Hi there folks...first time poster here. My husband and I would like to purchase a trailer or RV of some kind in the next 2 years. We have some planning to do! Right now, our children are ages 8, 5 and 1. So let's consider them 10, 7 and 3... their ages when we would like to start RV'ing. Our tentative plans with an RV would be to do 1 major trip a summer ("half" cross country types, we are in MN) and a handful of smaller, more local, approx. 1-6 hour one way trips a summer. Here are some options we have been considering.
1) A few year old Class C style motorhome and pull my husbands Toyota Prius.
2) A few year old Class C style motorhome and pull nothing.
3) Trading in our mini van for something that isn't so hard on gas, yet will pull a 30 ft. (approx.) travel trailer...is there such a thing?
As of right now, we do NOT have a vehicle capable of towing a travel trailer, and I'm not certain we will by the time we would like to start RV'ing. We have a mini van and my husbands Prius. With the gas prices, my husband has been very hesitant in getting a family SUV of some kind, like a Suburban. Any vehicle recommendations that would pull a good sized (30 ft?) travel trailer, yet not so hard on gas? Or is that such thing not possible, lol? That was the main reason we were considering a Class C. My husband needs to have his Prius as a commuter car and we also can only have 1 other vehicle that I would mainly drive. So, something like a Suburban would be heinous to drive the short, in town trips that I do with the kids. As it would also not make sense to have a 3rd larger vehicle just to pull a travel trailer.
I'm also concerned about the safety of a Class C with kids in the back. Do newer ones have the appropriate seat belts needed? Fill me in! Thanks so much for any ideas or recommendations for us. Much appreciated!
Welcome to the forum.
With three kids you will want something with bunk beds.
A Class C or TT would be your best choice in my opinion.
Can your Prius be dinghy towed?
Do a lot of reading on the forum, use the search function and ask questions. Most of us are more than happy to help.
Don't be in a rush to buy anything, do your homework.
You may want to consider renting a Class C to see if you like it.
I strongly suggest you go to an RV show to see what your choices are. There are so many variables that what's right for one may not be right for another.
Scott, Grace and Wesly
2003 Dodge 3500 4x4, 6 speed Cummins (lightly bombed),
2004 Forest River 25RKS many, many mods.
H0NDA eu2000i
Rent a Class c...take it on a trial. Next visit an RV show. Lastly..if you can find one...rent a tt or fifth wheel. There is a guy that rents a fifth wheel in Orlando...delivers and sets it up on a site in Disney's Ft. Wilderness campground.
Now...you can figure out what you want, what is affordable and is less of a compromise when all things are considered.
There isn't a magic formula... It just takes some imagination.
You'd better do more research on towing a Prius idea....I don't think they are recommending wheels down towing.... Although I've tripped across people that mod them so they can. It would probably void your warranty...if you still have one.
If mileage...daily driving are concern...a F150 ecoboost might be a compromise. Towing a reasonable size TT or hybrid. Room for the bikes...nice to have a pickup for other household chores.
Going smaller on a tow vehicle leaves you with very little towing capacity...ultralight tt, hybrid or pop up.
Motorhomes might be a better option with a family of 5...
Just try to envision your day camping. Bathing, brushing teeth, preparing meals, eating meals, getting stuck inside on a rainy day, watching a little tv or reading, storage space for toys, making a last minute dash into town for some groceries, propane, mosquito repellant... Carrying, bikes, canoes, grill....
Unfortunately, most RV decisions are a compromise. From the smallest to the biggest...each can do something that the others cannot.
There are several people online who use a Ford Ecoboost 150 with the max towing package, to tow a good-size travel trailer. They are fairly new vehicles but people seem to be very pleased with them so far. You could replace your minivan with a crew cab version.
Search for posts by skipnchar, or send him a PM. He will advise you well.
Since the Ecoboosts are new on the market now, in a couple of years you could likely find a good used one.
You could also look for a good used travel trailer. Generally a travel trailer is your most bang for the buck of any type RV, in terms of space.
2006 Toyota Sienna
Single empty-nester in Middle TN
I'm also concerned about the safety of a Class C with kids in the back. Do newer ones have the appropriate seat belts needed? Fill me in! Thanks so much for any ideas or recommendations for us. Much appreciated!
Our new class C has 4 seatbelts around the dinette. Two of the positions have anchors for child seat "tether " straps.
