Today’s RV review is of the 2026 Grand Design Imagine AIM 16MLA. This is one of the smallest laminated trailers in the Grand Design lineage, er, family. It will appeal to solo campers or camping newbies who want something small and relatively light that’s also affordable, but which offers many of the features that make it less basic.
It so happened that last week I wrote a review elsewhere of the Sunset Park Retro ChaCha 186, which is a very similar floor plan to this. That illustrates just how much some details can make in a trailer about this size. That trailer and this one are both very similar in layout, but also have enough significant differences that it’s worth looking at both.
And that illustrates something I’ve written multiple times. If you find a floor plan that appeals to you, then it’s worth your time to look at other brands to see their comparable floor plans. Nuances can make all the difference.
For example, that Sunset Park Retro does not have a slide room; this Grand Design does. Yet the Retro has both a dinette and a couch, which is nice. And a three-burner propane stove top, albeit with a worthless 17” oven.
From the road up with the 2026 Grand Design Imagine AIM 16MLA
I know there are a lot of readers who don’t like single-axle trailers; I have zero issues with them. But what I do have issues with are cheap leaf springs and off-brand tires, especially with no tire pressure monitoring system included.
Quite honestly, the very first thing I would do if I bought this trailer is swap out the tires for ones that aren’t import tires. While they’re swapping, I would put in a tire pressure monitoring system. It wouldn’t even be a consideration.
And, again, that’s why you shop around. There are other brands of trailers that have a similar floor plan that use Goodyear Endurance tires and a torsion axle suspension, and include tire pressure monitoring.
I overheard a friend of mine who’s an RV decision-maker talking to one of his competitors at a show. He very specifically asked that competing brand why they hate their customers with these off-brand tires. Okay, enough about that.
While Grand Design has made a lot of noise about its larger RVs getting big chassis upgrades (see Russ & Tiña’s article about Grand Design’s frame upgrades here), this one isn’t on that list. However, it does use an NXG frame, which is a bolted-together frame as opposed to Lippert’s welded frames. The company claims its frames are better.
Unusual underbelly
Something unusual in this model is that the underbelly is enclosed and heated—not typical in these smaller trailers, and a nice touch.
This trailer does have a slide room and utilizes Lippert’s newer SlimRack slide mechanism. The company claims it is more reliable and stronger than the Schwintek, that has been common.
Also, this has a docking station inside the front baggage compartment. You might otherwise expect all the connections to just be on the side of the camper. On the subject of that pass-through storage, there’s a provision for the included plastic folding table in here, which I really like. Who doesn’t want a table?
What’s inside the 2026 Grand Design Imagine AIM 16MLA
When we sat down at this virtual campfire together, I mentioned that this might be a popular choice for solo campers. One of the reasons I say that is because this does have an “east-west” bed, which is across the front, rather than a walk-around bed. On the plus side, this is a proper queen-sized mattress at 60” x 80”. There’s a little cubby with household and USB power outlets.
There’s also a closet on one side and a drawer plus overhead cabinets for storage. The doors on these have hinges that hold the doors up, so you won’t have to fight them.
There are many more cabinets below the bed, so interior storage already is a big plus on this rig.
But then there’s a cubby beneath the couch that’s in the slide room on the road side of this camper. It has been designated for shoe storage, though, obviously, you can put whatever you want there. If you need a leash for that pet elephant you like to bring camping, I’m sure it would fit.
On the subject of the slide room, there’s a roll-over couch here with a center armrest. However, because this sits above the wheel well, you can’t really get anything else here. This couch could double as a bed if you have a guest who sleeps over, or if your spouse says something really stupid and now has to find an alternative place to rest his head.
Kitchen in the 2026 Grand Design Imagine AIM 16MLA
As mentioned, this has a two-burner propane stove, which I think makes so much sense. That leaves a surprisingly good amount of counter space in here—more than in some larger trailers.
For baking, this features a convection air fryer microwave. There’s a smaller, square sink but with a faucet that has one of those pull-out heads. There’s also a smaller 12-volt fridge.
The continuing theme of the storage being decent extends to the kitchen with good overhead cabinets plus two larger drawers below.
Bathroom in the 2026 Grand Design Imagine AIM 16MLA
The bathroom in this trailer extends across the width of the back, so it’s really spacious for a rig this small. There’s a rectangular shower with a Nautilus-style shower door. One surprise is going to be how much counter space there is here. It’s not huge, but for a trailer of this size, it’s very serviceable. How’s that?
Boondocking and travel access in the 2026 Grand Design Imagine AIM 16MLA
I think this trailer could easily be sold with no slide whatsoever. Yeah, the slide adds space and all, but I bet it would be equally popular without the slide. Perhaps save the money on the slide and invest it in tires. Ahem.
But the slide does add space and doesn’t block access when it’s in, so it’s a good package.
There’s a single 200-watt solar panel on the roof, along with quick connects if you want to add more. The included 30-amp charge controller should be able to manage an additional panel.
As mentioned, I think this is going to appeal to solo travelers, and the holding tank sizes are plentiful for off-grid camping by a single individual. Even not bad for two.
Unfortunately, this uses a tankless water heater, so off-grid showers can be more challenging.
My thoughts on the 2026 Grand Design Imagine AIM 16MLA
Something Grand Design is doing in here is putting a shut-off valve at each major plumbing fixture, which I think is fantastic. I also like that the furnace vents are in the cabinetry rather than in the floor of the trailer.
I think there’s a lot to like about this smaller trailer with the glaring exceptions I harped on above. But those are easy to fix, so there is that.
My thanks to Josh from Bish’s RV for the video and photos in this article.
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More about these RV reviews
These RV reviews are written based on information provided by the manufacturers along with our writer’s own research. They are based on information from a single unit and may not reflect your actual experience. Shop your RV and dealership carefully before making a buying decision. They are intended only as a brief overview of the vehicle, not a comprehensive critique, which would require a thorough inspection and/or test drive.
Tony comes to RVtravel.com having worked at an RV dealership and been a lifelong RV enthusiast. He also has written the syndicated Curbside column about cars.
You can also check out Tony and Peggy’s RV podcast.
RVT1238
We are through two years now with another member of the GD AIM family, a 15RB. Downsized about 6’ in length to get away from a slide. Same tank sizes of 37-43-37, which have allowed the two of us to go 6 days dry camping on the waste tanks with conservative daily showers. Adding some fresh water from campground spigots via a container and transfer pump is relatively easy with the gravity fill for the fresh tank. Big bathroom larger than our previous trailer, and great storage. The spare tire location bothered me at first, until I stopped to think about it and realized we only used our spare twice in the previous 8 years. And our only minor issue in two years was a failed entrance lock.