Miata guys who tow utility trailers.....

What size would you recommend? I'm planning on picking up one of the FM hitches and getting a utility trailer for next year.

Big enough to carry a stocked cooler, small tool set, a few of folding fabric chairs and possibly a spare set of wheels/tires.

Any suggestions?

I have this trailer for my Miata:

http://www.harborfreight.com/1090-lb-capacity-40-1-2-half-inch-x-48-inch-mini-utility-trailer-with-12-inch-four-lug-wheels-and-tires-90153.html

Here is a pic loaded up.

Last event I had 4 wheels and tires, the toolbox, a folding chair, and a mountain bike on it. I have since changed the setup so the tires are stacked on two posts at the front and the toolbox is at the rear.

I would imagine you could tow the 4'x8' HF trailer but it would be overkill for track days and if you really loaded it down probably a bit too heavy.

EvanB wrote: I have this trailer for my Miata: http://www.harborfreight.com/1090-lb-capacity-40-1-2-half-inch-x-48-inch-mini-utility-trailer-with-12-inch-four-lug-wheels-and-tires-90153.html Last event I had 4 wheels and tires, the toolbox, a folding chair, and a mountain bike on it. I have since changed the setup so the tires are stacked on two posts at the front and the toolbox is at the rear.

A couple of the Miata guys in my region use this exact set-up for auto-x.

4x4-ish trailer like you would find at Harbor Freight.
Be sure to buy a spare tire for the trailer (which I kept in the box.)

Evan, above has HF's heavy duty trailer with 1090lb capacity as noted by the bigger tires. I have the lighter weight trailer as noted by the smaller tires.
870 lb capacity

My Miata, my trailer.

My Miata, friends trailer.

My MR2, my trailer.

John, did you use anything to hold the wheels down on the post or did you just slide them on and they didn't bounce off since the posts were long?

I have the same 4x4 trailer. I put a cartoon hauler on mine and use it behind my Miata. I lowered mine as well by flipping the axle. Sits about as high as the Miata now.

Joey

My old tire trailer bounced around enough that I'd suggest everything should be secured somehow. It would totally suck to get home, find only three wheels on there, and wait for the authorities to turn up and tell you about the minivan full of soccer kids that hit your tire on the highway... maybe a little extreme but you get the point.

I would also suggest locking nuts for everything.

You just need one of these:

That's so cool!

I run the larger-wheel HF trailer. One reason to choose the larger (12"?) diameter wheels is that they're commonly available at TSC and other places, the 8" is less (nor not?) standard.

I'd also advise putting the tool box towards the front of the trailer, that way you can always have some weight on the tongue. My wheel holders are common black pipe from HD/Lowes, set vertically on the decking. I run a cable lock through the wheels, through the deck, and around the frame, and so on. That's for five-finger "losses". For my big tires, I have some plywood pieces with holes drilled in the center. These slip over the pipe on top of the wheels and are then held in place with a simple end cap for the pipe. Twist the cap on until the wheels are snug. When I put narrower wheels/tires on, the gap is too big, so I just use a ratchet strap to hold everything in place.

I registered mine in Maine - five year plate for stupid cheap, no title necessary. There's at least one company that does this, I'll let you find them. Very easy to deal with.

I use the 48x48(I think) HF trailer with 12"-ish wheels. Cargo bin bolted across the back of the deck, 2 heavy conduit posts for wheels up front. I use long-shank padlocks in holes drilled trough the posts to secure the wheels. One is a little taller to accommodate the trailer spare on top of the stack.

It tows just fine. My Miata is pretty low, and the hitch drags going across the gutter to my sloped driveway. Everywhere else, it's just dandy.

Thanks for the pics and insight everyone.

EvanB, how are you guys tapping into the brake signal/turn lights for the trailer?

EvanB wrote: I have this trailer for my Miata: http://www.harborfreight.com/1090-lb-capacity-40-1-2-half-inch-x-48-inch-mini-utility-trailer-with-12-inch-four-lug-wheels-and-tires-90153.html Here is a pic loaded up. Last event I had 4 wheels and tires, the toolbox, a folding chair, and a mountain bike on it. I have since changed the setup so the tires are stacked on two posts at the front and the toolbox is at the rear. I would imagine you could tow the 4'x8' HF trailer but it would be overkill for track days and if you really loaded it down probably a bit too heavy.

Looks like I got a glimpse of my competition this weekend in Hebron :)

z31maniac wrote: Thanks for the pics and insight everyone. EvanB, how are you guys tapping into the brake signal/turn lights for the trailer?

I used this powered converter:

http://www.amazon.com/Hopkins-46255-Power-Taillight-Converter/dp/B000CMKG6O

EvanB wrote: I have this trailer for my Miata: http://www.harborfreight.com/1090-lb-capacity-40-1-2-half-inch-x-48-inch-mini-utility-trailer-with-12-inch-four-lug-wheels-and-tires-90153.html Here is a pic loaded up. Last event I had 4 wheels and tires, the toolbox, a folding chair, and a mountain bike on it. I have since changed the setup so the tires are stacked on two posts at the front and the toolbox is at the rear. I would imagine you could tow the 4'x8' HF trailer but it would be overkill for track days and if you really loaded it down probably a bit too heavy.

