What do you tow with your B?
So, we just got our first B motorhome, a 1997 Great West Van Classic Supreme Special Edition on a Dodge B3500 chassis with a 360 cid V8 and 4 speed OD automatic transmission. We started out in 20...
Forum Discussion
Snowman9000 wrote:
This is a thread that goes to a daydream I have every year. I see it as having a two-part RV. Part One is used for driving around, and Part Two stays at the camp site. And Part One has some minimal RV facilities. This is where the dream becomes fuzzy. Trying to decide which functions to duplicate in both parts, and which functions are exclusive to just one.
This has been exactly my thinking. We have a class A and we like that for camping. We don't like its appetite and it's not convenient to drive around and park just anywhere...the B is very convenient that way...and better MPG. Although we've not yet been "camping" in the B...staying in one campground/site for more than a day...we have been trying to imagine how that goes and we aren't convinced the B alone is the ideal unit.
With the A, we pull a towed...no problem. The A stays put the whole time and we tool around in the towed. With the B, how do we get around? Do we break camp every time we want to so somewhere that's out of cycling range? (we don't cycle far) Do we pull a towed? CAN we pull a towed?
I have two options for towed vehicles...a 1998 Dodge half ton (about 5000 lbs) and a 1996 VW Jetta, (about 2800 lbs). I could probably tow either, the van has a 8500 lb towing capacity, but I'm not sure I want to flat tow something that weighs 60% as much as my B. The Jetta might be a decent alternative...we don't usually license the Jetta though, the half ton is always licensed.
Not only this but, we want to use the B for driving around, having all our facilities with us so a towed is not really a total solution either.
So, the option left is, a TT behind the B. I have an old TT here, it's rather long but the GVWR is in the 7500 lb range so the B should be able to pull that ok. The biggest obstacle to that option is, the TT needs a good renovation...it's old and not in good repair. The trailer part is decent, the inside is just not nice...not something I'd eat or sleep in. So, $$ there too.
One of my quandaries is, if I renovate and update the 1980's TT I have, will I be spending as much or more than just buying a used TT that would suit our needs/wants? Of course, there are so many more things that would affect that decision but in essence, that's what we're looking at.