Crow For Dinner: Why Yes the Enclosed Trailer Is Better.

Call me Frenchy as some of you may know I've used single axle open trailers for 34 years but this past weekend that changed. I did my first trip with my 16ft enclosed trailer and man does it require far less mental energy.

Also having everything at hand rather than having to pull things out of trailer toolbox or some compartment in the van was really nice.

One of biggest things I liked was being able to leave the tie down straps laid out on the floor of the trailer. After my Sunday race I pulled off track and into the trailer, got out of the car, took off my helmet and strapped down the car in 5 minutes.

I also liked not having to worry about someone messing with the car when I stopped for a bathroom break or a quick bite to eat. 

I got back to my house at 9:30 PM and after a 6 hour drive it was nice to be able to just back the trailer up to the garage door and not worry about unloading until the next morning. I just pulled my gear bag out of my van and went inside.

The only down side was the fuel mileage; I averaged 7 miles to the gallon versus the previous 9. The new trailer is 1500lbs heavier so I was expecting that.

So after years of saying "you don't need that fancy trailer" I am a convert.

Tom1200 said:

The only down side was the fuel mileage; I averaged 7 miles to the gallon versus the previous 9. The new trailer is 1500lbs heavier so I was expecting that.

It's probably more the drag from the sail area than the weight.

And yeah, you don't NEED a fancy trailer, but it sure is nice.

I know you aren't doing the formula car thing anymore, but having a small track apartment is nice. 

Last time at the track a thunderstorm rolled in, was really nice to be able to get the car in and sleep in there with it not having to worry if the car cover was keeping it dry.

A life lesson of we are never too old to learn something new.

I know this forum tends towards the minimalist, but a big, lockable box where all your track stuff is safe and organized is a good thing.  

In reply to Tom1200 :

We'll be referencing FrenchyD for stuff like that, for years after newer guys to the site will have no clue what the reference is!

The bad thing is, most times I really liked the guy. Done a ton of good and cool stuff. But could spin me up like a top with his BS. 
I do miss the old guy, 'round here. 

I miss my 32' enclosed trailer.  That thing was a beast.

My only problem right now (looking for an enclosed trailer) is that for the price of a semi-beat used enclosed, I could almost buy a brand new open trailer.

No doubt I prefer the enclosed, but my wallet and I are currently not on speaking terms.

As wierd as it sounds, some of my best memories racing are from huddling in the enclosed trailer during foul weather with the rest of the team.  Especially when one sucker was on track getting wet.

In reply to 03Panther :

I enjoyed a lot of his posts and enjoyed his eccentric nature but yeah he did to tend to wind folks up.

Man I go back and forth so much on this. A lot of it comes down to how complicated the particular car in question is to tie down in various trailers. The BMW, for example, is a pain in the butt to winch into an enclosed trailer because you putting it in neutral with the engine off is a big battle. At some point you're going to have to climb through the window of the car to extricate it since you can't leave it in neutral for extended periods without the 12v power being on. 

I love the "giant box on wheels holding all your stuff safe and dry" aspect of the enclosed trailer, but I also love the "load it in five minutes nd you don't even know it's back there while towing" aspect of our open rig.

I REALLY liked the Aerovault, and Tim's new Montrose trailer seems to have a lot of the great qualities of the Aerovault (low frontal area, light weight), without the crazy cost. Although that small frontal ares means tight interior space which made tying a Corvette down a little tricky.

JG Pasterjak said:

I REALLY liked the Aerovault, and Tim's new Montrose trailer seems to have a lot of the great qualities of the Aerovault (low frontal area, light weight), without the crazy cost. Although that small frontal ares means tight interior space which made tying a Corvette down a little tricky.

I've never used one, but the aerovault-style trailers never seemed like the right tradeoff to me.  You keep the car dry on the way to the track, which is nice, but you don't really get any of the other advantages of an enclosed trailer (lots of room for tires, tools, spares, and to keep out of the sun/rain while at the track).  In exchange you have an even more difficult time tying the car down.

I can see how it would make sense for something like hauling to a car show, perhaps I'm just too stuck in a road racing mindset. :)

JG Pasterjak said:

I love the "giant box on wheels holding all your stuff safe and dry" aspect of the enclosed trailer, but I also love the "load it in five minutes nd you don't even know it's back there while towing" aspect of our open rig.

Fortunately I am small guy (5' 7" 138lbs) in a small car. I can walk around the perimeter of the car when it's in the trailer.

I drove straight off the track and into the trailer on Sunday. By chance I checked the time and it took 7 minutes to strap it down and it only took that long because I haven't added the small wheel chock in the front or labeled the rear straps yet.

The trailer was gifted to me from a friend who is getting out of racing..............otherwise I'd still be singing the praises of my single axle open trailer. 

