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Reviews > Base Camp Gear > Campsite Gear > Propane Appliances > Coleman RoadTrip LXE Grill > Owner Review by Steven M Kidd

COLEMAN ROADTRIP GRILL LXE
BY STEVEN M. KIDD
OWNER REVIEW

September 05, 2010

TESTER INFORMATION

NAME: Steven M. Kidd
EMAIL: ftroop94ATgmailDOTcom
AGE: 38
LOCATION: Franklin, Tennessee, USA
GENDER: M
HEIGHT: 5' 9" (1.75 m)
WEIGHT: 220 lb (99.80 kg)
SHOE SIZE: 10 1/2 EE (US)

Backpacking Background: I've been a backpacker on and off for over 25 years. I backpacked as a Boy Scout, and then again almost every month in my twenties, while packing an average weight of 50+ lbs (23+ kg). In the last several years I have gained a renewed enthusiasm for the back country. I generally go on one or two night outings and now try to average a 30 lb (14 kg) pack.

PRODUCT INFORMATION

roadtrip 1
RoadTrip LXE (Courtesy of Coleman)

Manufacturer: The Coleman Company
Year of Manufacture: 2007
Manufacturer's Website: http://www.coleman.com
MSRP: US $199.99
Listed Weight: 44 lbs (20 kg)
Measured Weight: 44 lbs (20 kg)
Dimensions: 46"L x 18"W x 35"H
Burners: 20,000 BTU burners



Key Features from the Coleman Website:

• Matchless lighting
• 285 sq in (1839 sq cm) cooking surface area
• Powerful, portable, propane grill with authentic open-flame drip-through grilling
• Consistent cooking performance even in cold weather, high altitudes and when fuel is low
• Removable "mix & match" surfaces - grill, griddle or stove (each sold separately)
• Fully adjustable 20,000 BTU burners, perfect for outdoor cooking even in cold weather
• Lasts up to 1.1 hours with both burners on high or 4.5 hours on low on one 16.4-oz (0.49 L) propane cylinder
• Operates on 16.4 oz (0.49 L) propane cylinder (not included) or adaptable to 20 lb (9.5 L) propane tank (purchase of tank hose and tank required)
• Folds to compact size with easy to pull handle and wheels
• Tool holders and side tables built in for easy use
• Removable grease management tray
• Two grill grates included
• Limited 5 year Warranty

The Coleman RoadTrip LXE is a wheeled propane burning grill that folds flat for transport and storage. It comes with an attachment that fits most 16.4 oz (0.49 L) propane cylinders, but it is adaptable to larger tanks. It has two porcelain-coated, cast-iron grill grates that are designed for easy clean up. Available cooking accessories include: a griddle and a stove (burner-style) plates. The grill has a stainless steel pan drip pan beneath the burners that is designed for easy clean up. This pan also allows excess grease to fall to a removable plastic tray. A final set of features are tool holders on the front of the grill and two side tables that slide underneath the grill when not in use.


FIELD USE

I purchased this grill a little over three years ago for use during tailgating season at football games, but quickly came to realize it was also an excellent option for car camping. I began to use it in place of an older Coleman table top propane camping stove.

This grill certainly is much heavier and takes up more storage room than the aforementioned camp stove, but once I am set up in a camp site it brings all the luxuries of back yard grilling to the woods. Since it has its own legs I also don't have to bring a table to cook on, or take space away from a campsite picnic table. The RoadTrip also gives me the ability to grill anything I would at home. I can assure the reader I wouldn't grill the juicy rib eye steaks on a camp stove that I have on this puppy.
roadtrip 2
Folded for storage or transport

I have grilled with the RoadTrip countless times at tailgate parties over the last several years. However, it somehow became a central theme to my last three Independence Day celebrations. At July 4th, 2009, gathering at our neighborhood pond a friend caught a nice sized bass, filleted it and tossed it right on the grill next to the burgers and hot dogs. I backpack much more often than I car camp, but I often find myself celebrating July 4th with friends and family on some sort of car camping excursion.

In 2008, I used it on a three night holiday trip in the Shendandoah National Forest in the far western limits of Virginia. We camped seven miles deep off a fire road next to a creek and just near the West Virginia state line. Temperatures ranged from 70 F (21 C) to over 90 F (32 C). The weather was mostly great, save a driving rain storm one night that drenched (or as a campmate said "cleaned") the grill. It lit fine the next morning.

For Independence Day 2010, I took it on a two night car camping event at Old Stone Fort Archeological State Park, in Manchester, Tennessee. Elevation was 725 ft (221 m) with both dry and muggy conditions and temperatures ranging between 92 F (33 C) and 68 F (20 C).

Coleman sells a griddle plate and a stove type grate for the RoadTrip, but I quickly learned on the breakfast of my first car camping trip that I could put a pot or a pan on the supplied cooking grate and it worked fine for my purposes. I have cooked pancakes, eggs and bacon in a pan right on the grill. I've turned it low for toasting bread or heating tortillas. I've grilled steaks, chicken, hamburgers and countless hot dogs on these select camping trips as well. In my opinion the tool holders are unnecessary, but the sliding side trays are great for resting a full sized plate or tray.

One evening I cooked enough burgers and dogs for ten people without having to make any of them wait in a rotation. The surface area will hold a sizeable amount of food. The porcelain coating on the cast iron makes for easy clean up in my opinion. In general, I've had great camp site gourmet experiences with this grill that I had never experienced in the past with older style stoves, or those old worn out camp charcoal grills that don't allow me to smoke the food.

I've never camped with this grill in extremely cold temperatures, but I have successfully used it in temperatures as low as freezing at football tailgates. The grill worked perfectly in my opinion.
roadtrip 3
Porcelain Coated Grates

SUMMARY

In my opinion the Coleman RoadTrip LXE is an excellent item for anyone that loves tailgating, car camping or gathering and grilling away from home. I would love to have owned this grill in my apartment dwelling years when wooden deck fire codes prohibited me from owning a grill. I could have simply carried it out to the common area and prepared culinary delights until my heart was content. Just last weekend I was cooking some fish on the home grill when I ran out of propane. I transferred it to the Coleman to finish the cooking process.

I give kudos to the grill for giving me the ability to cook just as I would at home while in the woods. The product is nicely built, showing minimal wear, and lights and cooks just as well as it did over three years ago. This comes after a minimum of fifty or sixty individual uses.

If weight and space were a concern to me the grill would have limitations. It is quite heavy and even in the storage capacity it takes up considerable space. Also, I can't cook using indirect heat with this two burner grill. Save these few drawbacks I would easily recommend this product.

This report was created with the BackpackGearTest.org Report Writer Version 1.5 Copyright 2010. All rights reserved.

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