Enclosed trailer advice

[Nickshu]

I am looking at special ordering/building an enclosed trailer. H&H steel frame/aluminum sides, tandem axle, V-nose. There are TONS of options, almost makes your head spin. I'll be using it mostly to haul the Lotus to the track and the Corvair to shows.

Here's the basics I am thinking:

Size - Either 16' long/7' wide or 18' long/7' wide. Seems like I should go longer, cost difference isn't much. The ones I am looking at those are the interior square dimensions and the V-nose adds 2 feet more to the floor space, v-shaped of course.

Winch - Most expensive option at about $1500. I don't plan on hauling anything that doesn't run, but I guess you never know. Worth having it factory installed? Dealer says they install reinforced welded in place framing if done at the factory which accounts for the high cost.

Decking - Stock is pressure treated plywood. Worth upgrading to composite??

Axles - Stock is leaf springs. Torsion axles are maybe an extra $500. Worth it? Both options have brakes on both axles.

Driver's side escape door - This seems like a good idea to make getting out of the car easier.

Then the list goes on...corner jacks, LED interior lighting, Various tie down options, spare tire, alloy wheels, ramp options, head spinning, head spinning.

Any of you with experience let me know what you have owned and what options you found to be worth it, or wish you had when you didn't!

[ckelly78z]

There are alot of nice V-nose trailers of the length you are looking, for in the snomobile world. Most of these have a drop down gate at the front of the trailer to be able to drive the sleds out. They are built to handle 4 sleds, so carrying capacity should be just fine for a lightweight Lotus, or Corvair.

I think you will want at least a 7000 lb (over twice the weight of your cars) winch for possibly dragging a car with a frozen wheel up into the trailer. I would have that reinforced at the front of the trailer. I would also have at least rear drop down corner jacks , to eliminate stress on the truck hitch when loading/unloading. LED interior lighting, and a small workbench of some sort comes in real handy.

[Bill Verburg]

Originally Posted by Nickshu

I am looking at special ordering/building an enclosed trailer. H&H steel frame/aluminum sides, tandem axle, V-nose. There are TONS of options, almost makes your head spin. I'll be using it mostly to haul the Lotus to the track and the Corvair to shows.

Here's the basics I am thinking:

Size - Either 16' long/7' wide or 18' long/7' wide. Seems like I should go longer, cost difference isn't much. The ones I am looking at those are the interior square dimensions and the V-nose adds 2 feet more to the floor space, v-shaped of course.

Winch - Most expensive option at about $1500. I don't plan on hauling anything that doesn't run, but I guess you never know. Worth having it factory installed? Dealer says they install reinforced welded in place framing if done at the factory which accounts for the high cost.

Decking - Stock is pressure treated plywood. Worth upgrading to composite??

Axles - Stock is leaf springs. Torsion axles are maybe an extra $500. Worth it? Both options have brakes on both axles.

Driver's side escape door - This seems like a good idea to make getting out of the car easier.

Then the list goes on...corner jacks, LED interior lighting, Various tie down options, spare tire, alloy wheels, ramp options, head spinning, head spinning.

Any of you with experience let me know what you have owned and what options you found to be worth it, or wish you had when you didn't!

Do your HW on paper first
lay out the car(s) and the attachment points to tie them down, often the standard D-ring locations are less than optimal, for instance if you tie down to the wheels you will sometimes want a wider D ring placement, similarly w/ fore/aft, or do you use E-track? that's a whole other consideration.

Do you carry other stuff in the trailer besides the cars? Tire?, gas cans? spares? bikes? etc, plan for these w/ racks and attachment points and space.

I don't like wood floors, they absorb spills and odors, aluminum or maybe the new composites or at least an impermeable membrane would be preferable

A beaver tail floor reduces the need for extra ramp length, but do check on the approach angles to be sure that the car can clear, if not extra ramps are in the cards

[BK911]

7' seems narrow. Mine is 8.5 and is tight.
Leaf springs sit higher than t bars, at least when I bought mine.

