Newbie here!!
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Category: R-pod Discussion Forums
Forum Name: Introduce Yourself
Forum Discription: New Members - tell us about yourself and your r-pod
URL: http://www.rpod-owners.com/forum_posts.asp?TID=12712
Printed Date: 08 Jun 2025 at 11:31am
Software Version: Web Wiz Forums 9.64 - http://www.webwizforums.com
Topic: Newbie here!!
Posted By: Kimmie
Subject: Newbie here!!
Date Posted: 30 Mar 2019 at 2:52pm
Hi everyone!! Say I have "stalked" your forum for some time now and have enjoyed how everyone is so helpful in a gracious way (not putting others down) which is wonderful for me! and probably for everyone else here too. Anyway, I haven''t got an r-pod, looking at r-pod 191 with twin beds as my old body doesn't crawl over the hubby very well several times a night to go potty. Oh I know to much info!! I'm fence sitting either buying a new r-pod 191 or a used class c. humm.. I have got a 171,000 mile 350 engine 1997 e150 van plus a 2003 4.0 4x4 ford ranger pickup with 191,000 miles. I'm so afraid that the high mileage pull vehicles I have will peter out pulling this pod. I can't replace them if they go. Hench the reason I'm looking a low mileage class c for the same price of a new pod. I also know we aren't very active as being in our 60's like we were back when we were 20 or so. Basically just using it as a base camp and visiting the area for a week or 2 and peddling to another area to repeat. Anybody been in our shoes or any thoughts that could help us with our qaundary? He has never camped before and I have camped with mom and dad back 40 years ago. Dads is not around anymore to help me with this. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks! God bless you all and Happy Trails!!------------- Kimmie from Kansas Just passing thur LIFE |
Replies:
Posted By: podwerkz
Date Posted: 30 Mar 2019 at 3:19pm
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If you really want a money pit, buy a 25-30 year-old motorhome for $10-15 thousand. Ouch. Well your answers here will naturally be biased toward the r-pods, and trailers in general, but your two vehicles are a bit long-in-the-tooth for pod-pulling. If it has been maintained well and everything is in good shape and set up for towing, the van sounds like it should be able to do it. It probably has a 4 speed auto, and probably does not have a tow-haul mode or a towing ratio on the rear diff, so you might just have to slow down on hills and take it easy. You might want to consider a pop-up tent trailer or an a-liner style trailer to reduce the towing load on the van or the pickup. ------------- r･pod 171 gone but not forgotten! |
Posted By: furpod
Date Posted: 30 Mar 2019 at 3:54pm
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The one problem I see is.. buying a used class C, anything in the price range of a new pod,($16K +/-) it's going to need lots of work and have issues.. and.. you are buying a new(er) truck.. you can't use for anything else.. that's a waste IMHO. A quick RVTrader search centered on 67410 zip code, 250 mile radius shows 2 class C's in that price range both with very high miles.. ------------- |
Posted By: Kimmie
Date Posted: 30 Mar 2019 at 4:20pm
Thanks for your reply! We went to the state fair and walked through those tent pop ups and my husband almost ran away from me! Got caught up to him by the pronto pup stand (or maybe he was hungry) He did tell me he was not liking to sit up something like that and if we were going to do this I should steer him to something easy and simple. I want his experience to be peaceful and stress free as much as possible. Yes the idea of the van, my van, is in wonderful condition! My mechanic when he had the engine out changing out my soft plugs took off my valve covers and was highly impressed how clean that part looked. Her name is Glory and is a conversion that we put a bed in the back shes white and gold and I think would look great with a touch of silver that the 10th anniversary has following her! I have thought about that class c..it is big (but I used to drive on 18 wheels but i'm older now and was in my 20's then). So sorry thinking out loud! Anyway thanks for your kind words and info!------------- Kimmie from Kansas Just passing thur LIFE |
Posted By: Kimmie
Date Posted: 30 Mar 2019 at 4:51pm
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Thanks for your reply! Yes I've been looking at class c's for over a year now and by chance a great friend of mine just special ordered her Casita! That had me thinking about small trailers (not to small) but something my hubby could fit in without a can opener! I stumbled on to r-Pods thought they were cute and just the right size but needed either a walk around bed or twin beds to be comfortable to us. Until this year the 191 and I think the 195 would work for us. But then I got to thinking about our high mileage pull vehicles, reality hit me hard then. Possibly my van could work that is until I got the trailer paid off then buy a nice 4x4 SUV. I bought facebook at $17 maybe it will go up some more for me to do that! ------------- Kimmie from Kansas Just passing thur LIFE |
Posted By: podwerkz
Date Posted: 30 Mar 2019 at 5:17pm
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(deleted) ------------- r･pod 171 gone but not forgotten! |
Posted By: jato
Date Posted: 30 Mar 2019 at 5:36pm
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If you have personally maintained those vehicles and only plan on relatively flat driving and your mechanic states your engine(s) look strong. . . .why not go for a used rpod? Our 177, which we have had for 8 + years now has over 25,000 miles on it and has been towed by our '94 F-150 with 321,000 miles - has a 5.0 L V-8 with a stick shift. More recently we now have 2 different tow vehicles, the main one used for the past 4 years is a '13 Ford Explorer with 105,000 miles and one we just picked up last summer a '11 Ford F-150 with 120,000 miles. If you maintain your vehicles, they will last a long time. When we sold our 1990 Dodge Caravan it had 268,000 miles, no engine issues ever (3.3L V-6) and one transmission rebuild at 205,000 miles.
