Motorized & Towable RVs & Motorhomes

• Benefits of a towable RV: It is much less expensive to maintain a trailer because there is no engine, transmission, radiator, or dash air conditioning system. These require fluids changes and other maintenance.If you have a very limited budget, then choose a trailer that can be towed with the vehicle that you already own. Or, if you plan on buying another car or truck for daily use, then coordinate the selection of that vehicle with the selection of your towable RV. However, check the towing weight and trailer frontage size limitation (if applicable) of the car or truck that you plan to use for towing. Don’t even consider going beyond the maximum tow rating of the car or truck! This could be catastrophic. Please refer to the separate section about “Towing”.

  If you have a towable, you can unhook from the trailer when you reach your destination and use the car or truck for transportation at your destination to go sightseeing, shopping, to attractions, etc.

  If you don’t plan to use your RV regularly, you might want a towable. This is so when it sits around, unused for months at a time, it would require less attention to all the things that are prone to go wrong from prolonged periods of being parked. The hydraulic brake systems and the fuel systems on any motorized vehicle are subject to trouble if the vehicle is left parked for many months at a time, especially in humid climates or where there is a lot of precipitation.

  The initial purchase price of a towable RV is much lower than a motorhome that has similar useful space. However, both types will depreciate rapidly in early years, so buying a pre-owned unit is definitely a smart financial choice.

  Some people feel more comfortable driving a car or truck than driving a motorhome, and are happier having a trailer behind them. Other people don’t like having a trailer behind them, especially when it comes to maneuvering in a tight spot or backing up. It’s a matter of what you are comfortable with.

• Negatives of a towable RV versus a motorhome: A trailer will cause some jerking, bouncing or swaying sensations in your tow vehicle under various conditions, which may be annoying on a long trip. Fifth-wheel trailers cause much less of these sensations that tongue hitch trailers, but hitch systems are available that help distribute the weight and reduce sway. Hitch systems can range from a few hundred dollars for the lightest trailers, to a couple thousand dollars for all the bells and whistles.Most trailers bounce a lot going down the road, because most of them have very simple suspensions and no shock absorbers. Therefore, it is common to find that your possessions have bounced, and may even be broken. Dishes and other fragile items should be secured very well when in a towable. Of course, you aren’t riding in a trailer so you don’t feel how hard it is bouncing back there.

  Backing up can be very challenging for many people because of the pivot between the vehicles, and the fact that you have absolutely no view of one side of the trailer in your mirror when the trailer is at an angle to the towing vehicle.

  Towable RVs seem to have a higher rate of incidence of blown tires than motorhomes. Part of the reason may be the cheap tires that come as standard equipment on many towable RVs, and part of the reason may be that trailers often sit unused for longer periods of time between rolling the tires. Tires that sit for a long period of time seem to be much more prone to failure than tires that are rolling regularly.

• Benefits of a motorhome: Passengers can have access to the living features of the RV while going down the road, so you can (carefully, of course) go the bathroom, get food from the kitchen, access many of your possessions, and change seating positions.When you stop, you don’t even have to get out of the RV to be able to go to the bathroom, prepare a meal, go to bed, watch TV, etc. That’s handy if the weather is bad outside.

  Motorhomes almost always come equipped with a generator, so you can use all of the systems without having to find a place to plug-in. Air conditioning, heating, microwave, television, lights, etc. can all be used on generator power. A generator is optional on some models of trailer.

Motorhomes usually have more tires and more expensive tires than a towable RV, so when it comes time to replace the tires there is a larger expense.