Tow my enclosed trailer with a motorhome?

[bobs63wagon]

My old truck is about done. So thinking of buying a used motorhome to pull my 24' enclosed trailer. Not a diesel fan so maybe something with an 8.1 Chev. Here good and bad about using a motorhome to pull a heavy trailer. Trying to do this on a reasonable budget, so compounds the issue. I have seen some used class A coaches that are affordable. Some say use a trailer toad and save the abuse on the motorhome. Hear so many things from racers, so might as well hear more. Any experience you have had good or bad is helpful. Thanks

 

[Red63440]

Each motor home will have a maximum towing capacity just like any vehicle. You need a total weight of your trailer, car and equipment before you start looking. My guess is you will need a pretty large unit to handle it.

 

[Pikser]

I think you would want a diesel !
I tow my Raptor with our Motorhome with no issues.

 

[Red63440]

I think you would want a diesel !
I tow my Raptor with our Motorhome with no issues.

We have a 39’ Holiday Rambler with a diesel and while I haven’t towed with it I have checked it’s capacity. Cummins with Turbo, air brakes, Allison transmission, Jake Brake and 23.5” wheels.

 

[F4R/T]

I ran an 8.1 in wrecker years ago, it’s pretty decent but dead lug power a Cummins will leave it behind. I’m not a fan of the baby Allision trans. I personally would get something with air brakes and 19.5 wheels and Cummins power , pre emission for reliability ..I’m the last to cave into the diesel craze but if you are going to use and not drive around and roll coal then I see a use for it.. Not many big gassers left Ffff I can’t say it Ford wow that tough has the new 7.3 pushrod gasser .. Good luck ask lots of questions.. Consider a retired school bus?

 

[zyzzyx]

If you don't get a diesel, you will get a sick feeling the first trip you take and have to fill up!
You need the torque to get the work done, not the horsepower. Faghtaboutit!

 

[MarPar]

If you don't get a diesel, you will get a sick feeling the first trip you take and have to fill up!
You need the torque to get the work done, not the horsepower. Faghtaboutit!

And with air brakes (or air over hydraulic) it will be much less of a pucker factor on any hills/mountains you encounter. Sure, diesels and air brakes are more maintenance, but IMHO, well worth it.

 

[Runcharger]

Diesel.

 

[GTX JOHN]

We towed all over the Country with a 2006 Gulfstream 38' 330 cat.
Trailer toad (5200) and a 25Ft Stacker with two Superstocks aboard.
It worked fine for years

 

[diesel_lv]

I've had my '03 Ram 2500 Cummins 6spd since Jan 2, 2003. Over 270k miles which is low. I used diesels for 23 yrs in the Army. Not sure about all the "extra" maintenance of diesels everyone talks about. Air filter/air filter, fuel filter/fuel filter, oil n filter/oil n filter. Spark plugs/nope, distributor/nope, plug wires/nope. Ijectors/injectors. Yes, "if" an injector goes bad, not often, they are expensive. Fuel mileage towing, diesel wins. Cummins inline 6 RV for the win.

 

[moparpoor]

After many years of towing with a gasser and dealing with no fuel economy. I’ll never go back to a gasser after owning a diesel. The 8.1 won’t handle the trailer and motor on flat ground with a back wind. It will glow a pretty red from the exhaust manifolds at night as you are on the floor all the time.

 

[Roger63]

I agree with everyone else a diesel pusher is the way to go. Most are 300hp and up and a minimum of 1450 ftlbs of torque. You won't even know that trailer is back there. That diesel will go way over 500,000 miles if you take care of it.

 

[gregsdart]

I had a 1998 Coachmen 34 ft Mirada with 460. Used it from 1998 till 2010. It was not up to pulling my 28 ft enclosed till I put a Banks power system on it. Night and day difference.
The Coachmen had no slides, which works well for a race rig since maintanance is less. Also there is more gvwr available with no slides.

 

[Shorthorse]

" reasonable budget" that's key here. Did it for years with an old 24' class A. Thank God it was reliable but it ends there. No power, it's a good thing Ohio is pretty much flat. Never checked the gas mileage because I didn't want to know. I'm guessing between 4 and 6. I loved that old rig but it just wasn't up to the task. I ended up with used 2500 Cummins with a truck camper. Lots of power and 12 to 14 mpg. No regrets.

 

[Monc440]

I have a 1978 28 foot Sport Coach with a 440 and 727 that we use for horse camping. I can pull a 4 horse trailer with 3 1200 lb horses anywhere at 55 mph. She has over 80k on the ticker now.

I bought it for $3000 about 5 years ago. My buddy has a diesel pusher with 3 slide out with 50k he pulls his F150 on a trailer to Florida every winter and can run 70mph all day. He paid 38k for it when it was 5 years old.

 

[fbs63]

One thing I personally think is you can buy a used 40' diesel pusher coach or a new diesel pickup for 80k. Once you travel and stay at the track in a coach, you won't want a pickup.

 

[Darter6]

Bob, Allot can be done with little. Just some questions you have to ask yourself.
What is my budget ? What distance do I have to travel ? Just me or family ? How many trips will I be doing in a season ?
When You do find some thing you like,a few more questions will come up. What is the GCWR of the weight of the trailer and the RV.
What hitch is on the RV now ? Is a Class III enough ? Can it be up-graded to a class V ? Will the frame handle it ? Can the rear spring rate be increased to handle the load ? Will I be pushing the limits of the GCWR ?
Ok this rig has plenty of power and torque but will the brakes be good enough ?
Only reason to bring this all up is many of us have been down this road and have found good and bad.

 

[F4R/T]

Well said Darter6

 

[bobs63wagon]

Bob, Allot can be done with little. Just some questions you have to ask yourself.
What is my budget ? What distance do I have to travel ? Just me or family ? How many trips will I be doing in a season ?
When You do find some thing you like,a few more questions will come up. What is the GCWR of the weight of the trailer and the RV.
What hitch is on the RV now ? Is a Class III enough ? Can it be up-graded to a class V ? Will the frame handle it ? Can the rear spring rate be increased to handle the load ? Will I be pushing the limits of the GCWR ?
Ok this rig has plenty of power and torque but will the brakes be good enough ?
Only reason to bring this all up is many of us have been down this road and have found good and bad.

I appreciate all the input from everyone. It is obvious that diesel is the way to go. Never owned anything diesel in my life, but don't want grief just to own a gas unit. I have thought about some of the issues you bring up (weight, hitch, frame, etc). Trying to do as much research as possible. Info from all you guys convinced me it is best to go diesel. Now back to researching motorhomes. I hope more people respond as any info helps. Thanks

 

[Darter6]

If you can find a nice Jayco Senaca Super C they have a 7500-10,000 towing capacity.
The early ones were Chevy Duramax Chassis Then they went to Freightliner.
I asked about how many people travel with you.I (just me) drove the country racing for 10 years or more with a dually Dodge diesel 6 speed manual and a Lance camper pulling a 24' enclosed trailer. Only mod was a set of Timbren helper springs to level the load.Averaged about 7,000 miles a season.Worked very well.