It depends on how you use it. My family has had TT's, pop-up campers, and C motorhomes, as our needs and uses have changed, and I'm thinking about changing again, back to a small folding trailer or a van conversion, after a life event that changed the way I would use the C.
If your are going to travel in the RV, want all the comforts of your house when moving, and are comfortable with the idea that you will be able to take (and park) the thing all the places you want to visit in your travels (which I've found mostly true, outside urban areas, between the Appalachians and Sierra Nevada), then a C pulling nothing is a choice. 7 to 9 MPG with current technology in a family size C, about $3000 a year in ownership costs (my experience based on $60K initial cost in 2005, 5000 miles a year).
You can get better fuel mileage with a Sprinter-based C (or small A) but you will be in a tighter space (23-25 foot) with convertible-use furnishings.
I don't think you are going to tow a Prius. Maybe on a dolly, but I'm not sure of that.
The travel trailer space equivalent of a 28-30 foot C is a 23-25 foot TT, not necessarily a 30 footer. 30 is a really big TT, you can find bunkhouses for large family groups in that size, or full-time living space for a couple.
The TT works better for camping somewhere, dropping of the TT as a base while you go explore the area. You can also use it for travel, but the parking space requirement is greater than that of a small motorhome towing nothing. The vehicle you tow it with needs to be comfortable for your travel, if your are going to use it for extended travel. We used a TT this way, behind a station wagon, years before there was such a thing as a C motorhome, and travel coaches and house cars were playthings of millionaires and movie stars.
Finding a tow vehicle is going to be hard. We are just starting to get there, both with cars that get good MPG when not towing, but could tow, and the lighter weight trailer construction that makes smaller, less powerful tow vehicles possible.
In Europe, it is common to see 30-40 mpg cars and MPVs pulling small lightweight TTs sized for a small family. Such TTs have been offered here, we just haven't been buying them when manufacturers have tried to sell them.
Our equivalent cars would be things like the discontinued Pontiac Vibe (compact MPV), and mid-size sedans and wagons (think Malibu, Accord, Camry) that pull up to 80% of their weight in Europe, but don't even get tow ratings in this country because we've been conditioned to buy trucks for towing.
We are just starting to make a transition to multi-purpose "crossover" vehicles that replaces both mid to full size SUV and Minivan, with better performance all around (consider Chevy Traverse and it's kin). If you can keep your trailer under 5000 pounds, that is where our market is headed on tow vehicles.
If the cost of driving keeps going up, we will have more incentive to buy smaller RVs and more economical tow vehicles, manufacturers will have incentive to build more efficient RVs to be towed by smaller cars. It sort of makes a case for waiting.
Your someday may never come. We started camping with 2 little kids in a van with a tent, then we went to a pickup camper and the same tent. Next we had a PUP and the kids were starting to get older. We took the grand kids in the PUP and our first trailer. If you wait 'till you get an A, maybe you'll be taking your grand kids not your kids.
I think an older C will get you started relatively quickly. If you go for a 24-28 foot model you will get the bed in the back or side, the cabover bed (don't get the entertainment center if you want maximum sleeping room), and the dinette and/or couch for the kids to sleep on. You can make the dinette into a big crib/playpen by fencing it off, we did it for our grandson.
With a 24 foot model you don't have to worry about pulling a car at least not at first. Most tourist spots will allow for a parking spot for a vehicle the size of a small C--the 24' model does not even take more than one space if there is room to hang over. There are good used C's on the market and for less than $20,000. (Early 2000 Fords) I thought about a trailer but buying a tow vehicle AND a trailer can be just as expensive as a C and you can't have on the road access to the back. The bunk trailers that fit kids are more expensive too. But you have the vehicle to get around in if the size of the C would bother you. We find we take the C when we have more passengers that can fit in the cars we have and really enjoy using it for little trips. You will take it to ballgames, museums, etc. around home although the gas is getting pretty expensive for that kind of thing if that is a concern of yours.
We have a hybrid and they can't be towed, even on a dolly, they have to be on a trailer. A pain and not worth figuring out. If you want to camp with an RV, go ahead and start shopping. If you find one that will work for you at the right price--go for it.
Shop at PPL, at ebay, and on craigslist both at home and in the RV hotspots, like Arizona, Florida, and Texas. Scour over ALL the photos and make a spreadsheet on your computer listing the features that you like/want and the cost. Over time you will get a feel for the best deal. Then learn about how to size up the quality of an RV.
This is a great hobby, and there is a lot to learn, but if you want an RV you will probably love it. Good luck!
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