Forum Discussion

rondilambeth's avatar
rondilambeth
Explorer
Nov 06, 2014

Trailer vs Tow Behind Vehicle

I am new to rv'ing

I recently purchased a 40' Country Coach and plan on spending the next 4 months in it on a cross country road trip.

I am trying to decide on either purchasing a 14' Enclosed trailer that will be used to haul 2 motorcycles

or should I buy

a hydraulic lift and tow a truck with a motorcycle in the back of the truck?

Being new to RV'ing will I will be able to get around in most RV parks with a 40' RV and a 14" trailer??

or should I tow my Toyota Tundra???

Your help and opinion is appreciated.
  • We have a HR Endeavor and got an aluminum flat 17.5 ft. trailer to haul our HD Triglide. Our Ford Escape fits when no bike so we haul it when we don't take the bike. The trailer can be a pain sometimes but that is always surmountable and saves wear and tear on the Escape.
  • Enclosed to keep things simple plus they'll be out of the elements.
  • My personal choice would be for the trailer. That being said it has been mentioned here a few times that when pulling an enclosed trailer with a motorhome there is a good possibility of encountering a clearance issue when turning and encountering elevation changes like driveway approaches etc.

    The common cure suggested was to have a trailer with at least a five foot tongue. Awareness of the possibility may be enough to avoid clearance issues and we need to be aware of things hanging on the back of our coaches like the flimsy ladders that protrude into needed space at times.
  • you might look into a tow dolly that has a platform between the dolly and the MH for the bikes. I think there referred to as a tandem tow dolly??? Will probable need a driveline disconnect for the Tundra.
  • I've pulled a 26' trailer (30' overall), had a lift on the back of two MH's and two different lifts in the back of a truck. The trailer was way too big. A shorter one might be better. The lift on the back of the motorhome was a pain also, but less so. I needed a wide flat space beside the MH to get the bike off the back and that didn't always happen.

    The Rampage lift I had in the truck was too heavy to casually lift out. It stayed in the truck until I got home, then I used my backhoe to lift it out. I finally settled on a Cruisercaddie lift for the back of the truck. It's made of light weight aluminum. Easy to remove and store. It also brought the bike up the ramp into the bed securely. With the Rampage it was scary to say the least bringing it up. It's also over a thousand dollars less expensive then the Rampage.

    Cruisercaddie made a two Harley lift for my friend that works well. He has an F150. Don't know if that would work in a Tundra.
  • Never towed an enclosed trailer but, I suggest getting a trailer large enough to hold the Toyota and the bikes! JMHO
  • I tow a 22' enclosed trailer behind a 40' motorhome. Yes, it can be a hassle or inconvenient in some parks, but it sure makes a nice garage. Especially, if you want to clean up or do maintenance on a couple of motorcycles. Being on the road for 4 months, I bet you would be glad to have the garage. If you were doing week-ends or 2 week vacations, I would opt for the lift and truck hauling.
  • The trailer will be a hassle. Not insurmountable, but still a hassle.
    I like the idea of one bike on a lift, the second in the bed of a truck towed 4 down. Lotsa $$$$ to do it that way, but really if you all ready own the truck, it's probably cheaper than the trailer, and the truck is way better than the bikes at the grocery store or in the rain.
  • We travel in a 40ft. motorhome pulling a 12 ft. enclosed trailer with our scoot in it. Never has been a problem. We have stayed in pull through and back in sites. I have a steel wheel at the hitch that allows us to move the trailer without too much effort.