Buying first camper. Few simple questions...

[Danattherock]

Found the forum last night and read till 0300. Great info and community here. Wife and I got 9 month old son and 18 month old German Shepherd. All of a sudden, tent camping is losing its luster. Thinking a travel trailer might be the ticket. We are in south central NC. I have a 2004 Tahoe 2WD with 5.3 liter. As I recall, tow weight max is around 6500-6700 lbs. As wife and are going to look at campers in the next few days, I was hoping for some insights here. Few quick questions for anyone with the time to share.


Would a 4,500 lb camper be about right for my tow vehicle?

Do you use generators or is all power supplied by just plugging into 120 volt at most campgrounds. Life long tent camper here. Just rented a few RV's in Alaska, but was in campgrounds that were closed for the season.

What are the 'hidden cost' of running around with a travel trailer? All hobbies have them. Ha ha.

Is storing under carport good enough or is indoor storage worthwhile. Looking at adding a second garage anyway, curious if it would be worthwhile long term to store indoors or if it would be over kill. Other option is the large aluminum carport cover beside my other garage. Gravel on ground. Curious about proper storage.

Is there a certain size you might suggest. Guess weight limitations on my towing capacity will dictate much. Would like to sleep 4 adults and 2-3 kids at times. Mostly will be wife, son, dog, and I. Generally speaking, should I focus on 25', 27', 30', etc...

What kind of insurance do you guys/gals suggest. Curious what the annual cost is. Looking at a $15,000-25,000 camper. Again, wondering about the hidden cost.

Last but not least, where do you take these things. I have intentionally avoided the very campgrounds I now seek in the past. We usually tent camp in primitive settings. I have never been to a KOA. Clueless. But the main thing I need to justify this purchase is what kind of trips we could take. We are big fly fisherman, fresh and salt. We got numerous kayaks, canoes, and two whitewater rafts. We also golf and enjoy photography and day hikes. Love the mountains and the coast. Just wondering where you folks have been. I am not interested in pulling into the same campground each weekend. Want to get out 4-12 hour drives from home. We are travel nurses and work 3 days a week. Want to get ideas on 3-5 day trips. Anywhere from Florida to West Virginia.


Thanks for any ideas. I am sure your patience wears thin with all the noob questions.




Dan
Rockingham,NC

[Danattherock]

Well crap. Guess I either need to sell my Tahoe and buy a suburban or find a smaller camper. Heading a few hours up the road in the morning to check out a few RV sales places. Any suggestions on suitable models to look at. Any suggestion on max trailer weight for my tow vehicle?


My 2004 Chevy Tahoe 2WD LT

Vortec 5.3 liter V8
3.42 rear axle
Stabiltrac vehicle stability
6700 lb tow capacity based on this websites tow guide
Door sticker for cargo capacity was right at 1,500 lbs as I recall


The dealer today was talking about a sway bar or something another. $1200 installed. Not sure but the guy said it would make the car tow better. Keep the trailer from fish tailing. Not sure to be honest, but sounds like this camper is too big for my rig either way.



Dan

[Seattle_Lion]

We are also new to this. We got our TT in June and have been out about 5 times so far. I have seen Tahoes pulling TT's but they see more suited to boats. We got an ultralight trailer (6,000 lbs 27 ft). It has everything we want after we added a few things (2 flat screens, tailgater satellite, new shower head, vent covers, power tongue jack). It's just the two of us and we consider our TT our vacation house. Here in Washington we are constantly crossing mountain passes. We have a Ford F150 EcoBoost. It has no trouble with the trailer.

Carefully consider any purchase that gets even close to your capacity. A 25-50% margin of safety is better for driving and for the vehicle's health.

We looked at a lot of TT's from 16ft to 32ft. We quickly realized we wouldn't be really happy in a smaller camper. In my opinion, investing in a camper is like buying a house. You really need to love it or else you won't use it much. It may seem crazy, but it often makes sense to consider replacing the Tahoe with something better equipped to pull your TT. It's more than just what the vehicle can handle; it's how you will feel pulling that TT.