[Nickshu]

Originally Posted by BK911

7' seems narrow. Mine is 8.5 and is tight.
Leaf springs sit higher than t bars, at least when I bought mine.

It's 8.5' wide but the narrowest is 7' between the wheel arches inside. I'm pulling with a half ton pickup and I don't want a larger pickup which limits a bit, but I really don't need a massive trailer anyway.

Actual published interior dimensions are 18'x101"

Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalk

[Nickshu]

Originally Posted by Bill Verburg

Do your HW on paper first
lay out the car(s) and the attachment points to tie them down, often the standard D-ring locations are less than optimal, for instance if you tie down to the wheels you will sometimes want a wider D ring placement, similarly w/ fore/aft, or do you use E-track? that's a whole other consideration.

Do you carry other stuff in the trailer besides the cars? Tire?, gas cans? spares? bikes? etc, plan for these w/ racks and attachment points and space.

I don't like wood floors, they absorb spills and odors, aluminum or maybe the new composites or at least an impermeable membrane would be preferable

A beaver tail floor reduces the need for extra ramp length, but do check on the approach angles to be sure that the car can clear, if not extra ramps are in the cards

Good advice thanks Bill.

I am doing flush mounted E-tracks for sure, it's only like an extra $50.

Question is for me doing 16' or 18' interior length (not counting v-nose). The Corvair is 15' long. I'd love for the trailer to be as short as possible but not sure at 16' if it would be too tight, or not have enough running room for the tie downs.

[Bill Verburg]

Originally Posted by Nickshu

Good advice thanks Bill.

I am doing flush mounted E-tracks for sure, it's only like an extra $50.

Question is for me doing 16' or 18' interior length (not counting v-nose). The Corvair is 15' long. I'd love for the trailer to be as short as possible but not sure at 16' if it would be too tight, or not have enough running room for the tie downs.

mi. O/A length depends on where the tie downs go, usually they are a couple of feet past the bumpers in front and back, Again if wheels are used for tie down you will often want the tie downs to the side of the car to avoid interference w/ body work.

also be sure that the car door clears the wheel wells, if not the floor will probably need to be built up, at least in the final parking position.

[ted]

Consider a load leveler and sway control system, adds stability since your truck is a only half ton.

Aluminum floor allows a simple green mop up where a wood floor will be stained forever.

Go full width so you can open your doors.

A Winch with wireless remote is the safest way to load and unload cars.
Winch and a wireless remote available for around $500 so $1000 to install seems expensive?

Torsion trailers normally sit a little lower than leaf spring trailers.
Angled rear deck a plus too.
Ramps hinged to the door can help with lower race cars.
Hinged ramps will require some interior space when the door is in closed.

If the roof is flat it may not shed water well.

It should have brakes and you will need a brake controller in your truck.

It should have interior walls (insulation a plus) or you will dent it from the inside out.

Add a small cabinet with small hinged table to the door.

Get a nice tongue lock to keep it safe during storage.

Keep it plain white and don't advertise whats inside.

Carry a spare 2 spares are better.
a small ramp to use when you have a flat you drive the good tire up a ramp to elevated the flat tire.
Saves you from having to jack up the trailer to change a flat.

An electric jack on the front of the trailer is helpful.

[Seahawk]

So much excellent advice it is hard to add value other than pushing this:

Originally Posted by ted

Carry a spare 2 spares are better.

We trailer horses a lot and always have two spares. The extra $250.00 is worth the piece of mind.

[Nickshu]

Excellent advice guys.

I was thinking of a cool 2 tone paint scheme but I think the advice of keeping it white is good to not attract any attention.

Are alloy wheels worth it, or stick with basic steel wheels?

[LakeCleElum]

U want V-nose for reduced wind resistance/gas mileage. Torsion axles for sure, sits lower and better ride. Side door....Many times you want access w/o lowering rear door. Can get a fuel hose in to fuel the car. 18' over 16' for extra storage. Snowmobile guys here order a propane heater and sleep inside at night.

