5th wheel vs. motorhome

[Old_Ephram]

We currently have a 30ft. 5th wheel which we pull with a Chevy 3500 crew cab, long bed, Duramax PU. Lately I've noticed alot of MH/toad combinations at campgrounds and started wondering what are the pros and cons of each set-up. Some of you, I'm sure, have had a MH and toad at sometime and now have a 5er/TV. I'm interested in your opinions. I posed this question on the MH forum and naturally got an overwhelming response in favor of the MH/toad combo. How about here?

[Coach-man]

We have had both, first I want to say for us it is about the floor plan! Motor home is nice,and towing a run about is absolutley necessary! Your not going to unhook the Coach and drive it down the the local store to pick up a few items. Hitching and unhitching the toad vs 5th wheel is a wash, however, I remember having to move around several times to get the toad and motor home lined up! Now not mentioned yet is the toad itself, you can not just hook up the family car and go, you have to have a specific vehicle then you need to add a braking system, ($2K or so), a hitch and it will be a vehicle that you probably not use in your day to day driving, only when camping! Plan at least for a good 30% of the cost for the motor home to be for its drive train! Now if you have an unlimited amount of money look at the class A motor home, if not IMHO you get a lot more RV in a 5th wheel than a Motor Home.

[Traveler_II]

We’ve had 3 motor homes and are on our 2nd fiver in retirement. Both have advantages and disadvanges. We like the more living space in the fiver; we liked the more storage in MH’s. I like driving the tow around for shopping and exploring compared to a big truck we need for our fiver. I liked the ride better in the MH vs. the fiver. I liked backing up the MH vs. a fiver into a campsite. It’s easier to get repairs done on the truck vs. the MH. I think the setting up time for both are about the same, especially if you get the self-leveling system on a fiver. I like the large back window in the fiver when we are set up it gives a great view. The big difference is price, a nice MH cost far more than a truck and nice fiver.

[Richmcm]

Dtank wrote:

Old Ephram wrote:
We currently have a 30ft. 5th wheel which we pull with a Chevy 3500 crew cab, long bed, Duramax PU. Lately I've noticed alot of MH/toad combinations at campgrounds and started wondering what are the pros and cons of each set-up. Some of you, I'm sure, have had a MH and toad at sometime and now have a 5er/TV. I'm interested in your opinions. I posed this question on the MH forum and naturally got an overwhelming response in favor of the MH/toad combo. How about here?

Even if you received a thousand replies - in favor of either.....

what good would it do?..:h

Purchase something because it fits someone else's lifestyle?..:S

Evaluate your situation, finances, and which one rings *YOUR* chimes.

BTW - whichever way you go (or stay) - you *will* most likely be towing something...:W

Happy dilemma resolving!..;)


.

X2 For Sure!

[Dayle1]

I'll add a few other items.

Negative. My biggest requirement is a coat closet near the door for my dirty work clothes and then the bathroom right next to it. Never seen a stock MH floor plan like that and can't afford a custom MH.

Positive. The driver can always see the back of the RV in the side mirrors, it will never move out of view like any trailer. And with a sharper steering wheel cut (54 degrees) and no pivot point, they will back into a spot much easier than a fiver.

[GoPackGo]

I got a 5er for several different reasons.

1. I have a diesel pickup. I think it is way more costly to get a diesel motorhome then to get a diesel PU and a 5er.

2. I wanted the drivetrain separate from my 'house' for maintenance reasons. If something in the drivetrain breaks, I can still use my house. Put the 5er in a CG till the truck is fixed. All I need is a rental car to get around while I wait. Probably not so easy if you have a MH.

3. There are 50 million Ford dealers in this country and any of them can work on my truck. I believe you will need specialized service centers for a MH. And there will be considerably less of them. Oil changes and other maintenance is easy - I just run into town to the local dealer.

4. If I choose to buy a new 5er in 5 years, it will be much cheaper, since I already have the truck.

Ultimately it comes down to what you like better.

Tim

[Veebyes]

Gotta love how many go on about getting up while on the road to go do something in the motorhome.

Now, really & truly, how smart an idea is that? Hit something while the DW is back there making a sandwich & guess who is going to shoot past on her way through the windshield. Getting lunch on the road is a very weak reason for buying a class A IMO. Vehicular autopilot has not been perfected enough for the driver to get up to go have a whizz so that argument does not work either.

I have not figured out why the motorhome is better than a towable for couples who travel either. No matter what, you are towing something that must be hitched up & unhitched. The time difference is next to nothing. Why does it matter? You are on vacation not running an airline.