Just my 2 cents.

BTW: I can't convince my 1 yr old Golden Retriever to get into the TT. We end up taking her to a kennel. Any thoughts?

[KFS]

Congrats!

Answering what I can

Like State parks. Love Corps of Engineers (COE) park. Not a fan of small lots.

We rarely have full hookup. Electric only using tanks works for us.

We are blessed with our FW (gratitude) but I do wish for a separate bunk area for kids. A dedicated sleeping area with comfort and real mattress is a must for adults as well.

[krobbe]

I hate to be a buzz kill. But your Tahoe cannot safely tow a 6700# TT at 60mph. That tow rating of 6700# does not take into account the frontal surface area of a travel trailer. The Passport 3180RE when loaded up for camping will weigh over 7000#. For the price of a new Passport 3180RE, I bought my 2003 Suburban 2500 and 2009 Bullet combined. Just a thought if you want to go bigger...

[wannavolunteerF]

Two things to think about with that Keystone...

First that thing is 35 ft long... lots longer than your Tahoe.. be sure you get a good sway system. also your weight is getting you close by the time you put clothes, food, toys and dog stuff in trailer.

Second, you mentioned having a child, do you want to banish yourself from the LR area to put the child to bed at night? Do you want to make the sofa/table into bed every night and then back in the morning? what if you get up before child? Will you be able to make coffee without waking the child? I would look seriously at a trailer with a separate bed for the child (even if you just have a curtain to close off the bunk, it is better than in the middle of everything?

Just my 2 cents worth, I have looked at that floorplan for me, but I don't have children who go with me often, since they are grown now.

[Doug33]

mlts22 wrote:
There is one piece of wisdom I have: Your first camper will never be your last.

No matter how much homework you do, you will find that the first camper you get will have some flaw that will get you to trade up. For some, it is finding the camper is too small, so they upgrade their tow vehicle, then their camper.

3 PUs, 2 TTs and 22 years later, you are correct. But this time I promised my wife this would be the last.... :B

[zuley]

I believe the Passport is going to be away too much TT for your TV. Keep in mind you have other things to subtract from your capacity such as propane, batteries, weight of the hitch, fuel on board your TV, etc. We recently purchased a unit that had a dry weight of 4600. Our Jeep Cherokee had a tow rating of 7200 pounds. After our first trip out I bit the bullet and bought a pick up truck. I believe, as was stated, salesmen are more interested in the sale more than what is best for you. Not worth taking the chance at harming your family because you thought you were good to go. Good luck with your search.

[fla-gypsy]

Your ready to camp weight will exceed the ratings most likely and you probably don't have enough payload either. We would need to see all the specifics (ratings)of the tow vehicle to make an informed opinion. This I know, If you buy to much trailer for your tow vehicle YOU WILL NOT BE HAPPY. The cautions that we throw out aren't meant to be a buzz-kill. It is meant to save you much aggravation and money because you will be buying a new tow vehicle as well if you go to far.

[Danattherock]

Spent a few hours at Camping World and had a sales rep show us many campers, new and used. Left with a clear favorite, the Keystone Passport 3180 RE. Weight is 5930 lbs and my vehicle rating is for 6,700 as I understand it. Wondering if we are biting off more than we can chew (tow). Other than that one concern, we are quite smitten. Any opinions on our vehicle safely towing this model?



Dan

[mlts22]

There is one piece of wisdom I have: Your first camper will never be your last.

No matter how much homework you do, you will find that the first camper you get will have some flaw that will get you to trade up. For some, it is finding the camper is too small, so they upgrade their tow vehicle, then their camper. For people like me, it is finding that the time it takes to go fetch it and store it is a PITA, so a small motorhome might be the ticket.

After some camping, you will find that things you thought you couldn't live without don't matter that much. I thought I had to have a pantry and walkaround queen bed, which in reality isn't a necessity.

