Teardrop trailer campers

[bennelson]

Hard to say exactly how long it took to build, because it was always in little short spurts.

Most of the work was done nights and weekends in one summer, then my father-in-law got sick, so the whole project was stashed and then pulled back out the next spring. I didn't have to do a whole lot more that spring.

Overall, a project similar to mine is a very do-able summer project.

Of coarse that depends how much experience you have with wood, metal, trailers, electrical, etc.

Everything I did on the trailer took pretty long, because I hadn't done any work like that before. The only thing I was able to do quick and easy was the 12V wiring.

If I were to build another trailer, I could do it twice as fast now.

[aerohead]

none of the designs truly respect aerodynamics.They're "way out ahead of nothing",however can all be improved.I built a "micro" teardrop two-wheel trailer for my CRX,drove it to Los Angeles from Denton,TX,pulled 500-pounds of NiCad batteries back with it,and averaged 50-mpg for the trip.On the return leg,the rig weighed over 2,800-lbs,as much as a Ford Taurus.The bottom of the trailer was not completed,so the trailer was a lot "dirtier",than had it been finished.I believe that if properly executed,the trailer can actually "improve"mileage for the car/trailer combo,as I only lost 2-mpg pulling the trailer,running half a ton heavier than the CRX by itself.Time will tell.

[bennelson]

True that none of these designs are actually aerodynamic; but they sure look cool.

If forgot to latch the back of the trailer once. At 45 mph, enough lift is generated to lift the hatch straight up and out. My hatch isn't very light either, it's about as heavy as you want to lift with one hand while reaching for the prop rod with the other.

I think that teardrops would be a great place to start to build a true aerodynamic trailer that work in conjunction with the tow vehicle similar to the camper towing the car mentioned earlier in this thread.

PS: part of the design of my particular trailer is that no material was larger than 4'x8'. Keeps it easy to build. If I built another one of these, I might do something more complicated to build, but more aerodynamic and stylish!

[H4MM3R]

Why not build the whole new unit?

[bennelson]

Originally Posted by H4MM3R

Why not build the whole new unit?

Too busy building crazy things like electric cars!!!

Somebody else's turn to build a camper!

[basjoos]

I'd like to see a trailer shaped like the Rumpler Tropfenwagen, a vertical airfoil with a fairly flat top.

[Christopher Jordan]

Originally Posted by bennelson

True that none of these designs are actually aerodynamic; but they sure look cool

mini-mini-mini reverse teardrop trailer? I posted thi

[Christopher Jordan]

Originally Posted by bennelson

True that none of these designs are actually aerodynamic; but they sure look cool

mini-mini-mini reverse teardrop trailer? I posted this photo on another thread, but thought it might fit right in on this thread

countersTrike

[zjrog]

I have a friend that towed a tear drop behind his 1958 Edsel wagon. On long trips, he went from 12 MPG without to 14 MPG pulling the little trailer. He took it everywhere just to get the better mileage. It really was tiny. Inside barely bigger than a fullsize matress, and no taller than the wagon.

[bennelson]

People have been asking me about Teardrops lately, so here's a little more information on them at my blog.
So You Want a Teardrop Trailer