Tent Trailers: Pop-up Camping

Top 855. Sep 1, 2000 7:53 AM

» Gulaver - Dodge Dakota, Sue & Rick

I have a 98 Dodge Dakota with a 5.2/318 V8 and the 4 speed automatic. I've been pulling a Coleman Sun valley, fully loaded I'm right at 3000 pounds and have no problems with it.I do have a transmission cooler installed to help out and it's holding up so far.Hope you find this useful.

-- posted by Gulaver

Top 856. Sep 1, 2000 8:24 AM

» Abbanat - Transmission Cooler

Hi. My wife and I are considering purchasing a tent trailer to tow with our '96 Dodge Intrepid. To avoid having to replace another(!) transmission, we intend to stay under our towing capacity of 2,000 lbs and install a transmission cooler as has been recommended by many in this discussion. My question is, do you recommend getting a transmission oil temperature gauge as well to keep an eye on it? If so, how much additional cost can I expect to pay? Or should I be content with just the cooler? Thanks for your input!

-- posted by Abbanat

Top 857. Sep 1, 2000 10:55 PM

» Tom_Stephens - Trans temp. gauge

I don't think that you need a temperature gauge. I have found that keeping an eye on my engine temp. is sufficient. Good luck!
Yours,

-- posted by Tom_Stephens

Top 858. Sep 2, 2000 7:31 AM

» kiyokoya - shower

We have a 99 Coleman Westlake with toilet and shower. We love it! The shower is a great place for storage when not in use (remember to dry first), and we use the shower to rinse off our little ones.

-- posted by kiyokoya

Top 859. Sep 2, 2000 10:35 PM

» Everettfolks - Coleman vs other Makes

I just found this great website today! We are planning to buy our first tent trailer between now and next summer. We thought we'ld decided on buying a Coleman but then we talked to a guy who runs a Camper rental and repair place. He believed that Jayco is superior. He said that in his book there are 4 flaws with Coleman's. 1) water stored under the tent trailer is very inconvenient, 2)swing-level galley if heavily loaded could fall down and break a foot, 3)kitchen sink is awkward to use, and 4) there is no insulation between the walls thus causing sweat. I feel Coleman offers a good selection of accessories but I would hate to buy one and find I should have listened to this guy who recommends Jayco's. We have a 93 Dodge Caravan and understand we can tow up to 2500 lbs. From perusing your old messages it sounds like we should get a transmission cooler. We have two young children and hope to get into a used tent trailer. Any one have any comments/advise on the above?

-- posted by Everettfolks

Top 860. Sep 2, 2000 10:50 PM

» Tom_Stephens - Coleman vs others

I can't comment on this fellows points myself, but if you have read the treads on this discussion, you can see that many folks are very happy with their Coleman pop-ups. I am sure some of our fellow campers will be posting on this subject. So, just please stay tuned! Welcome to Camping in America, by the way, and glad you joined us!

Yours,

-- posted by Tom_Stephens

Top 861. Sep 3, 2000 12:01 PM

» Me_o_my - Coleman COLORADO

Has anyone had experience with this small tent trailer? We are considering one. Our vehicle is not meant to tow large trailers. The pic at the dealer looks nice/cute.

Also, have you seen, used or know about the Lee-sure units? They are taking one in on trade.

Have trailered in the past, but had bigger and heavier vehicle. Replacing our vehicle is not in the picture. Need something in the 1000# or less catergory. So any advice or help would be desired.

-- posted by Me_o_my

Top 862. Sep 4, 2000 9:37 PM

» richwi - Exceeding Tow Limit

I have a '98 Caravan with the 3.3L engine. The towing limit is 2000lbs but in looking into the specs on the tow package it looks like the only difference (other than beefed up brakes) is a second transmission cooler (the Caravan comes standard with one) and heavier springs/shocks in the rear. If I added a second after market transmission cooler and heavier shocks do you think I could tow about 2200-2300 lbs without causing damage??

-- posted by richwi

Top 863. Sep 5, 2000 5:10 AM

» ruraven - coleman vs other makes

Hi my wife and i bought a 2000 coleman utah this summer loaded. i have camped in 3 differant pop-ups over the last 15 years and feel the coleman is the best camper for my family. the water being stored underneath seems safe to me being located above the frame and it gives me more storage witch is a big point using a pop-up.my grey water storage tank is also stored underneath camper for traveling.and the swing over gally is also a good feature because you dont have to unload after every camping trip.the only thing i didnt get in my camper was the shower/potty because we camp in camp grounds with shower houses so we took the extra storage space. and we are happy we did it the way we did. One more thing ....look into the slide out dinnette this is an awesome feature.

-- posted by ruraven