Taxa Cricket vs Coachmen Catalina Summit 184BHS

Taxa Cricket

• ✓Designed by a former NASA architect for maximum space efficiency
• ✓Pop-up roof adds standing headroom when parked
• ✓Rear hatch loads bikes and gear directly into the trailer

Coachmen Catalina Summit 184BHS

• ✓Under $25K makes it one of the cheapest bunkhouse trailers available
• ✓No slides keeps weight low and reliability high
• ✓Light enough for most half-ton trucks

Taxa Cricket

• ✓Owners rave about the build quality and rugged engineering — the NASA-engineer pedigree shows in the thoughtful, space-efficient design, and people who've lived in one say the quality beats anything else in the segment
• ✓Light and tiny enough to tow with a 4-cylinder car or small SUV (around 1,800 lbs dry) and to fit inside a standard garage, which is a huge draw for owners short on storage or tow vehicle
• ✓Genuinely capable for dirt-road and overland use — owners take it places they'd never risk a conventional trailer, with ground clearance and a tough build aimed at adventure rather than RV-park hookups
• ✓Pop-up roof gives surprising standing room and headroom when set up, then drops to a low, aerodynamic, easy-towing profile on the road
• ✓All-weather interior kitchen and good ventilation make it usable in a wide range of conditions; owners report comfortable use even camping near freezing in winter
• ✓Sleeps a couple comfortably and can squeeze in two kids with the berth setup, making it a flexible small-family adventure base

• ✗Sparse standard equipment for the price — base Crickets ship without a toilet, no fridge, and no full-size spare, so owners add a portable toilet and accessories and the real cost climbs well above the base figure
• ✗It's expensive for its size — owners and shoppers question paying adventure-trailer money for something this small, especially when several desirable features are options rather than standard
• ✗Tiny living space (around 63 sq ft) means it's tight for two adults and gear; it's an adventure basecamp, not a roomy hangout for bad-weather days
• ✗Pop-up soft sides are less insulated and less secure than hard walls, so cold, condensation, and noise are more noticeable than in a hard-side trailer
• ✗Some owner gripes about design choices like solar being only 'pre-wired' rather than included despite the premium price, requiring more spend to get off-grid ready
• ✗Niche brand with a limited dealer/service footprint, so warranty and repair access can mean shipping to or coordinating with the factory rather than a local shop
• ✗Owners caution that some reported problems are dealer prep or operator error rather than the trailer itself, meaning a careful PDI and learning curve are part of ownership

Coachmen Catalina Summit 184BHS

• ✓At around $24K it's one of the cheapest real bunkhouse trailers you can buy — a genuine entry point for young families
• ✓The 90-inch-wide narrow body and roughly 4,200 lb dry weight mean a midsize SUV or small pickup can tow it, no big truck required
• ✓Rear bunks plus a Murphy/convertible bed and dinette let it technically sleep up to 8 — a lot of beds for the footprint
• ✓Light and short enough to fit smaller campsites and to back into a tight driveway for storage
• ✓Coachmen's outdoor features and the simple, no-frills systems are easy for first-timers to learn
• ✓Big aftermarket and forum support across Forest River Forums for mods and fixes
• ✓Some factory-ordered units arrived with bonus upgrades like an auto tongue jack that weren't even listed as options

• ✗Interior storage is minimal — basically under the U-dinette and a small closet, so families have to pack light
• ✗The front bed is a fold-in-the-middle Murphy bed, not a true flat queen, which some owners find uncomfortable
• ✗Front stabilizer jacks and a power tongue jack aren't standard on all builds — budget for upgrades
• ✗Build quality is entry-level value: thin materials, particle board, and the usual budget-trailer fit-and-finish
• ✗It sleeps 8 on paper, but realistically it's tight for more than a family of four