So now that I'm in the market, again, for a horse trailer... I'm wanting to upgrade to a 4 horse and a bigger LQ. Anyone have any experience with Kiefer built trailers? How about Lakotas? I'm looking at both currently. Any one in particular to stay clear of? I know everyone will probably have different advice but just trying to get an idea. I dont want to end up with junk!  Right now I have a 3h 2014 sundowner that's super nice and clean but just not big enough for us. 

My Lakota was ok, but for a brand new trailer off the lot had too many issues for my taste.  My shower leaked, my fridge never closed correctly until we discovered they had bent the hinges installing it, then finished in the LQ were low quality.  My drop down windows on the horse portion stopped latching - the only one that consistently latched was the one on the escape door that I almost never used.  Sometimes you’d think they were latched and then they’d fall when you started moving.  Luckily I didn’t have the same experience as a friend did with her new off the lot Lakota - her windows didn’t close either and one fell and cracked her head open.  When all my exterior lights quit working one weekend we threw our hands up and started looking.  Lakota did stand behind it and fix things, but we just felt for as often as I travel alone I needed a trailer I could depend on.  Mine was a 2016.

Same friend who had her head busted open had 2 of them - the first one was a 2013 or 2014 and she had no complaints.  She downsized and traded it in on a new 2017 or 2018 and let me tell you - the staples in her head were probably the smallest headache.  Things wired completely backwards, she’s on her 3rd jack that I  know of...it seems like every time I see her she’s just had “the trailer guy” out.

i don’t have any first hand Kiefer experience on LQ.  Our stock trailer is a Kiefer, it does the job.  We have a couple small broken welds, it’s an early 2000’s so that’s probably about normal.

I think the lakota we are looking at is a 2016. Only thing it didnt have that I wanted was the ramp for the horses. The kiefer has everything,  including a generator and slide out and is 10k less than the lakota but the K is 2009 model. But looks incredibly clean. I just haven't ever heard anything good or bad about the Kiefer. 

There are only 3 trailers I would own. Platnium, elite & turnbow. You couldn't give me an exsiss. They use to be good back in the 90's, but they are cheap now. 

I am looking at the same brands and was wondering too. I am looking for a 2-3 horse 4-7ft LQ and exiss, Lakota and Kiefer seem to be the brands I find in my area with what I want. But I am not too familiar with any of them. 

Our theory is that the Lakota’s got popular and their quality control went in the tank.

Ill also say our Platinum and my in Laws Elite pull MUCH better than the Lakota did, didn’t realize it at the time since it was the only gooseneck I’d pulled - but it was like rowing a sailboat it got pushed around so much.

The Lakota's that I have seen were really pretty trailers, but to me they were built very cheaply and just built to lite to me, they seem also kinda top heavy. But I guess if one was giving to me I would take it but I would not go buy one on purpose, lol.

Kind of like the Bison trailers? Really pretty but I've heard they arent built real well. I'm really leaning towards the Kiefer at the moment because it has everything on my list that I wanted on my next trailer! 

We got approval for the Kiefer and a good deal on our trade in so ..... looks like we are going with that one. The only thing it doesnt have, which isnt a deal breaker, is an awning. We have 1 now and dont use it.. really the only time I let it out is after a rain to make sure it dries out properly. It's always so windy where we live you cant have it out anyway. I have 3 easy up canopies we use for the baseball games so I figured I could just load those up if we wanted! I'm excited but a lil nervous at the same time. Our little sundowner has been good to us and reliable.. believe me, we will be going thru the new one top to bottom before we leave the dealership! I'm really happy this one has the ramp for the horses and drop downs on both sides, plus mangers.. those 3 things where on my must have list

A few friends of mine have Kiefers and they've held up super well. neither are living quarters so cant speak to that but they've been great, reliable trailers.

Every little positive feedback helps ease my nerves lol! Thank you! I know it's always a chance when you buy something like this. I was nervous when we bought our first LQ, the sundowner... but it's really been great, I just hope our experience with this one will be the same! I am in love with the interior of the LQ so much more room! Well, I was just getting slightly comfortable backing my sundowner, this new trailer is probably twice the size ... I'll have to learn on this one now lol! 

You're braver than I. My big upgrade was from an S&S old rust bucket to a 3h Gooseneck and I swear after years, I still struggle. 

Keifers would definietly be on my shortlist for brands. They are pretty common up north (MN). We obviously are pretty hard on ours with the salt and weather. 

Ummmm--pictures??????   Hello, you know that's a rule.  Big ole eye roll. . . . 

Congrats!!!!!

Well I've got to go get it first lol! It's still at the dealership. It's about 4 hours from us so we did all the fun stuff over the phone.(leave it up to me to find the trailer I want far far away)  We are headed there Friday to take delivery (if everything checks out good on the trailer, that is) we are going to go thru it when we get there, make sure everything is sound and all the bells n whistles, bell & whistle as they should! As soon as we take official ownership of it, you bet I'll share pics! 

I have a friend who has had 2 lakotas. 1st was a 3 horse 10'Lg Charger

the other is  a 4 horse 13'Lg Big Horn

she has had no problems and it looks nice. But I can see things that could possible break easier  if you  used the trailer ALOT. 

