Considerations Before Buying a Towable RV

July 2004 -- There are two basic types of recreation vehicle based on locomotion-towable vehicles and motorized vehicles. Towables, such as folding camping trailers, travel trailers, and fifth-wheel travel trailers, are living units that can stand alone in camp but are hitched to motor vehicles to travel. Truck campers, compact living units that travel atop the bed and cab of a pickup truck, are also part of the towable team.

In most models and price ranges, the buyer can choose interior colors and fabrics from samples if the models on the lot are not to his liking.

Folding Camping Trailers

Think of it as a modern-day covered wagon, with your own team of oxen or horses already in your garage. Affordable, open and airy, easy to store and tow, these lightweight units are the closest thing to tent camping, will fit into a carport or garage, and can usually be towed even by compact cars. From a traveling configuration that resembles a small U-Haul trailer, the RV unfolds to standing-room height with collapsible side walls to form two screened, covered wings, each containing a double bed area.

The center section has a solid floor that supports cooking, dining, and lounging areas, some converting to provide even more sleeping space, as well as optional toilet and shower facilities. Some models are equipped with heating and air-conditioning options, and most have a gas cookstove that can be used inside the unit or plugged into outside connections.

Generally the least expensive of the RVs, folding camping trailers are priced from $3,600 to $18,000, and may sleep as many as eight. The average price is around $5,483. Whereas the original units had canvas and/or screen sides, newer models also offer the choice of vinyl or even lightweight aluminum hard siding. Budget-minded families with small children, tent campers who seek a bit more luxury without giving up the canvas-and-campfire ambience, and even veteran RVers seeking a simpler travel lifestyle enjoy these vehicles.

Average Cost of Using a Folding Camping Trailer

In a study by the Go Camping America Committee, the vacation costs for a family of four, traveling in their personal automobile towing a folding camping trailer, staying at campgrounds and preparing the majority of their meals, came to $149 for 2 nights, $483 for 7 nights, and $889 for 14 nights.

Folding Camping Trailers: The Plus Side

• Ease of towing, with good gas mileage and lower wind resistance. Even a compact car can handle most, and they can go anywhere the family car can go and can be left behind in camp while the family sets out to explore the area by car.
  
• Economical to purchase and operate. These units offer many options found in more expensive RVs, such as air-conditioning, heating, bathroom facilities, three-way refrigerators, awnings, and roof racks that can carry boats or bicycles atop the folded unit. Naturally, the more options added, the more expensive the unit is.
  
• Easy to store. Garage or carport storage capability of these small units eliminates the potential problems larger RVs create. Folded, they measure from 5 to 19 feet long and are usually less than 60 inches high.

Folding Camping Trailers: The Minus Side

• Not always convenient. Most folding camping trailers use a hand-cranked system for raising and lowering, simple enough when the operator is fit and the weather nice, but not always pleasant in the rain when you're trying to keep the wing mattresses dry.
  
• Offers limited on-road access to stored items. The unit is not usable when underway unless you crank it open at rest stops. Some models have front storage units that are accessible when the unit is folded if you want to get to picnic items, toys, or bicycles. Access to kitchen and toilet facilities is available only when the rig is set up.
  
• May mildew if left wet. If a canvas unit is closed when wet, it has to be unfolded at home and dried out completely before storing or it can mildew. Vinyl units can simply be wiped dry.
  
• Offers limited toilet facilities. Some models do not have toilet or shower facilities or offer them only as an option. Most have a storage area for a portable toilet that must be emptied manually. When you're camping in areas that have public toilets and showers, it won't be a problem, but self-contained camping is not feasible.

Truck Campers

For people who own a pickup truck, the easiest and least expensive RV addition might be a truck camper -- a unit that slides onto the bed of a pickup, sometimes overhanging the cab or the rear of the vehicle. Most models sleep two to six people and cost between $3,800 and $24,000, with the average price around $14,490. Since the unit is slid on and off, the truck continues to be useful as a hauling and transportation vehicle without the camper.

Sportsmen particularly like the rugged outdoorsy capability of truck campers because they can remove the camper and set it up in camp, then use the truck to go to and from the ski area, fishing hole, or trail head. It is also possible to tow a boat, snowmobile, horse trailer, or Jet Skis behind a truck camper, something not permitted with other towables.

Low-profile pop-up models are available, as well as units that have optional electrical systems to load and unload the camper from the truck bed. They are often equipped with bathroom and kitchen. Units range from 7 to 18 feet long, with a cab-over bed extending over the pickup's cab. Sofa or dinette built-ins may convert to form a second sleeping area, but these are usually fairly short beds. A step leads from the lower floor area up to the cab-over bed.

Buyers of truck campers should plan to spend extra time matching camper to pickup. Some dealers may not be conversant with the details that make the combination work, so it is essential to be sure the camper's weight is compatible with the truck carrying it. If an additional vehicle is being towed, the GCWR (Gross Combination Weight Rating) must also be considered.

Average Cost of Using a Truck Camper

On a cost comparison survey, a family of four with a light-duty truck and truck camper, staying in campgrounds and preparing most of their meals at campsites, spent $160 for 2 nights, $515 for 7 nights, and $989 for 14 nights.

Truck Campers: The Plus Side

• Economical. Cheaper to buy, maintain, and operate than most other towables, with better gas mileage.
  
