Towing vs. Non Towing

We did not tow the first two years, thinking we were all cool and practical with bikes. Wrong. Since we started towing, we have seen so much more of where we RV, and having your own car is priceless, just like having your own home!

i want in on your rental rates ! where are you renting cars for less than 16 bucks a day (aka less than 500 a month) ?

even with my corporate rates (no mileage) a pos chevy spark would cost me more than 800 bucks a month before taxes and fees (expect over a grand w/ the taxes etc).

sch911 wrote:
Have done it both ways. It is very much more economical to tow a car 4 down than it is to rent one every time. It only take a few of those $500 car rental bills to pay for allot of fuel and towing gear.

$500 would rent a car for a month or more. Most destinations we find we do not need a car, the few we have, rentals have been easy to arrange either picking up on the way in, or have the rental agency pick us up at the campground.

We towed for 10yrs and when my wife traded her Lincoln MKT for her new Escape, we decided to try NOT towing for a while. That was 2 years ago. you can pay for a LOT of rentals for the gas savings and $1000 or more to set up a new vehicle for towing.

No one answer for everyone, but our rentals have averaged about $25 a day, when we need one. Its also MUCH easier to fuel up without a toad behind the coach.

bluwtr49 wrote:
What invariably happens, with those few without a toad, is that that slowly start bumming rides to the store 'cause they don't always rent a car. This does not go un-noticed by others and, while tolerated, is not appreciated.

If you decide to go toad-less, please don't impose on others.....it will not make friends.

couldn't agree more ! The looks people give you when you have an expensive coach and have to ask for a ride is interesting....as though to say "you got that but cant afford a car" ?

i always carry plenty of extra parts; hose fittings, cords, plug ends, wire, DUCK TAPE, CAULK etc ! One time i spent 3/4 of saturday day helping a guy - ran him into town for parts and lent him tools & a my hands and while i wasn't looking for anything in return, a cold beer and a thank you would have been nice....some people ya know.

When we first bought our coach we did not tow and booked rentals. Renting did work well for us if we were around Cities, but we found that if we wanted to rent a car outside cities, we would have to pick it up ourselves, and we would end yup driving 2 vehicles, sometimes for over an hour, to get to our destination. Because most of the places we go are in the Sierra's, or the desert, we ended up outfitting one of our vehicles as a towed. We are much happier with a towed, never have to hunt for rental agencies in an unknown area, and no more driving an hour or two solo and 2 cars.

What invariably happens, with those few without a toad, is that that slowly start bumming rides to the store 'cause they don't always rent a car. This does not go un-noticed by others and, while tolerated, is not appreciated.

If you decide to go toad-less, please don't impose on others.....it will not make friends.

We have had a motorhome for about 8 years and this is the first year that I have towed. I tow my Jeep Compass and found that it really opened up our world. We don't tow it every time, but it is great having a car when we are on vacation.

We started with rentals, then to dolly and the to Smart Car flat towing for past 5 years. We have said since we got the Smart Car that if we needed bigger car at some location we could rent one for the period needed. Have never rented. Maybe this year.

yogasam wrote:
We just purchased a class A motor home and are trying to decide whether we should tow a car behind or rent a car at our various destinations. Is it more economical to do it this way?

Depends a lot on your RV lifestyle, how often you move, what time you stop and what you like doing when you stop. We tried both and prefer to tow. Especially with this trip we're on now.

wrong quote mistake. see below.