Compact trailer can sleep 4 and fit in your garage

Intrepid adventurers looking to buy an off-grid camper are probably familiar with TAXA Outdoors, a Houston-based company known for innovative, smart design. We’ve previously reported on the Cricket and the TigerMoth, two compact trailers from TAXA Outdoors that offer an array of pop-up, space-saving modular amenities.

Now, TAXA Outdoors has debuted a new lightweight camper called the Mantis. The Mantis weighs under 2,300 pounds thanks to a lightweight steel and aluminum frame, measures 18-feet-long, and boasts enough room to comfortably sleep four adults. TAXA Outdoors also want to keep their trailers accessible, so the Mantis can be stored in a standard length and height garage.

According to founder Garrett Finney, “Our dealers wanted something with more sleeping room to round out our family of products beyond the Cricket, which is designed for 2 adults and 2 younger children," Finney says. "The number one selling trailer for the past decade is a 20-foot trailer that sleeps 4 adults. This is our version of that."

As a former senior architect at the Habitability Design Center for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) in Houston, Finney makes it a point to utilize every centimeter of space in his trailers. In the Mantis, this means that the main full-size bed—located in the rear of the trailer—converts into a sofa, while the front area houses two bunk beds.

A wet bath and kitchen sit side by side below an orange roof panel that pops up to create more headspace. There’s also storage space aplenty: You can stash things underneath the bunk beds and kitchen, and Taxa Outdoors is known for its well-placed cargo nets and bungee cords that make gear geeks swoon. The roof also allows for overflow storage with a cargo deck and rack.

Two different trim options will be available. The base-level Mantis Camp runs on electric power and comes pre-wired for solar panels. The higher-priced Trek trim includes a two-burner propane stove, a refrigerator, interior heat, hot water, and air conditioning. Splurge on the Trek and you’ll also get an eight-foot awning, tongue box, and higher-spec wheels.

The Mantis will be available for purchase this month with an estimated starting price of $32,500 for the lower-priced model.

Courtesy of TAXA Outdoors