EXPO Casita pulled by Cruiser on 40s

This is just to catalogue my evolution of a 2010 17’ Casita Spirit Delux I picked up a couple days ago. Pretty awesome little trailer. All fiberglass, 25g water tank, and only 2200lbs.

Pulls easy enough with my 1997 80 Series.

Onto the build! I’m really excited to get this thing off-road worthy.

Plans:
Bigger tires
Lift
Custom bumper
Bedliner
Interior pwr stuff
Solar probably
And probably much more down the road.


This is how it was when I picked it up:

 

First mod was blacking out the wheels.



2nd mod was a camping trip and a 4” lift right after. Just fabricated my own lift because these come with a 3500lb torsion axle and ride really nice.



And after the 4” lift

 

More interior pics:

 

Hated how the old drains for the black/grey tank looked. Plus I knew I was definitely going to slam it into a rock sooner or later......so I fixed it all. Now no more eye sore!!

Before vs after:




Usbs:

 

Yep you guessed.....mine

 

17ft Casita Spirit Deluxe is what we're looking at. No off road for us though; state and Fed park stuff only.

I'm looking at all the mods you've already done inside (vent hood gone, shower curtain in place of the door, etc). Same ones we're looking at. Also notice you don't have the roll-out awning. We think so much alike, we may have been separated at birth !!

Keep the photos coming !

 

Following along. That thing is sweet, and so is the tow rig. Those 40s are fucking YUGE.

 

I picked up a 2001 from the original owners who kept perfect care of it. My exterior was a bit dull so I found on the fiberglass forum they use Zep Floor finish. Some have been using it for years. So I did mine and made shine real nice. Also I made mine a North South bed so my wife doesn't have to crawl over me in middle of night and I removed the fake wood partition and it really opens it up. Here are some picsWhen I first got it.Week 1 I changed out the interior for a lighter feel.

 

Yeah, we're in our 60's so the N/S bed conversion makes a lot of sense. Thanks !

 

I then had to do a few more changes because I had to build a bed for my 14 year old rottweiller.
Didn't mean to blow up your thread just got excited about another Casita owner. I may lift mine too but the pre 2004 models have the axles welded on so its a bit more involved and mine tows really well for being 18 years old. Good luck with your Casita with the mods you are doing you will probably be able to sell it for more than you paid 10 years from now. They are the only vehicles that hold their value better even then a Tacoma. LOL

 

So for the north south bed I just used 2 pieces of wood left over from the partition and some industrial velcro so easy to remove. We leave as a bed full time and under it I have 2 big containers for clothes or what ever. There really is plenty of storage in these things.

 

Also, there is a shop in TX called LittleHouseCustoms. They specialize in after market stuff for Casitas. I think they make a double step for lifted Casitas. Just an FYI

 

Looks Good! Did you just paint the cabinets that color?

 

Wonder if you can get a Tacoma in "Casita White" ?

 

I used a vinyl flooring on the doors. I glue and braid nailed them. On the cabinets I painted the edges and used a peel and stick vinyl on those.

 

I have only had it for about 2 months but been out 5 times so far and every time we get questions and give a tour. people ask us at red lights about it and I gave a 20 minute tour at dunkin doughnuts parking lot.lol. People are really going to love yours with the painted wheels and lift.

 

We called Casita and they gave us the phone number of a couple near us that bought a new one. I was sort of embarrassed to call and ask if we could come over some time, but the couple insisted we come right over ! They had owned 2 larger trailers and were excited to the point of animation about their Casita. They were obviously loving it, and were showing us all their mods. The lady was telling my wife all about the cleaning and housekeeping, while the gentleman showed me all the mechanical aspects. It was like going to Casita College !

At the end of 90 minutes we had to make excuses and pry ourselves away.

 

Updates ^

 

I like those Casitas, the major beauty is a big opening rear window. Preferable to trailers with only side-to-side ventilation, better airflow. Plus, you have visibility on three sides that's rare and nice to have.

 

Went camping last weekend.