My wife and I recently got a crux 1610 (5 months ago) and feel like we now have a good idea of the pro's and con's of the trailer. We probably have close to 30 nights in the trailer at this point.
The pro's: the trailer is rugged and sturdy. The suspension, frame, box, and drawers all feel sturdy and well built. We've taken it on some really rough trails (think 2 hours to cover 12 miles) and the trailer held up great. The drawer slides, water pump, water tank, and all small moving parts seem to be doing great. The tent is simple and easy to set up, and the updated electrical on the 1610 (over the 1600) seems to be well thought out and managed properly. I consider price when factoring in all of these items, and the crux1610 gives a significant value over other trailers.
The con's: the quality control and fit and finish leave something to be desired. For instance, the magnesium galvanizing they do over the frame is sloppy and ugly. My trailer came with no grease in the poly block hitch, which caused it to seize up on the drive home from the dealer. I had to pump it full of an entire tube of grease to get it to move again. The rack which comes on the trailer is a pain in the butt. Ours was bent when we picked it up, and can't be put back into traveling position without two people because it binds. The dealership made this sound like it wouldn't be a big deal to fix, but here we are five months later with no solution. We honestly may take the rack off as we don't use it, and it gets in the way of accessing the passenger side of the trailer when it is in the upright position. Our tent recently tore some stitching when exposed to some really windy conditions. Shouldn't be a big issue to fix, but still annoying. The annex is a pain to set up. Support and warranty issues from crux is sparse at best.
Things we would improve:
-the sink needs to have a handle or knob to turn the water on and off. Currently it operates by moving the actual spout up and down, but this gets in the way if you have dishes in the sink. Which is counterproductive.
- To use the stove, you have to remove the propane cylinder from the trailer and place it next to the stove because the supplied hosing isn't long enough. We have modified this with extended hose and quick disconnects.
-there needs to be an option to mount a pole system if you want to mount your own awning (like an ARB, etc) similar to what tuff stuff trailers, turtle back trailers, or patriot campers use. We will probably rig up something in the future.
Hope that helps everyone out. If we had to do it again, we would highly consider a hard sided trailer such as a social teardrop. For us, windy cold nights can be uncomfortable in the tent. Also, the supplied rain fly whips like crazy in the wind and is extremely annoying. Take if off, it's not needed. However, for the price the crux1610 can't be beat. If you weigh price with features, and are willing to put up with a couple annoyances, the 1610 is the way to go. We are planning to right up a detailed review and description of the trailer including pictures and videos in the future. Just waiting to see how this warranty stuff plays out.
