travel trailer vs fifth wheel vs motor home

[pawntan]

I have been using my Coachmen Apex 28BH for 5 years. Before I have had smaller camper , but always travel trailers. I never own a fifth wheel or motor home (class A or C) . The benefit of travel trailer is , I can unhook the travel trailer and I can go into and park down town with my Jeep Grand Cherokee without any issue . So I see that mobility at the destinations cities/towns is a plus. But now I am thinking of upgrading . What do you think about my thoughts here

1. Dealing with weight distributing hitch and the high tension bar may not be safeas I get older . I could miss a step and loose a finger . Does fifth wheel or motor home offer more safety for hitching / unhitching operation ?

2. How do you guys with big fifth wheel or motor home fill up gas ? Filling up gas station in love/ flying J/ Pilot is a bit challenge for me. When there is empty spot , it is not that bad. But when I have to wait for others, I find that my Jeep GC plus 28feet travel trailer blocks other people from moving out of the parking spot . When that happen, I have to keep circling around, and loose the opportunities for empty gas pump.

3. I find it easier to just go to smaller gas station like Exxon/ Mobile/Shell, and not truck stop. That way I can drive right in to the pump. But I just can't imagine you guys with big fifth wheel and motor home can go to smaller gas station. Do you fill up gas in smaller gas station ? If you do how do you know if the small gas station is too small without actually taking the exist from the interstate and check it out ?

4. For driving motor home with tow behind small car, how safe it is to hitch / unhitch the small car compare to working with weigh distributing hitch tension bar with travel trailer ?

5. I came out of the bucces two days ago, turn right following the gps. It turned out that it is a dead end road. I have no way of making a u turn, because the road is too narrow. I have to back up 500 feet to be able to make u turn. Fist of all how do we deal with this situation regardless of our RV type ? what if it is miles before I find out that that the road is a dead end road, and there is no way to make u -turn in narrow road. There was no sign of dead end road, because Bucces allow employees to park on the street on that dead end road stretch. How do you guys deal with this situation with large fifth wheel and mototorhome/tow behind ?

If I choose motor home, I have to tow small car behind. Otherwise I will not have mobility in destination city

First thing first, I need an option that offer the best safety (not loosing finger , hand or leg ).

 

[Ray-IN]

Where to begin_. Towing a travel trailer you already know all that. A 5th wheel trailer is much taller and heavier, with an overshot that nearly covers the truck-bed.
This requires a truck large enough to safely handle the trailer and most 5ers require at 3/4T pickup or larger. Backing is somewhat different due to the pivot-point difference between trailer and tow vehicle.
Some 5ers come equip with a leveling system to make life easier.
Motorhomes make life much easier for us (we've had all 3) When we stop for the night we don't have to go outside, just park, activate the self-leveling system and relax.
FWIW, owning and traveling in a MH is the most expensive way of traveling, and is the most complex. You have both a vehicle chassis to maintain and a house built on the chassis that must also be maintained.
Then you must either tow a small vehicle or utilize Uber, Lyft, and other conveyances.
When you tow 4-down you cannot back-up, when you tow on a car dolly you must deal with the dolly when parked.
Then there is the Class B vans which offer their advantages.

 

[Laura & Charles]

We’ve only had class A’s and have always flat towed a car, so I cannot offer any comparisons. I see no reasonable way to get injured hitching up or dropping the car.
Our first coach was a gasser and fueling could be an issue. We would always try for an outside lane. Once we became used to it, it wasn’t really a problem… You just don’t start turning until you know the part of the coach behind the rear wheels is going to clear.. the car will track as the coach does. Our current coach is a diesel and we fill in the truck lanes using a fleet card… that’s admittedly much easier. If you end up with a diesel tow vehicle and a trailer, you can do the same.

 

[8Muddypaws]

We've had everything from tents thru Class A coaches.

The fifth wheel was easier to manage than a tag axle. With the self leveling systems most of them have now I think they are easier than a motorhome and a towed. Better utilization of space as well.

Just my two bits.

 

[CharlesinGA]

My question is what kind of traveling do you do? How long are you gone for. How far away from home do you go. Assuming there are only two of you, why do you need a larger camper? A smaller one with the right floor plan will probably do you just as well.

I am a minimalist in some respects. If I won the lottery tomorrow, I would not go out and buy a huge camper. I might buy a 25 ft TT as that size offers the space for a number of floor plans.

I came out of the bucces two days ago, turn right following the gps. It turned out that it is a dead end road. I have no way of making a u turn, because the road is too narrow. I have to back up 500 feet to be able to make u turn. Fist of all how do we deal with this situation regardless of our RV type ?

This is a situational awareness issue. Never follow a GPS blindly. Before I pull out of somewhere like that, I look at Google Maps on the phone and then mentally map it out in my head all the turns necessary to get me back to the highway or headed where I need to go. Before and during a trip I spend lots of hours on Google Maps becoming familiar with where I am going, how I'm going to get there, and places I might stop for fuel, to eat, etc.

Charles

 

[Kirk]

I have read your post several times and the key thing that pops out to me is that seem to see safety issues in all of the options. I have owned a range of RVs over the years and in every case you can be safe if you operate things properly, unsafe if you do not. The ability to get fuel is not much different for any type of RV of similar size. You do need to plan ahead according to what RV you have and in a few cases it might be easier to unhook to fuel, but very few. I would consider the easiest over all of the RVs that we have owned for hitching & unhitching to be the class A and tow car, 4-down. Driving skill is key to many parts of RV use and we don't all agree about what is the easiest to maneuver. I prefer the class A but have friends who prefer the fifth wheel. I suspect that most of the difference in opinion stems from the amount of experience each of us have with our preferred choice.

