What Length Class B+ Would Diminish the Need to Tow or Rent a Second Vehicle?

[K.William]

Hello Everyone!

I have been reading posts on this forum for the past few weeks while starting my first-ever motorhome research and purchase project. I've seen a lot online, been to one dealership, and read the short, but informative "Buying a Used Motorhome" by Bill Myers.

My initial interest was in a Class A coach due to the comfort, stronger chassis and load capacity, and low resale prices for a 6-8 year old model with low miles But because it will just be my wife and I traveling 2-3 times yearly for 10-14 days at time, I am now considering a used Class B+.

My question is, is there a general demarcation in coach length where the coach becomes manageable for local driving (at the destination) and a second vehicle does not need to be towed or rented? I see some regular Class B van type coaches at 24 feet in length which presumably are relatively manueverable in the city, but what about a 26, 27 or 28 foot Class B+? I can justify the $40,000 investment in a used coach, but not in a second vehicle just for towing.

Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks very much!

William

[kaypsmith]

Largest concern in any motorhome that you do not want use a toad, is parking. Where will I park this vehicle when I go to a show, to dine, or anything else. Twenty four feet can even present a problem if you are going to a large city especially. There are many places that you can go that are friendly with larger class B, or a smaller class C.

So with this in mind, if you just don't want to tow a second vehicle, you might want to think about car rental when you get where you are going. Especially if you are not using the rental more than you described. I have used this method on occasions and find it to pretty reasonable, if I shopped around.

If you decide to go this route, just prearrange for the rental, as many times, you may find none available if you get where you are going first.

With this in mind, you may find your decision to be a little easier. Whether it be A, B, B+, or C class.

Good luck with your decision and welcome to FMCA.

Kay

[K.William]

Thanks Kay!

The local rental option may be the best. I have heard that some rental agencies will deliver the car to the RV park. Is this something you have experienced? I have rented many cars and not heard of this, but maybe it is a service they provide specifically to the RV parks.

Also, back to the practicality of using one's coach for local transportation, let me ask it this way. What length coach would you be comfortable driving as your local transportation at your destination and not tow or rent a second vehicle? Would 20 or 22 feet make that a reasonable consideration?

Thanks,

William

[kaypsmith]

I really would rather that be a personal choice.

I have driven large vehicles in excess of 50 years. My current coach is 41 feet, and I would feel comfortable driving to Walmart in most any location, or in many cases grocery stores that have ample parking. I would surely feel OK in a 24 foot for most any event provided that I don't have to go into a parking deck, especially since most B class have the AC on the roof, although I have seen some of these with what appears to be a glorified window unit.

You could go to a rental office, such as u-haul and actually try driving as large a unit as you feel comfortable with.

This way, you can put an actual size unit to your own test. Hope this helps.

Kay

[K.William]

Kay, yes, that does help and a good idea. I think I have previously moved homes with a 22-24 footer and no issues that I recall. By the way, have you ever heard of car rental agencies delivering cars to the RV park? Or is it more likely that we would drop someone off to do the rental and then meet-up back at the RV park?

[kaypsmith]

Some of them will deliver to the RV park, mostly in the high tourist locations, like Pigeon Forge and others. When calling for reservations, is the time to negotiate this.

Kay

[jrwitt]

Enterprise car rental will drive to you and pick you up and return you to their office for the rental. When you return the car, they will drive you back to your location. Not sure if they do that at every location or not.

[KirkDavis]

William

I don't know if this will help; but, we have found Enterprise to be extremely gracious and accomodating anytime we have called them. From
Gloucester, Mass....rural Pennsylvania to the swamps of Georgia and beyond, they always come to us.

If I were in your position, I would ask what size motorhome would both make us comfortable and we could afford; and leave the rest sort itself.

In most cases, other than Walmart or Home Depot lots, you'll find parking difficult in anything above a conversion van. By the same token, my wife and I pulled a car behind us for our first two years aboard, only to find that after a long day of traveling , the last thing wanted to do was disconnect and drive somewhere .

These days, if we tow anything, it's usually our jetski and we leave the rest to Enterprise.

[brianm142@hotmail.com]

William: I have travelled with a Class "C", a Pickup Truck and 5th Wheel and now own a Class "B" - 21 ft which we purchased after looking at small Class "A"'s and Class B+'s. During the course of our search we were told by a dealer that anything over 22-23 feet you will end up with a "toad". After analyzing the kind of travel we had done in the past and what we really like to do we realized we did not want to spend extended periods in any one place but wanted to feel free to travel easily with a minimum of fuss so over the course of a lot of looking we eliminaed all other possibilities but a Class "B". There is no question that the Class B requires some compromises, however it also offers a lot of flexibility. For example you rarely if ever would take your Class "A" out for an afternoon at the beach or to sight see for a day or a weekend near your home but we do this often with our Class B. We sometime even go to the theater in a town about an hour away going out to dinner first then the theater, then stay there overnight in the PW driving home in the morning. We also use it occasionally just to go shopping and it eliminates the need for a second car in the family. One PW member uses a smart car at home and occasionally when they are travelling in their Class "B" will decide to tke the smart car along as their toad (the PW can tow up to 5000 lbs.) They also take 2 small dogs and on occasion even take their 2 parrots with them.

My recommendation would be to look, look and look some more. Talk, talk and talk some more to dealers and owners of the various types of units not so much about their units because any owner of anything will extol the virtues of the thing they own, but talk about exactly how they use the unit and think about whether you will use it the same way. Some places will even rent you a vehicle for a vacation. I freely admit that we are predjudiced but if I were looking to buy a unit now I would look for a used Class "B" Pleasureway Plateau TS with low mileage. This vehicle is built on the Mercedes "Sprinter" chassis with a diesel engine and if you do your research you will discover the Pleasureway Class B coaches are renowned for the quality of their construction as they are not production line built. Good luck!