[PapPappy]

You may want to attend an RV Show too. There is a pretty nice one up in Greensboro, though it may have already passed. I think you can google "RV Shows", to find when the next one is going to happen in our area.

On of the other advantages of getting an RV that is a couple of years old, aside from the savings in money, is that for the most part, the problems have been found and repaired. It seems like all the new ones are going to have some problems:(. Sure, you've got a warranty, but what good is that, when the RV is sitting at the Service Dept., when you want to be out camping in it. There have been many posts about people how had the RV in the shop for most of the summer.....so getting one that has had those things fixed already may be worth it.

You will probably notice, there are really only a few floorplans. Everyone has the same basic lay-out. When we looked for our MH, we went to the Greensboro show, and found one we liked.....and then found one that was about 5-6 years old with the exact same floorplan....and about $50K less expensive. Also, at least in our case, we got quite a few extras with the RV that the previous owner had installed, so we saved on that too!

[mdamerell]

X2 on try to act like your living in it. Lots of pretty flashy stuff out there but living in it ain't practical. What one couple loves another will hate, so see what best fits you.

There are some items you will need like wheel chocks, sewer hoses, bedding and kitchen stuff. But there are also tons of cool toys that you can waste your money on. Since you have tent camped you'll have a clue as to what I'm saying. Take your time and see what you actually need. Keep a pad and pencil handy to make a list of thinks you will need.

Some people pack everything up from their house for a trip and others set up their trailers as a 2nd home so all they have to do is grab some clothes and go. Just be careful to pack only what you will need and use to keep your weight down. We ended up adding around 1,500# of stuff to ours without much effort.

Due to the mild climate of NC I'd be careful about making sure things are dried out to prevent mold. Wherever you decide to store it make sure you have good ventilation.

Enjoy and maybe we'll see you down the road some day.

[Jayco-noslide]

The biggest "hidden cost" of RVing of any kind is something that most RVers don't talk or think about is DEPRECIATION of the value of the RV. Don't concentrate on the purchase price or monthly payments but consider what the unit will bring you when you sell or trade several years down the road and subtract from what you pay(plus interest on a loan, etc) That amount can be A LOT averaged for each night you spend in it. Then go ahead and enjoy but be more knowledgeable of what it will cost you.

[the_happiestcam]

Don't run right out and buy a generator. Most places that you will go fishing already have electric (private CG's and state parks). The exceptions are usually in the cooler mountains (such as Pisgah Forest there in NC) where A/C is not needed. For 3-5 days, if you have a couple of good batteries, you'll be fine - just mind the use of the water pump or anything else that has a motor in it - they are the quickest drains. Or you can add some solar to keep them charged - that's what we do.

[krobbe]

clubhouse wrote:
This will be the longest reply I have made on any forum ever 😉

Clubhouse, Great summary!
It took a while, of reading these forums, to accumulate all these points that you so precisely iterate here.
My camping history went from tenting one time and getting flooded out, to owning a very used 27' Class C before kids, to an SUV matched to tow a larger bunk room TT.
As far as the right trailer for your Tahoe with a GVWR of 6500# and 1671# max payload (Link), I would set 600# as a reasonable amount of cargo and passenger weight for your family giving you somewhat of a buffer. Adjust this as you see fit. So, 1671 - 600 = 1071# for the max hitch weight using a good integrated sway control weight distributing hitch for the Tahoe's shorter wheelbase.
1071# / .13 = 8238# is the max TT weight you could tow if using the payload. BUT, per your manual, 6700# is the max trailer weight for a 5.3L 3.42axle power train. It appears as if engine/transmission power is your most limiting factor. Based on that, I would take that number(6700) and reduce by 20% for the wind resistance involved with a TT. So now I get 5340# for a TT loaded up weight. So yes, looking at 4500# dry weight TT's is the highest I might consider. Steep grades will be a challenge.