CampLite TC 10.0

[Nikolaite]

Howdy, Folks,

To be clear, the following is in no way to diminish anyone's view of the company or their campers. I am simply venting because I have felt so alone all this time.

About three and a half years ago (2016 Jan) I drove two states away to look at CampLite's quality at the dealership, and ultimately place an order.

Originally, I wanted the TC 8.6. I had a 1-ton truck on order, and didn't want any overhang to interfere with hitching up my trailer carrying my ATV and dirtbikes. However, the length of the "L" shaped dinette would not allow a full-size adult to stretch out and sleep.

I had only heard good and great things about the CampLite brand, so I was excited to pick up the camper.

I had to wait a number of months in order to pick it up, as there was nothing in stock apparently. I got the call that the camper was at the dealership, so drove my spiffy new 1-ton to pick it up. It was a beautiful camper, but immediately there were problems: the floor plan was not what I had ordered. It was an absolute mess. I needed sleeping room for three adults, and since my new camper had no "L" shaped dinette, there was no second adult-sized sleeping bunk.

I told the dealer rep that this was a no-go. It was not what I ordered and I was not going to consider the contract filled with the delivery of this camper. They talked to the folks at the factory, said they'd hold over the deposit and have the camper that we ordered built.

I drove back home and returned when I got the call to pick up the camper. The floor plan looked right, so I accepted it and got ready to load up. First thing I noticed was that the jacks would not raise the camper high enough to back the truck under. It required using cinderblocks to raise the camper enough. I was so tired I didn't really consider what that would mean at the campsites when I wanted to unload my camper and reload it, but I sure recognize it now.

Upon arriving at home, I started unpacking the camper and getting it ready to go out on the road. I immediately found that the TV had no working power cord and the video line was smashed/broken. Then I found that the table had a huge portion of the formica peeled away. Later I discovered in the shower that the water line in the wall was not caulked in, it was just pushed in up to the caulk, and the caulk/seal had been broken away from the wall so that it could move pretty freely.

Later I discovered all of the inconvenience of the interior. I am a 5'8" tall woman. However, I cannot see or reach very far into any of the upper cupboards above the sink and dinette. In my old camper, everything was within sight and reach.

I have never used the microwave. I didn't want the microwave. All it does is take up space and add weight to my rig. My camping style is campfire or campstove meals and I rarely have something around that could even power the microwave. I wanted a real propane oven like in my old camper, but it wasn't an option.

The refrigerator was originally an nightmare to use. One night in the dark two buttons got pushed at the same time in some freak accident. It shut down the refrigerator which caused the food inside to spoil, as it was the next morning before I realized the refrigerator was off, then another few hours to figure out how the shut down occurred. Also, the refrigerator has always been very reluctant to switch to propane, even after purging the system. It is always a few minutes of pushing the button, waiting, getting a refusal, pushing the button again, waiting, etc.

The overcab bed is way too high to get into easily without a step stool. I have to buck myself up to get in and then do the "worm" dance move until I get my legs on enough to crawl in. The floor of the overcab is well above my waist.

The L-shaped dinette is not at all wide enough to be comfortable to sit on, either to read or eat or work on the laptop.

The table provided is rickety and unbalanced. It is inevitable that I will hurt my hands every time I try to set it up because the legs do not run smoothly to the open position. For awhile, I got by using TV trays in place of the table. Now, I just snagged the table and flange mounts from my old camper to replace the CampLite table ultimately.

All of the useful cabinetry is at the rear of the camper rather than over the rear axle. If I load out for several weeks, that will put my stores way back in the overhang area, potentially causing C.O.G. issues with the rig. I have since remedied this, but the remedy makes the nice cabinetry largely useless.

Now for the biggest problem I have with my CampLite TC 10.0: The weight.

When I specced the camper at the dealership, I brought all the info about my truck, what I was going to be doing with my rig, what trailer I was going to be towing, etc. I was assured that the TC 10.0 topped out at 2200 lb, as that was how CampLite could get away with selling these units for SRW 1-ton trucks. I was extremely excited and pleased.

