The Rig

We looked into using a Chevy Tahoe (Z71 or High Country) with air ride for our towing vehicle, but in the end, the superior towing capacity and extra heft of the Ford F150 with the 3.5L Eco-Boost engine won out. We figured that we would be carrying gear like generators and ladders and the pickup would be more capable for that purpose. Plus we did not need a 3rd row of seats and the extra weight that entailed. We were surprised that no dealers within 100 miles had the air ride suspension in any of their stock of Tahoe's. 

We chose the top of the line F150 Lariat package with max towing, giving us over 12000# towing capacity (actually rated at 13200#) and 1200# tonque weight. We traded in my 2017 Honda Ridgeline. I loved the Ridgeline--great truck--fast and economical (24 mpg) and very practical.  The F150 is a dream to drive---heavier but still fast with the 3.5L twin turbo engine, and reasonably economical with 21 mpg possible with careful driving. Surprising but with the side mirrors electrically tucked in, it fit into our condo 2 car garage. (I did have to adjust the garage door opener travel to provide 78" of clearance.)

The F250 Super Duty with 7.3L V8 gas engine was a option---it was too high and long for the garage and the 3.5L EcoBoost is only available in the F150. The main advantage of the F250 is the extra 1000-1500# of weight, making it a bit more stable as a towing vehicle. If I were going to live in the RV full time, I would have chosen the Super Duty.

We are not into living in an RV for extended periods of time---two weeks would probably be a maximum trip length. (More likely 3-7 day trips around eastern US for us.) We really loved the Airstreams, but they are expensive and lack the space provided by a slide.  After shopping around, we looked at a Keystone Cougar at Camping World and liked the layout, but did not like the the Camping World sales pitch. We found a nice Forest River Palomino Puma 25RBSC unit at family owned Harbold's RV in nearby Dover, PA.  Their sales approach was low key but informative and pricing was fair and reasonable.

Click here to see specs on trailer

RV's like boats require some (maybe more than just some) mechanical "handiness" but starting out with new equipment will hopefully keep the "repair and servicce" workload to a manageable level. 

We chose the travel trailer and pickup combo as we intend to unhook and travel for sightseeing and eating out in the truck. The Supercrew cab gives us enough space for the two cats while driving and in the end, the pickup provided more towing power and flexibility than an SUV.