2024 Casita 17' Spirit Deluxe

[Tex68w]

Interesting to see the alternatives here.

Whew!! I knew the pricing on these went up during covid but glad to see I'm not priced out of the used market should I decide to jump in.

Wow, great thread, really nice trailer, and incredibly informative for this potential Casita/fiberglass trailer buyer! I've been wanting a Casita on and off for 5 yrs now. Completely missed the boat on a well-maintained one here in my little pocket of paradise in Los Angeles County, that sold quickly a week before the covid craziness and I'm sure that buyer was grinning ear-to-ear 6 months later.

Intro: Hi Everyone, I'm Dealmaker on many other (Toyota) forums. On the bad side of 60 now, and as I move closer and closer to either being retired or unemployed my interest in these is increasing. I, too, love the Oliver Elite II, but one of my main parameters is to be able to use one of my three 2UZFEs (4.7L V8 Toyota engine) to tow. I've got a slightly built '04 4WD, a stock '06 2WD 4Runner, and a stock '06 LX470. Unfortunately, from the reading I've done, looks like I'll be relegated to a single-axle <20 ft. if I want to stick with any of those. Was hoping to stick with one of those so I can decouple and use the trailer as a home base while exploring trails and roads up and down the Sierra, Death/Panamint Valleys, and even into UT and states north of there. My 4Runner and I'm sure my LX would be great at the exploring part, but they are towing-compromised. Alternatively, considering a p/u with FWC.

I thought I had read that a difference between Oliver and Casita (and others) is that Oliver uses a composite floor (not sure if its all molded in to the bottom half), vs. the others using a wood floor, which eventually rots and becomes problematic to repair. Can anyone confirm this?

Primary tow vehicle, and passenger photos below. My 6'3 son would likely join in, maybe the wife, too, but probably never more that two people at once. The GSD is huge, "only" 105 lbs but 30" at the withers and he takes up a lot of space. If I pull the trigger and buy one, I'd likely store it near Ridgecrest, or maybe climate-controlled storage in Las Vegas.

She might be for sale soon, so keep it in mind.

 

[Tex68w]

The camper is back from Casita with a level kitchen counter. Happy to report that Casita covered the warping under warranty and assured me that it was further reinforced to accommodate the heavier, deeper sink.

I ended up throwing one of their new grayscale decals on the front to add a little "color" back to the exterior. Hopefully, this will allow some folks to figure out what it is for themselves, and somewhat limit the awkward gas station questions and interactions lol. We hope to get out in the coming weeks for a few short weekend trips before it gets miserably hot down here.

 

[AtomicGeo]

Hi. Can you say what the issue was before Casita fixed it? Any pics beforehand? I have something going on with mine, but mine is showing something with the folding stove top not sitting as flat as it should. I wonder if is a symptom of what you also had. Thanks.

 

[Tex68w]

Hi. Can you say what the issue was before Casita fixed it? Any pics beforehand? I have something going on with mine, but mine is showing something with the folding stove top not sitting as flat as it should. I wonder if is a symptom of what you also had. Thanks.

There was some sagging/warping in the center (between the sink and stove) on the kitchen countertop. They cleaned up the cutouts for the sink and stove (both were brand new options for 2024 MY, mine was one of the first with the new sink), and then they added glass for reinforcement for the heavier, deeper sink. I can't speak to the "exact" cause for this issue, but from my perspective, the new deeper sink weighs a lot more than the older shallower sink, and they needed to add more glass to better reinforce that area for added strength to handle the added weight and stress.

The sagging/warping caused the frame of the stove surround/frame to flex, which causes the folding glass cover to not sit flush or level, both physically and visually. They fixed this for me under warranty and free of charge, but I did have to take it back to the factory in Rice, TX, for the work to be performed. It only took them one week to turn it around, and I am happy to report that all is well now.

Note that I reported this issue, documented with pics and video, before my one-year warranty expired. They scheduled the work at that time, but they were three months behind on scheduling the repair. So if you are suffering the same issue, do get with their service department ASAP, and hopefully it falls within your warranty period so that the work will be covered free of charge. Just beware that it might be multiple months before they can work you into the schedule for the repair to be performed.

 

[burleyman]

I threw a little cleaner wax on the exterior after the last post trip wash. It looks a lot better, what a reflection.

Beautiful shine! You mentioned cleaner wax. What is that product?

 

[Tex68w]

Beautiful shine! You mentioned cleaner wax. What is that product?

I used the sealant version initially, and the product below is for wipe-downs after washing.