Teardrops n Tiny Travel Trailers

I'm looking at making a bid on a cargo van delivery contract that my van just falls short on the storage space requirements. The hit on the initial cost and ongoing fuel economy to upgrade to a full size van would be pretty painful. Am I crazy to want to try this? I've had a look up close at a GMC safari someone built a plywood camper topper for and there didn't seem to be to much too it. With fiberglass cargo toppers costing nearly $3000 and my van (2009 pontiac montana SV6) being a shorter size than most toppers I could hope to find at a scrap yard. I'd be using it exclusively for the added cargo/standing room so I would probably cut the van roof a foot or so back from the drivers seat and use that portion of the roof as a storage cubby and have the added structural strength in case of a roll over.
Any thoughts or advice? Stick with a commercial solution, go for something heavier or it will work just fine?

Something like this ?

We camp in our 2005 Montana. (At least until we build our dream foamie). 2 adults, 1 medium sized dog. Middle and rear seats are removed. OSB platform about 8-9 inches up from the floor. Queen-size foam mattress trimmed to fit between the wheel wells (so 48" where are feet are). Can't stand up in it, but we can sit upright. This year we bought a couple of popup changing tents so we don't have to do the jeans-wiggle to get dressed.

Each of us has 2 plastic bins that slide out on the sides for clothes and toiletries. I get the dog's stuff too. From the back, there are 2 narrow and 2 wider spaces which we use for chairs, screen tent, Coleman stove, popup changing tents, etc. Platform ends with enough room for a cooler, 2 tool boxes (dry food and cooking utensils), plus a bit of room for small stuff.

Before we built it, I calculated that the space under the platform was equivalent to about 8 carry-on sized suitcases. Can be a pain to get stuff out of the back when the bike rack is in use, but we've learned to pack carefully so we don't need anything that is under that platform while traveling. We mostly camp for just a long weekend. But we also use the van to travel cross country to visit family for holidays. We can get an amazing amount of Christmas presents under the bed.

Best part: we switch between having seats or having bed in about 15 minutes. I have even done it by myself. Took 2 sheets of 3/8 OSB and a 1x10 board. No hardware. It all fits together with slots and tabs.

I would recommend a tiny trailer instead. One that is shorter and less wide than the van and not very long. That way you get no wind resistance from it and do not take a fuel economy hit. Making the roof of your van taller will impact your gas milage, be a lot of work, reduce resale value and you risk water leaks onto your packages.
With a small trailer you could look for one thats super easy to get into or just load all your packages for the last bit of your trip into it. Then when you finish whats in the van you could quickly throw everything from the trailer into the van.

Something 4ft wide and less than 5ft tall im thinkin. Probably smaller than these.


As long as their several inches narrower than the van and several inches shorter you will not notice much of a fuel economy hit.
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X2 on the trailer, more flexible, fewer issues long term


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unless you have to back up, then you wont be so happy with a little trailer

GPW wrote:Something like this ?

Yes that exactly.

me&z wrote:We camp in our 2005 Montana. (At least until we build our dream foamie). 2 adults, 1 medium sized dog. Middle and rear seats are removed. OSB platform about 8-9 inches up from the floor. Queen-size foam mattress trimmed to fit between the wheel wells (so 48" where are feet are). Can't stand up in it, but we can sit upright. This year we bought a couple of popup changing tents so we don't have to do the jeans-wiggle to get dressed.

Each of us has 2 plastic bins that slide out on the sides for clothes and toiletries. I get the dog's stuff too. From the back, there are 2 narrow and 2 wider spaces which we use for chairs, screen tent, Coleman stove, popup changing tents, etc. Platform ends with enough room for a cooler, 2 tool boxes (dry food and cooking utensils), plus a bit of room for small stuff.

Before we built it, I calculated that the space under the platform was equivalent to about 8 carry-on sized suitcases. Can be a pain to get stuff out of the back when the bike rack is in use, but we've learned to pack carefully so we don't need anything that is under that platform while traveling. We mostly camp for just a long weekend. But we also use the van to travel cross country to visit family for holidays. We can get an amazing amount of Christmas presents under the bed.

Best part: we switch between having seats or having bed in about 15 minutes. I have even done it by myself. Took 2 sheets of 3/8 OSB and a 1x10 board. No hardware. It all fits together with slots and tabs.

I do a pretty similar though less permanent thing when I travel solo, a couple heavy large duty totes with a self inflating camping mat on top of them. When my wife comes we'll haul out the tent and set it up. Once I get around to fitting a mesh insert for a window or two I could probably convince her to try it :-)

mattyfu wrote:I do a pretty similar though less permanent thing when I travel solo, a couple heavy large duty totes with a self inflating camping mat on top of them. When my wife comes we'll haul out the tent and set it up. Once I get around to fitting a mesh insert for a window or two I could probably convince her to try it :-)

WAY easier than a tent. Faster "set up" too which makes it great for late arrival or short stop in a rest area. With 4" foam mattress, it is very comfortable. A lot like having a teardrop without towing anything (or having a galley. )

I recommend full screens for the front windows. Either a Sceeter beater (slip over style) or sew strip magnets into a pocket around the edges of screen material to the profile of the doors For the back, we have blackout curtains made from reflect-tex with black fabric on the outside and a nice print on the inside and a 4 inch boarder of screen to fill in the gap on those tilting back windows. They stay in place just fine without any fasteners. Also a reflect-tex cover for the back window. We've slept warm and comfortable down to 25. But not enough airflow if the temps stay above about 60 at night. I'm trying to design something for screens on the sliding doors.

I wouldn't cut into the roof as I'd be concerned about the structural integrity of the vehicle. I'd look into one of those SUV tents that connects to the van to get standing space. But we generally only camp for 1 or 2 nights at a time, so we've not had anything for 4 years. I'm looking forward to having the popup changing tent this year.