go RV-ing, or camping.

 

Is the top pic a Midrange XL or Extreme Offroad? I've built both models and cant decide which to pull the trigger on

 

Late addition be we solved the space constraints with a trailer and a GFC. Initially we had a Jayco X213 but we were limited to developed campgrounds. Then we picked up a RTT and slept 4 in it. When the kids got a bit bigger the RTT became cramped for us so we picked up a Patriot X3. We slept 4 in the trailer for the first year and then picked up the GFC. The kids sleep in the GFC and love it and my wife and I sleep in the trailer. The trailer fits in a standard garage too, which is nice, and it'll go anywhere offroad without getting destroyed like the Jayco would have. It tows really well behind the Tacoma and I run matching wheels on the truck and trailer so flats aren't as big of a concern.

 

That's a pretty sweet setup. I'm looking at finding one next to do the same. Will have 2 kids by then. I like the idea of matching the tires. Makes a thing easier even if it cost a little more.