Thanks. 

Anyways, I hear what you're saying Mcarter ie. Rpod not being an off road trailer and the mods I speaking of will have second and third effects. However the Hood River edition has higher clearance and off road tires. So although I'm not trying to match the off road capabilities of my 4Runner, I would like to travel 'smoothly' a wee bit more off road.

I'll be interested to hear how this goes if you decided to do it.  I'm more of the same mind as MCarter though and I think there may (or may not) be a logical disconnect in the idea that what works for an Airstream will work for an RPod.  I know next to nothing about Airstreams, but I can tell you that the off-roadness of the Hood River Edition Pods is almost 100% cosmetic.  They are not higher off the ground than other Pods with axle risers, other than a few millimeters due to the 15" tires.  There is no added strength in the HRE frame, body, or axle or anything else in its construction. 

What makes a trailer an off-road trailer is largely a matter of opinion, just as is what "off-road" means.  In my opinion, shocks might smooth things out a little but they won't make a Pod an off-road trailer.  Which is not to say they won't help on some forest service type roads.... The cost:benefit analysis is up to you.

I just switched to load range D tires, and they do get rid of a lot of bounce, plus I'm pretty sure they added about 10% to my MPGs while towing.

TT

We travel on forest service roads from time to time and really haven't had a problem bouncing the trailer.  But we're in no hurry, so we just go slowly over the bumps.  ....makes the ride in the truck more comfortable too.  But trucks tend to have stiffer suspensions than a 4Runner which rides more like a car.

Personally, unless one is talking about real off roading and jeep trails, I don't think there is any reason you couldn't take your Pod on forest service roads, as long as you proceed with caution and don't try to go over things that can hang up on the axle or the hitch.  You may need to disconnect the WDH torsion bars, but, then, trailer sway is rarely a problem when traveling at walking speeds.

I think we all have an idea of what we mean when we talk about taking an RPod "off road", but I'll bet our ideas run the gamut.  Just talking about forest service roads, some of them a just as good as federal highways; just lacking pavement and maybe not as wide.  Others are narrow, rutted, with ruts full of mud or water of unknown depth, not to mention fallen or low overhanging trees, etc, etc. You see all kinds of cars on the former -- why not?  You see serious 4WD types winching each other out and or retreating from the latter. 

I can imagine shocks helping on unpaved roads at the milder end of the spectrum but you can't even pull a Pod over roads on the other end.  Again, it's up to the individual to know what kind of roads they're thinking of, and to decide whether it's worth the effort.  I'm skeptical about how much you could extend an RPod's range though by adding shocks.

TT

Yah. The term "road" all by itself can run quite a spectrum. There is a particular place we are fond of east of Yosemite out on BLM land that we've not gotten the nerve to travel with the R-pod. We've been out there in our 4WD trucks, and came close to getting "stuck" a couple of times. It's not particularly rough, but the sand gets over a foot deep in many places.We have an ongoing debate whether we could take the R-pod out there or not. I think it's possible, my SO thinks not. There is also the issue about turning around and getting out.