Recent Uhaul trailer rental experiences?

Mosin · Post by **Mosin** » Wed Oct 06, 2010 1:21 am

Considering the cost of a new or quality used 5x8 landscape trailer and the fact that we would only use it one week per year, we're contemplating renting a Uhaul trailer for 2011. I'm wondering if anyone who has recently rented a Uhaul trailer for the burn (say, in the last 2-3 years, since their spanking in court/s and the LA Times) has any thoughts, warnings, and/or experiential wisdom to share?

Trishntek · Post by **Trishntek** » Wed Oct 06, 2010 11:53 am

We rented one this year for 2 weeks and cost about $280. Gave it a good douche before return and had no problems.

gyre · Post by **gyre** » Wed Oct 06, 2010 5:26 pm

I have some thoughts.

Mosin · Post by **Mosin** » Wed Oct 06, 2010 8:17 pm

Trishntek wrote:We rented one this year for 2 weeks and cost about $280. Gave it a good douche before return and had no problems.

Sold. The thought of buying and storing one just for the burn was really unappealing. Renting makes much more sense for us. Did you spring for their damage insurance? If so, was that included in the ~$280?

Mosin · Post by **Mosin** » Wed Oct 06, 2010 8:20 pm

gyre wrote:I have some thoughts.

And I appreciate them, Gyre. That is why you should feel free to post your thoughts on recent Uhaul trailer rental experience/s in this very thread.

gyre · Post by **gyre** » Wed Oct 06, 2010 8:46 pm

Alrighty then.

A friend rented a short uhaul truck for a local move.
It had arizona plates and almost no brakes.
Uhaul told them they maintain their long distance trucks differently.

Is this the death truck from arizona, or just part of the junk diaspora?

Today I saw a uhaul truck and open trailer in their natural environment, broken down on the freeway.
They had to pull into the median, and I'm sort of impressed they managed it without rolling over or totaling something.

The frame and suspension on the left side of the trailer had completely collapsed and was canted over 45% from vertical, including the fenders.

Mosin · Post by **Mosin** » Thu Oct 07, 2010 12:00 am

No doubt their trucks are hit and miss. I myself spent a pissed-off, sweaty ride from Scottsdale to LA a few years ago moving some of the in-laws donated furniture back to SoCal one way in an absurdly fucked up and dangerous Uhaul rental and have had other lemons renting from them for local moves. But that's trucks. No doubt there are far fewer potential maintenance problems with their single axle utility trailers, but fewer doesn't mean less important/crucial. Thus, I'm up for giving one a try next year unless I hear people say they had bearings seize or tires shredding on the 447 or some other heinous mechanical failures...like the kind frequent to their frekken trucks (!)

gyre · Post by **gyre** » Thu Oct 07, 2010 3:28 am

This was a trailer failure though and unlike any I've ever seen.

How did that trailer get sent out?

Post by **AntiM** » Thu Oct 07, 2010 5:31 am

We used U-Haul our first two years, and we've used them for cross-country moving with the Navy. Some of the managers of franchises are more ethical and attentive to maintenance and safety than others. How to tell? Um... dunno.

No problems personally, but Larry wouldn't go full speed limit with one. Kept it down to 55 most of the time. Says right on the railers not to exceed 45, which is ridiculous, but probably a good idea.

I don't know if any other company is any better.

Trishntek · Post by **Trishntek** » Thu Oct 07, 2010 11:57 am

Our AAA insurance covered everything, so we did not get the Uhaul insurance.

AnitM, they do say 55MPH nowadays and we did not push it much over 60 all the way. Besides, in CA towing a trailer speed limit is 55.

The guy in Ventura was very helpful and we had trouble with our rented RV wiring harness for the trailer. He helped me hardwire into the RV tail lights to get on the road so I cannot complain about Uhaul. It turns out the RV's fuse box was missing FOUR fuses and that was the problem. But without the RV's operator's manual, we were literally fishing in the dark to find the problem when we got to Bishop the first night. You see, when we had only ONE headlight and ZERO brights, it prompted us to investigate further.

