Читать книгу RVs & Campers For Dummies - Christopher Hodapp - Страница 51

The teardrop trailer design has been around since at least the 1930s, and it continues to be popular, especially as more single campers have been taking to the road. The very first ones were often home-built units, and magazines like Mechanix Illustrated would publish trailer plans so the intrepid do-it-yourselfer could knock together his very own teardrop or mini trailer out in the garage workshop. Everything old seems to be new again, and today you can find modern plans online to build your own.

A teardrop trailer usually looks exactly like what it’s called, with a big, rounded nose in the front, tapering down to an aerodynamic point in the back (see Figure 2-7) — sort of like a comma turned on its side. The tiniest teardrops have little in them besides a bed for one or two very friendly people, some lights, and maybe a TV. In the back end, they often have a tiny kitchen area hidden under a flip-up hatch. Most have an onboard 12-volt battery system that can power a few essentials and can be recharged by plugging into a 120-volt electrical outlet, a generator, or solar panels, or by hooking up the trailer’s electrical hitch connector to your car and starting your engine.

Typically, these tiny titans are no more than 5 feet tall from the pavement to the roof, and between 4 and 6 feet wide. At just 8 feet long and less than 1,000 pounds, the smaller teardrops are lightweight enough to push by hand and store in your garage. Best of all, the smallest SUVs can tow them.

Photograph courtesy of Christopher Hodapp

FIGURE 2-7: This tiny TAG teardrop by nüCamp can be towed by almost any car.

Teardrops are very high on the cuteness scale and often elicit oohs and aahs from passersby. The term glamping (a combination of glamour and camping) comes up often when looking into retro-styled teardrop trailers. You can find more on this subject in Chapter 3, where we cover the fun of glamping in a teardrop or vintage trailer.

Not all teardrop trailers are super tiny. There are teardrops big enough to stand up in. Large or small, the design is an eye catcher, and some manufacturers make them spacious enough for two people to comfortably camp in for longer than just a weekend. These have a bed (often tucked under the sloping roofline in the rear), a kitchen, a small bathroom (often a space-saving wet bath), and even a little storage. Depending on their loaded weight, they can still be towed by a smaller SUV.