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Old 08-12-2014, 03:10 PM   #1
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Where is the worst place you successfully towed your Escape to

Hello- my wife and I have spent the last 5 years sailing from the Chesapeake to New Zealand. After visiting Australia and seeing their love affair with caravans, especially off-road capable caravans: Lotus, Kedron, Kimberely, etc), we decided that our water cruising days are over and have decided to land cruise N. & C. America and then container ship back to Australia. What I have found is that none of the Australian style outback caravans that are live-in full-time exist in N. America. The Escape has caught our eye, and we went to see one in person today.

My question- although I have no plans to drag a caravan up a river bed or through a mountain gulch (see Gall Boys on youtube.com) I want to be able to get away from everyone else and that would include some rough and long unattended roads-

Can an ESCAPE 19 or 21 not only survive but have little to no damage going where let say a soccer mom 4 wheel drive could go?

Tammy at Escape said that she would monitor this tread- cause she is interested in the responses as well.

Thanks,

Mark
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Old 08-12-2014, 03:26 PM   #2
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On our way though Montana we had to go around the "road to the sun" followed the GPS and am still not really sure where we were but there is no way the road to the sun could have been any worse than the goat path we were on. Was a twisty winding series of switch backs that we had to be careful to keep all the wheels in the road at the corners . Was a very hairy drive
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Old 08-12-2014, 03:28 PM   #3
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Mark,
We have just pulled our 19' all around Alaska, BC, Yukon (from TX) and still going. Although we did not do truly "outback" driving we hit enough dirt and gravel roads to give our equipment a good beating. All in all the trailer has been great with very minor issues. If you hit the really rough stuff it is VERY slow going but possibly doable. As to your soccer Mom question, absolutely!

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Old 08-12-2014, 03:35 PM   #4
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Hi Mark! We have an Escape 19' and have gone off-road in the desert across the sand and take it slow when doing so. The trailer has enough ground clearance for what we do and the double axles smooth out the ride. Here is a picture camping at Anza Borrego desert about 6 miles off road.



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Old 08-12-2014, 05:10 PM   #5
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Mock Tender View Post

Can an ESCAPE 19 or 21 not only survive but have little to no damage going where let say a soccer mom 4 wheel drive could go?

Thanks,

Mark
Hello Mark,
Our '21 exists only on paper (the build sheet) at the moment, but I have been pondering the same questions as you. (I'm also an ex-sailor living in Denver and like driving to places that push the comfort limits.) One example: The Deep Lake campground on the White River Plateau, up the Coffee Pot Spring Road near Dotsero. My concern is not the clearance or road surface (or lack thereof), but the minimum radius of the switchbacks. They are tight radius turns and there is no room for error considering the 1000' unguarded drop-off on the outside. I'll spend some time watching for other RVs on their way up/down on my next trip in 3 weeks.

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Old 08-12-2014, 05:13 PM   #6
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IMHO a smaller, lighter Escape, perhaps a 17 or the older 5.0 would be a better off road with raised suspension, the dual tandems may tend to fight you on the sharp curves and are heavier.
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Old 08-12-2014, 05:19 PM   #7
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I have 17B with high-lift axle and 15 inch wheels and tow with a RAV4. If the RAV4 can cross the holes, rocks and ditches, The Escape will certainly follow. See clearance.
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Old 08-12-2014, 05:48 PM   #8
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I have the same combination as Glen, and, like him, have no problem dragging the trailer anywhere the RAV4 will go. I have found that rough roads can shake things around quite a bit - I've had cabinet doors open, etc, but so far, the refrigerator door has stayed closed!
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Old 08-12-2014, 06:23 PM   #9
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Great responses so far thanks. Besides being able to get it in rougher places- has anyone had any problems with delaminating of anything, stress cracks, cabinets or other sundry items that made you which you had stayed on the paved road?

Again, thanks for the responses.

