Fifth Wheel vs. Class A Motorhome

YOU have to decide which will work best for YOU.

I tow a 34' 5th with a SRW short-bed pickup (not a dually).
It does just fine for parking and sight-seeing everywhere.

If you want to bring along M/Cs, ATVs or a jeep, or? - you need a
MH - or a Toy Hauler (5h wheel).

If you have a long bed pickup, you can put some toys in the back, but you're pretty much limited to bicycles.

If you want to bring along anything larger than a "fold-a-boat, (unless you want to double tow) - - you need a MH.

As others have indicated, drive-line repairs on MHs can be quite pricey. Then there's tires and brakes.

Buy a new pickup - need warranty repair work? - find the nearest dealer for your brand. A bit tougher with a MH.
(One MH poster blew an engine in his gas powered Class A. The town where he was, did not have a facility capable of pulling an engine from a MH - resulted in a lengthy tow to another town).

Ten of one, half-dozen of another.
It's up to you to decide which works best for what you want to do, as well as your budget.

Decisions, decisions..:h

~

BB_TX wrote:
To me it comes downtown how much you intend to travel. If you intend to move a lot and put a lot of miles on it, then MH. If you are more likely to stay a long time at each destination and only travel a relatively few miles each year, then 5er.

X2.

The only exception is the fact that with a MH, one can get a high MPG toad, so when the "A" is parked, running around an area isn't as bad.

However, there is always that rule of thumb -- if moving around often, a class "A" + toad. If staying in one place, the fiver and a one ton.

The reason is that it is a lot easier to go from camped to on the road with a class "A". Pretty much disconnect cables, pull slides in, lift jacks, hitch the toad, and be off. On the road, one can pull in a parking lot with an "A", and take a quick nap, harder to do than with a 5-er. Hitching and unhitching a trailer can take 30-45 minutes, and it is a process that cannot be hurried (lest one forget some doodad sticking out and cause thousands to tens of thousands in damage.)

If camping more than on the road, a trailer is better, because it is one less motor and drivetrain to keep maintained, fluids topped off, and registered.

I would give it some thought as to what type of camping you will do and it will help you decide on the right rig.

Are you going to be on the road a lot or setting up camp for weeks at a time in one place?

What is your preferred mode of transportation when you are set up at camp or will you even need additonal transportation?

Will you do any boondoggin'?


Example: If you are making infrequent trips to town for food and free water, you might need a pickup to haul the 80 gallons of water back for the week. (that might be extreme for you but we don't know what you envision and many do just this so for them, a 5th wheel and truck make a lot more sense than a class A with a smart car in tow).

IF you are going to spend just a night or two here then there, a class A is pretty easy to set up and tear down. As you are on the road a lot, making a pit stop for groceries, isn't a problem and might not need any additonal transportation as you will not need to move the motorhome once you are set up.

For us, having our Goldwing to ride around was a big deal for us. (very theraputic to ride the backroads or seaside) We also like that we can move about and enjoy the frig, bed and bathroom while going 60 mph.

So a Class A was the only way for us but would be a rotten set up for a group of 3, those with animals or someone who needed to haul in water.

Hope this helps.

In some states, trailers including 5ers have PERMANENT plates. That means that there is no annual tax on the trailer. MHs on the other hand are taxed as motor vehicles, with the fees based on weight and original sales price. The difference can be significant. The permanent plate fee for my fiver in Michigan was only a little over $200.

Reasons I decided on a 5th wheel:

You can take a truck anywhere to get it repaired, quickly and cheaply. Try that with a motor home.

New truck (nice one, Ford King Ranch, gas) and a 30 ft. 5th wheel is about $80-90K. That will maybe buy a moderately priced MH, but then you need a tow-behind to get around town. So the 5th/truck is likely to be cheaper to buy.

5th wheel slides extend much farther, as no one is going to be walking about while traveling. That, plus no engine/cab area, means more space. Either offers a traveling bathroom and refrigerator.

I get 8.5 to 9 mpg even with gas when towing. Ask the MH operators how that compares. Diesel would probably be around 10 to 11.

More storage with a 5th.

One disadvantage to 5th wheel - my dually is huge to drive around sight-seeing.
One advantage to my toy hauler - the folding ramp doubles as a covered patio giving me 49 feet of living area, more than you get in any Class A.

To me it comes downtown how much you intend to travel. If you intend to move a lot and put a lot of miles on it, then MH. If you are more likely to stay a long time at each destination and only travel a relatively few miles each year, then 5er.

We had a MH...36 foot. You lose footage of living space just in the cab area alone. You also end up with two motors to tend to. (the MH and the towed vehicle). I found the theory of me being able to walk to the bathroom while going down the road laughable....I can break elbows walking across the parking lot (true) and walking in a moving vehicle is NOT easy.

We just in the last month, have gone full-time. We bought a 34 foot 5th wheel. We have MORE living space in this rig......and definitely more storage space in the LIVING AREA. I had friends say we lost storage....but they usually talk about the basement storage. I hated having to go to the basement to get appliances or whatever I had stored down there. I like my equipment IN the house. We stop every 2 hours to walk around....don't like pushing the limits with driving. That stop is the rest stop. :) Our rig allows us to use the bedroom, bathroom, kitchen AND couch when stopped without pulling out the slides. :) We are very happy with this. I also like the 5er because we ride in the pickup....we can sit closer to each other and I can HEAR DH when he talks to me. :)

There will be tons of opinions.....so hang on to your hat. This is just our justification for buying a 5er.