Ifor williams or equi-trek

elliegirl12

elliegirl12

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Now we are looking at getting a ifor williams 511, but spoke to our farrier today and he knew of someone selling a space trekker L for 3.5k!! it is only 5years old needs a little bit of a clean and has been serviced, it may need some new rubber mats in on the ramp and has one wheel trim missing, but the actual trailer, i didnt relize how nice they were! and apparently are so much nicer for the horse too! went to have a look today it looks nice but needs a clean, now i need help trying to persuade my mum to go for the equi-trek!! She is unsure as it is so big!, however it is exactly the same width as the 511 but the wheels are underneath!!, now persuasion off why YOU would have either!!

Many thanks
 
I've got a 510. I wouldn't have a 511 - not impressed with them at all - pretty but seem very plasticy and lacking in robustness. I've heard they have had all sorts of probs too, but that may just be the first generation - probs may be fixed now.

No experience of Equitreks so can't comment. 3.5 k seems cheap - for a reason?!
 
Yes seems cheap that is what we both thought, the trade price they said they would sell it for 4k? he got it for a good price because the lady who had it lost her baby and wanted rid of it, We will be making sure it isnt stolen!!, but i am sure our farrier would not recommend us to someone who he has known for a very long time if he stole the trailer!
 
Ive got a spave treka and i love it, its great at shows having the space and privacy to change and keep your tack in, also good for having lunch i if its tipping down
 
Equitrek, no question about it. Ifor are great trailers, but equitrek are the king of trailers, and I would rather have an older equitrek than a new Ifor any day of the week.
 
Wouldn't touch equitrek with a barge pole - the new ones anyway

Old shapes yes

Too many horror stories

Someone I know the axles snapped and she told equitrek and they said she must have run over a kerb took her months to get them to fix it - it was the First time out with it it happened

When it was fixed happened again first time out

I have an Ifor 506

I love it - yes doesn't have the little tack area but i have never had a problem

Ifor have second to one customer service and are so so helpful

My horse hates loading but he isn't as bad in this as it's so light and airey

If you want tack space get the tack pack that attaches to the door

Holds 2 saddles and 2 bridles and extras I think
 
Ali2 - problems were with the early new ones

Ifor replaced all and have rectified the problems and no one has had any problems since
 
Hmm, I've had an IFOR and it was nice and tough and did the job. I then moved onto an Equitrek Day Trekker. I agree with the other posters - its really lovely for the horses and its nice to have somewhere to sit but they are very heavy. I could only put one horse in it and tow safely with the Discovery, and even then it had a good grunt going up hills. Then again, my horses are 17hh and 17.2hh. I gave up and bought a lorry but given the choice, I would probably have an IFOR as I would know that my vehicle would be up to towing it easily. Alos, as Equitreks are so heavy they are quite hard to get hooked up, unless you are a jedi at reversing and getting the tow bar in the perfect place!
 
Don't touch an Equitrek! Had an awful experience with a broken axle :(

Got stranded on M4 for ages (luckily no horse in the back).

Then the company were really rather rude. I have an Ifor and would not trade it for anything :o
 
We have a 2.5 kia sorento to pull it, I have looked into the weights and the 511 is 1000kg unladen and the equitrek is 1100 unladen so not much difference or does that 100kg make it harder to tow? When we looked at the equetrec I could quite easily pull it forward! I am no muscle lol they are apparently a lot more sturdy then the ifor is that the case or not?
 
Chrumbs there are so many horror stories to both as well :( makes the decision even harder maybe ifor is going to be the best bet I suppose there is bad to both!
 
Ask yourself how many really old Equi-Treks or Ifors you see on the road? I mean like over 15 years old and still going, no broken axles or other horrors-and then buy a Rice/Richardson :D

I expect I have just given mine the good old kiss of death by writing this!
 
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whichever you choose, unless you or your mother are mechanically minded, please get it checked over by a professional. Remember you are putting a precious animal inside and many trailers are death traps because they have never been maintained, you already know this one is grubby and needs cleaning, so it is very likely they have not had it serviced.
 
When we were buying a new trailer (downgrading from lorry) it was a choice between an Ifor 511 or a Cheval - we picked the cheval as it appears stronger/better made and less rattly than an ifor!
Plus it is taller than the 511.

