Jeep Livin Lite Extreme Trailer EXPO upgrades

TomP

Observer
Hello everyone,

I have been a member for a over a year and have very much enjoyed the sharing of information that occurs here. I have been traveling and camping all over the Western United States for what seems like forever, but in reality has only been 48 years. During that time I have camped under the stars, in tents, from a motorcycle, truck campers, travel trailers and a 40 foot 5-wheel.

About four years ago my nephew invited me to go with him to something called Overlanding EXPO which was being held for the first time at Mormon Lake AZ. I had flown over this lake in 1968 on a cross country flight and remember looking down at the lake and how beautiful it was and so I said, "Sure lets do it!"

So this is how I went:

GMC&Jeep.jpg


At EXPO my eyes were opened to a new world of how to explore this great country.
So I came home and began to think about what to do. My Jeep is a 06 Wrangler without a lot of inside room, most of which is dedicated to my dog Nemo, all 175 lbs of him:

Nemo fire.jpg

Because I wasn't going to get a new vehicle or get rid of the dog, I decided on a trailer. I looked at about every trailer I could find a picture of and was thinking of buying one and then I found this at a yard sale:

Expo2.JPG
 
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ranger1sg

New member
Nice trailer. Any idea what you are going to do with it as far as upgrades go?


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
 

TomP

Observer
The trailer that I found at the yard sale turned out to be a Cushman trailer. I believe that it was purpose built as a trailer, although I could never locate a picture of one, using the box off of their parking enforcement scooters, but mounted front to back and not side to side as they were on the scooter. My plan was to use only the cargo box and build a trailer frame to set it on. At first it was to be cargo only with me using a tent for shelter but the more I thought of the rocky ground I was planning on camping in the more I wanted a raised bed platform. I was leaning towards a roof top tent when my wandering eye came to rest on an advertisement that featured this for sale.

My plans to build a trailer went right out the window! Here was something that would allow both myself and Nemo to sleep off the ground and looked capable of handling any trails I thought I would be up for. A check of the internet for information about the Jeep Livin Lite trailers came up with some good but a lot of bad comments about these trailers. Careful reading, however, showed that the majority of the poor comments mainly revolved around the price being too high. One could say the same thing about some of the outstanding rigs I have seen at Expo, but just because I don't have the money for one doesn't make it a bad vehicle. This one being used and very well priced to my mind these conditions did not apply. So my nephew (he got me into this) and I drove to Phoenix and picked it up.

This trailer had belong to the owner of an off-road equipment company and had been used as a display for his company's SEMA Show booth in Las Vegas a time or two. Close inspection of the pictures may supply a clue to the company name. He also told me that it had been pulled over some very rough terrain for a photo shoot for an off-road magazine!

So this is the starting point for my work to improve the utility of this great trailer for Nemo's and my use in traveling America.
 

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madZJ

Observer
Nice, I've really been looking hard at these little trailers. The new price is a bit steep, but I think it would be perfect for me and my dog. Sadly the odds of finding one up here used is slim to none. Keep us posted on how she works out for you.
 

TomP

Observer
Nice trailer. Any idea what you are going to do with it as far as upgrades go?


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk


It is a very interesting trailer but as you can see I moved on from it as a project. I hope to find out more about them later. Someone was doing something similar with it as it has a cooler platform on the tongue and two what appear to be propane bottle holders. In addition it has two fold-up counters on it. Also it has a bar around the fenders to protect them.
 

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TomP

Observer
Nice, I've really been looking hard at these little trailers. The new price is a bit steep, but I think it would be perfect for me and my dog. Sadly the odds of finding one up here used is slim to none. Keep us posted on how she works out for you.

It is working out very well! Even it's new price is not out of line for what it is. Hard to beat a fully welded aluminum frame and body. Nothing to rot! I have read several posts which compare them with Livin Lite Quicksilver 6 camper and point to it's lower price. Most suggest that the lower price is due to the lack of "Jeep badging". It is true that they share the same body but differ from that point especially the Extreme model. It's frame is 4X6 not 4X4 tubing and comes with a full steel skid plate. Both models have a swing over bed, not a pullout which is covered by a plastic "tonneau" cover much like a RTT. On the Jeep this bed becomes the top to the trailer in the close position forming a water proof structural member for the trailer box. This in turn allows some cargo to be carried on the top. This top has a drawback that I will be addressing later. If you find one go for it! I don't think you will be sorry!
 