When she picked up the Big Horn the salesman told us the Bighorns are made with heavier frames.  Something you may want to remember.

I had a kiefer. it was soso....  I did not like the windows. But I seen the new ones are being made with better hinges. 

To me Windows, Frame and Axels  and tires (14 ply 16") are 1st important thing when looking at a trailer. Make sure you have heavy axels!  I now have a 2006 twister.   I LOVE it. stands up close to the Elite, Platinum, 4 star. 

I feel we are hard on trailers, So I like one that will last.

Goodluck 

Got her picked up! Love this trailer so far. It pulls like a dream... so much better than our sundowner.. it's incredible! 

We spent majority of the day driving! But i will say it was so worth it! The trailer was everything the sales guy said it was. I got the story on it while we were waiting for them to finish detailing it. It's a 1 owner trailer. The woman that bought it originally bought it off the showroom floor brand spanking new, used it a handful of times then it sat in her barn after her daughter decided to stop rodeoing. The inside smells and looks absolutely brand new! Even the horse area is immaculate. I'm really pleased and feel extremely blessed and lucky to have found it. I prayed about it for weeks to find the right deal for us. Ok so now... I need to find a new bedding set for it! I want to go with reds! Best place to find affordable nice western style bedding with lots of comfy pillows??!

If you are not a frequent or serious hauler, I suppose it doesn’t matter so much, but in my opinion Lakotas, Exiss, and Kiefers are not top quality trailers.  They might look great, but they don’t seem nearly as well put together. I’d rather own an older, top quality trailer than a new cheap trailer.  In fact, some might say some of the older trailers are better built than the newer ones.  My personal preference is Platinum, mainly based on my experience, having rolled a 4 H Platinum LQ twice at 60 mph due to black ice.  All 4 horses came out without a scratch, even though there were several hoof-shaped holes in the skin of the roof, so I know they were tossed around.  The pickup looked like a squashed beer can - hardly recognizable, yet the trailer barely looked like it was in a wreck, apart from some accessories/attachments breaking off (A/C, etc...).  I had to be cut out of the pickup. So I’m sure you can understand my bias.....they are built like tanks.  That’s my anecdote.

I think Platinums, Elites, Bloomer, Hart, and 4-Star are all very good, although I’ve heard an occasional negative comment on all of them, over the years.  I think Cimarrons seem like nice trailers as well.  There are a lot of things where I’d be willing to go on the cheap, but trailers isn’t one of them.  One good way to get an idea as to which trailers are the best and most dependable is to take a close look at what people are hauling to bigger PRCA rodeos.  See what kind of numbers you come up with.  

I’ll share a funny little personal experience from the first LQ trailer I owned, back in 2003.  For some reason, I took the advice of a couple people who thought Sundowners were the best.  Years ago, I understand, the older ones were pretty good, but this one wasn’t.  I thought I did a good job of shopping around, and drove 4 hours to pick up my pretty brand new Sundowner 4H with a 14’ short wall.  Dang it was pretty.  Within 1-2 months, sh!t just started randomly started falling off or malfunctioning, or breaking.  First it was small stuff, like the rail for the curtain for the sleeping area.  I was sitting in it and it just fell off the ceiling, randomly.  The hinged metal covers for the stovetop became warped and didn’t close properly.  The toilet roll dispenser fell off the wall.  The mother board for the fridge burned or shorted out twice, and it was harder to replace than getting AQHA papers in a timely fashion. Fuses kept blowing, and the power converter went on the fritz.  I got a shock one day when Inwas tying a horse up to the trailer when it was plugged in.  Had to haul it in to an RV shop to trouble shoot and fix the problem, because I can’t fix sh!t. One of the outside windows didn’t align right and was harder than hell to close.  The screen on the inside door kept popping out.  About 2 months after I got the thing, we were driving down the interstate toward the Badlands when one of the large windows just fell off and smashed all over the highway.  I salvaged the trip by using duct tape and cardboard.

The last straw came when I was sitting on the toilet and it tipped over.  Nothing like being pis$ed off, laying on your side, with your pants around your ankles.  I swear it was the trailer from hell, and I bet I could make a movie based on that experience.  

Sounds like a total nightmare! I had zero issues with my sundowner it was a 2014 model.. not a single thing went wrong with it, the dealership offered us a really nice trade in without even seeing it in person.  Funny how some people have such issues with one and others absolutely love theirs without a problem,  that's just the luck of the draw I guess. We dont haul a ton, really... but we will enough to know we needed way more trailer than what we had. This trailer wasnt cheap, to me anyway,  by any means... I just couldn't afford a platinum or elite even used and abused prices are out of my budget on those. Believe me, we looked at several, including some way older bloomers. This trailer has everything I was looking for and a price we can actually afford. I hope and pray this trailer is as good as my sundowner was to us! I've had 2 dealers tell us stay far away from Bison and trails west... then I have some friends that have both and having not 1 negative thing to say about it... it's just the way it is.. there will be junk in every make, model and year and there will be perfect trailers as well.. same with pickups, and designer bred horses lol!