The Pros and Cons of Overland Trailers

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Building or buying an overland trailer can be great for the weekend overlanders that don’t want to weigh down their daily driver with their overland gear or for those that are looking for extra storage capabilities and comfort. If you’re trying to decide if an overland trailer is the right setup for you, here are the benefits and downsides to help you compare so you can optimize your setup to fit your needs and just get out there and explore!

Benefits of an overland trailer

Storage Space, Organization, and Functionality

For the people that are already into overlanding, you know just how much gear you carry with you and on your rig at all times and it can really weigh down your vehicle and the more you have makes it harder to find the tools or gear you need in a certain situation. One of the major benefits of building or buying an overland trailer is the ability to customize and store your gear neatly without having it all on your vehicle all the time. The customization for a trailer is almost infinite so you can organize your gear any way you like making those emergency situations or camp set up go a lot smoother by being able to find exactly what you need.

Just park it and leave it.

One major inconvenience for some (and myself), is that their overland rig is also their daily driver. This means that all of the extra gear and modifications that we have really start to weigh us down and ruin our MPG, on-road comfort, and sometimes functionality of our vehicles. A great thing about having an overland trailer is that you have the ability to just leave it at your house and just hook it back up as soon as your ready to go out and explore.

You can also utilize this by parking your trailer where you anticipate setting up camp so you can still go out and explore in your main vehicle and come back and relax with an already established basecamp.

Comfortable Living Quarters

Having a trailer means you can create a more comfortable and “home-like” living quarters for yourself or family when you’re out in all the remote places. You can customize them to your liking such as height, interior and exterior storage, sleeping area, and more to provide you the most comfortable camping (or glamping..) experience. Plus, they can be made completely weather proof so you stay comfortable in any weather conditions and you gear is protected from the elements. This makes trailers ideal for families where you want to allow your children or spouse to enjoy sleeping comfortably so that they are able to enjoy the trip as well.

Downsides of having an overland trailer

Maneuverability

Towing a trailer behind your vehicle at all times can be a pain in the rear (pun intended). This is especially true if you are navigating through areas like a dense forest, switchback, or even just trying to find a parking space where having a trailer severely limits where you can go. It also impacts how your vehicle performs in certain terrains like mud and snow where having the weight of a trailer can bog you down and get you into some deep trouble.

Your Vehicle’s Towing Capacity Limit

Not everyone goes overlanding with a full-size truck or SUV that can tow a pretty heavy load. This means you are limited to your trailer weight depending on what vehicle you drive, and in some cases it may not even be worth towing a trailer because you can store more gear in your rig for a lot less hassle.

Although this may be a downside, there are plenty of ways to build an overland trailer to suit your needs, such as weight and size to suit your vehicle. Just keep in mind, some vehicle just aren’t meant to be towing around heavy things for a long distance.

Cost

Overland trailers are expensive. Not only the building of them, but they encourage you to buy more gear, mods, and accessories to make it capable and comfortable. If you do plan on getting a trailer, you can have them manufactured by some awesome companies for a hefty price tag. This can ensure everything is built high quality, or you can build your own to save on some costs, but your limited by your own manufacturing skills.