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TomP

Observer
This trailer had received some very nice modifications before I purchased it. The best of these was a set of rock-rails which protect the front corners of the trailer box and continue to spread out to the fenders covering them and then returning to the rear bumper. The areas just ahead of the fenders to the front of the box are provided with heavy aluminum steps on both sides which also reinforce the rails themselves. The step located in the curb side makes a very useful entry step for the trailer door.

jtr8.JPG

The battery had been removed from the trailer tongue and mounted under the couch. This area also held a RV converter which supplied circuit breaker protection for the 110 A/C voltage and three fused 12 volt D/C outputs as well as a battery charger when connected to 110 shore-power. An 800 watt inverter was also mounted in this space. Removed from the under seat area but given to me in a box was a 12 volt electric cab heater from a company named “DC Thermal”. It had two heater ducts which exited on the kick plate under the front of the couch.

jtr9.JPG

Also mounted on this kick plate was a switch panel which contained the heater thermostat and temperature readout, a battery shutoff switch, and four other switches. These controlled the heater, some LED lights, the invertor and one nonfunctional switch.

jtr12.JPG

On the tongue in place of the battery was mounted a plate to carry a small generator.

jtr10.JPG
 

TomP

Observer
I think that is enough of the preliminaries and it is time to move on to some things that increase the usefulness of the trailer.

There is room in the trailer for storage in its closed travel condition. Not enough however to use it up with a cooler or refrigerator. This required that either of these items would have to ride on the trailer tongue. I didn't think that a refrigerator would survive long at that location without some sort of enclosure to protect it from the weather and road debris. I also did not see the time that I would need the long term cold storage a refrigerator would provide. Pelican rated their coolers for 10 day ice retention and as bear resistant so I purchased their 65 qt model. Here is a picture of it sitting on the generator plate on the trailer tongue.

jtr13.JPG


Taking inspiration from the generator plate. I had a plate made to conform to the bottom of the Pelican cooler. The large cutouts allow the rubber feet of the cooler to drop in locking it from any sliding movement and the small cutouts match the hold down locations on the cooler.

jtr10.JPGjtr15.JPG

This made for an easy tie down system with four ratchet straps.

jtr16.JPGjtr14.JPG

Now it was time for a trial camping trip. We chose Delamar ghost town in Southern Nevada for this first trip. This trip uncovered a few problems which needed correcting. First as I was about to hitch up the trailer I discovered I could not lock the jack into travel position with the spare tire moved back to allow the tire carrier to mount my two gas cans. I removed the cans and slid the spare forward and we were off.

Here is a picture entering Delamar which shows problem number two. Roof top storage. I had tied down some firewood and a patio mat to two handles on the roof of the trailer. This worked OK for this one trip but was clearly not a long term way to carry cargo.

Jeep&Jeep.jpg

The third issue is one I can not show a picture of. This trip was a very cold one. I think my cooler did more to prevent the contents from freezing than actually cooling them. Several 2 1/2 gallon water cans froze solid over night. I had with me a Mr Heater Buddy propane heater. When we turned in I used this to read for awhile and get ready for bed. It kept the trailer nice and warm but I didn't trust it to run while I was asleep so I shut it off. I woke up a time or two, I think I could hear Nemo's teeth chattering, and turned it on to warm the trailer. In the morning the inside roof of the tent was covered with condensation! I discovered later that this was common with the use of this type of heater. I didn't want to be cold or wet so something had to be done about that.


When we got home I went to work on the storage problem. There are three considerations for constructing a roof rack for the Jeep trailer. First the crossbars must be high enough for the cargo to clear the support legs which store flat on the top of the trailer. Second they must be low enough to clear the driver's side fender when the top is swung into the open position. Third the crossbars must be spaced to allow the support legs to be extended and retracted as needed.

jtr17.JPG

The rack was constructed of ¾ tubing with angle iron support feet. If I was to ever to do it again I would make the frame a little smaller in width and length by welding the support legs to outside of the tube frame. This would make it easier to snap the tent onto the base when open. A top rail was added to the perimeter of the rack with the exception of the area which folds over the fender which had no clearance for a top rail. It was secured to the trailer top using Riv-nuts into the perimeter tubing of the top.