However, I believe the camper is well over 3000 lb dry.

I didn't know that there was so much upheaval going on in that company until recently, but still, I am left feeling pretty bad about what looks like a very nice camper.

[Nikolaite]

Travels with Yoly wrote:
Our 2016 Ram 2500 bed height is 36 inches from the ground. If the jacks you mention have 36 inches of travel, the only way I see it not working is if the jackes were attached to the camper at a point higher up on the structure than normal. It might be interesting doing some sort of a survey measuring several other units and comparing to yours.

Are you running a 10.0 TC in a Ram 2500? Just out of curiosity.

The jacks on my 2016 10.0 TC look like they're fastened much higher up than previous model years. I have gone around the problem by carrying a multitude of 2 x 8 pieces in the outside storage container.

[Travels_with_Yo]

Our 2016 Ram 2500 bed height is 36 inches from the ground. If the jacks you mention have 36 inches of travel, the only way I see it not working is if the jackes were attached to the camper at a point higher up on the structure than normal. It might be interesting doing some sort of a survey measuring several other units and comparing to yours.

[Nikolaite]

CA Traveler wrote:
Lesson learned. Always have a complete PDI (your PDI and NOT the dealers) and be prepared to walk. And no binding contract or money until the PDI is completed. And if YOUR PDI takes a full day or more so be it.

Yes, everything is clear in hindsight.

I doubt the dealership would have allowed any lengthy inspection after I rejected the first camper that was delivered to fill my order.

[Nikolaite]

lap527 wrote:
Wow....Sorry to hear about all of your issues. Our 10.0 tc is a 2013 and have had a few minor issues. Like Dave, HI Dave, we had issues with the refrigerator but it was ventilation problems. I am 5'3" so we do use a stool to get to higher cabinets and to get into the cabover. We always make sure we slide down on our belly when coming down from the bed, we don't want to face plant from the bed. After traveling a couple of weeks ago without our TC, I realize how much I missed it. Once again sorry for your bad luck and sounds like your TC was built on a Friday. For most of us that own Camplites we love 'em. Good Luck!

Thanks for the commiseration.

[Nikolaite]

jimh425 wrote:
Sounds like you bought a camper you didn’t like. That happens. Most RVers go through a few models or types to find what works for them.

The question is “do you want to suffer through it and make changes”? If yes, we can discuss potential solutions for remaining issues. If not, why not trade it to get something you like?

I invested a lot of time and money into rigging my truck out with specially made frame mounts and a hitch extender, so I'm going to run with this camper for awhile. I do have a plan to trade it, possibly for an earlier model year CampLite. Though I sure won't go with an overhang ever again.

jimh425 wrote:
If you truck isn’t lifted, it may be possible to adjust the jacks to lift higher. I’ve never heard of trucks being too tall otherwise. Even the tall Ford F350s work with all TCs as far as I’ve heard. That seems to be something the dealer should have handled if you truck isn’t lifted.

I was pretty suspicious when there was not enough throw in the jacks to lift the camper high enough. There were five guys from the dealership helping me to load it up, and all of them were scratching their heads. I was just so tired of dealing with the whole thing by that point, and they had no suggestions to offer other than to block it up.

jimh425 wrote:
My TC has a small step attached to the cabinet on one side. It’s barely big enough for a foot, but works just fine for my 5’2” wife to make getting in/out easier.

There's just nothing like that in mine.

jimh425 wrote:
Don’t put heavy stuff in the back cabinets, but that is plenty of usable space for lighter items which I’m sure you carry. There are a few solutions for hard to reach in cabinets. 1)Add sliding shelves to the bottoms. 2)Add a rotating shelf like a lazy susan. 3)Add baskets that can be pulled out.

I don't carry a whole lot of stuff in the camper other than food and water. I pull a trailer behind, so I put any heavy stuff I have to carry in there: extra propane bottles, tools, chainsaws, etc.