This is officially my favorite picture today.

fidelity101 wrote: Looks like I got a glimpse of my competition this weekend in Hebron :)

Yep, we'll see if I can manage to be competitive.

In reply to EvanB:

I'm just hoping my co-driver doesnt beat me lol, he has never driven the car but hes quite good. Either way I'm looking to go sideways through some gates and have a good time!

EvanB wrote:

z31maniac wrote: Thanks for the pics and insight everyone. EvanB, how are you guys tapping into the brake signal/turn lights for the trailer?

I used this powered converter: http://www.amazon.com/Hopkins-46255-Power-Taillight-Converter/dp/B000CMKG6O

You sir, are a gentleman and a scholar.

I'm wondering what drives the decision between tires in front vs tires in back.

My trailer had tires in front but I'm not sure why I made it that way. I probably went by a photo on teh interwebz.

The cargo box doesn't come off your trailer. Your tires do. So if, like me, you set everything up - jack, wheels, tools, etc. - before you do your wheel swap, your trailer ends up with no weight on the tire end. If they're on the back, no problem - the weight of your toolbox keeps the trailer stable. If they're on the front, the weight of your toolbox on the back makes the trailer do a sudden "wheelie," and stuff on the back of the trailer - license plate bracket, lights, etc. - can get broken. Ask me how I know.

My first design has the toolbox in back and the tires in the front. When I redesigned the trailer to get some non-motorsport utility out of it, I took the opportunity to swap locations to avoid this.

I agree with all the other advice that's been given. Other than my 8" wheels, which I chose poorly and was stuck with, the final version of my trailer resembled all the advice in this thread put together into one design.

cwaters wrote: I'm wondering what drives the decision between tires in front vs tires in back. My trailer had tires in front but I'm not sure why I made it that way. I probably went by a photo on teh interwebz.

I just like the ability to stand at the back of the trailer and being able to fully and easily reach into and load/unload the box. The tires are easily loaded from the side.

When in the paddock, I place one jackstand at the tongue and the other under rear of the trailer. This keeps the trailer flat and keeps the trailer from rising or lowering if you move something heavy in or out of the box. It is also very handy to have jackstands around should any under body work be needed or for tire changing support.

My box is not bolted on, rather, held in place with ratchet straps. Front of box to eye-hooks I placed in the center of the trailer, rear to holes in the frame.
This in not the high security method but I did not overnight with the trailer and if I did, I could just move the whole box into my motel room.
My motivation was that I needed to be able to store the trailer standing up on-end to get the Miata and the trailer in the garage. The box, once removed, could be stored in the basement or elsewhere.

My uprights completely remove as well. I was never fully happy with my set-up but it worked flawlessly and cheap.
In the floor are two round holes in the plywood. The upright itself is white PVC pipe. A hitch pin through a hole drilled in the pipe at the top keeps the pipe from falling down and a hitch pin in from the bottom keeps the PVC pipe from coming up.
Sample:
Not super strong but trust me when I say that I have given it the 100 mile test at nearly 100mph with little or no slowing down for expressway off-ramps.

In a matter of seconds my trailer is a flatbed with just two eye hooks coming out of the center. I have hauled many bags of mulch on it before and strapped the bags down with the same ratchet straps both fore and aft.

When I first started doing track days with my Miata, I bought a De'lan hitch and a Tire Tail. I immediately discovered that I was sweaty and exhausted from changing tires before the first 8 am driver's meeting.

I sold it all and put the money toward a car trailer. If you have parking space and a tow vehicle (I know, big "if"), it's worth the investment. Especially when it's time to go home.

I'm running the car on R888s, I only live about 30 miles from Hallett, I'm just going to drive out there on the R888s and Carbotech's.

The soft top is removed and will eventually get a Bikini top.

I have a vehicle that could tow it now (getting rid of it soon though), but no space for a trailer and I'm not going to rent a spot for a trailer, then have to leave to go get, take it back, etc etc.

while I do not have a miata.. I do have a saab with the factory towhitch.. these are good ideas

I used to have one 10 years ago. I agree on the advice about the wheel/box positioning -- if you put the hinge on the box in the center of the trailer, then you can easily stand in front of it (between the car and the trailer) to load/unload the box. Also, definitely go for the 12" wheels, I had the 8" ones and the small diameter tires meant that the bearings took a beating on the freeway.

I liked having the tires running horizontally, rather than vertically, although I don't think 225s would have fit there (I was using 205s). Doing that let the tires sit lower, which made for better rear visibility over the trailer. If you go with the horizontal approach, you'll want something soft for them to sit on so that the metal edge of the trailer frame doesn't cut into them -- I went with PVC pipes, which fit nicely into the frame.