Trailmanor new upright camper

We had to drop off our 3124KB today for a little unanticipated warranty work on the way back from a week-long trip down to Austin, TX and back (see Mark's separate posts). We hadn't planned the stop at The Car Show in advance but it made more sense to drop her off on the way home since we had to drive through the Springs to get back to Longmont. Anyway, as we were pulling in I spied the new upright parked at the back of the building in the service area. I just had to ask if I could take a quick peek at the unit while we were there. They were doing some work on it and said it was a mess but I was welcome to look.

Some VERY QUICK impressions of the unit at The Car Show:

- Really long tongue on the unit because the batteries are stored just inside the front and there needs to be area for the door to swing out behind the propane tanks. Adds at least two additional (wasted) feet to the overall length of the unit.
- Fit and finish inside comparable to the anniversary edition. Upgraded sound system.
- Bathroom feels noticeably bigger - might even have room to turn around. No shower curtain excess. Floor-to-ceiling storage next to the toilet that appears to be useable. I think that the model we saw had the flush toilet since it wasn't the familiar recirculating model but I didn't think to ask.
- Didn't get a chance to look at the frig or other appliances but they all looked nice and nicely placed. Counter height seemed higher. Fixed hanging cabinets. Looks like more useable storage. Same single-bowl sink.
- Dinette table was not assembled but looks like it would be much sturdier on two 3" or 4" metal legs than our fold-out table. Would make down into a single bed, possibly on the short side but I couldn't be sure without measuring it.
- I saw where someone on the thread mentioned it would be dark inside yet that wasn't our impression.

We really only got the briefest of glimpses since we didn't want to get in the way of the work that was being done. It wouldn't work for us anyway, towing concerns aside, with the 3 girls but it looked like a very nice little trailer for someone who wanted a lightweight unit and didn't mind towing an upright.

Anne

Anne - I haven't seen the one at the Car Show yet, but talking to my salesman indicated that they are still having problems with sway, and it tends to a bit pricy compared to other similar sized TTs - although still lightweight compared to those others.

I think it has a very narrow market, but if the typical TM quality stands out, it could have some interest. It will at least give the dealers something else to show at the RV shows.
Alan

[cali camping]

Anyone heard if these are available from the dealers yet? Any owners out there?

Originally Posted by cali camping

Anyone heard if these are available from the dealers yet? Any owners out there?

We went down to the RV show in Denver this past weekend and The Car Show had theirs on the display floor with a SOLD! sign on it so I'd guess they are available although probably in short supply right now.

Trailmanor needs to stick to the models that made the company and focus and IMPROVE the quality on the products currently being manufactured. I know these trailors are designed to be light weight so how about shorting the shower curtain a bit which would eliminate several LBS !

Great to hear that the Highlander pulled the trailer fine without installing sway bars. Did any large semi's pass you during that ride home? Keep us posted - the Elkmont could really catch on if it tows that nicely behind the smaller SUVs/minivans.

I posted a response in the new thread for Elkmonts, but wanted to respond to some of the questions above. First, we noticed very little wind sway from big trucks while we were travelling on the Interstate (I-4). We went about 200 miles round trip, most of it on highways. We use a weight distribution hitch and that may help. We noticed that mileage was pretty much the same or a smidge better. The Elkmont's dry weight is about 500 lbs lighter than our 3124.
We felt like we had more "walking around" space inside. We took out the dinette table, covered the holes in the floor that the table legs screw in to with a little throw rug, and that worked great. We used folding TV trays when we needed a table inside. By the way, we rarely used the installed table in our 3124KB because it filled the aisle. We used the TV trays there too.
The Elkmont has a digital TV mounted on the wall by the door and it is on a swivel mount, so you can watch it from the bed or the sofa. We were both able to watch even though one of us watched from the bed and the other from the sofa.
We love the full size refrigerator, and the stove has a separate oven below it and a seperate mocrowave and range hood above. There's enough storge space in the bathroom to store towels. There is less outside storage (there's one compartment in the front behind where the propane tanks are located), but the bed matress raises on haudraulics and there's storage underneath. The matress is about 6" high, so it's thicker than the matresses in the 3124, but not a lot. We have added a padded matress cover and that helps.
There is a full-sized screen door. The dogs loved that - they could watch out the door and comment on passersby.
I guess the biggest difference was when it came time to leave. We moved things that might fall over to the floor or bed, dumped the tanks, put the hoses away, hitched up and left. The fridge automatically switches from electric to gas when you unplug from the power, so we just had to make sure the gas was on. While we never much minded the chores of closing the 3124, (unlike the people in Denver, we don't consider ourselves too old to open and close the 3124) I have to admit this was faster. I don't think we would have traded in the 3124 for any other brand/model than the Elkmont. We're happy we had this opportunity.

They really look nice. Sounds like the wind resistance isn't significantly more.
I'd retrofit a window over the bed. I like all the windows in the folding TM. I've even considered putting a clear skylight over the rear bed to watch the stars. I'd need a shade too.

Where are the batteries? In the brochure they have lights on but no battery on the tongue.

I very much agree with Bob Strong's thinking that a longer Elkmont would be very appealing, especially for those of us that have come to love the floor plan of the longer 3326K. We, too, are on our second 3326K TrailManor and could not easily accept anything with less liveability. I would also second the idea of a window over the bed. The idea of being able to look out any side of a trailer to see what's going on around you certainly adds to one's sense of security. A final thought: The Elkmont is costly and the competition is closing in on TrailManor's nitch of a light weight, easy to tow trailer. I am not quite sure yet that the Elkmont is worth its price, especially when nicely equipped.

Just got my June Trailer Life - the cover sports a picture of a new Elkmont begin towed by the new Ford Flex. The Flex has a 4500 lb tow rating.

Will read the article when I get a chance!