I thought the same thing just over 4 years ago when we chose to step up from a truck and TT to a Class A Motorhome. Thought that maintenance on a motorhome would be close to the same overall as a TT and truck.
However, I have found over the years that this is not entirely true. It should be in theory, and in some cases it may be. However, in practice, it frequently is not. Here's why:
Maintenance on a truck can be done by nearly any mechanic or service shop. That is NOT the case with many Motorhomes. Frequently, they have to go to a place equippeed to handle large rigs like this, which at the very least means less convenience, and will frequently mean more $$, too. Yes, in theory, a Motorhome built on a Ford E450 or F53 chassis, should be serviceable at any Ford dealer. I have learned, though, that is just not the case. Every Ford dealer in my town has refused to touch our Motorhome (even though it is built on a Ford F53 chassis), because they just don't have the space or facilities to handle it (or don't want the liability of it getting damaged). I have to take it to a Ford dealer 'bout 20 miles away that is equippped to handle large trucks when the chassis needs servicing. Great dealer, and they are great to work with, but 20 miles away when you get 'bout 8 miles per gallon means you're using up more fuel than you would if you had a truck that could be serviced locally, in town.
Yes, as far as the coach is concerned, maintenance is about the same, since the components are all pretty much the same between a towable RV and a Motorhome. However, with the Motorhome, you're typically going to have more components, 'moving parts' to maintain than on a towable RV, which means more possible things to break and have to maintain. Just to name a few that will typically be on almost any Motorhome but not on a towable RV:
Generator
hydraulic leveling jacks
Power steps
Tires is another thing. Yes, you only have 6 tires to deal with on the MH vs the 8 you have with the truck and trailer, but I think the MH tires are still more expensive in the long run. You typically replace your truck tires 'bout every 7-8 years, at a cost of around $1000. During that time you'll replace your trailer tires twice (every 4 years), so thats roughly around $800 (100 a tire). Soo, we're at $1800 every 8 years for a truck and trailer's tires. A Motorhome, you're replacing all 6 tires every 7-8 years, at a cost of around $400 a tire, so thats 400x6 = $2400. Obviously number will vary, but I think you'll find in most cases that tires end up costing more on the Motorhome than with a truck and TT in the long run, due to how large and expensive Motorhome tires are (not to mention the fact that once again, you can't get tires replaced on a Motorhome at any corner tire lot like you can with a truck and trailer).
...All that said, if I had it to do over again, YES, I'd do the same swap up to the Motorhome, just wish we coulda done it sooner! Yes, its more expensive, but it is also just sooooo much nicer a way to travel, camp, for all the reasons you've already heard
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