There is something out there for everyone. We have met people traveling the world on a motorcycle. Then there are those who drive around in a tag axle motorhome towing a huge trailer containing a car, ATVs, maybe a boat & still don't have enough room in their rolling country estate.

[Michelle_S]

OK, I'll throw my nickel's worth. Everyone talks about getting up and moving around in the MH, did you ever stop to think how dangerous that could be?? If you had to do a panic stop (and traveling on our roads it happens alot) while the DW was headed to the potty, where would she end up. Next is the easier to setup deal, with many of the newer 5ers with auto-leveling. We traveled all summer with friends having a 40'DP and Toad to our 40' 5er and Dually TV. We were just about equal in setup and tear down time. They needed oil changes in both the MH and Toad, us only in the TV.
Like mentioned only you can make the final decision, for us a 5er hands down.

[txdutt]

We traded a 38' Class A Itasca in for our 5'er..
MH positives: more convenient, can get up & move around on the road, longer range with it's 75 gall gas tank, toad is easier to drive around in when u arrive, easier to setup when u arrive at the CG

MH negatives: you get all the maint of a HD truck (cost) to go along with the coach RV maint--every MH is going to be a money pit, constantly have to put money into it, you have to keep it insured for Liab/UM etc to keep registration active in most states, 75 gallon fillups at the gas station!

After owning both (plus 2 other Trav Trlr's) I prefer the 5'er combo....

[Dtank]

Old Ephram wrote:
We currently have a 30ft. 5th wheel which we pull with a Chevy 3500 crew cab, long bed, Duramax PU. Lately I've noticed alot of MH/toad combinations at campgrounds and started wondering what are the pros and cons of each set-up. Some of you, I'm sure, have had a MH and toad at sometime and now have a 5er/TV. I'm interested in your opinions. I posed this question on the MH forum and naturally got an overwhelming response in favor of the MH/toad combo. How about here?

Even if you received a thousand replies - in favor of either.....

what good would it do?..:h

Purchase something because it fits someone else's lifestyle?..:S

Evaluate your situation, finances, and which one rings *YOUR* chimes.

BTW - whichever way you go (or stay) - you *will* most likely be towing something...:W

Happy dilemma resolving!..;)


.

[sch911]

Kids and dogs cannot all fit in the pickup. Hence we have a motorhome!

[goducks10]

I own a 5er and have thought the same question before. We went to the local RV show this weekend and looked at of lots of course RV's. Since we own a 5er we naturally looked at what we might want to upgrade to in the future. We found several in the $53-63,000 range that would be doable for extended stays. 2-3 months at a time trips. Most were around 35' OAL, with good holding tank capacities, full profile fronts and great closet space. Several had nice 48-60"x30" showers.

After cruising thru lots of 5ers's we decided to finish the day and make our way to the exit and stop at MH's on the way out. We went thru 8-10 or so MH's with the highest priced one near $140,000. Theses were discounted prices too for both the MH and 5er. Anyway as we made our way thru the MH's we noticed the lack of counter space, interior storage and poor seating configurations. Also most of the bathrooms were naturally split but overall weren't as accommodating as some of the 5ers were.

In the end the wife and I came to the conclusion that for less money you get way more with a 5er and you still have a vehicle to drive while staying somewhere. All the 5ers we looked at except one had 4-6 pt leveling, same as most the MH's did. So a wash there. For us anyway we crossed MH's off the list. Less room inside, less storage inside and the typical poor seating configurations were the downsides. Only plus to a MH I could see was the outside basement storage. We would still have to tow something, so setting up would IMO actually take longer as you would have to drop the toad if you're in a back in spot. Pull thru are a wash.

[BurbMan]

Depends on how you camp/travel too...MH is great for cruising and sightseeing, you can't beat being able to use the fridge and restroom while on the road. A MH didn't work for us because we needed 4WD to get on the beach and other places.

The MH is also another drivetrain to maintain, we couldn't justify the extra maintenance considering that we don't even use the TT as often as we like due to work schedules. I also do a lot of home repair, so the truck would have to stay. I do with I could tow a boat though...

There's no right answer, it all depends on how you travel or plan to travel.

[dahkota]

ReneeG wrote:
. . . my kitchen garbage can fits under the sink.

That's where we put our garbage can.

[BB_TX]

For me it came down to usage. If you move a lot and put a lot of miles on it, then a MH would be a good choice, although either would work. But if you are actually on the road a few days per year and only put a relatively few miles per year, the a 5er would make more sense.
In our case we spend 3 to 4 weeks in the RV each year and of that only about 10 days actually on the road. And that amounts to about 2,500 - 3,000 miles per year. So traveling 10 days each year and sitting in one place 355 days, a MH just did not make sense to me.