class c or tow trailer, which is better?

[kellybelly]

hi, we are considering small class C with out car tow or small travel trailer pulled by
small SUV? Can anybody tell us if its a bad idea to have only class C and no extra car or is it better to toe small trailer and have the use of a car?

[pnichols]

Good point on the built-in Class C gen-sets.

Luckily, ours is up high - the bottom of it is no lower than the bottom of the frame member.

Low/exposed grey/black drain plumbing can also be a problem. Again, ours is up high above frame height and completely enclosed in a steel lined box.

[winnietrey]

We have driven our little 24 ft class c on many many miles, of some really rough, off road stuff. Some places I was just being plain stupid, in hindsight.

However one important thing I did learn is, the low slung gen sets, in a C. Are not very well "sealed" And they are not big fans of being caked in 2 or three inches of mud, from below. Lead to a pricey repair. May want to seal the gen set up from below a bit if you do off road

[Heish]

Welcome Michael!

[TInmania]

Reading the OP the thing that stands out is "small SUV." We just went through the same decision process as we also have a small SUV and car (Ford Explorer and Toyota Camry). It would be our first RV.

I didn't realize just how little a trailer my Explorer would pull "comfortably." Granted while some of the small TTs are very creative with space it seemed without a large SUV or pickup our options for a TT were very limited. Buying a large truck just for a TT--that we weren't sure we would even like (new to RVing)--was out of the question.

So we ended up with a 29' Class C. I figured that was a lot more comfortable than what our SUV could tow, TT wise. We eventually want to add the ability to tow a car--or my preference, motorcycle--but want to take a trip or two with just the RV to see how things go. We do like to check out the areas we travel to so we shall see.

Our first "trip" (less than a half hour away lol) we drove the RV and Camry to the CG. Turns out we really didn't need the car. But that was in Laughlin, NV--not exactly the sticks. 😉

BTW: My first post here.


Michael

[Jim_Shoe]

I'm a solo RVer. I drive a 'C' and pull a Jeep Wrangler toad. Its easier to drive the toad up to the MH for hookup than backing a tow vehicle up to a TT. So, a 'C' is better for me. And I'm an old guy with TB (Tiny Bladder), so a bathroom on board is a big plus, especially when its raining. 🙂

[NC-Hawk]

It is a personal decision based on one's lifestyle and health.

I went from a LONG TT to a small Class C. The only thing 'I' miss is the storage space.

For me the maneuverability is easier with the motorhome, not to mention not having to get out in the bad weather when you stop, and you can stop anywhere. Security is a factor too, not having to expose myself (from having stopped at that 'anywhere' :))))

When the motorhome/camping event calls for it, I can always tow my Miata.

Good luck in your decision and welcome to the forum.... :C

[KristinU]

camperdave wrote:
All things being equal, I'd rather have a motorhome than my trailer. But all things are not equal. :B The reality for me is that for the limited use that our RV gets, it just doesn't make sense for it to have a whole nother engine/driveline, registration, insurance etc. The TT is a rider on my truck policy (a truck I'll own whether I have a TT or a Motorhome) and cheap to register. For me, the $ play a big part in the decision.

Once you are at the campsite, it's pretty much a wash. I mean for me, they both are basically kitchens and beds. We spend 95% of our time outside anyway. But my family would prefer riding in a motorhome than the van. Oh well for now!

This was us, but opposite. The only resaon we had our truck was to tow with (and the occasional large purchase.) Neither of us wanted to drive it to work because of parking situations...so moving to a C made more and more sense to us. So yeah, take the tow vehicle thing into account - do you already have something that you will tow with and would have it anyway?

And someone brought up a good point on what is meant by "small SUV"...and I'm one of these that feels that you should have a nice margin of tow capacity. What looks good on paper doesn't necessarily mean great performance in the real world.

[rfryer]

pnichols wrote:

I'm honestly very curious as to where a TT will go that a small C on the rugged ton and a half E450 chassis - with it's wheelbase at only 139 inches, or 158 inches at most - will not? Specific examples would be appreciated.

IMHO, towing a TT comfortable enough to live in when it's fairly cold, or fairly hot, or raining for several days ... will not go places where a small well-set-up self-contained C cannot. Also, the vehicle towing the trailer will never have the traction that having a C's weight on it's rear drive wheels provides - even considering that the way less heavy tow vehicle might be a 4X4. We take our 24 foot E450 Class C offroad whenever necessary ... when the DW is in the hunt trying to find rocks!

I don’t have a C and have only test driven them. But my feeling is I would no way want to try and take it where I take my 16’ TT. I imagine if someone was absolutely determined they could get even an A pretty far back in, but I don’t think it would be a wise idea and they’d likely do it only once.

If you’re rock hounding I’m guessing you’re in lower elevations with minimal trees and possibly some fairly rough and rocky roads. Most of my camping is back on forest roads and trails in heavy forest and even a C’s height would be a problem considering saws are verboten. If I go far back in my neighbors are typically tents, PU’s, small TT’s like mine, PUTC’s, and the rare 4wd B. And depending on the area often some full TC’s. You won’t find a FW, A, C or a TT approaching 25’ for miles.

