Motorhomes - 1st purchase advice

[roaniecowpony]

I'm thinking about a motorhome soon. I've been watching some RV TV show (Going RV?) and reading on the internet.

Our uses would include birdhunting in remote locations as well as general travel where hookups are available. Budget is pretty flexible, but I'd like to keep it under $150k and 100k might be my target area. I'd be towing the JLUR in either case. I think I'm leaning toward a Class A, but a big class C might work. I'm thinking 30ft ish. I'm stuck on a diesel. But I'm open to and even leaning toward buying used.

Any advice is welcome. Stay away from this or that model, make, engine, etc is also helpful. Good makes and models would help.

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[sourdough]

I've had a Ram 4x4 diesel/Tiger RV for 5 years. Boondock 95% of the time. Tows my JLR like it's not there and lost less than 2 MPG doing so with 11 MPG average. Small but that enables to get off the asphalt. 67K and no issues to Ram3500. RV's by nature are problamatic. All will require above maintance normal work to keep running. I like the bigger rigs but have found my 19'er works for me. I do like the big HD truck Super C's.

 

[wibornz]

Well do not buy on with a Ford V10 in it. I had a 36ft Class A. Loved it, but it loved fuel more than me. Flat towing the JLUR, I would get about 5 to 6 mpg.

Also when shopping for a Motorhome. Pay attention to the tow capacity. Verify it by looking at the tag in the motorhome listing the tow capacity. Most motorhomes have a tow capacity of 5000 pounds or less.

 

[wibornz]

Well do not buy on with a Ford V10 in it. I had a 36ft Class A. Loved it, but it loved fuel more than me. Flat towing the JLUR, I would get about 5 to 6 mpg.

Also when shopping for a Motorhome. Pay attention to the tow capacity. Verify it by looking at the tag in the motorhome listing the tow capacity. Most motorhomes have a tow capacity of 5000 pounds or less.

I remember the day I decided that I was selling my Class A gas motorhome. Gas was about $3.80 a gallon I was running into a strong head wind towing my JLUR back from the UP of Michigan. It was a 322 mile trip and I was getting 3.5 mpg. So yea, It was basically $350 to tow my Jeep home. Spent about $200 in fuel to get to the UP. Camp site with full hook up was $50 a night. Up there for three nights. I got home and started doing the math and said, this is not going to work for traveling all over the US. For what I spent, I could have stayed in a great hotel and ate at the finest restaurants in the area.

 

[sourdough]

Haha, and I bitch about 11 MPG. Out here in the remote parts of the west that I go to, flea bag motels are the norm and far and few at best. I have owned several types of RV's that didn't work for me. Now I've found bliss, all the comforts and a remote camp spot. https://www.tigervehicles.com

 

[Hawkspring]

I have had a few setups. We did a 40’ class A diesel pusher and towed my JKUR. This setup only went three places: the interstate, truckstops, and RV parks. It took alot of the fun out of camping and RV life, but we were in it full time for almost a year while Intraveled for Military training.
I did see a new shorter diesel classmotorhome built on a freightliner chassis recently that looked interesting, dynamax.

.Class C manufacturer Dynamax has resurrected a name not seen on new-RV lots since the early 2000s. The all-new Europa 31SS bursts on to the scene sporting a Freightliner M2-106B chassis featuring a Cummins B 6.7-liter turbodiesel rated for 360 hp and 800 lb-ft torque. Answering the consumer call for a compact Super C, Dynamax says the 31SS will be the shortest floorplan available on the Freightliner chassis. There is still plenty of space for a walk-around king bed, 16-cubic-foot residential fridge, large 36-by-36-inch shower and up to eight sleeping positions. The impressive list of features continues with an 8-kW Onan diesel generator; 2,800-watt Pure Sine Wave Inverter; dual ducted, low-profile 15,000-Btu air conditioners with heat pumps, dual-pane frameless windows, a tankless water heater, Winegard ConnecT 2.0 and multiplex wiring. Popular options include two 100-watt solar panels, a combination washer/dryer, driver and passenger swivel seats, and dual power theater seats. MSRP: N/A.

I settled on a truck camper setup and flat tow. I can still get in the forest, and we have enough tank capacity and solar to easily last a week with 4 of us. Unfortunately, 10-11 mpg is still the norm. For me, I am always fighting length vs comfort.

 

[roaniecowpony]

Well do not buy on with a Ford V10 in it. I had a 36ft Class A. Loved it, but it loved fuel more than me. Flat towing the JLUR, I would get about 5 to 6 mpg.

Also when shopping for a Motorhome. Pay attention to the tow capacity. Verify it by looking at the tag in the motorhome listing the tow capacity. Most motorhomes have a tow capacity of 5000 pounds or less.

Thanks Ted. I had black listed the Ford gas V10 based on the history I know of.

Haha, and I bitch about 11 MPG. Out here in the remote parts of the west that I go to, flea bag motels are the norm and far and few at best. I have owned several types of RV's that didn't work for me. Now I've found bliss, all the comforts and a remote camp spot. https://www.tigervehicles.com

SD,
I could probably do a similar rig for hunting, but we're looking into spending a lot of time on extended trips. I think we're looking in the 30ft area, class A or Super C.

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