Michigan-based Modern Buggy has been on a serious expansion warpath. After being purchased by Earl Williams in 2022, a few years after its founding, the company has launched its first family of truck campers, introduced several new trailer sub-brands, and grown out its namesake teardrop trailer family. The new Ultimate Hauler 18 (UH18) is part of that latter expansion … kind of. This particular trailer blends together a proper teardrop camper pod, toy-hauling flatbed and dual axle in a way we haven’t seen before.
In the past month alone, Modern Buggy introduced both the all-new Wedge series of larger travel trailers and the Hopper series of entry-level camping trailers. Each individual series serves as its own family of similarly designed trailers in different sizes, with the original “Modern Buggy” (ModBug) series continuing to serve as a family of teardrops in various sizes and forms. The ModBug teardrops are designed to offer durable, wood-free steel-framed composite construction at a high-value price point.
Modern Buggy
The Ultimate Hauler 18 arrived a little earlier this year but just recently started appearing in dealership listings and advertisements. It’s actually something of a larger follow-up to the single-axle Quad Hauler 124 Modern Buggy released previously by combining a half-teardrop cab with a toy-hauler flatbed. The QH124’s compacted teardrop cab was designed only for cargo, and the trailer required the addition of a rooftop tent to serve as a camper.
The 22.3-foot (6.8-m) UH18, on the other hand, is an all-out camper from the get-go. The 7-foot-long (2.1-m) teardrop trailer body borrows more from the level-roofed, square-back Country Born lineup than it does its dramatically curved and arched ModBug teardrop siblings. Inside its left and right entry doors, it features a folding mattress that serves as both a sofa and a large 70 x 84-in (178 x 213-cm) super-queen bed that measures quite closely in size to a residential California king (72 x 84 in).
Modern Buggy
With its long rear bed built to carry quads and motorcycles, the UH18 teardrop doesn’t have the typical tailgate galley. Instead, Modern Buggy keeps it simple with a pair of storage cabinets on the rear of the body, including a space built to house the available electric fridge/freezer or one’s own cooler. Owners can also stow their own cooking gear inside those cabinets.
The UH18 flatbed measures 10.7 feet (3.3 m) long by 5.9 feet (1.8 m) wide and is designed to carry vehicles as large as side-by-sides with big off-road tires. It includes integrated L-track for tying everything down and a tailgate that folds out into a loading ramp. Thanks to its dual-axle setup, the UH18 has a gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR) of 7,000 lb (3,175 kg) and can carry a total payload of 4,500 lb (2,040 kg).
Modern Buggy
The UH18 doesn’t appear quite as outback-rugged as some of the toy-hauling campers we’ve been seeing out of Australia in recent months, but it is designed to venture comfortably off the pavement. Both sets of ST235/75R15 all-terrain tires are cushioned by torsion axles, combining for 14 in (36 cm) of ground clearance.
Modern Buggy adds in a basic electrical system with leisure battery, 200-W rooftop solar panel and USB ports. This system powers the interior lighting and four-speed roof fan.
Modern Buggy didn’t provide a base price when we asked, but a listing on RV Trader puts the trailer at US$24,995. The model pictured is equipped above base level with a roof rack, rooftop tent, awning and fridge/freezer.
Other options Modern Buggy advertises include an upgraded lithium battery, griddle and 5,000-BTU air conditioner.
Source: Modern Buggy
