How do the 24K and 26K chassis handle towing ?

[Devocamper]

We are currently in the process of looking for a motor home to replace our fifth wheel and truck and it seems that we are going to be in the 35 to 38 foot range to find the floor plans we feel work for us since we are finding it hard to find a residential type floor plan such as our current fifth wheel( recliners you can see the tv from , dinning table and chairs not a booth , accessible bath and kitchen with slides closed) that sort of stuff. Our price point will keep us in the gas chassis unless we were to find a real great diesel deal. I have many questions about this change from fifth wheel to motorhome but my first is how the larger heavier gas motorhomes on these 24K and 26K ford chassis handle towing a dinghy in the weight range of 3300 lbs. We have a new Subaru Forester that is able to be towed with its standard transmission all four down. I just want to know from people that are using these heavier motorhome and towing this way how these chassis handle this weight on average highway grades and some steeper secondary roads. I know they are rated to tow 5K but do they really struggle when you put a 38 foot motorhome on top of a 24K or 26K chassis and then tow 3k-5K? Also I am finding the cost of setting up the dinghy to be in the $2K to $3K dollar range by the selling dealers is that a normal range for setting up a car to be towed, baseplates, wiring, tow bar and aux braking?
Thanks for any information or help in advance, this is a procces that I hope to get right the first time, took three trailers to find the one that worked for us for the last 8 years.
Mike

[JimM68]

I think I am having a confusing day...

OP, are you looking used, or insisting on new?
Price range?
I'm not sure why people tend to now want to say what they want to spend, cause that can really help us in making a sensible recommendation...

With V10 chassis, you are not going to see much difference other than wheelbase. The longer the wheelbase the better it will handle. The shorter ter rear overhang, they better it will handle.

V10's rev. 4500 rpm for thirty minutes up a big grade is not unusual, and won't hurt it. May hurt you tho.

[Devocamper]

glen68 wrote:
I have a 2015 Adventurer 38Q. It has plenty of power to tow the Honda CRV. I am very pleased with the way it handles the hills. I am also very pleased with the Winnebago quality. I have had a few issues with this rig but all have been taken care of to my satisfaction.

Thanks for all the replies this is very helpful but not making it any easier LOL, ok today Winnebago's look good again! Glen would you share what sort of issues you had with your rig? The 38Q is really so far the only gas floor plan that I have really liked but was not sure about the towing with that size motorhome. The Tiffin 36 LA is also nice but also not sure how it would handle the toad and I am not sure we need the two bathrooms for just the two of us I think I would rather have that second bathroom space for living area or storage but then again I have never had two bathrooms in any of our RV's so who knows. As far as the RPM I know they run high I just would have to get used to it after towing with a diesel truck,that is if end up going gas. I have not seen any floor plans on the smaller DP's that I have liked as much as the 38Q and I am not sure I want a rig that's 40 feet long. also not sure about spending that much on a used unit but that's me I sure there are a lot of good ones out there
Mike

[glamisorbust]

Look at Holiday rambler endeavor's in the 1999-2005 range. Excellent build quality, DP, and pulling hills even with the small cummins 5.9 is way better than a gasser.

[Ductape]

If you don't like the sound of high RPM, you won't like a V-10. 3500 on a hill is common. I'm not afraid to run at any rev.

Sidebar: the F53 has 6k towing capacity in some configurations.

Most interstate grades I'm either in 4th @ 60ish and occasionally 3rd @ 50ish.

[conmoto]

Our 2014 Newmar Canyon Star 3650 is built on a 26K chassis and tows our Ford Fusion Hybrid very nicely. It also has about 4400lbs CCC. We have moved from a Monaco 38PDQ so I can compare the two and so far I am not at all frustrated and wishing we had more power.

[glen68]

I have a 2015 Adventurer 38Q. It has plenty of power to tow the Honda CRV. I am very pleased with the way it handles the hills. I am also very pleased with the Winnebago quality. I have had a few issues with this rig but all have been taken care of to my satisfaction.

[rr2254545]

Devocamper wrote:
Thanks again for the replies.So far in our search our first choice would be a Winnebago Adventurer 38Q but I am wondering if a 38 footer and toad may be a bit much for the 26K chassis with the V10. I always thought that Winnebago was good quality but reading here today in other posts I guess that may no longer be true ? Seems like a lot of unhappy Winnebago owners. This is starting to seem like gambling you may get a good one or you possibly will have some major problems which is understandable moving a house down the road but former and current Winnebago owners here seem to be upset with support as well as quality. The 38Q is a 2014 leftover so the price is worth looking at but there are so many things that can come up from poor quality manufacturing. maybe back to the Tiffin website LOL
Mike

There is no problem with Winnebago -Remember this is the internet and it is a public forum for people with an ax to grind

Winnebago has made over 400,000 motor homes in there history and still make a good one - why did I buy another Winnebago if they had problems

- one recent kook on here claimed to have a list of ninty items - far more than anybody could ever have - a year earlier he said 39 item if you read his old posts

[eadeal55]

Another option might be to look at a 2-3 year old 38-40ft DP with table/chairs for dinette, and opposing couches, and think about replacing one couch with recliners, and the other one with a TV/entertainment center.

