When is a Class A too big? Mountain driving.

[photopilot]

We did the Skyline Drive from Luray north during the off season (April) and really enjoyed it. The trees were just budding so the view wasn't blocked and there was no traffic to hold up and the pull-offs were empty. South of Luray there are tunnels, and height is more an issue than length. I'd never try any of it during peak season.

We traded up to a 40' DP from a 36' gasser and haven't looked back. There is one NH state campground we can't get into, but the comfort, power and exhaust brake more than make up for it.

Walt

[jeanfrey]

Originally Posted by JohnBoyToo

Get a good Garmin GPS, set the height, width, and length parameters and it will route you around the too tight places...
and when you WANT to go to those tight places, park the rv and take the toad, those tight places are much more fun in the Jeep anyway

This is great advice!

[cbilodeau]

Before you listen to each other advices, you should investigate what those people do with their RV. Then compare it to what you want to do.

Many go from one full hookup campground to another, move only a few times per year. The majority almost never drive more than one day so they don't need to carry water, have solar, etc.

There is no magic. Here are my rules base on my experience on the field:

1 - DP versus Gas
A DP has a air suspension. The coach is low on the ground and the course of the shock is no more than 2". It gives a better ride on good road, but on a bad road it is much worse than a gaser.

Each summer we travel 2 months in USA and in about 1/3 of our destinations there is no DP (Diesel Pusher) or only 1 out of 100 gaser. This summer I saw not a single on in Yusemite, Sequoiad national park (except a camp host that probably was well prepared and knew a way to make it) and in some other National Park. The problem is that you need in these destination a few more inches above the road to be able to navigate in the campground bumps and bad roads.

2 - The lenght.
The longer you are, the more you will have to camp outside the National Parks, the State Parks, etc.
This summer in Sequoia with my 36.5' I could not go from the south entrance. I had to camp outside and a very bad full hookup campground (they all sucks in this area) and drive with the car inside the park. And the south entrance you have to see it, it is so unique. For the north entrance I could drive from the north and was able to camp. The same applied to Yusemite and some other parks.

If to wake up and have breakfast in the most beautiful places in the world is important for you, then you must go Gaser and take the smaller possible RV. But if you need to have a washer-drier (I have children onboard) then the smaller is normally 34' otherwise they don't have.

I am skillful person and I manage my solar panels, batteries, waters, propane etc like an expert. But if you are not so skillful with those tools then going from one campground with full hookup is the best choice and in this situation if you have a lot of money you should go as big as you want with a DP that will give you a very soft ride on the road that you will encounter.

During the winter we go from Montreal to Florida in the Keys and we stay in the same full hookup campground for 5 weeks. For this trip I would prefer to have a DP. The look is more important on a long stay, the ride is only on big highways so an air suspension would be at its best. But there is trade off. Last winter another Montrealer broke his alternator belt one day before christmas on his first year with a DP going to the Keys. He lost a whole week. With his previous gaser 34' he would have lost only one day.

[DWRichard]

Originally Posted by CountryB

I started looking at (used) 33 - 36 ft models, but now DW has me up to 40ft. I want to be able to drive routes like the Blue Ridge Parkway (TN, GA, NC,) Blue Ridge Parkway - Home and whatever similar routes there are in the west.

The Blue Ridge Parkway is NO place for a Class A motorhome.

[Tony Lee]

Class A travel ends when the black top turns to gravel

Not in the parallel universe I live in. The good spots are always past the edge of the bitumen.

https://photos.google.com/album/AF1Q...aDxXw-TqICg7hF

so I'm glad you leave them for me. Thanks

The Blue Ridge Parkway is NO place for a Class A motorhome.

Can't find any prohibitions except for commercial vehicles. Speed limit looks fairly low so stick to that and you will be OK

Monarch Pass, CO

- is used by a million trucks and they go slow up and slow down so don't worry about it too much. Those truckies who do the wrong thing often leave a big patch of melted tar especially on the western side of the pass

[JodeeD]

I must reiterate as other’s have said in other posts, that the independent front suspension, chassis, and wheel cut seem to make a HUGE difference in how these DP’s handle. We first bought a 2017 Thor Tuscany 34’ and after one trip from Chicago to Las Vegas, traded up for the Tiffin Allegro Bus 37AP (which is over 38’ long). The Allegro Bus has their Superglide chassis, independent front suspension and a tighter wheel cut. And we are towing a Jeep Grand Cherokee 4x4. Much better handling in the new rig. We are newbies and drove from Las Vegas thru Utah to Yellowstone. Then through Montana to South Dakota attractions and finally thru Minnesota, Wisconsin and home to Chicago. This rig just is nimble for such a big girl. So I encourage you to give yourself a more enjoyable ride by buying those features. Happy trails!