Which rv/5th wheel solution for full time?

[sixstringsteve]

wow, I'm surprised that can tow the heavy airstream.

 

[bryson]

I think a van would give us the most room inside, and anything else would be a compromise. I'm going to have to take some measurements.

Vans are certainly roomy, but an Excursion is pretty cavernous too... I don't know which would be bigger (although I'd guarantee that both are more roomy than a Suburban) and I don't know which would be more usable to you, but FWIW, I really, really enjoyed my Excursion. A bonus for the Excursion over the 4x4 van is that the parts are all factory, rather than a conversion, so it's bound to be more reliable, easier to find parts for, and easier to work on. A 'Burb would be nice and comfy, but I consider it much less "truck" than an Excursion - much less heavy duty, and less "sturdy" as a tow rig. I know many will disagree, but to my credit, I have owned a 2004 Excursion, a 1999 Super Duty truck, AND currently own a 2000 Chevrolet Silverado (same platform as the Suburban,) but that is my opinion.

 

[sixstringsteve]

I really appreciate all the advice. The airstreams we're looking at are less than 8,000 lbs GVWR. (~7300, ~6000 dry). I could tow it around a bit with my 4runner, but for full-time I'm not going to want to push it that much. Plus, with an airstream, i'm going to need a big rig to store the bikes, camping gear, and other odds and ends in. The van/excursion/suburban would double as a larger closet for things I won't need to use on a dailiy basis.

Plus I love the idea of leaving the airstream at camp and going off exploring in the tow rig full of all my backpacking, biking, and outdoors gear. Our day-to-day living stuff will be in the airstream, where we'll sleep and work.

 

[Gravy]

Have you looked into converting a 2wd diesel van into 4wd?

A SAS is within your skill set or your ability to learn.

 

[sixstringsteve]

Yes, I've looked into it quite a bit. Ujoint offroad has a great kit they sell. ~ $8k in parts, though I believe I could do it cheaper if I were patient.

I've done 3 SASes now, but they were all on light toyotas or suzukis. I don't imagine a van being much tougher, apart from the weight and size factor. The good news is that my neighbor has a HUGE shop that I'm betting he'd let me work in, and he could even help out. He just linked his scrambler on 40s and tons, and it's a beautiful rig.

 

[idahoyj]

A van will have a lot more height inside for storage. A 7.3l Excursion with low miles will be just as expensive as a 4x4 van. Any 7.3l Excursion will be at least 13 years old too....
I REALLY like Excursions, but for your use, I think you are on the right track with a van.
I know a few on here don't like Randy at Advanced 4WD in SLC, but I've always had good dealings with him. (I've never had him do any work for me, just bought/sold/traded parts). He is the area expert in 4wd converted vans. Even if you dont have him do any work for you, he would be a great resource for van based knowledge.

 

[sixstringsteve]

Good to know. I didn't know about Randy, I appreciate the info.

I'm torn on whether I'd want the longer vans or the shorter ones. I'm not going to be doing any rock crawling, but some of the roads to the good mountain biking spots will be rough (kinda like the swell). I imagine an e350 on 33s should be able to handle most of the roads in the swell, even if it's the big long e350.

 

[clfrnacwby]

 

[sixstringsteve]

Too bad this one doesn't have the 7.3L. Actually, maybe it's a good thing, or else I'd be on my way down to St. George to check it out.

https://stgeorge.craigslist.org/cto/5108394705.html

 

[jentzschman]

Very good looking van, I am excited to see your shopping vids when they are done. I liked your last one going over the differences between classes. I also enjoy that you are going over basic information as well. It seems there are very few channels that discuss more of the basics of RV living. Other then the RV geeks, I have not come across any that I like. Most channels have very long vids that seem to ramble and take you off point (at least from the ones I have seen). I like your "to the point, concise information in a short video format" Keep it up guys!

 

[sixstringsteve]

thanks. It's a tough balance between too much info, and just a quick overview that really isn't all that helpful. I've exported my shopping video 3 times now, and it keeps giving me errors. It's getting frustrating, as that's one of the more exciting videos.

 

[jentzschman]

I can imagine the balance of giving enough info vs overload can be hard, however, so far you guys are doing great IMHO.

Sucks that the editing process is giving you grief.

 

[sixstringsteve]

Thanks, I appreciate the positive feedback.

Maybe we need one of these:

[video=youtube;JSbouUCDQsg]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JSbouUCDQsg[/video]

 

[Cascadia]

There was one of those on eBay last week. Maybe it's still up.

 

[sixstringsteve]

Yes! My video is finally working.

[video=youtube;vB_FxkBNvL8]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vB_FxkBNvL8[/video]

 

[ID Bronco]

Cool video, I know this is how you figure out what you want, but you seem pretty far from sure on what is going to be best. I can't imagine trying to look at the future and know what is really best. I agree that the walk around beds are really nice. From the experience I have with trailers, that is really nice. Ours is almost big enough to walk around (they say it is a walk around) and I would want it a little bigger if we were spending alot of time in it. Nice editing and explanations!

 

[sixstringsteve]

I'll try to upload the next episode tonight, where we visit Airstream. In that video you'll see us start to be a lot more sure and excited about living in an RV full time. The airstreams blew everything else away. From what we've looked at, nothing else comes close. It's like the difference of shopping at walmart for a mountain bike vs shopping at a true bike shop.

 

[sixstringsteve]

This would do nicely.

http://phoenix.craigslist.org/evl/ctd/5148993291.html

A lot of guys like the ford v10, but with it being our only vehicle, and with all the driving we'll be doing, I wonder if a 7.3L would be better? It'll get better MPG, but I'm sure either would tow just fine. I wonder what the difference in maintenance costs would be.

 

[mbryson]

This would do nicely.

http://phoenix.craigslist.org/evl/ctd/5148993291.html

A lot of guys like the ford v10, but with it being our only vehicle, and with all the driving we'll be doing, I wonder if a 7.3L would be better? It'll get better MPG, but I'm sure either would tow just fine. I wonder what the difference in maintenance costs would be.

Having had three 7.3L and a V10 and a 5.4L Triton V8 I might lean to the gasser unless you're towing above 8-9k lbs. The gasser will cost more in fuel but less in catastrophic maintenance (or potential catastrophic maintenance). Most 7.3L will be reliable as a brick. You do have an injection pump, turbo, $300 per injectors, etc. in addition to the famous "CPS" issue (those are amazingly easy to change) that you'll need to monitor. Most will go to 300k or so without to much issue but I've heard of quite a few V10 trucks with similar miles.

We currently have a V10. It's not as strong of a towing engine as the 7.3L but the less maint. factor and initial purchase price is pretty appealing after having had it for a year. I got the truck for a deal I couldn't turn down and am pretty happy with it for the $. I'd probably like a 7.3L more but for what I tow now, the V10 is a MUCH more cost effective solution. My take on owning the diesels is that you can tow much more weight easier but you will pay for it at some time in a dead turbo, puked injector pump or $2500 worth of injectors.


mpg wise: V10 towing is under 10 mpg and is speed dependant. around town is not much better

7.3L was about 14-15 mpg around town/freeway slightly better, towing at about 12 mpg or so at 70-75 mph

 

[sixstringsteve]

that's good feedback Marc, thanks. I won't be towing above 9k lbs. Realistically, it'll probably be towing 6500-7000 lbs behind it, and another 1000 lbs inside the van.

I'm finding that the 2wd vans aren't much cheaper than a similar excursion, if at all.