The smallest motorhomes for people who are scared to drive motorhomes (trailer, conversion)
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Does anyone know of any brands that are as SMALL as can be, but with a small kitchenette, bed, shower, and a rearview mirror. I NEED a rearview mirror.
Are those "tear-drop" trailers any good? Any brands you would recommend? One of my cars is a Jeep Wrangler (two-door), I was thinking I could use that with one of those.
Thanks for all the help and encouragement I hope to receive!
Be blessed!
Ok, so I plan on doing a roadtrip for most of the winter (mainly in warmer climate)
around the USA and I am looking for a motorhome.
I'm a bit of a difficult case...
But I feel uncomfortable about having a trailer...
Your issue is the driving. RV Driving school: Home
Either fix your fear/competence issue or find someone else to do the driving.
(rather few RVer's will ever drive more than a couple hundred miles at a time)
Then find an RV that actually meets your housing feature need/desire.
Offhand I'd say that will be either a Class A or a 5th wheel.
Your issue is the driving. RV Driving school: Home
Either fix your fear/competence issue or find someone else to do the driving.
(rather few RVer's will ever drive more than a couple hundred miles at a time)
Then find an RV that actually meets your housing feature need/desire.
Offhand I'd say that will be either a Class A or a 5th wheel.
Class B's are the smallest, many offer all the amenities and the nice thing is that you can park it anywhere, just like a SUV, so you do not have to tow another vehicle.
I have been driving motorhomes for over 40 years, my first being a 1972 Winnebago Brave, it was 18ft and was shaped like a bread truck. I now have a 38ft Pace Arrow with two slides, I do tow a Honda CRV. With all the traffic of today, there are times that driving it can be real exciting! Like recently, when I drove through Miami.
I am a 66 yo women, and, I have been toying with the idea of buying a Class B myself, I have seen a couple of floor plans that I really like...just might do it.
Whatever you decide I can tell you that I have thoroughly enjoyed my many RV trips, in the summer of 2012, I took a 7200 mile trip out west. Camped with and without hookups. One stop was Yellowstone, what a great nature experience that was!
Take your time, explore all your options, there is the right rig out there for you!
That Mini thing - it's only a concept. The headline includes the information that none of them will be put into production.
A tear-drop is still a trailer. It contains a bed and an outdoor kitchen. Where will you spend your time if you run into steady rain? How will you get to your kitchen in that case?
The advantage of a van conversion is that you don't need to tow anything. I'd suggest to get a van conversion and shower in T&A rest stops. If it doesn't contain a toilet, you can get a porta-potty (look at CampingWorld). Between showers, learn how to wash yourself from a bowl of water (spread out a tarp first - speaking from experience here).
The Vanagons and Eurovans - they're old(ish). They're not as reliable as something newer. There is a large community of owners, though, and they delight in giving advice and/or help when needed.
Whatever you wind up with, don't try to drive if the weather is bad. Just find somewhere to park and stay put until it improves.
If you're still daunted by the prospect of driving a camping-type vehicle, you might look into couchsurfing and airBnB, and just drive your car around.
That Mini thing - it's only a concept. The headline includes the information that none of them will be put into production.
A tear-drop is still a trailer. It contains a bed and an outdoor kitchen. Where will you spend your time if you run into steady rain? How will you get to your kitchen in that case?
The advantage of a van conversion is that you don't need to tow anything. I'd suggest to get a van conversion and shower in T&A rest stops. If it doesn't contain a toilet, you can get a porta-potty (look at CampingWorld). Between showers, learn how to wash yourself from a bowl of water (spread out a tarp first - speaking from experience here).
The Vanagons and Eurovans - they're old(ish). They're not as reliable as something newer. There is a large community of owners, though, and they delight in giving advice and/or help when needed.
Whatever you wind up with, don't try to drive if the weather is bad. Just find somewhere to park and stay put until it improves.
If you're still daunted by the prospect of driving a camping-type vehicle, you might look into couchsurfing and airBnB, and just drive your car around.
Couchsurfing?? Hahaha Oh heavens no!!
I'm leaning towards the Mercedes Interstate from Airstream. It seems cute, and a good investment.
Any smaller class C's (20-25 ferret) and virtually all class B's are essentially like driving a full size van and are really very easy to drive on any normal road. But if something like an SUV is too much for you, you're going to have to learn to drive somewhat larger vehicles if you want any sort of actually RV. Otherwise, just spend all that cash on hotel rooms or vacation rentals. or just buy a tent, if you're up for that.
