Palomini vs R Pod vs Solaire hybrid

[Clifton Tesh]

Any one own any of these or have any knowledge on them?

I'm looking for something that can be towed behind a midsize SUV (4runner or traverse) and can comfortably fit my wife and I and our 9 year old daughter, but I'm not wanting to break the bank.

I've looked at all of these on line and I prefer the way the Solaire Hybrid and palomini are designed over the R Pod, but I've heard wonderful things about R Pods.

Thanks in advance

 

[Teamubr]

Which models are you considering? Solaire is a Palomino product. Which other Palomino are you looking at. R-Pods only have one hybrid model. The rest of their trailers are the bubble type. I'd think those might be a little tight for 2 adults AND a 9 year old. Interestingly, Palomino (Solaire) and R-Pod are all Forest River products. Many FR lines have the same or similar floorplans.

Hybrids give a lot of room in a small towable size. Biggest issue with a hybrid are the weather extremes. They are hard to heat in cold weather and hard to cool in WDW summer heat. My first trailer was a hybrid. It was the perfect size for me, my DW and 2 year old DS, but camping in October in 40 degree nights wasn't comfortable, even with the furnace running.

Also, what type of SUV will you be towing with? The smallest Solaire will be under 4000 lbs, but the others gross out at 5k and 6k. 5-6,000 may be too much for a midsize SUV depending on how it is setup.

And I love your text on the ticker. We are taking my niece for the first time next year. She will just be turning 6.

j

 

[Clifton Tesh]

Which models are you considering? Solaire is a Palomino product. Which other Palomino are you looking at. R-Pods only have one hybrid model. The rest of their trailers are the bubble type. I'd think those might be a little tight for 2 adults AND a 9 year old. Interestingly, Palomino (Solaire) and R-Pod are all Forest River products. Many FR lines have the same or similar floorplans.

Hybrids give a lot of room in a small towable size. Biggest issue with a hybrid are the weather extremes. They are hard to heat in cold weather and hard to cool in WDW summer heat. My first trailer was a hybrid. It was the perfect size for me, my DW and 2 year old DS, but camping in October in 40 degree nights wasn't comfortable, even with the furnace running.

Also, what type of SUV will you be towing with? The smallest Solaire will be under 4000 lbs, but the others gross out at 5k and 6k. 5-6,000 may be too much for a midsize SUV depending on how it is setup.

And I love your text on the ticker. We are taking my niece for the first time next year. She will just be turning 6.

j

To be honest I'm not a big fan of the R Pod, it looks like it would be cramped (like you said).

The Palomino's I'm looking at are the Palominis, all the ones I've looked into are under 4000 gvwr. They also have a "real lite" that I've learned about since posting this.

And the Solaire was the only hybrid I looked into. But I figured it would be like you said, hard to heat or cool.

So I'm thinking just from what you said, the palomini or real lite would be my best bet.

As for the suv, the wife doesn't trust my trusty old XJ (regular jeep cherokee, not grand), she only has 484,000 on her. So we are looking at a 4 runner or traverse.

ETA- I'm really liking this guy

http://www.crrvc.com/NewTT/NewTT30/NewTT30.htm

 

[Teamubr]

Both the RealLite and the Palomini look to be identical. Both look nice.

The 17DZ in your link looks pretty good too. Great price if you use the rule of 30% off MSRP is a good starting point. For the same weight, you might want to consider the 17B. Link. The small slide in the 17B will make a huge difference in how open it feels. It still has bunks and a sofa instead of a dinette. It doesn't have a real shower. (wet bath instead). That would be a deal breaker for my DW.

Not sure how close a dealer is for either brand, but go see every trailer you are considering. There will be some that look great on a web page, but are just wrong when you actually get into it. This happened to me this past winter when I was shopping to replace my 13 year old bunk house 5er. There was a Keystone trailer that was 'perfect' on paper. When we made the 2 hour drive to the closest dealer, it just wasn't right in person. Felt cramped (a good feat for a 42 ft trailer), the colors were not good and other things we didn't like when we saw it for real.

You are fortunate in getting a tow vehicle after deciding on the trailer you want. It let's you make sure you get enough vehicle instead of trying to find a trailer that will fit your TV.

j

 

[Clifton Tesh]

Both the RealLite and the Palomini look to be identical. Both look nice.

You are fortunate in getting a tow vehicle after deciding on the trailer you want. It let's you make sure you get enough vehicle instead of trying to find a trailer that will fit your TV.

To be honest, I was looking at the same trailer last year and I believe it was called a palomini then, not a real lite.

Last year was just hopes and dreams though, this year will hopefully be reality.

As far as the tow vehicle, I'm a mechanic so I always like to make sure I have my research done when it comes to buying a vehicle to fit a purpose.

With that said, if it was up to me, I'd be getting a crew cab F350 Duallie, western Hauler and a nice 5th wheel to go along with it.

But alas, the decision is being left up to my wallet and the wife wants an SUV so she can haul everyone's kids around. She's scared of a tahoe (says it's too big), she wants an explorer but I refuse to get an explorer (which is sad because I love ford). So I've introduced her to the 4 runner in hopes she'll love it, but she wants the Traverse, I have no idea why.

ETA- my wife also refuses to have the commode in the shower, I don't understand why, it allows you to multitask!

 

[Flametamr]

Going in a few hours to help my neighbor pick up his new Solaire 201SS. Spent several hours looking at different models and brands yeaterday. I'm impressed with the quality of these little campers. This one is a 2016 on sale for just under 18 grand out the door and the camper weight is just under 4,000 lbs dry. He is going to tow it with a Ford Sport Trac rated to tow 5,000.