Love my cheval :)
 
We bought a new Equitrek Multitreka last year. I wanted a side loader as one of our ponies point blank refused to walk into an IW. She went half way in then reared and reversed at such a rate of noughts she ripped my hands to pieces and nearly squashed the two kids that were supposed to be taking her on loan! She has only ever travelled in a wagon but with the side loader she is fooled!
I am very pleased with my Multitreka, however there are several "niggles" with it. When we went to drop the front bars down to pony level the drill holes were the wrong size and OH had to start on a bit of DIY which he was not best pleased at. The tie rings are in the wrong place for ponies and the haynet tie rings should not be hung on where they are. The bulk head is splitting away from the side and the door mechanism fell off half way through a journey. The spare wheel rattles like mad and must be annoying to the ponies.
And Equitreks response to this?
They dont want to know. They dont speak to customers. They said we have to speak to the dealer who sold it to us. I asked about a new dealer who was closer to us and the managing director denied they had an agent in Castle Douglas. (Its Robertson Gemini by the way) The person we bought our trailer from was John Gibson in Biggar. He turned up unnanounced one morning at a quarter to seven when we were not even out of bed. He was told to go away and arrange to come at a time more convenient to us. He had only turned up because Equitrek had chewed his ear.
We have no warranty details,we got no paperwork, hell I didnt even get a receipt.!!
So we havnt resolved our "niggles".
The box I ordered was an M, with a tack locker. What I got was an L with no tack locker, but a promise to exchange as soon as mine was in.
Guess what? I still have the L ! My M with tack locker never appeared.
And John Gibson?
He never arranged to come again (but did turn up again unnanounced with a tube of silicone to do lord knows what!) and went away again with promises to ring my OH (and didnt).
So there you have it, my Equitrek experience! Dont think much of either the dealer or the manufacturer!
 
I had a brand new ifor 505 - horse didnt travel very well in it and the car was always full of my tack/travel boots etc and I needed to keep car clean for work.

Friend had equitrek which I liked, so i bought second hand space trekka m paid 3650 for it - the build quality isnt great on them (but is ok on mine) and they are heavier than ifors but I love mine - horse travels loads better in it and loads for pony nuts instead of chiffney and lunge line. You can put all your stuff in front section and know that you wont ever forget anything mine also has a little seat, bridle hook, saddle rack and coat hooks- you also have a tack locker on most for water etc.

I added a roof vent and back window to mine (can buy them from equitrek) as my only real criticism of them is they get a little warm without it in the summer - but you feel your horse is so much safer as they are fully enclosed on the motorway rather than back open like ifors.

My friend paid 10k brand new for her showtrekka L - these are the ones that have the problems (she has had new axle and new ramp rubber/wood) but I have had no issues with mine.

I tow with jeep cherokee - they tow lovely but are totally different to ifors - not bouncy bouncy but firmer suspension which although sounds jolty on back of car over bumps is much better for nags.
 
I tow an Ifor Williams 510 and have to say its fabulous. Had horses of varying size and they have always travelled well.
 
Get the new HB511 Mark 2 with the aluminium front , they are fabulous and not plasticky at all.
I moved an ex racehorse in one and it went bezerk for ten minutes and there wasnt a scratch on it.
Ifor williams are dead strong miles better than the other makes and if you look at all the bad feedback on equitreks axles and sfter care I think it d be very risky to buy one.
 
We have just upgraded to an Equi-Trek (one with small living and sleeping area can't remember which model that actually is). The horses travel brilliantly in it. Never hear them and they always come out as fresh as a daisy. We tow 2 x 15.2hh, in it with our Discovery. The only one thing I will say against it is that being as it is so high in very windy conditions it does tend to snake a little so we have learnt to keep the speed down to about 40 mph. Better safe than sorry.
 
Equitreks need to have bulldog 400q stabilisers , they can 'weave or snake' really easily and if they tip over (this is common) read the forums they can tip on to the ramp side and your horses are trapped.
Nightmare I wouldnt use one
 
BoolavogueDC said:
Is it naughty to say neither? :D
Click to expand...

No, just what I was thinking. I've towed with Ifors for years and they are really rattly and give horses a rubbish ride. I now have a 3.5tonner which I was going to sell and replace with a bateson Ascot.....but then couldn't quite bring myself to.
 
I just don't know how Ifor got their rep, like you one of the biggest things I have ever noticed is the noise - you can hear them a mile off, and that must be one hell of a racket for a horse with sensitive hearing. It might not bother some horses or people I guess but for me, I'd prefer to put my thousands into something that didn't sound like a brass band falling down the stairs :D
 
All I can say is we have got the new mark 11 511 to replace a 510 and it is fabulous , and i did a lot of research.
All these other makes seem to have axle probs (which I would have thought is pretty serious)
Ifor Williams won a huge test of all the trailers I think it was the German equivalant of H&h and won all the categories, one was quietness and they measured how well the horses rode in the trailer, but they beat every other manufacturer in every category hands down.
You dont get the market share they have without being good , and I sold my old trailer for more than I paid for it!!
 
had a conversation with a local box dealer (enquiring about trading a 505 in for a lorry) he would take a new Ifor Williams in part ex but doesnt like them and had been told by a local Ifor dealer they wouldnt take any back due to all the faults with them. He also said he wouldnt touch any Equitreks due to there poor build quility and safety issues. I would buy an old Ifor (510 or 511)
 
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