I have em all roofbox, rearbox as above and trailer. We usually take trailer, but this year the cost of tolls in France and eurotunnel cost with trailer has meant we leaving it at home and going with car, roofbox and rear box this is stilled classed as normal car size on eurotunnel and the tolls.
We have both but i prefer the trailer now.For our situation it works out better.We can leave the trailer packed in the garage and ready to go.The roofbox make the car use more fuel than a trailer does too.
roofbox pros: easy to store when not in use
cons: not as roomy as you think
Trailer Pros: easier to pack and unpack on site.Always ready to go.Can be used for lots of other non camping jobs.
Cons: Speed limit reduced,harder to park with.Takes more space in the garage storing it.
Trailer is our preferred choice for camping but the roofbox still has its uses.
We have a Roof Box.475 Lts ( Exodus quick fit )on our Focus Estate, We put all the soft stuff in it,like sleeping bags,air beds,clothes for 4 of us then we put our four fold-up chairs,its about full now !!. So all the tent and things that go with it,can fit in the car.
Then its a great drive to the camp site, No speed restrictions,No parking problems or reversing one's too !! and some camp sites Charge for Trailers.
It takes mins to put on the car & take off,gets put in the camping cupboard when not in use,don't have to check the bulbs,tyres etc,etc.
As for the cost well,you will have to have a tow bar fitted,for a trailer,and buy roof bars for the roof box,so I think its about even here.
As for me well,when its holiday time all I want to do Is Get there,so if it means outside lane then I can,or overtake without ant worry about the trailer swinging around,as for Drag well the car is full up,so hard to tell if its drag or just loaded up ??
Hi Tidburyboy, I'm sure at this point you're nonethewiser, it's a pretty subjective question and to be truthful you won't know the honest answer for yourself until you have tried all options for yourself, so I'm sorry to be no help either.
However, 18 moths ago I did buy a trailer off ebay to give it a try (buy 2nd hand, I'll explain why in a moment). It was great, no more stuffing pillows and slepping bags through 3 inches of open window to use up every last cubic mm of free space. Weekend camping jaunts were great, loads of extra secure space to store food & drink (and it kept it cool, the beer that is), which meant more space in the tent. BUT, I did live on my nerves worrying that the trailer was going to somehow seperate from the car (I knew it wouldn't, but that little voice kept nagging me..."What if....?")
Anyway, I did a number of trips last year with no problems and 2 earlier this year, but none were significant distances (100 miles or so). June this year we decided to head for Croyde Bay (250 miles) surfing, well bodyboarding really and someone offered me the loan of a Thule roofbox. I decided to give it a try.
I sold the trailer on ebay last Sunday and from the proceeds will be buying a roofbox.
I'm not dead set against trailers, it was great BUT.... for me the roofbox is the better option. I have a big gas guzzzler (4X4) and didn't notice a massive difference in consumption when driving at sensible speeds, only 1 child now (the other 2 have grown up and camping isn't "cool") so loads of room and a midsize roofbox did the trick. Can drive up to 70mph, use lane 3, use any space at services not have to drive around looking for 2 together or use the HGV & Coach area. There are lots of little considerations you have to bear in mind with a trailer that you don't with a roofbox apart from REMEMBERING the roofbox is up there when entering car parks!
Why a 2nd hand trailer? They hold their value. I bought mine 18 months ago (out of season) off ebay for just under £300 (Daxara 127 with Erde ABS hard top) and sold it last weekend on ebay for £351 (so still a profit after ebay take their costs and commission). Another sold the same day as mine for £470, it was identical in spec apart from being 2 years younger, but was down south where they are all "RICH"! Having said that, roofboxes hold their values quite well too, 2nd hand on ebay are selling for almost the NEW price at Halfords when they have "roofboxes at up to 50% off".
My advice, try all the options, if you buy 2nd hand you'll get most of your money back if not all of it when/if you re-sell (even the towbar).