We went to an enclosed trailer a few years back and I don't think I could go back. Especially with racing in Florida, you never know when those storms are going to hit and having that cover with some AC, can't beat that. Plus like others have said, after an event, just back it up and you can unload at your leisure vs needing to do it that night. I'm about to overhaul ours as things have started to accumulate over the years inside the trailer along with putting some cabinets and a build in tool chest into the front of it. 

For the car I crew we have the best (or worst) of both worlds. I like it because we have shade, a lockable area, and the car is easy to load and strap down. That was especially true last weekend after tearing the LF corner off of it. It would have been very hard to load in an enclosed trailer. 
It also leaves the car outside, has all the frontal area and is pretty heavy. 
that said it's cool as heck, people can see the car which is fun and I think it can be safer from a theft standpoint. 

With pic, now, added from computer with no issue

I used a bread truck that I converted to tote my Miata around. To get the car over the wheel humps in the trailer, I had to build a platform that it would drive up on, but then that provided the opportunity to crawl under the car if needed, so it was kind of handy. We had a winch to pull it up in there and everything. Gas mileage wasn't great, though. And frankly, anything bigger than a Miata probably would have been too wide to fit. But it was a huge apartment when the car was out of it. I was going to really set the thing up if we kept it.

By far my favorite part of using an enclosed trailer is that packing and unpacking the truck is no longer part of a race weekend.  Tools, spare parts, fuel, tires and so on are all in the trailer all the time.  I also keep water and some packaged snacks in there all the time.  If I keep on top of the restock list that's in my phone a race weekend prep consists of making sure the car is ready and hooking up the trailer.  With the Miata it's not uncommon for me to have to do absolutely nothing between races other than unhook and hook up the trailer.

In reply to APEowner :

Being pre packed was a revelation for me.

Yeah, yeah, whatever. Just know that to all real amateur drives, you're simply a baller!

The plans for more track days this year didn't pan out (3rd gear failed in March at CMP, missed two more weekends getting that fixed, hurricane canceled another weekend, and next event is still planned for Nov), but I've been doing a lot of karting with my 5yo daughter. The track days have been with a borrowed open trailer, but we've been making karting work with a neat open trailer setup:

Both open trailers have had their upsides - mainly towing easily - although I don't like leaving the karts out in the rain. Tarps work when parked, and they get wet on track sometimes, so it isn't major. Still, not a lot of fun trying to get everything loaded up in the rain. My daughter's first 5 race weekends were all rain. 

Just got this delivered though!

One of the biggest things I'm looking forward to is being able to park it all race weekend rather than having to trailer it back and forth. With the open trailer, I have to hunt for a spot each day for multi-day events while the enclosed guys just dump the trailer at the beginning of the event and then come and go with the tow vehicle. 

I'm also looking forward to being able to sleep in the trailer. Did that once with a buddy last year, and it was really convenient. Hotels have gotten so stupid, anything 2-star (Holiday Inn type) is close to $150-$200 per night and more than half an hour away. I haven't pulled the trailer any meaningful distance yet, so I'm curious how the little Tacoma will do, but I'm optimistic. 

I'll miss being able to swing the trailer into the garage though, haha

In reply to cyow5 :

Well my 7300lb 1990 E250 CamperVan is pulling 4150lbs of enclosed trialer with a motor making 220HP/300ftlbs.

On flat ground it will do 65mph no problem.

On the 19 mile 6% Baker's Grade it's down to 35mph about 4 miles from the top. Basically I spend an extra 5 minutes climbing the grade that I wouldn't in a bigger more powerful truck  

Tom1200 said:

Well my 7300lb 1990 E250 CamperVan is pulling 4150lbs of enclosed trialer with a motor making 220HP/300ftlbs.

Less power just means you go up hills slower, the thing I would worry about with a smaller truck like a Tacoma is getting blown/pushed around by the trailer.

The Tacoma of today, is probably big enough. The early T100 (bigger than the Toyota HiLux that became the Tacoma) was definitely not. I know a Tundra would. 

You are 100% correct on your thinking, but physical size, I think the current Tacoma, is probably larger (and weighs more) than the "new" body style F150 that came out in 1996!

It is definitely something he needs to be aware of. And "rated to tow", by marketing department, can be quite different than "safely tows" 

Yeah, like I said, I'm optimistic. The trailer is only 18' and no extra height, so the side area is pretty low (for an enclosed). My curb weight is nearly 5,000lb. vs a 4,500lb trailer fully loaded, so it's at least not inverted. 
 

My first experience towing an enclosed was with a 2nd Tundra and a 28' enclosed. The wind was noticeable but nothing crazy. Weight on that truck was under half a ton more, so less weight to side area ratio.