 

[pawntan]

I do part time, full 3 months during winter. And few weeks here and there on other season

 

[Gizmo]

Where to begin_. Towing a travel trailer you already know all that. A 5th wheel trailer is much taller and heavier, with an overshot that nearly covers the truck-bed.
This requires a truck large enough to safely handle the trailer and most 5ers require at 3/4T pickup or larger. Backing is somewhat different due to the pivot-point difference between trailer and tow vehicle.
Some 5ers come equip with a leveling system to make life easier.
Motorhomes make life much easier for us (we've had all 3) When we stop for the night we don't have to go outside, just park, activate the self-leveling system and relax.
FWIW, owning and traveling in a MH is the most expensive way of traveling, and is the most complex. You have both a vehicle chassis to maintain and a house built on the chassis that must also be maintained.
Then you must either tow a small vehicle or utilize Uber, Lyft, and other conveyances.
When you tow 4-down you cannot back-up, when you tow on a car dolly you must deal with the dolly when parked.
Then there is the Class B vans which offer their advantages.

All good points. We have had travel trailers a 5th wheel and now a class C motor home. If ease of operation is the number 1 concern, we have found the motor home the winner.

 

[Gary RV_Wizard]

Some of the things you ask about are differences in size rather than type, e.g. fueling difficulties. The bigger the rig, the more you need to choose your fuel stops carefully or be prepared cope with traffic around the pumps. For the larger rigs, use the truck pumps at a commercial truck stop. They are sized for larger rigs and the other customers are a similar size and won't be darting around you.

I'll agree with Kirk re safe operation. They are all safe if you do it right, i.e. carefully. I never thought of a WD hitch as a significant risk, or a 5W hitch either, but you need to pay attention to what you are doing. Hitching a car tow bar is probably even safer, but that doesn't mean you can be oblivious.

If you get a bigger TT or any size 5W, you will have to switch to a pickup truck for the tow vehicle. Is that another source of concern for you?

 

[DutchmenSport]

My answers:

#1.
No matter what RV you get, there are certain dangers. I've had travel trailers and fifth wheel, but I've seen and watched many people with motor homes and toads. Each one has its danger. None can ever be taken lightly. There are risks with every different set-up and accidents to happen.

One thing to consider with a fifth wheel that is not a problem with a travel trailer is when there is twist in the road that causes the tow vehicle to lean one direction and the fifth wheel to lean the other. The clearance between the truck bed rails and the under side of the fifth wheel over hang has only "so much" distance and then they make contact. This problem does not exist with a bumper pull trailer. So, when towing a fifth wheel, you are ALWAYS aware of that space and watch diligently that contact never happens. Because one it does, you've just scarred up your truck bed rails and the under side of your fifth wheel over-hang.

THIS is the biggest difference between travel trailer and fifth wheel! It's not ease of towing, hitching, the number of steps up and down from the ground, the total height of the camper, or anything else. The biggest difference is the clearance between bed rails and under side of trailer over hang. Brace yourself for this adjustment and you'll do fine. But, it's one of those little things not brought to a new fifth wheeler's attention very much.

#2 and 3:
Fuel fill up. I have a 41 foot fifth wheel and my truck is a 23 foot long dually, long bed, crew cab (diesel). I NEVER use truck stops. I hate them. I use normal conventional gas stations that sell diesel. I pick my stations carefully when traveling.

First, 1/2 empty IS empty! At 1/2 empty start looking for a fuel station on your route. We never get fuel inside large city limits. Our fuel fil-ups are always rural locations. We plan it that way. It works. But we are always prepared to bypass any fuel station if it looks difficult to maneuver. About blocking traffic. I do try to be conscientious about others, but most of the time people are so rude and nasty at gas stations, I just don't care any more. I take my spot and block traffic. They do not make any concessions for me, why should I make concessions for them! yes.... I've gotten bitter in my older years!

#4:
I don't have a motor home, but I've seen a lot of people over the last 50 years with toads. Some folks can hitch up very easy and some have trouble. Some use dollies, some use car trailers, some tow 4-down. In the end, it all depends upon your own skill, experience, and what you are most comfortable with.

As far a weight distribution bars go on a conventional bumper pull trailer, if you are having problems hitching up and getting those bars on, then you need to raise the tongue jack higher after you hitch. Raising the tongue jack will raise the trailer and tow vehicle together. The higher you go, the easier those bars are to get on. I used the Equal-i-zer 4 point WD system. I lifted the bars onto the L bracket with my toe ... when the trailer was raised high enough. Know your equipment and know it's limitations... no matter what hitching system you have.

#5
Dead End Roads.
This happens to all of us, sometime in our RVing lives. When it does happen all you can do is back-up. What other choice do you have.

With a motor home and toad you can always unhitch the toad and drive it back out and then back the motor home out.

With a towable, you have no alternative but to back the entire rig out. So, practice your backing skills no matter what RV you end up with. When it happens you just have to back-up slow and take your time. Safety is always paramount .... first ... most important. Never get in any kind of a hurry when backing.... NEVER. Never let anyone rush you when backing .... anywhere! THEY will not pay for the damage you may do if you rush and make an accident... No, they won't. But you will. So... screw THEM! Take YOUR time and do it so there are no accidents to you or your rig.

Answer to final question, which is safest?
All of them and none of them. Each one has their own risks, but those risks are all different with each flavor of RV. The reality is ... any place an object can have movement is dangerous. You can just as easily drop the pointed end of a screw drive on your foot and pierce your foot clear through. So, which is safest? A flat head screw driver or a Phillips?