Class A manuvering

[jacks]

Hi All,

I'm trying to decide on an RV. Age old discussion I'm sure.

I'm going to be a solo 62 year old guy who is near putting his home on the market and taking the full-timer leap.

Struggling with size of RV to focus on. (Budget is probably under 60,000).

I started thinking I want a Class C but have been thinking I must have comfort (Great couch/recliner/, big TV, and most importantly an excellent bed or I won't be happy, oh and cold beer), have to have good A/C-Heating systems)

(I do have currently a 2013 GMC 4 wheel drive pick-up with 20,000 miles, but plan on selling it.)

 

Have any of you Class A owners been disappointed with the ability to get into state/national parks, beaches, tight spots etc....due to the size of your coach? I know I will want to boondock and move once a month or so and not stay long-term in an RV park. I also know I don't need a 38' long coach for a solo'er.

 

Thanks!

[Al F]

First use the search function on this forum and search on these 3 words national park length There have been several open topics in the last year or two about the length of rigs in NP's NF's, BLM area, State Parks, etc.

 

The short answer, the shorter the better, but 29-30' is a good compromise. However you can get 40'ers in to many of the campgrounds in the parks mention above. It does limit you to the number of campsites available and some CG's you won't be able to get into. Sometimes with careful driving you can fit into some of the tighter CG's and campsites.

 

Are you going to tow a car or small truck? It is much easier to explore in the car/truck than taking the motorhome. Also you can park the motorhome in town and drive the car to the campground to be sure your MH will fit. If the GMC P/U is under 5000 pounds you can tow it behind many gas powered MH's. If over 5000 pounds you should have a diesel pusher which will tow up to 10,000 pounds.

 

I like the Class A for the extra room. The Class C looses some room for the length with the front cab & doors. We travel in a 29' Class A and did own a 26' Class C before that and a 40' Diesel Pusher before that. (Also 5th wheel & travel trailer even earlier.)

 

With our 30' MH there are only a few of the more remote CG's we cannot get into.

 

About cold beer, it is hard to get beer good and cold in the propane/elect fridges. If you get it good and cold, it tends to freeze stuff back near the cooling fins inside the fridge.

[Kirk W]

With any motorhome of less than 38' in length you wont have much problem finding RV sites large enough. We spent about 12 years living in a motorhome of 36' and never had any major problems finding sites. There were a few times when we had to choose an alternate campground, but very few of them and none where that caused us a significant problem.

[Lou Schneider]

I have a 22 ft. Class A, so Class A doesn't always mean a behemoth. And, no I haven't had any trouble getting it into any place I wanted to go. <g>

 

The main thing to beware of is the rear overhang length. A long rear overhang not only handles worse at speed, but you have to be careful not to scrape the rear bumper going in and out of driveways, or if you like boondocking, while getting to those out of the way places.

 

My motorhome has about 4 ft. behind the rear axle and it handles like a dream.

[2gypsies]

We successfully used public parks (national, state, national forests) with our 40' motorhome. No, you won't fit in every site or in every park but you'll fit in a lot of them. We've stayed in Yellowstone, Grand Teton, Glacier, Grand Canyon, Bryce, Zion and others and also many, many state parks and national forest campgrounds.

 

Get the RV that will give you comfortable living.

[wildmandmc]

40 ft or under is usually good anywhere. as for a comfortable bed. I got a gel pad 3 inch thick. makes the mattress feel like a $1000 one. Class A is the way to go. got it all a house on wheels.

[Al F]

I respectively AGREE and DISAGREE with many of the replies given above.

 

Yes I agree, you CAN get 38' and 40' motorhomes into many campgrounds. The key word here is CAN. Not that you will find nearly as many options with the 40'er as you do with the 30'er.

 

A huge amount of your limitation depends on where you prefer to camp.

 

If your desire is to access the more remote and quiet locations some times with fantastic views and privacy, the shorter the better.

 

The campgrounds with many campsites which will easily handle 36-40' RV's tend to be pretty busy especially on weekends. With most of these CG's taking reservations it is all but impossible to get a campsite on the weekends.

 

On the other hand, many of the CG's you can get into with a 30-32' or smaller MH don't take reservations, so you can pull into these CG's on Monday & Tuesday and have an excellent selection of campsites and stay through the following weekend, or even the full 14 days allowed if you like.

 

If you do a lot of boondocking, it sure is easier to maneuver the smaller roads and tighter turns in a shorter MH.

 

And yes you CAN get 40'ers into many CG's we certainly did with our 40' diesel pusher. But now in our 30' Class A we have lots more options on where we can camp than with our 40'er.

 

A lot of the places we camp, we first check out or find by driving our small pickup to. One we find the "perfect" spot we then move the MH there.