I do take your point about storage ideas. Thank you.

jimh425 wrote:
Remove the microwave if you’ll never use it. Consider adding a Convection microwave for short uses. They get really hot and I don’t think they are a full replacement for an oven.

I am going to try to remove it eventually. It's supposed to be a convection microwave, but I'm boondocking so often that I never have occasion to use it.

jimh425 wrote:
As far as weight goes, that’s an issue for almost everyone. Either the TC comes in heavier than expected or the owner underestimates how much they will be carrying. That’s why you see so many DRWs here.

Good luck.

I know what you mean. I have been trying to be conscientious about the weight from the very beginning because I don't want to have any issues on the road. I simply felt very ill-treated to find out that the weight of the bare camper was much heavier than estimated in the literature.

[Nikolaite]

djg wrote:
I have a Camplite 10 2015 model year, been a great camper, the only problem I have had is the fridge would not work on propane when traveling but I remedied that. The advertised weight is 2290 and we have scaled it at DOT scales and cat scales fully loaded, water, all gear, 2 golf cart batteries, 2 propane tanks and I weigh 3300 lbs, (wife likes lots of stuff in the kitchen could probably dump a few things but!!!) no quality things wrong except 1 missing valance over the kitchen window, I can live with that though. I have a non lifted truck and Rieco-titan jacks always has lifted camper high enough with room to spare even if I wanted to lift it, no u shaped dinette but we wanted that as we can get up and walk around in the camper and not have to squeeze by each other, did not like the TV set up so I upgraded myself to a 32" and blu-ray. My wife is fairly short so you are right the cabinets are high so we carry a little short stool from wally world does the trick for her, as for the cabinets in the rear we use 1 for clothes rear 1 an the other for kitchen stuff haven't noticed any COG problems mind you I have air shocks on mine, wife likes to pack heavy. All in all we love the camper and it's very tough wind flopped it over 2 years ago and the only things that broke were the extension brackets and TV and blu-ray, not even a broken light cannot complain.

Dave

I hear you. I think I just waited too late to pull the trigger on ordering a unit. Had I ordered a half year earlier, I doubt I would have any cause for sadness over the camper. There was just no way to know except in hindsight.

I had the wind knock over my old camper, so I can empathize there. That's pretty good that you suffered no more damage than to your media setup.

I put together a solar panel setup for mine for when I'm out in the booneys. I have had no problem going on just the standard marine battery since then.

I am just so conflicted, because the camper looks awesome in general. It just has so many inconveniences that really get to me at times.

[Nikolaite]

joerg68 wrote:
Here I was thinking Camplite had stopped making campers last year when, in fact, their web site still is up and running: https://www.livinlite.com/products/camplite-truck-campers/
So what is it now? Anyway...

I bought the camper 3.5 years ago, i.e., early in 2016. Don't get me wrong, I believe the camper is beautiful. It's in great shape and looks barely used.

joerg68 wrote:
So you have a 10ft camper on a one ton SRW truck and pull a trailer with an ATV. Do you use a hitch extension?

Yes.

joerg68 wrote:
The camper jacks do not lift the camper high enough for loading and unloading? Why is that? The jacks are supplied by a third party vendor and they are virtually the same types for all campers. I have not heard of other Camplite 10.0 owners complaining about this issue. So either your camper is different, or your truck is lifted. Which is it?

My truck is completely stock: no lifts, no big wheels.

Yes, the camper jacks do not lift the camper high enough for loading and unloading. I do not know why they made it that way, but the "throw" of the jack legs is only 36 inches.

joerg68 wrote:
They state a dry weight of 2995 lbs for the last version of the 10.0: https://www.livinlite.com/products/camplite-truck-campers/10.0.html. It is (unfortunately) well known that these weights need to be carefully understood - they are usually for the bare camper, without battery or gas, sometimes even without the jacks. Certainly without options, or water, or your gear... Only a scale knows the true weight in most cases
The stated curb weights of the trucks are often calculated in a similar way, base model without options, btw.
This often results in an unpleasant surprise at the scale..

