Karavan 5.5 x 10ft. Aluminum Utility Trailer

Needed a light sturdy trailer. This is it. Can haul little over a ton. Works great.

The trailer itself is OK. Being so lightweight, the tongue bounces around (along with the ball-mount) and makes a lot of noise on bumpy roads. If you tow with a receiver hitch, you'll want to invest in an anti-rattle bracket to quiet things down (about $25). It doesn't come with a spare tire or mount, so plan accordingly (another $300+). Tires are not balanced. It took quite a bit of weight on each wheel to smooth things out. Another $66.00. Though I guess they (TCS) are trailer retailers, they don't process titlework like auto, truck, motorcycle dealerships. A clerk will (hopefully) complete your paperwork and send you to the courthouse to pay your taxes and registration fees (another $300 or so in Texas). In my case, the clerk neglected to sign off of some paperwork. TCS was initially no help in resolving the problem. The manager has yet to return a phone call. Come to think of it, TSC corporate didn't respond, either. I finally found an assistant manager (Hannah Thompson) interested in helping. A few more trips to the courthouse (my time and expense, not theirs) and I'm hoping the title will now be processed. Look closely before you buy. TSC had two of these side by side. Once was much older than the other and had a broken fender. Not sure what else may have been wrong with it. However ... given their level of assistance with paperwork, I wouldn't want to try to get them to get a fender from Karavan on my behalf. I hope the trailer serves me well. I can't imagine I'll be spending any more money at TSC. Good Luck.

The good: We bought this last year and like the versatility of the sides folding down. This makes it perfect for loading and offloading. The design is heavier duty than the comparable models at big box stores like blue or orange. It has an aluminum deck which in my opinion is much better than pressure treated wood and doesn't require periodic staining, care and replacement. The trailer is nice and light, easy to move around compared to a steel model. The wheels are designed for highway speed which is a big plus. The wheel bearing/axle has zero fitting that lubricates the bearings without disassembly and makes maintenance much easier. The Bad: The trailer has a ton of vibration and bounce 30-35 mph when empty. It's severe enough that it bounces the back of my midsized pickup and suv. I'm not sure if it's a tire issue or possibly tires out of balance, but vibrates the entire vehicle enough that you don't enjoy driving at those speeds. Another downfall is the trailer gate design. It has some sort of aero gate/ramp made out of angle aluminum with large gaps to allow air to go through. This might be usable in some applications, but it's not designed for people, kids, animals or kids to walk on it due to your feet will fall through the holes. Another issue is if you use a hand truck or dolly to roll cargo onto the trailer. Due to the holes in the gate/ ramp the wheels will fall through and simply will not roll into the deck. Yes you can haul around a board or piece of plywood to place over the ramp, but spending extra for the trailer the gate /ramp should have been much better designed. Another issue is there are no side panels that you can purchase from the manufacturer. Doesn't seem like a big deal at first, but if your hauling brush or boxes etc you want to prevent this stuff from falling out on your trip. And making your own out of wood kind of defeats why you bought an aluminum trailer to begin with. Another downside I have noticed is other drivers have trouble seeing the trailer when driving for whatever reason. I'm not sure if the aluminum color blends into the roadway or if there are not enough reflectors on the ramp/ gate but it's definitely an issue during the day, and much worse with lower visibility like rain or dusk. And yes this is with the trailer lights on and working. Do yourself a favor and add a bunch of reflectors to the back of this thing before some driver hits it by mistake. Other than these issues it's probably better than what you will find at your big bix stores. Just remember the gate/ ramp sucks and isnt safe for people and kids to use. My 8 year old fell through and was afraid to walk on the ramp afterword. Karavan really needs to redesign this before someone really gets hurt....

Bought the 5.5 Karavan aluminum trailer and it is perfect for my needs. I tow it with my Subaru Outback without any issues. TSC of East Syracuse was great to deal with. Jennifer was my sales associate. She was new to trailers but did a great job answering my questions and finished my paperwork quickly and efficiently. The trailer carries my zero turn Ferris mower without any issues. I have also used it to transport cordwood for my wood stove!