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What started as a weekend shop project quickly gained traction with a DIY camping community hungry for something real.
The result is a unique partnership between a custom car company and campers who know how to turn a wrench. We saw that you were fed up with the binary choice in the market: overpaying for $40k finished fiberglass shells, or settling for $4k DIY kits that are essentially plywood boxes on wheels.
Smyth Teardrops welcomes the industrious camper to the new standard. We are here to start a DIY camping revolution with one simple goal: Let’s build something better than anything you can buy.
With our all-aluminum design, that level of quality is finally possible in your own garage.
You supply the trailer frame — we supply a pod made from five 5'x10' aluminum sheets and over 100' tube framework precision-bent, welded, and bonded panels. All ready for you to bolt together into your custom all aluminum teardrop.
The Last Teardrop You'll Ever Build
Your Vision, Our Structure.
We’ve translated 30 years of custom car engineering into a precision aluminum shell, designed to bolt seamlessly onto standard 4x8 and 5x10 trailers.
We provide the professional exterior; you bring it to life. Assemble and seal the precision-engineered panels for a watertight fit, then build out the interior to match your exact vision—whether that’s a minimalist gear hauler or a fully-equipped camper.
Your assembly. Our professional materials.
4x8(480) 5x10(510)
480 Model
Dimensions
Assemble in a day, then build out the interior to suit your vision.
Build your custom interior on a rock-solid foundation. Pre-welded 1x1” aluminum support bars are integrated into each side wall, creating the perfect base for your cabinets, shelving, and electrical components.
Your teardrop, your rules. This kit is designed to be as versatile as your adventures. Leave it open to haul your gear, or fully customize the cabin with insulation and electricals for an ultimate off-grid camper. The only limit is your imagination.
510 Model
Dimensions
Buzz Around The Smyth Teardrop Trailer
Check out what The Autopian digs about our newest project.
The Smyth Teardrop Story
The King of Kit Cars steps into the teardrop market with a splash
For the past ten years, Smyth Performance has been all about enabling the DIY crowd to create an amazing car-to-truck conversion that doesn't break the bank, yet can roll away with best in show at any local cars and coffee. The winning formula has always been quality materials and great engineering that can easily compete with the most expensive cars out there. Thousands of ‘Smyth Utes’ roam the streets today, doing everything from daily commutes, farm hauling, car shows, and open track racing.
A few months ago, Mark (the owner of Smyth and father of Factory Five Racing) was playing around with a teardrop camper that he could use to haul his cafe racer Honda 750 motorcycle, and could also do camping/open track events with family and friends. His son Coop (who helps run the company) saw the designs come to life and wanted to build one himself – he saw this as the perfect pod to haul surfboards and beach camp. Some bigger tires and a battery/inverter and this thing would go off grid anywhere in total style.As the design was becoming finalized, EVERYONE who came by the shop wanted one.
Producing these trailers as IKEA- style flat packed kits would be significantly simpler than Smyth’s normal kit car production process, and the team figured that the final results would have just as much of an impact on the DIY teardrop market. A teardrop camper with an all-aluminum, race car-based structure. No plywood. A hole in the market the size of Texas, ready to be filled. Mark's view of "no plywood road-going vehicles" resonated big time.
Not only can you pick up a boxed 4x8 or new 5x10 trailer at Harbor Freight or Tractor Supply, we also pack this kit into a large but compact crate that you pick up at a local shipping terminal...with the trailer base that you just bought! The roof panels, sides and large rear access hatch are pre-welded and bonded, simply bolting together onto your frame. This easy shipping and build convenience, built on a trailer that is already titled, is a huge part of why this project is so fast and instantly rewarding.
Since you get free shipping for your 4x8 platform package as you pick up at Harbor Freight, the total shipping goes down from over a grand for the other trailer manufacturers to only a few hundred bucks in the Smyth system. Whatever you decide to do with this Smyth Teardrop, have a good time with it. We specialize in kit cars, one of the most complex consumer products in existence, and we’ve sold thousands of them to amazing customers over the last 30 years. Mark Smith made the Smyth and Factory Five Racing brands the leaders that they are in the custom car market, and now it’s time to offer ultra high-quality aluminum teardrop camper kits under the same philosophy we’ve always had: create well-designed and engineered kits which enable customers to create something strong, lasting and beautiful. Making the most with your free time every day..