Toy hauler conversion: build one from a cargo trailer or remodel the garage you have

Path one: convert a cargo trailer

This is the cheap path, and it is mostly a cargo trailer camper build with a clear floor at the back. RVing Know How describes a family build on a $12,500 trailer with about $8,000 in materials, so a little over $20,000 all in. On Expedition Portal and ADVrider, owners report totals from about $5,000 on a used 20 ft trailer up to about $16,000 CAD on a 6x12 aluminum build.

The layout trick is furniture that gets out of the way. Flip-up benches along the walls, a bed that lifts to the ceiling, and nothing bolted to the floor in the garage zone. A HappiJac power bed lift motor (Lippert part 420326) lists at $528.95 MSRP at one retailer, which tells you the lift is not where the budget goes.

Most of the cost sits in the same places as any camper: insulation, electrical, a vent fan, and whatever water system you choose.

Path two: remodel a factory toy hauler garage

Plenty of owners stop hauling toys and want the garage as a bedroom, office or bunk room. RV Inspiration shows garage-to-bedroom remodels done by Driftless RV Renovators. The usual move is to keep the ramp working but build furniture that comes out or folds up, so resale value as a toy hauler is not lost.

If you plan to haul again later, do not glue carpet or wood flooring over the garage floor. The original surface is there because fuel and tire grime will ruin anything softer.

Payload: the number most builds get wrong

A camper conversion adds about 700 to 1,500 lb, per Cargo Trailer Campers. Your UTV comes on top. Polaris lists a 2026 RZR XP 1000 Ultimate at an estimated 1,665 lb dry, and that is before fuel, gear and the cooler in the bed.

So a trailer that started with 3,000 lb of payload can be down to a few hundred pounds by the time the build is done and the side-by-side is strapped in. Weigh the trailer empty, weigh it after the build, and subtract. Do not trust the sticker.

The ramp is rated separately

A ramp door rating is not the trailer payload, and many makers do not print it. On TractorByNet, one owner only learned their Lark enclosed trailer's ramp was rated 4,500 lb after asking the manufacturer. Another described a car hauler with 6,500 lb of payload and a ramp good for 1,500 lb. Get the number in writing before the first load. Our guide on toy hauler ramp door weight ratings covers how to check it.

Fumes and the separation wall

Good Sam forum threads are full of owners whose mattress and curtains picked up a gas smell from the garage. Factory haulers handle this two ways: an open floorplan where the garage is the living room, or a separate garage behind a wall. NFPA 1192, the standard RVIA uses, has provisions for RVs with a permanent wall of separation between the cargo area and the living area. If you are building from scratch, plan that wall and a sealed door from day one. Retrofitting it later is a rebuild.

Getting it built

If you would rather hand this to a shop, post the trailer size, the toy you haul and the layout on Trailer3D. Up to 4 builders who serve your area send quotes, and it costs you nothing.

Questions

Keep reading

• Toy Hauler Gas Smell: Keeping Fuel Fumes Out
• Toy Hauler Ramp Door Weight Rating: Can It Hold a UTV?
• Cargo Trailer Camper Conversion Cost by Size

All guides