• Versatile. The camper unit can be removed and stored at home or set in place at the campground, and the truck separately. With a self-contained camper and a 4WD truck, you can go almost anywhere.
  
• Durable. Most models are made to endure tougher road conditions than other towables.
  
• Offers passenger convenience. In most states (except Maine, Mississippi, New Hampshire, New Mexico, North Dakota, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin), passengers are permitted to ride inside a truck camper. California permits passengers to ride inside only if there is communication possible with the driver and if the door can be opened from inside and outside. Several areas in Canada (Newfoundland/Labrador, Nova Scotia, Saskatchewan, and the Yukon) do not permit passengers to ride inside a truck camper.

Truck Campers: The Minus Side

• Floor space is limited inside. There's inadequate room for two adults to move around freely at the same time. However, some new models have slide-outs to expand the living area.
  
• Hard to handle. Weight distribution and higher center of gravity often mean more difficulty in handling these units on the road.

Travel Trailers

Vans, autos, or pickup trucks can tow these soft- or hard-sided RVs, depending on their weight. They sleep from two to eight people and usually contain full bathroom and kitchen facilities. They range from 10 to 40 feet long. Models come in traditional box shape, an aerodynamic or teardrop shape, and a hard-sided telescoping travel trailer that can be lowered for towing and storage and raised for campground living. Prices range from $9,000 to $76,000, with an average cost of around $15,336.

"Slide-outs" that are expanded at the campsite to add more walking-around room have greatly enhanced the comfort of travel trailers and fifth-wheels. Some models may have as many as four slide-outs. There are, however, some campgrounds that prohibit RVs using slide-outs.

Travel trailers often have two doors with a sofa and dinette slide-out area, which could be made into a second sleeping area. Sometimes the bathroom is split into two sides, and both linoleum and carpet are used on the floors, the former in the kitchen and bathroom, the latter in the bedroom and living room.

Average Cost of Using a Travel Trailer

A family of four traveling in their car or light truck towing a travel trailer and staying in campgrounds where they prepare most of their meals, spends an average of $160 for 2 nights, $550 for 7 nights, and $1,000 for 14 nights.

Travel Trailers: The Plus Side

• Easy to unhitch. Travel trailers can be unhitched at the campsite, releasing the tow vehicle for local errands and touring.
  
• Large selection of interiors. Travel trailers come in a wide variety of floor plans, with homelike furniture, full kitchens, and bathrooms. Many models have two doors, and some offer a forward bedroom and rear bunkhouse design to sleep the whole family without converting other furniture into beds.
  
• Can be pulled by most vehicles. Today's travel trailers take a greater variety of tow package options, including 4x4s, light trucks, full and midsize cars, station wagons, and minivans.

Travel Trailers: The Minus Side

• Can be hard to handle. Some drivers find handling a travel trailer, especially when backing up, takes extra skill right from the beginning.
  
• Not always convenient and economical. Wind resistance is greater with travel trailers, and hitching or unhitching can be a nuisance in bad weather.
  
• Will cost you more in tolls. For both travel trailers and fifth-wheels, road tolls based on axles will be higher.

Insider Tip

Before selecting a travel trailer to be towed with a vehicle you already own, be sure to consider how much weight you'll be adding for traveling-food, water, clothing, books, sports gear-and be sure your tow vehicle is capable of handling it.

Fifth-Wheel Travel Trailers

These are the most luxurious of the towables, popular with full-timers and snowbirds who cite the ease of maneuvering and towing, the generous storage areas, large living space, and homelike design. The raised forward section that fits over the truck bed allows a split-level design. This area is usually a bedroom and bathroom, but is sometimes a living room or kitchen/dining area instead. By the time basement storage and slide-outs are added, a fifth-wheel is comparable in comfort to a condo or a home in the suburbs.

There are numerous bedroom options as well as living, dining, and bathroom choices in a 36-foot fifth-wheel. The slide-out contains sofa and dining furniture, while a second optional slide-out in the bedroom area can add more room there as well. There's often space for a washer/dryer, bedroom TV, entertainment center, and large sitting area. Fifth-wheels sell from $12,000 to $102,000 and up, with an average cost of around $28,165. They are from 22 to 40 feet long.

Average Cost of Using a Fifth-Wheel

For average expenditures on vacations, see "Travel Trailers," above.

Fifth-Wheels: The Plus Side

• Maneuverability and towability. These are major assets; fifth-wheels are easier to handle than a travel trailer because the hitch is in the bed of the truck, with less vehicle trailing behind. This also creates a shorter turning radius.
  
• Easy to unhitch. Like the other towables, the fifth-wheel can be unhitched and left at the campsite while the truck is available for touring or shopping in the area.
  
• Allows storage in your pickup. The truck bed can still be used for storage with the addition of a pickup bed cover.

Fifth-Wheels: The Minus Side

• Can't carry passengers on the road. Because a truck is the obligatory tow vehicle and passengers are not permitted to ride in the fifth-wheel in 29 states and 8 Canadian provinces, large families might find them inconvenient for long trips.
  
• Limited headroom. In many forward bedroom models, except those labeled "high profile," there is not quite enough headroom for anyone over 6 feet tall to stand up straight.
  
• No entry from towing vehicle. As with all towables, you have to exit the towing vehicle and go outdoors to enter the RV, an inconvenience in bad weather.