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We are researching the purchase of a motor home (<36 ft). The economy downturn has reduced the costs quite a bit. Any suggestions, negative or positive on the type of motorhome? We are retired but would like enough room to bring grandchildren and our puppy.
I'd suggest going for more off sticker than recommended above right now... RV sales are really down and dealers will do almost anything to reduce inventory... you can alway go up, but it's hard to offer less later!
We lived full time in our RV for 5 years almost entirely off the grid on public lands. US Forest Service and BLM lands offer opportunities for remote camping (boondocking) as well as most states wildlife areas. Some states have state forests that allow remote camping too.
Are planning on using RV parks or remote camping? If remote, you need big holding tanks! Our 36' diesel pusher had 110 gallon fresh water tank and big gray and black tanks. We got to the point that us two, plus our dog and cat could stay out for two weeks with careful conservation.
Whatever you buy, keep the weight limits of the vehicle in mind. Many entry level RV's do not have any reserve carrying capacity to speak of, and a full load of water, propane, and food makes them fully loaded, and you have not put your family, clothes, cookware and anything else such as camp chairs etc in the storage compartments. This a bigger issue than most people realize!
Are you camping in a hot and humid area? If so, you will likely need air conditioning, so be sure you have enough to stay comfortable! A single roof top air conditioner will not keep a big rig cool both front and back.
Will you be towing a vehicle for transportation once you get to your destination? Be sure to verify that the RV you like can pull the weight you want to tow!!!!! You have to stop that weight too, so you will need a brake system in the towed (often called a "toad") vehicle. If you flat tow without the vehicle on a trailer, be aware that you can not back up!!!! Trailers add a lot of weight.
Traveling with kids and pets can cause a few problems... most kids are not very conservation minded when it comes to water and power. They use more water than needed and forget to turn off lights. This can be a problem if trying to stay next to your favorite fishing steam as you will quickly be out of water and your tanks will be full. If you intend to watch TV or use much electric power, either a generator or solar system will be required. We RVed full time for 5 years off the grid with a very powerful solar system and only used our generator 145 hours in 5 years.
Love your floor plan! If you don't like it to start with, you won't like it later even more!
I could go on and on, but knowing some more specifics would really help with answers.
Last edited by Cornerguy1; 05-25-2009 at 09:05 PM..
Reason: Great response, but advertising is strictly prohibited
We just got a Class C Minnie Winnie used, great deal and only 10k miles~! We are newbies and didn't want to drive anything as large as a Class A and didn't want to have to tow anything. So next Spring we will take off on a 6-8 week journey to go see the national parks and other sites before school lets out and they get too crowded. Lots of folks buy a used C Class, use it for a while and then get into an A Class once they know they like RVing and are ready for a big boy. I just don't see us wanting an A Class but who knows, you might find me on here in a year or 2 talking about trading up, so I never say never.
Location: Just transplanted to FL from the N GA mountains
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Class A owners here. Off Payment gave you some great advice so the only thing I'll add is that these days you will really need to do your research about the brand you buy. Over half of the motor home manufacturer's have gone belly up in the last year. Because of this, lots of inventory sitting on lots are orphans. These, while a great bargain financially, do present a completely new set of problems. While your local dealer may say they'll stand behind the product, what happens if you get 1/2 way across the country and have problems. A dealer network might help.. but they may not. Parts also are becoming an issue with these orphans.
A friend of ours has a Travel Supreme, and while it is an awesome coach, they are having slide problems and can no longer get the part needed to fix it. A dealer is now trying to have the part fabricated and it remains to be seen whether this will fix their problem.
Thanks to all the information and responses. We purchased a Class A, used with 6K miles. The dealer has been extremely helpful, although not at all aggressive, and is repairing a few minor items before pickup. I was very impressed with the dealer as they spent four hours with us and encouraged us NOT to buy a new RV to start off with. We did a lot of research and the floor plan matched our needs especially a walk'thru bathroom. We are planning our first trip in the fall.
Location: We_tside PNW (Columbia Gorge) / CO / SA TX / Thailand
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escapees,
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, you might find me on here in a year or 2 talking about trading up, so I never say never.