I did not buy the last version of the 10.0. The literature at the dealership showed the weight at approximately 2200 lb.

joerg68 wrote:
The cabover bed is not very easily accessible in most campers. Unless you have a basement under the camper, somehow you need to climb up from the truck bed to the cab roof plus mattress plus x. There could be extra steps, or handles, but there usually aren't any.

I know. This is not my first camper.

joerg68 wrote:
The fridge comes from a third party manufacturer. Whatever happened on your unit sounds a bit weird. Ultimately, it got sorted out and the fridge is working fine.

I know, the fridge is Dometic brand, like the range. It is always a hassle to turn it on gas, though.

joerg68 wrote:
Most of the other things seem to be quality issues with your unit. It does sound a bit like a lemon. But without actually seeing it, I can not tell how far from the (low) quality standards in the RV industry your unit is. Also your dealer experience apparently was not great.

Is this your first RV? Do not get me wrong - it sounds like you had to deal with a number of issues that take away greatly from the camping experience. I really do empathize. But your post combines a lot of different things with different reasons and backgrounds. Some could have been avoided by better research, some are part of the learning curve, and some are just bad luck...

This is not my first camper...and I did spend two years researching before I purchased. I believe that I got a troublesome unit both because the design of the camper was not a good one and because of the turmoil going on in the company at the time. It doesn't account for the weight discrepancy of some 800 lb, however.

[Nikolaite]

SidecarFlip wrote:
My only comment is about advertised weight and actual weight and I'd say most every unit weighs appreciably more than what the manufacturer puts on the weight specs.

Cinder blocks are dangerous to use as bases for anything btw.

Easy way to find out what it weighs, weigh your truck on a CAT scale, no camper. Put the camper on and weigh again. Keep in mind that camper empty of any 'stuff' and no water will weigh one thing and loaded for camping will weigh more, could weigh appreciably more depending on what you take with you.

I meant concrete blocks.

I know what you mean about weighing it. I've had it on the grain scale several times over the 3.5 years that I've run with the camper.

[CA_Traveler]

Lesson learned. Always have a complete PDI (your PDI and NOT the dealers) and be prepared to walk. And no binding contract or money until the PDI is completed. And if YOUR PDI takes a full day or more so be it.

[lap527]

Wow....Sorry to hear about all of your issues. Our 10.0 tc is a 2013 and have had a few minor issues. Like Dave, HI Dave, we had issues with the refrigerator but it was ventilation problems. I am 5'3" so we do use a stool to get to higher cabinets and to get into the cabover. We always make sure we slide down on our belly when coming down from the bed, we don't want to face plant from the bed. After traveling a couple of weeks ago without our TC, I realize how much I missed it. Once again sorry for your bad luck and sounds like your TC was built on a Friday. For most of us that own Camplites we love 'em. Good Luck!

[jimh406]

Sounds like you bought a camper you didn’t like. That happens. Most RVers go through a few models or types to find what works for them.

The question is “do you want to suffer through it and make changes”? If yes, we can discuss potential solutions for remaining issues. If not, why not trade it to get something you like?

If you truck isn’t lifted, it may be possible to adjust the jacks to lift higher. I’ve never heard of trucks being too tall otherwise. Even the tall Ford F350s work with all TCs as far as I’ve heard. That seems to be something the dealer should have handled if you truck isn’t lifted.

My TC has a small step attached to the cabinet on one side. It’s barely big enough for a foot, but works just fine for my 5’2” wife to make getting in/out easier.

Don’t put heavy stuff in the back cabinets, but that is plenty of usable space for lighter items which I’m sure you carry. There are a few solutions for hard to reach in cabinets. 1)Add sliding shelves to the bottoms. 2)Add a rotating shelf like a lazy susan. 3)Add baskets that can be pulled out.

