Pre-owned Class A or Pre-owned 5th Wheel + Preowned Truck
I have recently retired and will be on a fixed income and could not afford to buy any kind of new RV with rapid depreciation. My budget is about $40,000 for my entry into an RV lifestyle.
My plan would be to take some regional trips for about 6 weeks at a time initially, for the first couple of years, until my spouse retires and then possibly longer trips of 2-3 months at a time after that.
I was initially thinking that I might divide my $40,000 between a diesel truck and a 5th wheel. It doesn't look like there are many used diesel trucks for less than $20,000, though, so maybe I am not being realistic?
It does seem like there are quite a few used 5th Wheels that would meet my needs in the $20,000 range. I like the idea of being able to unhitch the 5th Wheel when I get to where I am going and then use the truck for local sightseeing.
In further research, though, it appears that my money might go further by buying a used Class A motorhome? Apparently a lot of people buy them and then don't use them much and so the motor's don't have a lot of miles on them and there hasn't been a lot of wear and tear on the interiors. Many that I see seem to have less than 100 thousand miles and many years of life left in them and the original buyer has just aged out of wanting to use them or lost interest in them.
I am interested in hearing feedback from RV'ers about this question. If you have a budget of about $40,000, is it better spend on a truck and 5th Wheel or a Class A?
We have two Prius's and I read that they should not be towed so I suppose with the Class A, we might have to buy some small, used vehicle to tow behind the Class A so that would affect the price as well.
My plan would be to take some regional trips for about 6 weeks at a time initially, for the first couple of years, until my spouse retires and then possibly longer trips of 2-3 months at a time after that.
I was initially thinking that I might divide my $40,000 between a diesel truck and a 5th wheel. It doesn't look like there are many used diesel trucks for less than $20,000, though, so maybe I am not being realistic?
It does seem like there are quite a few used 5th Wheels that would meet my needs in the $20,000 range. I like the idea of being able to unhitch the 5th Wheel when I get to where I am going and then use the truck for local sightseeing.
In further research, though, it appears that my money might go further by buying a used Class A motorhome? Apparently a lot of people buy them and then don't use them much and so the motor's don't have a lot of miles on them and there hasn't been a lot of wear and tear on the interiors. Many that I see seem to have less than 100 thousand miles and many years of life left in them and the original buyer has just aged out of wanting to use them or lost interest in them.
I am interested in hearing feedback from RV'ers about this question. If you have a budget of about $40,000, is it better spend on a truck and 5th Wheel or a Class A?
We have two Prius's and I read that they should not be towed so I suppose with the Class A, we might have to buy some small, used vehicle to tow behind the Class A so that would affect the price as well.