Without dragging out my NF maps I can’t name any specific roads. But I can assure you that there are a plethora of mountain roads you won’t want to take you RV on and I’ve spent 50 years wandering around them. Some I’d be hesitant to take my TT on, too. The heavy rear axle can be an advantage on good ground, but if it‘s in the forest and gets wet you’re as likely to sink up to your axles as anything. I’ve done that in my 4wd and I usually wait until the middle of the night when the ground freezes and then drive out. Or I jack the truck up to clear the rut and push it sideways off the jack. And repeat. And I don’t think I want to do that with anything bigger than my truck.
So even I would like a C for the destination driving we’ve been doing too much of for the last year plus. But when I consider costs it doesn’t make a lot of sense to me because of where I prefer to camp just doesn’t work for a C. But I can tow the TT destination driving. Which comes back to the repeated statement that how you want to use an RV is key to what will work best for you.

[Cobra21]

Class C works great for us! We did own a TT for 15 years. The last 5 we didn't use it much cause I was tired of the hooking and unhooking. Hose, electric,
tripods, tongue jack, awning, and the sway bars. I'm exhausted already just
re-capping all of that.
With the C all I do is plug into electric. Many sites are level, so no driving
up on boards or legos. In some cases we get parking areas with NO hook-ups, flea markets, casinos, rest areas.
Can you tell which option I like more??

Brian

[bukhrn]

pnichols wrote:

rfryer wrote:
But my style is primarily camping where I set up a base camp somewhere and use the TV for my sightseeing. And I go well off pavement a lot and the C isn’t very good for that. So we’re at an impasse for the moment, I see no point in a C when my TT will go everywhere a C will and many other places it won’t. As said by previous posters, the key is how you intend to travel/camp.

I'm honestly very curious as to where a TT will go that a small C on the rugged ton and a half E450 chassis - with it's wheelbase at only 139 inches, or 158 inches at most - will not? Specific examples would be appreciated.

IMHO, towing a TT comfortable enough to live in when it's fairly cold, or fairly hot, or raining for several days ... will not go places where a small well-set-up self-contained C cannot. Also, the vehicle towing the trailer will never have the traction that having a C's weight on it's rear drive wheels provides - even considering that the way less heavy tow vehicle might be a 4X4. We take our 24 foot E450 Class C offroad whenever necessary ... when the DW is in the hunt trying to find rocks!

Yours must be set up quite differently than my 29' on the E450, I would never consider taking mine off road, (unless it was VERY smooth), it's not the wheel base length, it's the ground clearance, my exhaust pipe has about 10" of clearance, the dump valves about the same, the generator exhaust, slightly more.
I'd love to venture a little farther off road, but really not looking forward to leaving parts strewn off into the backwoods.
The average TT rides higher than the average Class C.

[camperdave]

All things being equal, I'd rather have a motorhome than my trailer. But all things are not equal. :B The reality for me is that for the limited use that our RV gets, it just doesn't make sense for it to have a whole nother engine/driveline, registration, insurance etc. The TT is a rider on my truck policy (a truck I'll own whether I have a TT or a Motorhome) and cheap to register. For me, the $ play a big part in the decision.

Once you are at the campsite, it's pretty much a wash. I mean for me, they both are basically kitchens and beds. We spend 95% of our time outside anyway. But my family would prefer riding in a motorhome than the van. Oh well for now!

[mlts22]

Biggest way to tell if one wants to go MH or TT: How often do you travel?

If you want to plop a rig in one spot for weeks to months, then go with a TT. Similar if one just wants to only use a RV for few weekends each year.

However, if one wants to use something fairly often, then a motorhome is easier to deal with in a number of ways.

[pnichols]

rfryer wrote:
But my style is primarily camping where I set up a base camp somewhere and use the TV for my sightseeing. And I go well off pavement a lot and the C isn’t very good for that. So we’re at an impasse for the moment, I see no point in a C when my TT will go everywhere a C will and many other places it won’t. As said by previous posters, the key is how you intend to travel/camp.

I'm honestly very curious as to where a TT will go that a small C on the rugged ton and a half E450 chassis - with it's wheelbase at only 139 inches, or 158 inches at most - will not? Specific examples would be appreciated.

IMHO, towing a TT comfortable enough to live in when it's fairly cold, or fairly hot, or raining for several days ... will not go places where a small well-set-up self-contained C cannot. Also, the vehicle towing the trailer will never have the traction that having a C's weight on it's rear drive wheels provides - even considering that the way less heavy tow vehicle might be a 4X4. We take our 24 foot E450 Class C offroad whenever necessary ... when the DW is in the hunt trying to find rocks!

[tatest]

I look at it as TT vs C of similar size, find the C by itself works great for traveling but would rather have a 20-24 foot TT behind a full-size van or SUV when going somewhere to stay for a while, rather than pulling a car behind the C, what I do now.

Small TT with a small SUV depends a whole lot on what you mean by "small" because the smallest SUVs and crossovers (like Matrix, MPV, Soul) can't pull much of anything over 1500-2000 pounds, and even midsize like CRV, Journey, Escape, Santa Fe, Highlander and Equinox (and it's badge clones) will be at best in the 3000-4000 pound range. All will be limited on trailer frontal area as well as balancing payload vs what you are towing. At either size, it will not be just any SUV, you need the larger engine options, usually an engine shared with the next size car up.

If by "small SUV" you mean Sequoia, Armada, Yukon or Traverse, then you are getting to where the TT size approaching the smallest C's. V-8 or 4.0 V-6 Explorers might get you there, but the new Explorer is more of a cross-over, and I don't yet know what the changes mean for the car as a tow vehicle.