After powdercoat:

jtr18.JPG
 
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TomP

Observer
The next issue to be dealt with was extending the trailer tongue so that I could lock the jack in the up position. The trailer had been converted to a Max-Coupler using receiver hitch tubing. This was replaced by a longer tube which allowed the jack to lock in the up position while carrying two gas cans.

jtr19.JPGjtr20.JPGhitch1.JPG

The final hitch extension also allows for a full 90 degree jack knife with out hitting the cooler.

jeep max1.JPG

Trailer needed longer safety chains as a result of the extension.

I had a terrible time hitching the Max Coupler up. It wasn't that aligning was hard it was that the hitch pin was almost impossible to install or remove. I called the manufacturer and they requested a picture of the coupler.


jtr21.JPG

They called me right back and told me that the bushings they use had been replaced by black rubber ones which had no steel sleeve installed! No wonder I couldn't push or pull the pin! They said they would send me new polyurethane bushings and metal sleeve and informed me that they had just updated the yoke section of the hitch. These updates included the mounting bolt and swivel and the trailer connection which provided a half circle shelf to make aligned easy. So I had him send that to me also. What a deference that made! Hooking up is very easy now!
 
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tgreening

Expedition Leader
The condensation probably has more to do with you and your pups breath than anything else. Its a common issue in small tents/pop-ups. If you have some screened windows somewhere try leaving some open a bit to get some circulation going.

Those heaters are supposed to be indoor safe, but...to be prudent you might consider installing a monitor to keep an eye on gases that tend to induce permanent sleep. Test it out during waking hours and see what shakes out.

That looks like a fine, rugged cooler, but still not indestructible. I'd modify that mounting plate with a vertical front piece to protect the cooler from stone throws. If your adventures are anything like mine I guarantee a nice big fat rock will fine a way to punch a hole through it from front to back, most likely when I'm days away from anything that could be considered a replacement.

Nice pup.
 

Xbcasey

Adventurer
The way the max coupler hooks up is the one thing I never liked about it. I've always though the connection should be made at the drawbar, not in the middle of the hitch
 

TomP

Observer
The way the max coupler hooks up is the one thing I never liked about it. I've always though the connection should be made at the drawbar, not in the middle of the hitch

I looked at your Thread and love your hitch! I don't have the skills to make something like that. I'm also very happy that I didn't post closeup pictures of my welds after looking at yours. Mine are strong but your are strong and artistic!
 

TomP

Observer
Thanks for the post. It's great to see your updates and add to my own list.

Hi Dave,

Good to hear from you and thanks! I saw your post on the "Jeep brand popup" thread two weeks ago and it reminded me to get going with what I have done to this trailer. I am very happy with how it turned out, but just didn't have time to write it up at the time. I'm camped in my 5th wheel in Washington State until the end of September so I decided to get started.

Tom
 

TomP

Observer
The condensation probably has more to do with you and your pups breath than anything else. Its a common issue in small tents/pop-ups. If you have some screened windows somewhere try leaving some open a bit to get some circulation going.

Those heaters are supposed to be indoor safe, but...to be prudent you might consider installing a monitor to keep an eye on gases that tend to induce permanent sleep. Test it out during waking hours and see what shakes out.

That looks like a fine, rugged cooler, but still not indestructible. I'd modify that mounting plate with a vertical front piece to protect the cooler from stone throws. If your adventures are anything like mine I guarantee a nice big fat rock will fine a way to punch a hole through it from front to back, most likely when I'm days away from anything that could be considered a replacement.

Nice pup.

Nemo thanks you! I think your right about a lot of the condensation. Nemo puts out as much as me, I am sure of that! I wasn't comfortable enough to sleep with the heater for a few reasons, the gases as you mentioned, but also the worry that it could get knocked off the small cabinet as Livin Lite calls it. I know what Nemo's tail can do to a coffee table as he walks by so I was worried that something like that could happen when he gets up to change positions during the night. Also I just didn't like how much room it took up on the cabinet.

So here is a hint of what I did:

jtr22.JPG
 

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