We too have looked at several 36-38ft gas coaches on 24-26Klb chassis, trying to find a floorplan that is livable, and best we have found are the ones with bath and a half and center L couch...like the Tiffin 36LA They all seem to be at about the $150-165K price point, and I've gotten one dealer down to $110k on a cash/no trade deal.

Not ready to buy now for a few more years, will wait to we get closer to full retirement, so we are now leaning towards getting a DP with residential features and just replace the couches. I know we'll be taking out possible sleeping space, but I really don't need a coach to sleep more than two anyway.

[Devocamper]

Thanks again for the replies.So far in our search our first choice would be a Winnebago Adventurer 38Q but I am wondering if a 38 footer and toad may be a bit much for the 26K chassis with the V10. I always thought that Winnebago was good quality but reading here today in other posts I guess that may no longer be true ? Seems like a lot of unhappy Winnebago owners. This is starting to seem like gambling you may get a good one or you possibly will have some major problems which is understandable moving a house down the road but former and current Winnebago owners here seem to be upset with support as well as quality. The 38Q is a 2014 leftover so the price is worth looking at but there are so many things that can come up from poor quality manufacturing. maybe back to the Tiffin website LOL
Mike

[rr2254545]

Devocamper wrote:

Ductape wrote:
Our coach scales around 19k and the toad 6k. With the larger coach and small toad you'll be close to that. 30-35 mph is what we have been down to on some of the worst western grades in 2nd gear. It still has some reserve power at that speed.

Haven't yet been passed under such conditions by a 40k lb diesel rig, but maybe someday it will happen.

Thanks for the replies. Ductape When you encounter these conditions 30-35 mph what range of rpm is the V10 turning? I know I am not going to like the high RPM on the gas engines after so long with the diesel truck it will take some getting used to. Are there any past issues with over heating on the Ford chassis with the V10? I know the overheating can be related to the manufactures front end design but looking for any history
Thanks
mike

Note a 6K toad is over capacity for his motor home - on our V10 ford we stayed under 5K on the toad and all was fine - I think I passed a truck going up hill once. If you stick to the interstate highways the grade is a maximum of 6-7 % grade in the rules

[nevadanick]

Careful with the entry level DP's as they dont have alot of towing capacity. My Tiffin Red doesnt leave much after you load the coach. Its quite easy to end up over gcwr with the transmission being the weak link. Find one with 3000 series Allison and your good to tow.

[We_Cant_Wait]

In the length of MH you're looking at, you might want to consider several diesel pusher models in that range. One of them is by Winnebago in it's Forza model. They're priced as entry level DP's, and then towing will be less problematic.

[Devocamper]

Ductape wrote:
Our coach scales around 19k and the toad 6k. With the larger coach and small toad you'll be close to that. 30-35 mph is what we have been down to on some of the worst western grades in 2nd gear. It still has some reserve power at that speed.

Haven't yet been passed under such conditions by a 40k lb diesel rig, but maybe someday it will happen.

Thanks for the replies. Ductape When you encounter these conditions 30-35 mph what range of rpm is the V10 turning? I know I am not going to like the high RPM on the gas engines after so long with the diesel truck it will take some getting used to. Are there any past issues with over heating on the Ford chassis with the V10? I know the overheating can be related to the manufactures front end design but looking for any history
Thanks
mike

[Ductape]

Our coach scales around 19k and the toad 6k. With the larger coach and small toad you'll be close to that. 30-35 mph is what we have been down to on some of the worst western grades in 2nd gear. It still has some reserve power at that speed.

Haven't yet been passed under such conditions by a 40k lb diesel rig, but maybe someday it will happen.

[Effy]

I think you'll find 2 things; 1 - it really depends on the MH you are looking at as to its tow capacity. One fully loaded may have all 5k and another may only have 2k. This will be specific to the model. 2- Another thing you may find is that 38 feet is a lot to ask out of the Ford V-10. It's a great motor/trans/chassis but if I were going bigger than 35 I'd be looking at a DP. With a DP you'll usually end up with about 10k towing capacity. Not to knock anyone with a 36+ gasser but I've heard they can struggle a bit with their own weight, let alone a toad.

That's probably close to the cost it takes to set up a toad by a dealer. If you bought base plates, bars, brakes, lights you are looking at $1200 - 2000 in parts alone. Add 8 hours of labor and you end up in the $3k range. Most folks install it themselves to save the money. Took me about 8 hours to install the baseplates on our CRV. It's not a fun job but can be done DIY. To do it again I'd probably spend the money and let the dealer do it.