SilverOrange · Post by **SilverOrange** » Thu Oct 07, 2010 3:16 pm

Mosin, one thing to know about the UHaul trailers is that they are selective about what vehicles they will let tow their vehicles. I had an Explorer and they wouldn't rent to me. I had to go and get a buddies pick up to go get the trailer and then switch it over to my vehicle.

buckycat · Post by **buckycat** » Thu Oct 07, 2010 5:23 pm

Some anecdotal info that may or may not be relevant to those considering purchase vs rental:

Over past 5 years I've done about 5000 total miles hauling a campmate's 5'x8' (or 6'x10' ?) open trailer to and from the playa. It has been loaded to (or beyond) its capacity with group gear each time. It's broken down twice, with over $1000 total repair costs. So I'm figuring an average of $250/yr in repairs (which is about the 2-week rental cost) if I keep going with that plan. YMMV.

gyre · Post by **gyre** » Thu Oct 07, 2010 9:35 pm

What the fuck can you do to an open trailer to spend $1000 on it?

Have you seen the plastic sport trailers?

Cute, but still very heavy.

Mosin · Post by **Mosin** » Fri Oct 08, 2010 1:10 am

SilverOrange wrote:Mosin, one thing to know about the UHaul trailers is that they are selective about what vehicles they will let tow their vehicles. I had an Explorer and they wouldn't rent to me. I had to go and get a buddies pick up to go get the trailer and then switch it over to my vehicle.

Thanks for the tip. We will be towing with a very beefy vintage RV so I don't anticipate any issues with the tow vehicle.

Buckycat's post reflects my concerns about owning a trailer....especially since it would sit for ~350 days/yr. Since our only tow-worthy vehicle is the RV, we wouldn't be able to get easy use out of the trailer for other tasks, so just renting for the burn seems to be the best option...fingers crossed that we get one that has been well maintained (famous last words I know).

Mosin · Post by **Mosin** » Fri Oct 08, 2010 1:16 am

Trishntek wrote:Our AAA insurance covered everything, so we did not get the Uhaul insurance.

That's great. We've got Farmers "off brand" RV insurance (Foremost Ins.) with most of the perks so I'll look into this... could save ~$80, which would buy 10 more bottles of Swami/Bonedaddy's Marg Mix.

gyre · Post by **gyre** » Fri Oct 08, 2010 3:11 am

You don't have to have a porky trailer.

This one is 800 pounds and will carry a ton.
If you don't need to carry so much, you can go much lighter.

Their small utility trailer is 300 pounds and carries 1200.
The less the trailer weighs, the more crap you can put in it.

Two people can easily pick up my small trailer.
I built it to tow with a 1300cc roadster, and I never have to slow down with it if the load is stable.

buckycat · Post by **buckycat** » Fri Oct 08, 2010 11:36 am

gyre wrote:What the fuck can you do to an open trailer to spend $1000 on it?

What the fuck I did, was destroy the axle, wheels, hubs, spindles, etc, then repeat. It has still cost less to repair, than to buy a quality new one ($1500+).

The first time the trailer broke, on the way to BRC, we limped into Elko with it, dropped it off to get fixed, and hit the blackjack tables. I won, and then went back to the garage, where the difference between my winnings and my repair bill was less than $5 - I considered that my 1st playa-related synchronicity of that year.

Big goal for next year's burn is to avoid the overloaded trailer scenario.

Turnip · Post by **Turnip** » Wed Oct 13, 2010 11:30 am

In 2009 we rented a small one from UHaul and got the insurance. And I'm glad we did. Someone had rested their bike against the side and it had scraped the decals. But because we paid the insurance, we were in the clear.

Also, make sure you write down every single defect you see prior to your rental. Better yet, film it.

Mosin · Post by **Mosin** » Wed Oct 13, 2010 1:32 pm

Turnip wrote:In 2009 we rented a small one from UHaul and got the insurance. And I'm glad we did. Someone had rested their bike against the side and it had scraped the decals. But because we paid the insurance, we were in the clear.

Also, make sure you write down every single defect you see prior to your rental. Better yet, film it.

Great info/tip Turnip. Thanks!

