I watched a few of your recent videos specifically looking at the traffic per a suggestion by Dan Grec as I currently pull a 12' Aliner Scout camper. Based on that and his experience etc I am really re-thinking pulling anything and instead going to look pretty hard at the AT Habitat.
He mentioned your rig ended up being way heavier that expected and even with Max Tow you were over payload? Do you feel that has held you back or you just added extra spring (and/or air) to the rear and that compensated enough?
Payload concerns got me looking at full size 3/4 ton trucks instead so that circles back to the "traffic" concern here if you think the mid size is just better all over because of the narrowness despite payload or full size will be fine? Just the 2 adults on this trip but will be full time and pretty much following your footsteps starting in 2025 living and working remote and starting with PanAm!
First off
@JeepNerd I'm excited for you both and your upcoming journey. Doing the PanAm from Mexico all the way to South America is an eye opening and perspective shifting experience. I applaud you for going through the planning stages now, and asking the right questions.
@Dan Grec is a good personal friend, and has been an invaluable mentor and inspiration to us as we prepared for our own journey as well. We are over payload, but not by very much. We were very careful in our build. But transporting 3 people with all of our gear and clothes is a little different than going solo or just as a couple.
To answer your question, I don't think our payload has impacted our journey much at all. Again we are very close to the mark that we set. And though you cannot increase payload (anyone who tells you different would be incorrect) you can alter the suspension sufficiently to handle more weight than you are carrying which is what we've done. We are running the Dobinsons rear coil springs, Teraflex bump stops, and we have airbags in the coil springs just to help adjust the ride based on our current load out, but those are redundant for us. We have about 300+ lbs to play with to the good on our suspension. DAUNTLESS has no rake, handles like a sedan, and yet is capable of taking us into small villages and towns without much heartache. Having said that, we are always aware of payload and are constantly downsizing and getting rid of anything we don't use regularly. Ideally, whatever buildout you do, you'll do well to stay within your actual payload capacity.
I concur with Dan, and
@Pacific Northwest yetti in that I wouldn't recommend a trailer build out for this journey. Beyond the issues that Pacific mentioned, there is also the issue of Temporary Import Permits for multiple "vehicles" at each international border crossing and extensions to those permits. So personally I'd recommend nixing that idea all together.
When it comes down to vehicle size for this journey I have a few thoughts.
1. Consider exterior dimensions for shipping inside a standard or hi-cube container across the Darien Gap as well as across any ocean should you decide to continue your overland adventure.
2. We have seen everything from huge expedition level rigs to motorcycle overlanders on our journey. We've talked with many of them. You CAN do the entire trip in any size vehicle. The question really comes down to what type of journey do you want to have? So many of our overlanding friends on this journey have communicated regret of having too large of a vehicle for a container, and for the traffic, narrow streets, low clearance bridges, and garages/parking.
3. Motorcycle overlanders have it best as far as navigating down here without question. The smaller the rig the easier it is across the board. Ultimately it is a balance and comes down to personal preference. We are genuinely happy with our build and size for what we've experienced. I personally wouldn't want to go bigger than what we have for this journey. There have been numerous times where Brittany and I turned to eachother throughout this journey and said, "Can you imagine right now if we had a full size rig.. or a Unimog.. or a _______" You get the idea. But at the end of the day it is your journey and you need to make it your own. Just be realistic about what type of journey you want to have and what level of creature comforts you both enjoy.
Happy to be a continued resource for you. If by chance you'll be at Overland Expo West 2023, we'll be there this year and would be happy to spend some time in person answering questions you may have. But you are always welcome to reach out digitally too.
Have a blast in this build process. It is part of the journey. ~ Eric