 

However, the top priority should be to get the RV you will be happiest with. If it is too small and cramped you won't be happy no matter how beautiful the boondocking spot you find is.

[Kirk W]

The main thing to beware of is the rear overhang length. A long rear overhang not only handles worse at speed, but you have to be careful not to scrape the rear bumper going in and out of driveways, or if you like boondocking, while getting to those out of the way places.

This is an important thing to keep in mind. It comes to what is called "wheelbase ratio" or the ratio of the overhang to the wheelbase. If your wheel base is say 180" then you want that overhang to be under 90" from the center of the rear axle. A shorter wheelbase RV should have less rear overhang.

 

 

A huge amount of your limitation depends on where you prefer to camp. ....................... However, the top priority should be to get the RV you will be happiest with. If it is too small and cramped you won't be happy no matter how beautiful the boondocking spot you find is.

Important points to remember. If this is to be your only home for a very long time, comfort and storage are of critical importance.

[WILDEBILL308]

Hi All,

I'm trying to decide on an RV. Age old discussion I'm sure.

I'm going to be a solo 62 year old guy who is near putting his home on the market and taking the full-timer leap.

Struggling with size of RV to focus on. (Budget is probably under 60,000).

I started thinking I want a Class C but have been thinking I must have comfort (Great couch/recliner/, big TV, and most importantly an excellent bed or I won't be happy, oh and cold beer), have to have good A/C-Heating systems)

(I do have currently a 2013 GMC 4 wheel drive pick-up with 20,000 miles, but plan on selling it.)

 

Have any of you Class A owners been disappointed with the ability to get into state/national parks, beaches, tight spots etc....due to the size of your coach? I know I will want to boondock and move once a month or so and not stay long-term in an RV park. I also know I don't need a 38' long coach for a solo'er.

 

Thanks!

Well if you are full time you need storage. The shorter the coach the less storage you have. I have stayed in 35 campgrounds this year and have not had a problem with finding a place where I could park a 38-40 foot coach. Unless you plan at least a year in advance you are not geting into most of the top national parks. You will need a toad. Traveling without a toad you give up over 70% of your experience.

Diesel class A coaches have bigger holding and fresh water tanks for boondocking.

Hear are 30 coaches in the $60.00o or less and one under $15,000.

http://www.pplmotorhomes.com/classc/class-c-motorhomes.php

Bill

[Ray,IN]

Because you will be full-timing,

Another item to think about is what you plan to tow, if you plan to tow a vehicle. Most gas MH's have a 5,000# towing limit, most diesel pushers have a 10,000# towing limit. Now, that towing limit totally depends upon the actual weight of the MH after you've loaded everything inside you wish to take with you.

 

While compiling your short list, inspect the factory specs closely, in particular, CCC = cargo carrying capacity. Several class C MH's have a small margin between empty weight and GVWR.

[jacks]

Thanks everyone, these topics and this website is valuable!

I went to another RV show yesterday, a lot to see, big show. I made the mistake of walking thru the high end new units! Now everything in my budget looks mundane.

Am curious about cost of replacing flooring/ take out carpet/ add reasonable priced stuff like Lino, wood veneer etc., upgrading tvs, window coverings/treatment, couch, chairs, etc., broad subject, I know, with variables, but to hear what some of you have spent would be of help. Now and then I see 38-45 foot 15 plus year old deisel pushers like Newell, Newmar, etc., that have 80-200,000 mileage but run down interiors.

Thanks All of you! Should I start another topic on this subject?

[Al F]

Thanks everyone, these topics and this website is valuable!

I went to another RV show yesterday, a lot to see, big show. I made the mistake of walking thru the high end new units! Now everything in my budget looks mundane.

Am curious about cost of replacing flooring/ take out carpet/ add reasonable priced stuff like Lino, wood veneer etc., upgrading tvs, window coverings/treatment, couch, chairs, etc., broad subject, I know, with variables, but to hear what some of you have spent would be of help. Now and then I see 38-45 foot 15 plus year old deisel pushers like Newell, Newmar, etc., that have 80-200,000 mileage but run down interiors.

Thanks All of you! Should I start another topic on this subject?

To have more replies, you should open another topic specific to your questions. People who have experience with remodeling may not, or probably won't, see your question.

[jacks]

Al and Sharon,

Enjoyed your blog and photos of the trip to Alaska!

Thanks

[Al F]

Jacks,

Thanks,

Glad you enjoyed the info and pics of our Alaska trip.

[Jimalberta]

We have a 40 foot DP with 2 slides. Comfort and room would be the same with a 36 foot unit with 4 slides so length is not always better. But.....with a 40 ft unit you have more cargo space. Its always a trade off.