One of the things we hope to provide prospective RVer’s in our blogs is a lot of mistakes. We are not going to just post all the fun and beautiful things we see and do as we travel about the country. We will share our mistakes so hopefully, we can save you time, money and frustrations. 

The first big mistake I made; I bought a 2011 Chevy Silverado 2500HD 3/4 ton Crew Cab 4X4 diesel pick-up because we knew we wanted a 5th wheel RV. I thought it would be best to have the truck, so when we did find the RV, we could pull it home. It was a beautiful truck and I loved it. 

Now that we had the truck, it was time to get serious about finding the 5th wheel. In searching for the RV, I figured out that the 3/4 ton truck was not going to be big enough to pull the weight of the RV that we wanted. 

Oh sure, it could have pulled it and we probably would have never had a problem with it. However, what most people don’t realize is if you ever get stopped, they could make you go to a scale and get weighed. If you are over your GVWR or any of your towing capacities, you could get a huge fine. But what is even worse, if you would ever get in or cause an accident, your insurance company probably would not cover you.

Two things that are very important when towing this much weight are the stability in winds and cornering, and the ability to stop. For that reason, we traded that 3/4 ton pick up for a 2013 Chevy Silverado 3500HD 1 ton Crew Cab 4X4 dually pick-up truck. 

This tip is for people who are looking to get into the RV lifestyle but do not yet have your RV and/or tow vehicle. It doesn’t matter if you will be part-time weekenders or full-timers like we plan to be. It also doesn’t matter if you plan to buy a pop-up trailer camper or a class A diesel pusher, or anywhere in between. Pick your RV first so you know what (if any) tow vehicle you will need.

Don’t make the mistake I made, buy your RV first. This one tip alone could keep you from losing thousands like I did when I traded in the 3/4 ton for the 1 ton dually.

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