I've been RVing since the early 90s. I've owned large 5th wheels for the past 22 years.
With COVID there has been an explosion of people going "full time". Many of which have never really been RVers before. Unfortunately there is a common theme to these stories that involves disappointment with the RV and the TV that pulls it. What is supposed to be a journey of fun and exploration turns into a trial by fire of trying to fix what breaks and keeping everything running.
People need to realize something - RVs are not built for full time living. They are built for weekend use. Most everything used in an RV is light duty - taps, sinks, fridges, water heaters, tires, wheels, springs, brakes - the list goes on and on. Would you put any of these components in your house ? Nope. They why would you expect them to last when used full timing ?
Tow vehicles have gotten much better over the years. You can now get diesel pickup trucks with 450HP and over 1000 ftlbs of torque. But as great as they are, they are very expensive, they wear out extremely fast and they cost a fortune to fix. They are also riddled with issues, even when new. Case in point, the CP4 issue on the latest RAM HD trucks.
Unfortunately, many of the gas motorhome chassis have not gotten a lot better. The engines are still gas, the track on the front axle is still too narrow, the gas tanks are too small, the transmissions are over loaded. This list goes on.
Likewise the suspension and undercarriage on most trailers is pure junk. The springs and axles are too small, the brakes are terrible, the tires are too small and blow out. These components were designed for 500 miles a year, not 10,000 miles for 5 years straight.
So what do you do ?
As far as the interior part of the RV, plan to replace every component with a residential equivalent. Chairs, couch, mattresses, taps, shower head, water heater, fridge, cook top, etc. Isn't that like rebuilding the RV ? Why yes it is. In fact, you might want to consider buying a used RV and doing a reno on it.
Another issue with common RVs is the exterior fading. The decals put on RVs stay nice for a maximum of 5 years in the sun. And the fiberglass exterior fades quickly too. The solution to this is to paint the exterior of the RV.
As far as the trailer suspension goes, go look at the brakes and suspension that are under a high end horse or cattle trailer. It will probably be a heavy duty torsion axle with disk brakes. With heavy duty hubs. Made to be pulled across the country and back while hauling heavy loads. If you want piece of mind, replace your trailer suspension with similar equipment.
Tow vehicles are another conundrum. If you are pulling a smaller trailer, like 10K or less, a diesel truck still works. Just be prepared that nobody wants to buy it once it is out of warranty. And they depreciate very quickly.
Once you get above 15K you really need to consider using an HDT. A good used HDT will set you back $40K, which is half of the price of a new pickup. You'll probably need to do some work on it and it won't be trouble free going forward. But the issues will be small and affordable and you won't be looking to trade it off in 5 years. Or 10. In fact, it is highly unlikely you'll ever wear it out.
As far as motorhomes go, Sprinters are terrible for rust and engine issues. Most Class C chassis will be wore out at 100K miles and the resale value will reflect that. You'll also have engine and transmission problems and maybe brake problems.
The small Class A diesel pushers (Cummins 5.9/6/7, Cat 3126) are OK. They'll give decent service but they are under powered.
The larger diesel pushers with the Spartan chassis will stand up. There is almost a heavy duty truck built into them. They are engineered with the right suspension, brakes, engine and transmission for the job. They will give great service and last.
The other solution is a Super C based on a HD truck chassis. That too is the right combination, although rigs with the Cummins 6.7 are still under powered and there have been some Super Cs with soft rear suspension. But the beauty of a Super Class C is that you can take it to the nearest HD truck shop and they are comfortable working on it. Can't say that for a regular Class C, which it seems nobody wants to work on.
The other issue is that some people have never had to work on vehicles or residential stuff and hope to rely on dealers and repair shops while they are on the road. That almost never turns out well, for a variety of reasons. The solution here is to tackle jobs yourself and become self reliant.
I hope this helps people.