Sleep inside not so much to save motel cost - Theft prevention. Lots of stories of track and trailer being stolen from motels, driven off site and then they find out what's in the trailer. It's a big problem like Wayne's 914-6 being stolen.

[Dantilla]

I've never heard anybody say "Gee, I wish this trailer were two feet shorter".

No graphics. If I ever put any graphics on my trailer, it will be something like:
"Smith AIDS Research Facility" with a biohazard warning.
Nothing that says race car & equipment inside.

[speeder]

All good advice and plain white is fine but the truth is that these trailers will get stolen in a heartbeat if not in an extremely secure location and a plain white one is preferable to a thief. It's harder to ID going down the road as he leaves and does not require a complete paint job immediately before selling, etc.

Obviously, you would not want a mural of a cool 911 on both sides but trailers like that are worth stealing all day long for the trailer. Whatever is inside is just a bonus. I'd definitely do a colored stripe or two, maybe two tone just for visibility on the highway plus making it distinctive for lookouts when it gets stolen. But that's just me.

[speeder]

Originally Posted by LakeCleElum

U want V-nose for reduced wind resistance/gas mileage. Torsion axles for sure, sits lower and better ride. Side door....Many times you want access w/o lowering rear door. Can get a fuel hose in to fuel the car. 18' over 16' for extra storage. Snowmobile guys here order a propane heater and sleep inside at night.

Sleep inside not so much to save motel cost - Theft prevention. Lots of stories of track and trailer being stolen from motels, driven off site and then they find out what's in the trailer. It's a big problem like Wayne's 914-6 being stolen.

It must be fun when someone steals the whole rig with the owner sleeping in the trailer.

I prefer to just disable the tow vehicle at motels and lock the trailer to the truck real good.

[herr_oberst]

Originally Posted by speeder

It must be fun when someone steals the whole rig with the owner sleeping in the trailer.

Could you hook up a trailer brake control inside the trailer for just this scenario?

[Arizona_928]

Originally Posted by speeder

It must be fun when someone steals the whole rig with the owner sleeping in the trailer.

I prefer to just disable the tow vehicle at motels and lock the trailer to the truck real good.

Every few years someone steals an enclosed trailer and tow rig when the motocross, and other extreme motorsports come through PHX. I know a few guys that have comp/theft only insurance for their toys for that reason. It's a sad reality that we have to live in.

[R K T]

Lots of good advice here.

I went with a slope nose instead of a V-nose only because I got a great deal on it. It also had a large trap door in the floor for spare tires, jack stands, tie-downs and tools etc. The best option was the side door!

[dlockhart]

The awning is a very useful add-on, and before we had our toter the AC transformed the trailer into a semi comfortable living/ sleeping area with a few cheap area carpets over the aluminum diamond plate.
E track on the floors and walls lets us strap in a roll-around tool box and other odds and ends.

[Corvus Corvax]

Okay, here's a dumb question. On a trailer with brakes, why isn't part of the security system activtion of the brakes while the trailer is unpowered? Turn off the truck, and rhe first thing is that the brakes clamp down? Or you have to use a key in the morning to unlock the brakes? Some security feature that makes the trailer all but immobile until the owner wants to move it?

[ckelly78z]

Originally Posted by Corvus Corvax

Okay, here's a dumb question. On a trailer with brakes, why isn't part of the security system activtion of the brakes while the trailer is unpowered? Turn off the truck, and rhe first thing is that the brakes clamp down? Or you have to use a key in the morning to unlock the brakes? Some security feature that makes the trailer all but immobile until the owner wants to move it?

While this is a good idea during heavy use, I wouldn't want to lock the brakes on a trailer that sat in wet weather for more than a week. I think the chances of freezing the pads to the rotors from rust or ice, would be high.......really good idea for overnight at an event though.