Offroad Trailer.... Any DIYs out there?

SKT

SKT

Senior Member
Joined
Aug 16, 2008
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Brissy
I'm getting the car sorted with off road mods but am at the point where I am starting a family and want to get a heap of the camping/travelling crap out of the car and take some weight of the rear axle. When I load up for a light trip I loose a smidge over a full inch of height between the guard and top of the tire making all that work to get my arse off the ground semi null and void....

I am now seriously looking at an offroad trailer. My options being buy complete or build one up. If I can get a complete trailer for a decent price with a proven pedgree I'll prob go that way I think. Although I have some talented metal workers in my family I just dunno about their ability to stay on the job with their busy lives.

I am also looking at a slightly smaller than usual trailer. I guess the 6x4 size. I dont need the regular size that needs a Patrol or Cruiser to tow. I just wanna offload all the swaggy campy stuff up back and get some weight off the rear axle. I'd like to get a decent suspension setup too so that I can mount the fridge back there and know its not going to get the crap beaten out of it. The idea would be to drive with trailer to a sort of base camp spot then un-hitch and snoop around from there.
I'd most likely be staying on track with the trailer hitched but would like to be able to cross uneven rocky terrain at slow pace and be able to pull it on sand meaning I am trying to keep the weight down where possible.

So.........

Has anyone got a decent off road trailer that has absorded the bumps and bashing of regular off road and rugged touring and was it bought or home-made ???

Feel free to post any pics hey :iconwink:

Any other thoughts would be much appreciated including axle setups, hitchs, weight displacement or any other trailer issues/accomplishments you may have experienced.

Cheers,

Scott
 
Last edited:
spinners said:
Check out this build... WOW. You may have to become a member to view. But it is worth it.

https://www.4wdaction.com.au/forum/showthread.php?t=8607


There is also this version, which may suit your needs. I saw one of these up close at one of the Birthday Bashes. Nice stuff.

https://www.podtrailer.com.au/
Click to expand...

That is a pretty awesome build indeed.
My biggest issue us what type of suspension to use... leaf or some sort of coil over or a leaf set up with some shocky absorbers in there somehow. I really want the trailer suspension to be quite soft so that anything up back doesn't cop a flogging... ie fridge and any other electronics I wanna rig into it.

The frame and draw bar ideas are pretty basic and as far as I can tell you can buy axles ready to rock.... just gotta sort how to do the suspension. Especially since I'm going to run it pretty light. One of my main goals is to build build it to get weight displacement right so as to take as much weight off the tow ball as possible. This is one my highest design principals. I'm hoping to get the fridge up front then probably slide a few 20litre water jerrys around the trailer in order to balance it all out as the trailer is being built.

In the end I may just buy something and mod it a bit.

Still up in the air. I did see a forum post of guy building one for his Zuki... looked OK but the axle was way up the back. And the draw bar was a little short.

I have looked at that Pod trailer. Pretty sweet looking but the price is a little high. I reckon... well I know it can be built for half that price.
 
I wish I had the gear and ability to make one. I'm planning some touring and a trailer would be great (though they've now been banned from crossing the Simpson). I'm thinking of getting a roof top tent which could also be mounted on a trailer in the future.

I'd really love a Tvan (www.tracktrailer.com.au) but I can't see that happening in the foreseeable future.
 
apsilon said:
I'd really love a Tvan (www.tracktrailer.com.au) but I can't see that happening in the foreseeable future.
Click to expand...

They are nice setups but I'd say too heavy for what I need. I want to keep it light as possible. Realistically I'm just looking to empty the car a bit and get some weight off the towball. The podtrailer as linked in this forum is very close to what I am after I'd say. If I make it myself then I wont be afraid to mod it and drill it and so on....
 
That is what I am looking at doing.

I would want to scrub the axle and install a IS setup.

Chuck in a low profile water storage tank, a tooltox and another box to mount a fridge with Anderson plug and your laughin'.
 
Scott,

A couple of the more obvoius things to consider and remember, regardless of bought item, or home built.

Try to make sure the track width of the trailer is the same as the car, so it follows in the same tyre tracks.

Use the same wheels as on you car. Interchangable spares between car and trailer is a major plus. At worst you can raid the trailer and come back later.

Beigewagon.
 
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