MArk
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Old 08-12-2014, 06:38 PM   #10
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I broke a shelf in the fridge door by placing heavy bottles on the door and driving on washboard and potholes. Fixed it with a piece of angle aluminum.
Other than that, nothing.
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Old 08-12-2014, 06:38 PM   #11
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Our 19 has been over rough roads with wash board and pot holes. We have had the fridge door open and have had stuff move around in the cupboards. We now hold the fridge door closed with a bungey cord for insurance. The trailer itself has not been damaged at all. I would recommend the storage bin as it is a very good rock guard.
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Old 08-12-2014, 07:11 PM   #12
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I can't remember who posted this pic but this Escape has surely been somewhere off the beaten path. There is another pic on this forum that has an Escape much, much dirtier (in front of a store on the Alcan Highway?) but I couldn't find it. Very cool pics...
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Old 08-12-2014, 07:52 PM   #13
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... this Escape has surely been somewhere off the beaten path...
Yep. That's Moab. Grew up in Utah, would recognize it anywhere.
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Old 08-12-2014, 07:55 PM   #14
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I recall there is a member up in Yukon who had a couple of issues, but I'll let them speak for themselves.
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Old 08-12-2014, 08:12 PM   #15
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Besides being able to get it in rougher places- has anyone had any problems with delaminating of anything, stress cracks, cabinets or other sundry items that made you which you had stayed on the paved road?
That's the advantage of the moulded fiberglass construction: the body is made in only two parts (so there's not much to come apart), and those two parts are bonded (at the belly seam) by a particularly secure method, compared to other moulded fiberglass travel trailers.

The interior parts and appliances, of course, are similar to other RVs and so there will be reasonable limits to the shaking they can take.
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Old 08-12-2014, 08:15 PM   #16
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I recall there is a member up in Yukon who had a couple of issues, but I'll let them speak for themselves.
As I recall, he didn't like the stabilizers and replaced them with HD jacks. And, he couldn't fit an entire moose carcass in the aisle.
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Old 08-12-2014, 09:24 PM   #17
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The worst place I ever drove into was Duck Lack Campground just south of the border in Montana. We were heading to Utah, and left later in the day, saw this place thinking it would be a good place to overnight. Well, it was a wonderful spot, but the road in was worse than many forestry and logging roads I have been on, all washboard and potholes. The campsites were not leveled in the least, and I had about 10" of blocking under one set of wheels, with the hitch about as low to the ground as it would go. A bit of investment into infrastructure, and it would be a great place.

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Great responses so far thanks. Besides being able to get it in rougher places- has anyone had any problems with delaminating of anything, stress cracks, cabinets or other sundry items that made you which you had stayed on the paved road?
On one loooong uphill stretch of gravel road, with a ton of washboard, we did have a couple panels in a cupboard come loose. They were just end gables stapled into place in the shallow cabinet under the kitchen counter, on the inside of the wheel well. I used some screws to set them back in place, and they have been fine. Nothing else at all has come loose on me.

Edit: Sorry, I lied. Just recently my battery box under my dinette seat came loose. It is (was) held down with 4 screws into the plywood subfloor. Sunday night I put it back in place and added 8 more screws. Pretty sure it is well affixed now.
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Old 08-13-2014, 01:11 AM   #18
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What about water tanks under the trailer any issues with hitting on rough roads?
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Old 08-13-2014, 07:51 AM   #19
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We had Escape mount our fresh water tank inside, under the bed. You do loose storage but I feel the protection we gained from freezing and road debris was worth it. The grey tank has faired just fine and of course the black tank is inside. I did have a rock put a hole in the black water valve casing but I was able to fix this before serious dirty issues came about. If I were to do this or similar route again I would probably wrap the plumbing outside in bubble wrap or some type of protection. My biggest fear was damage to the black water drain pipe but that did not happen.

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Old 08-13-2014, 08:46 AM   #20
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What about water tanks under the trailer any issues with hitting on rough roads?
You would just about have to be bouncing over logs and boulders to hit them, they are up so high. I would suggest viewing a couple Escapes to check things out.
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