I don't think you'll regret either option, it's all about which suits your circumstances best. Good luck.
First trip with the trailer in a couple of weeks so hard to compare yet. Luckily i have somewhere secure to store trailer with all our gear in so no more stressful trips to the loft every time we go which is a big plus.
If a trailer is 60mph and with roof box 70mph , then there isn't really a great deal in it for time.
Going to keep hold of the roofbox for now just in case.
Got some spare Merc B class roof bars though to sell on...... unless i can figure a way to fit them to trailer to carry the bikes!!
We went for a roofbox - but got a decent sized one. It's much cheaper than a trailer and a better option for us.
If you buy something like thule bars then when you change cars, it's not too expensive to just buy the new feet for your new car and you can maybe sell the old ones on ebay. Much cheaper than having to fit a new tow bar.
The weight limit isn't a problem as we just put the light, bulky things into the roof box and 50kg (or more depending on the bars/box) is quite a lot.
Storage was an issue for us and we can use straps to store the roof box slung from the roof of the garage and it saves a load of space in the garage.
This place was ace http://www.ukcampsite.co.uk/redirect.asp?redir=http://www.roofbox.co.uk/ukc
We bough thule bars and a Kamei delphin 470 and are very pleased. The package price is about £325.
One comment: Don't worry about the dual-side opening. To get access to the box, unless you've got Mr tickle arms, you'll need to mount the box towards one side of the car anyway so dual-side opening isn't really worth the money IMO.
Trailer... For all the reasons already given... Don't worry about the 60mph limit... If you add up the time it takes to pack the car pre-trip, and un-pack when you get back... Then that is certainly longer than any time lost due to the 60mph limt...
I cruise at just over 60mph... Tis no problem... Lane 3 is no different to lane 2... They are both overtaking lanes... I don't think you have to slow down any more often in lane 2 than you do when you are tonking it in lane 3?
We travelled Derby to Devon last half term, towing the trailer cost us 30 minutes longer on the journey than the other family we went with who didn't tow... I'm 100% sure it took them longer to pack the car and roofbox... We just hook up and go...
Also, when at the site... You don't have to travel around with a roofbox on your car, the trailer just gets left onsite neatly tooked behind the tent, for us, used like a garden shed...
Roofboxes have their merits, but the trailer route was the best way for us.
If you choose a trailer, get one bigger than you think you need...
I would go for trailer above roof box - purely because i leave the trailer full of stuff so it saves me packing it all the time, plus it holds loads more
This is the same load carrier that we've got only we haven't got the hard box we've got the Thule bag, which I can definitely tell you is watertight. We went for the bag cos when not in use it folds down into its own storage bag which takes up to next to nothing in space in our garage.
Just been down to the local "Public Weighbridge", as I was curios as to what weight I am pulling when all my kit is in the trailer, anyway the printout says 460kg around half a Ton, and according to my trailer info that weighs in at 130kg, so that says that my kit is 330kg, which would be overload for any roofbox, strangley the max unbraked towing weight in France for trailer c/w load is 500kg, but here in the UK that would be 750kg, could be the reason why it is OK to go at 80mph in France with your trailer, but only 60mph in the UK, although not many folk adhere to that anyway, fact is we have just been down to the South of France with the trailer, and boy how easy it was, just a case of setting the cruise control to 130kmph (80mph) and letting the miles roll by, with no extra charge on the tolls, my trailer has a roofrack fitted, which would be handy if I needed extra capacity, I could fit a roofbox onto the trailer, and still be under the 2m height restriction for none chargeable trailers in France. also a trailer need not cost a fortune on the ferry, we went with NL and got the £58 return Dover crossing, at sensible sailing times.
Amazing family weekend with old steam engines, classic car displays, market stalls, and full catering and bar. And camping on site - Save £25 by booking in advance.
Topic: Which is best - Roof Box or Trailer?
