I'll chime in with a bit about our HQ15 now that we've had it out a few times......
1) Tows like a dream behind our '21 Ranger XLT (Icon Stage 2, Shrockworks bumper & sliders, winch, Air Lift bags in back running at 50 lbs when towing - coming in just a bit over 5K lbs). So far we've got about 1500 miles and no issues up or down passes or off road (we do have to air down, uncouple the WDH and pop into at least 4H, but having a shower makes it worth it!)
2) Independent suspension really helps with lane control compared to other trailers I've towed. The HQ15 is 4700 lbs dry, ~5500 lbs wet and we are running a McHitch with Equalizer weight distributing hitch. Very little sway even in gusty (am guessing 40 mph) winds. No white knuckle action so far, but we only tow at around 60 mph. We're still well below tow weight (7500) and gross combined (12K)
3) Fuel mileage sucks at around 10 mpg, but that's on par with similar gasser rigs we've owned. The HQ15 comes with Jerry can holders in the back for another 10 gallons, but my bladder gives out before the main tank on the highway and we haven't gone far enough off-road yet to need to use the cans.
4) BS is playing catch-as-catch can with many of the parts these days, so check to make sure any trailer you are looking at has the stuff you expeded. In general we've been very happy with the changes, including:
- White upholstery - way cool - we're not into the whole black is best style and are even painting the upper half of our trailer to match the Ranger Oxford White. I did have the back cushions for the dinette cut down to 14" high to fit a bit better and squared off with firmer foam.
- Diesel furnace - I love this, as Diesel is way more BTU's per weight than propane which hugely extends our time between refills. The fill spout for the Diesel is a bit inconvenient and the fuel pump on the furnace is a bit noisy, but we're not generally cold-weather campers and so far have only run it for a couple of hours in the morning. Fuel burn is a 3-4 ounces per hour at full blast and the tank is 2.5g
- Compressor fridge - not sure if this is just what they could get or some other reason, but ours is full-time 12v compressor and so far no problems keeping cold. The HQ15 has a fairly small fridge, so we keep a Dometic 75 in the truck if we're going off-grid for more than a couple of days. Not sure how much solar on top - 3 panels with an MPPT - the solar generally keeps everything topped off just fine unless we use the micro-wave or AC (see mods, below).
- Better tires - these are Lion 11 ply range E with a decent tread pattern. Was planning on upgrading to KO2s but after using these a bit we'll probably keep them until/unless they start throwing issues or we head into more sand (will go wider).
- Not sure if they intended this use case, but there is a 10ga Anderson compatible plug that runs off the battery pack to the front of the trailer - used to power the electric jack (also has a manual jack, which is faster) and charge the disconnect brake, but I have overloaded it to take a charge from my RedArc DC-DC charger in the truck, so now I can run the fridge, charge the truck aux battery and the trailer batteries all at the same time - still playing with load and current balancing, but generally works well as long as things aren't too discharged or disparate (if so, the fridge throws and over-current fault).
5) I highly recommend RVs of America - top notch guys with overlanding as their passion - we had them handle several mods that make things better, including:
- upgrade to 400Ah of Battleborn LiFePO4 - I have used these in other applications and they are top notch - a true 400Ah of available energy should we need it, and about half the weight of AGMs.
- upgrade to Victron Smart Inverter - way worth the cost to purchase and install - very efficient and about a 5W overhead draw - big kudos to Tony at ROA for working with Battleborn to get a custom charging profile installed. With the Victron/Battleborn combo we converted all AC items to run off the inverter, so any shore power goes through the inverter first. This allows us to condition the power and also run the AC and microwave (at the same time) for quite awhile (about 4 hours for just the AC) without shore power.
- McHitch - I honestly don't know how we would have hooked up at some of the angles we've encountered without this hitch - you still have to line things up pretty well, but there is a weird satisfaction to seeing the hitch connect all by itself as I back up rather than having to try several times to line things up for a pin.
- various other bits like extra 12v ports for our BiPAPs, sewer hose holder, 2" receiver on the back, etc.
6) I've already scratched it up pretty good and have nothing but respect for the design - great bones for sure. If this were a regular trailer we'd have a pile of toothpicks rather than a few dents that I have been able to pull/pound back out. I've already cleaned up and repainted the lower half (Rustoleum etching primer and semi-gloss black are a nearly perfect match for the stock paint). Once we get the top painted I'll be able to use the Oxford White rattle cans from ExpressPaint for anything needing attention on the top. And I plan to try Novus on the polycarbonate windows once they get scratched up a bit more (we'd have broken most of the windows by now had they been glass, but the dual glazed polycarbonate is really impressive!)
7) OK, finally, gripes:
- The door has a vent at the bottom, probably for toxic gas escape for the .001% of the time that's needed, but the rest of the time it was letting in all the dust and tiny critters that we came across. I've closed it off with black expanding foam, so if you read about the guy whose trailer exploded after filling up with propane that was probably me, but at least it will have been less dusty explosion ;-)
- Colors - not a huge fan of the black/silver/red-orange and all the brand-promoting decals just asking to get scratched up - but that's pretty much all gone now and we'll have a simple white on black scheme that I can easily maintain going forward, and maybe a mountain decal or two where they're less likely to get torn.
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