After renting a Class C motorhome we decided to buy a truck camper. But figuring out what we wanted and finding it proved difficult.
In May 2020 we decided we might want to buy a motorhome. After renting a Class C we knew we could enjoy the camping life, but it took us weeks of research to finally find our traveling second home.
“We were beginning to get discouraged and give up.”
Once you start researching motorhomes you'll discover an entirely new language. Class A, Class B, Class C, rig, boondocking ... the list goes on. But how do you figure out what will work for your family?
Get organized
To help us narrow down what we thought we wanted I created a spreadsheet to help us keep track of the models we had found, and compare pros and cons and prices of each. We also went down a YouTube rabbit hole of tours of the various models we were looking at. This helped us mark a few off our list before investing time looking at them in person.
Look at all motorhome types
Initially we thought we would end up with a Class C--that's why we rented one. It's the most common motorhome class on the road in our area. But after renting one we realized it wasn't for us. Our options were to either give up on the idea of owning a motorhome, or keep digging. Here's what we found:
Class A
Clicking all around the internet and talking to friends and family, we discovered that we might actually like what we had completely ruled out before ever looking at them--Class A motorhomes. We had never considered Class A because we both were under the impression they were the mammoth RVs that are 30 feet or more in length. As it turns out, they come in compact 25-27 foot lengths, which we thought would be perfect for our small family. Sometimes it will be just the two of us camping, and sometimes we'll have our 12-year-old son with us. So we focused all of our attention on researching small Class A motorhomes.
Class B
In a previous post, I mentioned I had floated the idea of building our own camper van by my husband. He wasn't interested, but I was still dreaming of the idea of a camper van. I knew I would be able to drive it and the small size appealed to me. While focusing our attention on Class A, I continued to research Class B camper vans here and there, determined to find a used one that would work. The problem with Class B: high price, limited sleep capacity (we need room for three), and if there was a bathroom at all it would be tiny.
Class C
In this post, I detail the reasons we didn't like our Class C rental. What did appeal to us with this class was the ability to move throughout the RV while driving. Need to make a sandwich while traveling down the road? Or go to the bathroom? These things can be done in a Class C or Class A motorhome.
Fifth wheel/travel trailer/toy hauler
Will is an electric utility foreman so he drives big rigs for work. While we had every confidence he could drive a trailer, it just didn't appeal to either one of us. I knew I would need lots of practice driving while towing something and he didn't like the idea of hauling something so big, stopping along the way at gas stations or restaurants, and backing into the camping spot.
Go look at them in person
As we narrowed down RV types we went to local dealerships multiple times to look at what's out there. Watching video tours on YouTube is great, but can't compare to seeing it in person.
Think about it from all angles
As we continued our exhaustive research we began to run across articles and videos about the maintenance costs for the Class A and Class C motorhomes. This started to scare us off. As we considered the annual cost of ownership (maintenance, monthly payment, etc.) we had to also add in the cost to store it somewhere. Plus, what about a tow vehicle and the added expense of putting a towing package on that vehicle? We were beginning to get discouraged and give up. But then we accidentally found what we hope will be the perfect traveling home for us. Read more about that here.
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