Snow · Post by **Snow** » Wed Oct 13, 2010 1:40 pm

buckycat wrote: The first time the trailer broke, on the way to BRC, we limped into Elko with it, dropped it off to get fixed, and hit the blackjack tables. I won, and then went back to the garage, where the difference between my winnings and my repair bill was less than $5

AKA Stockman's insurance policy

junglesmacks · Post by **junglesmacks** » Fri Oct 15, 2010 7:44 am

1 1/2 ton military issue trailer with racks for cover - $595:

http://store.colemans.com/cart/1-12-ton ... -p-35.html

3/4 ton dump trailer - $500:

http://store.colemans.com/cart/34-ton-d ... -p-26.html

..just in case it can help anyone looking for a trailer solution.

gyre · Post by **gyre** » Fri Oct 15, 2010 8:11 am

Not bad if it has a suspension.

junglesmacks · Post by **junglesmacks** » Fri Oct 15, 2010 8:18 am

Yeah those suckers are ready to roll. Hell, that 1 1/2 ton comes with friggin 20" off road tires and HD suspension. That's some serious trailerage right there.

Mosin · Post by **Mosin** » Sat Oct 16, 2010 2:07 am

Serious trailerage indeed. I looked into it immediately since I'm a sort of milsurp collector/fetishist, but it seems the glitch with the surplus trailers is that 99% don't come with a title and can be a major beyatch, if not impossible to licence. That sucks because I even found a seller in Oroville (Surplus City) that I could hit up on the way home from High Sierra Music Fest, but they specify no title, and there are sufficient horror stories online about title/licensing of milsurp trailers to dissuade me.

gyre · Post by **gyre** » Sat Oct 16, 2010 3:33 am

Not unusual with trailers.
So recognized that only bill of sale is required with impound lots and no plates are generally required, except maybe for commercial use here.

Some of the weird title requirements added have made many trailers impossible to get plates for.
That's the case with my small trailer, because the state requires surrender of title for cars and use of title for parts used.
Many just retitle with a new serial number.

How to do that with the larger trailers?
No one seems sure.
They have been transferred many times without a title transfer.

junglesmacks · Post by **junglesmacks** » Sat Oct 16, 2010 5:39 am

After doing some checking, it doesn't sound that bad. You make an appointment with the DMV to have it inspected, and re-title it as a "home made trailer". They issue or re-issue a new VIN tag, and you are ready to go. Check with the CA DMV and I'm sure there is a way...

Kinetik V · Post by **Kinetik V** » Sat Oct 16, 2010 8:26 am

Since you're going to the playa yeah rent from U-Haul but shoot VIDEO of EVERYTHING on that trailer. Even some shots under it too, focus on the wiring harness, I mean EVERYTHING. Then when you get ready to return it be prepared to tell the clueless fuckers behind the counter when they start dicking you around that you will post said video far and wide on social media and make sure a copy lands via certified mail in the Attorney General's office and it usually ends the most egregious offenses...

In short if you weren't going to the playa and were renting a truck and/or car hauler I'd simply say go with Penske so you don't have to run to Costco and get the biggest boxes of Tagamet and Pepto you can find.

theCryptofishist · Post by **theCryptofishist** » Sat Oct 16, 2010 9:27 am

Mosin wrote:That sucks because I even found a seller in Oroville (Surplus City)

That's where I bought Tania. I have fond memories.

gyre · Post by **gyre** » Sat Oct 16, 2010 9:52 am

junglesmacks wrote:After doing some checking, it doesn't sound that bad. You make an appointment with the DMV to have it inspected, and re-title it as a "home made trailer". They issue or re-issue a new VIN tag, and you are ready to go. Check with the CA DMV and I'm sure there is a way...

I'm in Tennessee.
Easy to title with new parts.

Any used parts require title surrender, a legal impossibility.
More difficult with manufactured trailers.
I haven't checked lately to see if they fixed it.

You can serialize a built trailer anyway though.

Cars can be re-serialized, but the old title must be cleared first.

Most important is to have notarized bills of sale for everything.

Snow · Post by **Snow** » Sat Oct 16, 2010 10:54 am

Haha surplus city was a sponser for my paintball team, I played in Oroville all the time. And then got out of there ASAP!