------------- God's pod '11 model 177 '17 Ford F-150 4WD 3.5 Ecoboost Jim and Diane by beautiful Torch Lake "...and you will know the Truth and the Truth will set you free." |
Posted By: lostagain
Date Posted: 30 Mar 2019 at 8:57pm
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We spent less on our 172 and our TV than most people spend on a new rPod. Our Pod is in good shape and we've made what we think are some improvements that make it a very functional and enjoyable trailer for our needs. Our tv runs well, though she's old and has over 150K on the odometer. With a little luck and taking good care of our Dakota, we hope to squeeze enough years of use out of it to make it to the time we're ready to just stay home. We don't go real fast and always take it easy on the steep climbs. We get there when we get there and if we're late, well, we're late but at least we made it.
So, welcome to the board and we hope you get as much use and enjoyment out of the things you learn as we have. ------------- Never leave footprints behind. Fred & Maria Kearney Sonoma 167RB Our Pod 172 2019 Ford F-150 4x4 2.7 EcoBoost |
Posted By: offgrid
Date Posted: 31 Mar 2019 at 12:04am
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I’ve had an older class C (and a B and an A) and I agree they are money pits. Anything with an engine in it is going to cost $$ to maintain. Just the way it is. Travel trailers cost money to maintain too but much less. So, while the acquisition cost of an older motorized RV are attractive, consider the total cost of ownership. If your existing vehicles are in shape and capable then there’s no reason they shouldn’t hold up towing. Just take it easy.
As lostagain says, if money is tight consider a lightly used travel trailer. Many folks buy them and sell them again a year or two later having used them only once or twice, often with many useful accessories. If you get a used one at a good price the worst thing that happens if your husband doesn’t like it is you sell it again in a year for not much less than you paid. Good luck! ------------- 1994 Chinook Concourse 1995 RV6A Experimental Aircraft 2015 Rpod 179 - sold |
Posted By: Happy Tripping
Date Posted: 31 Mar 2019 at 7:38am
I'm so glad you contacted us about this. It has been said that "A boat is a hole in the water to pour money into", a 'land boat' is the same. I'm afraid you should consider 'recalibrating' your wants/needs. A hard sided trailer is quiet at night for sleeping, usually has air conditioning (my favorite) and a decent bed. A toilet/kitchen can be improvised or just stay at rv parks of some sort. It sounds like a walk around bed is more important for you than any of these. Trailers smaller than an r-pod won't ever have a walk around bed. The original 171/172 r-pods were designed to enable a smaller vehicle to successfully tow a decent-sized trailer but they still require a minimal 3500 pounds towing capacity, and that is truly 'minimal', and they don't have a walk around bed. R-pods have successively gotten bigger, requiring bigger tow vehicles, until now a 191 really isn't in the original r-pod tradition. Realistically, if you want an inexpensive hard sided trailer with a walk around bed you will have to buy a larger used one and have a tow vehicle somewhere in the 5000-6000 pound towing capacity range, or maybe even larger. If you don't have a good tow vehicle, sooner or later you will be very, very, sorry.