That's not to say that there's anything wrong with a small RV or trailer. There's not. In fact it's my preference, personally. (less is more) But even if that little mini concept car did exist, it's not giving you anything you can't already get out of any midsize SUV or wagon and a roof rack filled with camping gear. They even have little coolers that plug into your cig lighter so that you can keep things cool while driving without ice. I've seen some of those little teardrop trailers in person and they seem like a great solution if you don't mind towing and you need something hard sided. I've seen them with solar panels for hot water and electricity as well… not a lot but enough to charge your electronics and give you some reading light at night. Very cool. Nothing wrong with a good ol' tent though tether if you're comfortable wit that. But my guess is that if you're afraid to drive anything bigger than a mini, you'll be afraid being in a tent by yourself at night too (which is probably a more warranted fear).
Any smaller class C's (20-25 ferret) and virtually all class B's are essentially like driving a full size van and are really very easy to drive on any normal road. But if something like an SUV is too much for you, you're going to have to learn to drive somewhat larger vehicles if you want any sort of actually RV. Otherwise, just spend all that cash on hotel rooms or vacation rentals. or just buy a tent, if you're up for that.
That's not to say that there's anything wrong with a small RV or trailer. There's not. In fact it's my preference, personally. (less is more) But even if that little mini concept car did exist, it's not giving you anything you can't already get out of any midsize SUV or wagon and a roof rack filled with camping gear. They even have little coolers that plug into your cig lighter so that you can keep things cool while driving without ice. I've seen some of those little teardrop trailers in person and they seem like a great solution if you don't mind towing and you need something hard sided. I've seen them with solar panels for hot water and electricity as well… not a lot but enough to charge your electronics and give you some reading light at night. Very cool. Nothing wrong with a good ol' tent though tether if you're comfortable wit that. But my guess is that if you're afraid to drive anything bigger than a mini, you'll be afraid being in a tent by yourself at night too (which is probably a more warranted fear).
I don't know if I would want to be in a tent alone, for fear of being raped and murdered. Then possibly raped again, lifeless.
I'm liking the SUV campers, they seem cute and even have showers. I am really looking forward to seeing the USA in one.
It has curtains too for privacy!
I don't know if I would want to be in a tent alone, for fear of being raped and murdered. Then possibly raped again, lifeless.
I'm liking the SUV campers, they seem cute and even have showers. I am really looking forward to seeing the USA in one.
It has curtains too for privacy!
Yes I usually recommend something hard-sided too. Even if you are armed and can otherwise protect yourself in case of intrusion, you valuable can;t when you go hiking. It's nice to have something that deadbolts and requires thieve to break in through a little more than a zipper. But you were just saying you wanted something ultra simple, which is a tent.
An old school camper, a small class C or a class B motorhome sounds like it would fit your needs best.
Have been using a 1993 Dodge 3500 Chassis w/5.2 engine Class B Roadtrek 19' for my business travels in a 4-state area.
I looked around at Class C and other Class B rigs, and the Roadtrek gave me the best combination of amenities, space, accomodations with convenient driveability. Fuel economy is OK at mid-teens, sometimes as high as high 17's.
It can be parked anywhere, which makes stealth camping easy. I've spent many nights in WalMart parking lots as well as in local, state, and fed parks/campgrounds. It's also very convenient for overnight stays at the highway rest stops in our region; while they post "no overnight camping", their concern is somebody setting up a campsite. With a footprint and presence no larger than a conventional van, the Class B doesn't attract undue attention and I've spent a lot of nights at roadside rest stops around the country without any problems.
Simply draw the curtains as needed for your privacy. When I'm planning on not staying too long, I can draw the curtains in the back section of the van and open the privacy door at the bathroom area to block off anybody looking inside from the front. When I'm ready to leave, I just close the closet door and head down the road. If I have closed the back curtain, it's only a few seconds to raise it for the rear vision. The large outside door mirrors are very good for seeing around you.
The systems in the Roadtrek are pretty well thought out and reasonably easy to maintain. Keep in mind that they will need routine maintenance and servicing to function properly; ie, equipment such as the refrigerator, furnace, hot water heater, aux generator, house battery ... such items do require maintenance to keep them operating properly and efficiently.
Of course, the rest of the vehicle will need routine servicing. Pay attention to the manufacturer's service intervals for heavy duty use. For example, the engine oil change is expected, but what most folk don't follow is the transmission oil/filter change interval. These rigs work hard to get down the road and the fluid changes are critical to getting a decent service life out of them.
For me, the interior space of the Class B 19' is more than adequate as a vehicle to drive around, have my own accomodations & restaurant, and a mobile office with all the electrical system for communications and office functions (computers, printers, TV, DVD player, etc) that I need. With the standard house battery, I have more than enough electricity to last through the nights, even in sub-zero temperatures (gotta' have the battery power to run the propane furnace for heating).
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