Community Forums

Newbie64 · 03-13-2013, 11:22 AM

Hello everyone. My wife and I have retired and want to try RV'ing. We are long time tent campers but age is making that more difficult. It's hard to know where to start. Class A,B or C? Pull behind trailer? Tow Vehicles? It's pretty overwhelming, especially on a tight budget. I can spend $40-50,000 which puts me into buying used, maybe even well used. I haven't been able to find the answers I seek on which way to go. I've looked at a few pickup trucks, but they are quite expensive, especially if they are set up for towing. Need tow package and big engines. A six year old plain Jane truck that meets those requirements starts at $20k. I'm planning on looking at an older 35' Winnebago Class A, a 2001 with a Ford V10, but I am leery of what I've read about the V10 and its aluminum heads and sparkplug issues. Is it really that big of a problem? The dealer wants $35k for it. The pictures look nice. I joined this group to find some answers and get some common sense info on everything RV related, so I'll be poking around in various forums. I look forward to getting to know some of you.

Regards,

Tom and Jo

sdennislee · 03-13-2013, 11:59 AM

Hi and

Medico · 03-13-2013, 12:33 PM

Welcome and glad to meet you!

**CLIFFTALL** · 03-13-2013, 01:13 PM

Welcome to IRV2. I had a 2001 35u Chieftain and it took me 62,000 miles to 49 States and all 10 Canadian Provinces. I never had a Ford issue with that MH. I would have a Ford mechanic check out the engine to be sure but I would do that with any used MH.
Good luck
Cliff

Groovy · 03-13-2013, 07:20 PM

Welcome!!! Nice to have you here.

When we moved up from tenting to RVing we went with a popup tent trailer. It still gave us the sense of "camping" where you could smell the woods outside and feel close to nature, but it gave us heat on cold mountain mornings, a comfy place to share a meal under a roof, and it gave us a break from the rain.

For us this was a nice step up that gave us loads of great experiences and memories for two years before we got our first full-time trailer. It also didn't break the bank. We could tow it with a gas truck and we could afford to buy a brand new trailer that we christened the "Luvnest" because it was so darned fun and romantic!!

If you are simply looking to camp comfortably, don't rule out something simple and cheap like a popup or a small travel trailer. We spent over 150 nights in that popup in the 2 years we owned it -- and we loved absolutely every minute of the experience. And it was while camping in the popup that we met some full-timers and got the idea of going full-time, which we eventually did in a 27' travel trailer.

You didn't say how much time you plan to spend RVing, but if it's just 3-4 weeks a year, I'd highly recommend going cheap and small at first... You'll have a much better idea of what you "really" want after you've spent a bunch of nights and rainstorms and cozy heated mornings in something small that was easy to afford.

Lastly -- we met a couple in their 80's camping in a popup, and the old fellow said, "You know, we started in a tent, then we got a popup with the kids, then a travel trailer when they were teenagers, then we were snowbirds in a fifth wheel and a motorhome... and now I have a popup because it's easy to manage. It's all you really need..."

thepapabear5 · 03-13-2013, 09:26 PM

Hi!

lgarcia · 03-14-2013, 09:14 AM

Welcome! I wish you luck.

Since we already had a truck that is used everyday and was rigged out to tow an 18ft boat, our decision to go with a little trailer vs a tent was easy. Since you don't yet have a tow vehicle, your options are a little bigger. I would think it would depend on what you might do with a vehicle on 'down time."

MSHappyCampers · 03-14-2013, 09:21 AM

Hi Tom & Jo! Welcome to IRV2! We're sure glad to have you join us!

That's a tough question about what rig to buy. So many things enter into it. I would spend a lot of time visiting dealers and looking at on-line ads to try to get some idea of what you want to consider.

I would suggest you post individual questions over in the appropriate areas of the forum for best results. Not many folks hang out here in the welcome area.

Good luck, happy trails, and God bless!