Manley ORV 2020 Extreme

[woe_bonnet]

Hi everybody! This is my first time on this site... new user. I'm wondering if any of you have thoughts to share regarding the Manley ORV Extreme trailer?

My spouse and I have, for a few months now, been looking at compact, towable mini-trailers we could use as a mobile base-camp. Scratch-building is not currently an option, so commercial packages (or used custom rigs) are what we've been limiting ourselves to.

We're not overlanders (not averse to it... but we do not own an appropriate tow vehicle to do it, and aren't going to invest in one anytime soon), and need to keep things light enough for our Subaru Impreza wagon. We ran into the Taxa Woollybear, and the Manley ORV series, as possible fits. We priced-out a Woollybear (adding an RTT etc.), and ended up north of $17K CAD pretty quickly. Then there would be shipping from TX, customs/duties etc. to get it into Canada.

I've since run into an option to pick up a brand new, on-the-pallet 2020 Manley Extreme for $6K CAD, just a couple Provinces away from me.

The Manley ticks most of the boxes for us, gives us a nice platform for customization, and having a utility trailer would be great. Also, the price seems bananas good. Any of you familiar with this model, and have experience to share? Or even just folks who own newer Manleys, that can comment on their durability?

The Manley ORV N. American site is not updated currently, but here is a link to the Aussie site, which shows the Extreme model.

Thanks!

 

[woe_bonnet]

Also, as long as I'm here... and on the topic of towing capacities. I seem to have run my head into the ground in terms of understanding whether our Subaru Impreza can, indeed, haul a small trailer (such as a MORV) with our camping gear. Every time I think I understand the figures, I see another "simple explanation" article on the internet that uses slightly different acronyms, or adds another concept, and it seems to fall apart.

So, to begin with, is the following statement correct? "The ATM of the trailer cannot exceed the towing capacity of the vehicle."

In this case, our 2014 Impreza has a towing capacity of 1200kg, and the MORV Extreme has an ATM of 1050kg, which would be the total weight of the trailer, including its maximum allowable payload, sitting stationary and unattached to the tow vehicle. So far, so good?

A Class I receiver hitch only has a capacity of 907kg, however. So, with a Class I hitch on the Impreza, we could not exceed an actual ATM of 907kg... and if we wanted to be able to "fully load" the MORV, we would need a Class II receiver hitch on the Impreza?

 

[Jascar]

I have been looking at the Manley trailers for awhile. Just curious, did you end up buying the trailer? If so, what do you think of it?

 

[woe_bonnet]

The trailer is going to work great for us, and we're very happy with our purchase. Our experience with the distributor/new owner - guy by the name of Jonathan DiDonato, in QC - has been atrocious, however. We got a great deal on the trailer, to be certain, but he left us with unsigned paperwork and no QC title to transfer (three trips to the RMV and no legal way forward yet in terms of titling and licensing the vehicle here in NS) and a trailer that arrived with damaged and missing parts. He hasn't returned my calls, texts, or emails for over 12 weeks running now.

I was finally able to track down an email address for the manufacturer in China, and they have been FANTASTIC in terms of helping me get the damaged and missing parts replaced as necessary. If all goes well, we'll hopefully be out on the road this coming season.

 

[BadMonkeyOverlander]

Hi there....we bought a Manley MORV from Jonathan Di Donato in Montreal, in September 2020, for the same price, and had a few issues as well...some which are still being investigated by Transport Canada. The trailer itself, now that we have customized it, is excellent, but that seller in Montreal is exceedingly scummy. He works/worked for SilverStar Mercedes-Benz in Montreal, as the Commercial Vehicle Manager. How about dropping me a line and we can talk about our respective trailers and some options regarding the seller, plus the manufacturer in China?

 

[woe_bonnet]

Hi there....we bought a Manley MORV from Jonathan Di Donato in Montreal, in September 2020, for the same price, and had a few issues as well...some which are still being investigated by Transport Canada. The trailer itself, now that we have customized it, is excellent, but that seller in Montreal is exceedingly scummy. He works/worked for SilverStar Mercedes-Benz in Montreal, as the Commercial Vehicle Manager. How about dropping me a line and we can talk about our respective trailers and some options regarding the seller, plus the manufacturer in China?

Absolutely, I'll send a PM.

 

[Grassland]

Did you end up putting on a higher class hitch?
And if so, is the Impreza even rated for a higher class hitch and any towing? I was under the impression the hitch they had was meant for accessories like bike racks.

 

[woe_bonnet]

We stuck with the Class 1. The Impreza has a braked towing capacity of over 2600lbs, and the GTW of the Manley (it has electric brakes) is something like 1900lbs. We're usually only adding a few hundred pounds of gear, including a full water tank, so it all falls within the capacity of the Class 1 hitch (2000lbs), and well within the capacity of the vehicle.

The issue we actually ran into was the difference between the tall tongue height of the Manley and the relatively low height of the hitch on the car. The tallest commercial ball mount couldn't make up the difference, so we had a fabricator design a drop that slides into the tongue tube of the trailer and lowers the coupler. It's all removeable, so when pulling with a taller vehicle, the extension is removed and the coupler slides directly back into the tongue tube.

 

[BadMonkeyOverlander]

Sent you a message regarding your Manley ORV trailer, as follow-up to our last conversation. We had ours out on two treks so far this summer and no issues, other than we need to replace the water pump and locks. Check you messages and feel free to drop us a line.