Class C Living

[pharvey]

How many live full-time in a class C? If so, make, model, length, pros, cons, etc. What and how do you tow? 2 up, 4 down or 4 up? We are trying to decide whether to switch to a C or small A. We have been full-time for 3 years in a 33' 5ver. I was thinking as we get older it might be easier to back into sites? True, not true?

TIA for your thoughts and advise.

[Solo18]

I have lived for eight years in a 32' Class C, with no towed vehicle.  I am alone, and it is a good size for me.  If I need to go into town or sightsee, I take the whole motorhome, but just leave all my stuff at the campsite.  (When I want to go into a big city, I often rent a car from Enterprise and they pick me up.)  I have never had anything taken other than one instance when a young state park worker thought my "campsite occupied" sign, water hose, and chair was trash.  I caught him on the way to the dumpster and chewed him out thoroughly for being so dumb!  My sign even said "BE right back" on the reverse side!!!

And it IS much easier to back a C or A up into a camping spot.  It is also a lot easier to unhook and hookup.  My son has a 28' trailer and if he needs to dump his tanks, it takes him 20 minutes to hook his truck up.  I can unplug my electric and put my slides in and be ready to head to the dump station in 3-4 minutes. 

My only problem with my C is that the Cargo Carrying Capacity is low--only 1,300 pounds.  That CCC includes the weight of human beings, belongings, water, sewage, etc.  When you full-time, even when you are only one person, you carry a lot of stuff that weekenders don't bother with, like a vacuum cleaner, air compressor, suitcase, winter clothing, extra shoes, legal documents, etc.  The result is that I have to dump my tank even to go into town because I worry about the extra weight.  And I don't fill up with water until i get to a campground.  I would have had less problems with a small A, even though I love the floor plan of my C and the extra sleeping capacity to visitors.

Edited September 22, 2020 by Solo18

[Kirk W]

9 hours ago, pharvey said:

We are trying to decide whether to switch to a C or small A.

After living successfully in a 33' fifth wheel, it won't be a major transition to a similar length motorhome but most of what you ask is very subjective and will depend on the person's opinion. For most people it is easier to back a motorhome than any type of trailer, as long as you unhook whatever you are towing before you start, but the trailer doesn't need to unhook just to back up. You can not back a motorhome(or shouldn't) with a tow car 4down, which is probably it's biggest disadvantage but one that can be adapted to. I would consider a class A easier to maneuver than a class C because you can see much better and the same applies to a fifth wheel. You may want to consider a slightly longer motorhome if a class A as it does lose some usefulness in the cab area and with a class C you completely lose the cab. 

Towing 4-down is almost universally agreed to be easiest, but on a trailer you would be able to back. I know that some folks are happy without towing anything to drive when the RV is parked, but the vast majority agree with me and would not consider otherwise for fulltime living. We found that it was much more convenient to have a small car and it also kept the majority of miles on the car and not the motorhome. In our 12 years on the road, we put about 80k miles on the motorhome and more than 250k miles on 2 different tow cars. With 2 people in the RV, a car means that 1 can go while the other stays at home for some things. 

 Since you are speaking of age related reasons, the class A has a completely flat floor, where the other options you list do not. As to makes, I would suggest Tiffin, Newmar, & Winnebago and which model will depend on the budget but at the length you are considering it will probably favor gas power, which we used for 12 years. 

Unless you are unhappy with what you have now, I would probably stay with it. Trading RV's for someday is usually not a productive plan.

Edited September 22, 2020 by Kirk W

[ToddF]

Check out the Lazy Daze owners group too (in addition to this group). They will welcome you to join even though you don't own a Lazy Daze motorhome. You'll see many fulltimers on that group with lots of advice.

https://www.lazydazeowners.com/

The benefits of a Class C are numerous (in my experience)...

Lower clearance  11.5' vs 12.5 and higher for Class A.

Cab surrounded in steel safety cage.

Lower cost new.

Ford E450 is universal and can be serviced in more places.

Lower entry point (fewer steps in).

Easy setup and takedown. I travel by myself about half the time with no problem.

I tow a 2002 Honda CRV (wouldn't be without it). Example: Doing laundry. Too heavy to carry to the laundry room. Am I going to disconnect my motorhome from hookups and drive to the laundry room? Ditto for groceries, picking up take out, going to the beach for the afternoon, etc.

I keep the bikes and compressor INSIDE the CRV, out of the rain.

Towing capacity is 7,500. My CRV loaded weighs under 3,500.

Hope this helps you get some ideas, everyone has their own preferences. 

 

 

[SWharton]

We switched from a 5th to an A 5 years ago due to age and have no regrets. We also have a toad which needs to be unhooked  before backing up. Even with that we have no regrets and are very comfortable in a 36' A. Plenty of space, plenty of storage. Probably could have gone smaller. It is also a gasser so easy to get serviced when needed.

[sandsys]

8 hours ago, Kirk W said:

You may want to consider a slightly longer motorhome if a class A as it does lose some usefulness in the cab area and with a class C you completely lose the cab. 

The front seats in our Class C and Class Bs turned around to become part of the living area just as they did in our Class A. Plus the Class C and Bs had storage compartments within the cab area that we used. So those cab areas were actually more useful than that area in the Class A.

Linda

[ToddF]

I love the extra seating and huge queen bed (always made up for naps, guests etc) in my cab area. If you have little ones, they can easily navigate the cab seats which quickly get claimed as their own.

 

2017 Minnie Winnie (Class C) on the Ford E450

Tried to attach pictures but they don't go.