Remove the microwave if you’ll never use it. Consider adding a Convection microwave for short uses. They get really hot and I don’t think they are a full replacement for an oven.

As far as weight goes, that’s an issue for almost everyone. Either the TC comes in heavier than expected or the owner underestimates how much they will be carrying. That’s why you see so many DRWs here.

Good luck.

[djg]

I have a Camplite 10 2015 model year, been a great camper, the only problem I have had is the fridge would not work on propane when traveling but I remedied that. The advertised weight is 2290 and we have scaled it at DOT scales and cat scales fully loaded, water, all gear, 2 golf cart batteries, 2 propane tanks and I weigh 3300 lbs, (wife likes lots of stuff in the kitchen could probably dump a few things but!!!) no quality things wrong except 1 missing valance over the kitchen window, I can live with that though. I have a non lifted truck and Rieco-titan jacks always has lifted camper high enough with room to spare even if I wanted to lift it, no u shaped dinette but we wanted that as we can get up and walk around in the camper and not have to squeeze by each other, did not like the TV set up so I upgraded myself to a 32" and blu-ray. My wife is fairly short so you are right the cabinets are high so we carry a little short stool from wally world does the trick for her, as for the cabinets in the rear we use 1 for clothes rear 1 an the other for kitchen stuff haven't noticed any COG problems mind you I have air shocks on mine, wife likes to pack heavy. All in all we love the camper and it's very tough wind flopped it over 2 years ago and the only things that broke were the extension brackets and TV and blu-ray, not even a broken light cannot complain.

Dave

[joerg68]

Here I was thinking Camplite had stopped making campers last year when, in fact, their web site still is up and running: https://www.livinlite.com/products/camplite-truck-campers/
So what is it now? Anyway...

So you have a 10ft camper on a one ton SRW truck and pull a trailer with an ATV. Do you use a hitch extension?

The camper jacks do not lift the camper high enough for loading and unloading? Why is that? The jacks are supplied by a third party vendor and they are virtually the same types for all campers. I have not heard of other Camplite 10.0 owners complaining about this issue. So either your camper is different, or your truck is lifted. Which is it?

They state a dry weight of 2995 lbs for the last version of the 10.0: https://www.livinlite.com/products/camplite-truck-campers/10.0.html. It is (unfortunately) well known that these weights need to be carefully understood - they are usually for the bare camper, without battery or gas, sometimes even without the jacks. Certainly without options, or water, or your gear... Only a scale knows the true weight in most cases.

The stated curb weights of the trucks are often calculated in a similar way, base model without options, btw.
This often results in an unpleasant surprise at the scale.

The cabover bed is not very easily accessible in most campers. Unless you have a basement under the camper, somehow you need to climb up from the truck bed to the cab roof plus mattress plus x. There could be extra steps, or handles, but there usually aren't any.

The fridge comes from a third party manufacturer. Whatever happened on your unit sounds a bit weird. Ultimately, it got sorted out and the fridge is working fine.

Most of the other things seem to be quality issues with your unit. It does sound a bit like a lemon. But without actually seeing it, I can not tell how far from the (low) quality standards in the RV industry your unit is. Also your dealer experience apparently was not great.

Is this your first RV? Do not get me wrong - it sounds like you had to deal with a number of issues that take away greatly from the camping experience. I really do empathize. But your post combines a lot of different things with different reasons and backgrounds. Some could have been avoided by better research, some are part of the learning curve, and some are just bad luck...

[SidecarFlip]

My only comment is about advertised weight and actual weight and I'd say most every unit weighs appreciably more than what the manufacturer puts on the weight specs.

Cinder blocks are dangerous to use as bases for anything btw.

Easy way to find out what it weighs, weigh your truck on a CAT scale, no camper. Put the camper on and weigh again. Keep in mind that camper empty of any 'stuff' and no water will weigh one thing and loaded for camping will weigh more, could weigh appreciably more depending on what you take with you.