Class A vs. travel trailer - driving/operating/parking?

For those who have driven both a newer gas class A and a newer pu & trailer, which one rides better on rough interstate roads?

Bruce Brown wrote:
We own a 40' MH and a 33' TT. I **MUCH** prefer driving, parking, setting up, etc the MH over the TT, and the TT is set up properly too. I pull it with a Super Duty diesel with the proper weight distribution and anti-sway bars, it's balanced well, etc.

I would rather drive the MH 10 hours as opposed to pulling the TT and hour. It's just easier in ever facet of the trip, from the time you start to leave the house to the time you crack the first cold one.

I honestly can't think of one thing I prefer with the TT over the MH.

Thank you - was thinking the same thing. Towing the TT or 25 foot boat down to the Keys from Tampa (a 9-10 hour prospect with stops) was a bear. When we got down there, parked/unhitched, plugged in, fired up the AC, etc. you were sort of "done" for the evening and most of the next day. The idea of having an already cooled space, with fewer stops for gas or potty breaks, and having the dogs able to roam and rest (they are BIG collies, over 70 pounds) means a lot to me.

valhalla360 wrote:

You can get automatic levelers for pull behinds, so after you get out to unhook the toad, you already had to go outside and ate up any time savings.

Except that you don't "need" to unhook the toad right away. You can wait till morning or till the weather breaks to go outside to do anything. That's not the case with a TT.

Electric/water/sewer hookups are no different. But the nice thing with my class A is that when I pull into the site, I can level and extend the slides without even leaving the driver's seat. Yes, some TTs have power leveling jacks, but you STILL must leave your tow vehicle to operate those jacks and the slides. And as others have said, my A is already cooled off (or warmed up in winter) when I arrive, unlike a TT.

BTW, not everyone needs or uses a toad. I only camp for 3-5 days at a time, with my ATVs or my PWCs. I'm in one spot for the duration, and have no need to drive anywhere else.

qtla9111 wrote:
I boondock with 40 gallons of fresh water. Two of us can go for 7 to 10 and that includes bathing, not long showers, but getting clean everyday.

The big difference between a TT and a Class A is about $100,000. With that in mind it's worth it for me to get out and level and chock.

OTOH, TTs now come with electric levelers as well. Depends on your priorities.

On the bold, to a point yes, to a point no - it all depends on the level of equipment. A nice TT these days is $30-40k. High end 5th wheels are over $100k. A nice PROPER truck to pull it is $50-80k. A PROPER hitch arraignment is $1-3k.

If buying new today you're looking at $80-175k to pull a trailer. That kind of $$$ buys a pretty decent Class A.

It all depends on what is important to YOU. There is no wrong answer as we all have different wants and needs.

We own a 40' MH and a 33' TT. I **MUCH** prefer driving, parking, setting up, etc the MH over the TT, and the TT is set up properly too. I pull it with a Super Duty diesel with the proper weight distribution and anti-sway bars, it's balanced well, etc.

I would rather drive the MH 10 hours as opposed to pulling the TT and hour. It's just easier in ever facet of the trip, from the time you start to leave the house to the time you crack the first cold one.

I honestly can't think of one thing I prefer with the TT over the MH.

The other nice thing about the Class A is we live in Florida and it's nice to get to the campground and have a nice cool living space. We run the generator and both AC units when we are traveling. With the trailer, it was always very hot when we got setup and it would take a hour or so for the trailer to get nice and cool. Of course the trade off is $$$. Our Class A cost 5x the trailer.

Burch

We just sold our 30' travel trailer and purchased a 37' Class A. We have only used the A a couple of times but so far I believe it is easier to drive and back in to tight spaces. The only negative is if you have a towed, you can not backup. The first time I got gas towing the Jeep, I thought I was going to have to unhook the Jeep because I didn't think I could get out of the gas station without backing up the motorhome a little. I was lucky as I had just enough room but that is something to make sure you are aware of when you enter a fuel station.

Burch

Trackrig wrote:
A class A in bad weather (rain, cold, heavy wind, snow, or in the dark). Drive in, unhook the toad or use a pull thru spot, hit the levelers, put out the slides, plug in, go to sleep.

On a TT: Drive in, back in or use a pull thru, get out the blocks, try to get level, have to go from the TV to TT in the rain, and somehow there's more set-up involved taking longer. Youi also have to mess with the WD, the stab jacks and longer to wrap up the electrical cord.

Sewage and electrical are the same unless you use a genrator - on the class A, hit the button.

I have a 40' DP and a 26' TT. The DP is by farther easier and quicker to set up or take down.

Bill

Like for like, there is no difference.

You can get automatic levelers for pull behinds, so after you get out to unhook the toad, you already had to go outside and ate up any time savings.

The only way you come out ahead is if you don't get a toad but then you have to unhook from the utilities every time you want to run to the store.

PS: Since when did "dark" become "bad weather"?

Trackrig wrote:
A class A in bad weather (rain, cold, heavy wind, snow, or in the dark). Drive in, unhook the toad or use a pull thru spot, hit the levelers, put out the slides, plug in, go to sleep.


Bill

Or on particularly hot travel days, it's really nice to have a cooled less humid place to sleep.

I boondock with 40 gallons of fresh water. Two of us can go for 7 to 10 and that includes bathing, not long showers, but getting clean everyday.

The big difference between a TT and a Class A is about $100,000. With that in mind it's worth it for me to get out and level and chock.

OTOH, TTs now come with electric levelers as well. Depends on your priorities.