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Posted By: Happy Tripping
Date Posted: 31 Mar 2019 at 8:01am
Dang. On my response, I meant '195' not '191'. If I knew how to edit I'd just change my response. ------------- "There comes a time in the affairs of a man when he must take the bull by the tail and face the situation" - W.C. Fields |
Posted By: Pod People
Date Posted: 31 Mar 2019 at 8:21am
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One other major consideration is the difference in function between an R Pod and a class c. with the R Pod,you park it in a nice camp site, enjoy the comforts, leave it there and drive to your daily tourist destination in your van. Return to your camp and the R Pod is already set up and waiting to be enjoyed. with the class c, you have to break camp, pack everything up and then drive it to your daily tourist destination, find a place to park it and then come back to the campsite and set it up again. Same thing next day. there is a LOT of daily setting up and tearing down, packing and unpacking with any class C if you leave the campground once you are set up. the R Pod is simple, set up once and leave as often as you wish. just my 2cents Vann ------------- Vann & Laura 2015 RPod 179 https://postimg.cc/0zwKrfB9"> 
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Posted By: Richand Cindy
Date Posted: 31 Mar 2019 at 9:23am
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Agree with Pod People. We are not campers but travelers. We set up in an area and then every day leave to go sightseeing and then it is back to the trailer at night. As great as RVing is, it is not necessarily a cheaper form of travel. Depending on how many days a year you will use an RV it might be cheaper to drive from place to place and stay in motels (with free breakfasts)/campgrounds. Many campgrounds have cabins or trailers to rent at very reasonable prices. We did that before retiring when only had a week or two for a vacation. Pick out a place you want to go to and research the cost of accomodations vs RV sites wth hookups and then factor in cost of buying used trailer. You might be surprised over the cost differential. ------------- OLD 2017.5 RPOD 180 + 2015 Jeep Cherokee Trailhawk NEW: 2018 Passport Elite 23RB + 2017 Ram 1500 Diesel |
Posted By: lostagain
Date Posted: 31 Mar 2019 at 9:30am
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[Happy, there is a drag down menu over on the upper right hand corner of each post entitled "Post Options." Click on it and the third item down is an edit function. Once opened, you can change anything you want, but watch out on some computers when you start editing it will erase things you may not want erased.]
Kimmie, you have a lot of options, with a trailer that you don't have with a class C both in places you can visit and the kind of campgrounds where there is space. A small class C will fit in many camp grounds where small trailers fit, but you're stuck there unless you towed a car and if that's the case, you lose the small camping vehicle advantage and eliminate some campgrounds. Some of the roads to campgrounds, even though the spaces are big, are hard to navigate with a class C, while you may find an articulated vehicle, e.g. towing a trailer where the vehicle bends in the middle allows you to make tighter turns and allows you to traverse rougher roads. "At the end of the day" you need to analyze what kind of places where you're going to camp and whether you need the flexibility of a trailer. If it's going to be mostly in commercial campgrounds, then you may as well get a class C and a little car to tow behind. If it's going to be remote Forrest Service campgrounds, then a small trailer may fit the bill a little better. There are plenty of good deals out there, especially if you can travel a little to look at them. But if you buy something with a motor and drive train, you'd be a lot better off finding one close enough where you can have a mechanic check out the drive train and make sure it's sound.
------------- Never leave footprints behind. Fred & Maria Kearney Sonoma 167RB Our Pod 172 2019 Ford F-150 4x4 2.7 EcoBoost |
Posted By: ArenaBlanca
Date Posted: 31 Mar 2019 at 11:42am
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I think the main difficulty is persuading your partner to go with what you decide. The LOML had a birthday this week and is now past the 70 year mark. But 4 years ago we took a small pop-up to Newfoundland. While it did have an A/C, it didn't have toilet facilities or a water heater. I'm 6'2" and I used one bed while she used the other one just so my head wouldn't be sticking through the canvas etc. While it was necessary to set it up each time we moved, it didn't take long. The worse parts for me was the noise in Newfoundland when the wind was blowing at 30 mph or more and trying to use the A/C in Canada (the temp was in the 90's and the campsite had a 20 amp outlet). Even taking the top down wet wasn't that bad. But, the important thing was, the camper and the trip was mutually agreed upon. And, when we got back, we mutually agreed to sell the pop-up and get a 179. ------------- Enjoy Life!! |
Posted By: Kimmie
Date Posted: 31 Mar 2019 at 6:24pm
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Thanks for the, giggle, Ford burst! My husband just loves fords and if I can share this with him he just might go for it!! I'm getting so giddy on getting a trailer.. ------------- Kimmie from Kansas Just passing thur LIFE |
Posted By: Kimmie
Date Posted: 31 Mar 2019 at 6:29pm
We have always taken care of our cars and trucks, papa always said if your planning a trip to town you best have a good well taken care of vehicle to get you there cause I ain't getting up from my chair to get you if she quits on ya. Wise words in my head.. Oh yes I do enjoy this board! In fact I was thinking of going to the little get together ya'll are having near KC! Would that be ok with you? ------------- Kimmie from Kansas Just passing thur LIFE |
Posted By: Kimmie
Date Posted: 31 Mar 2019 at 6:31pm
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Yes you are right engine cost..plus I could wait until next year when hubby retires to get a used r-pod 191 and maybe he could trade in his work truck and my van on a gently used tow vehicle..Thanks for the advise! ------------- Kimmie from Kansas Just passing thur LIFE |
Posted By: Kimmie
Date Posted: 31 Mar 2019 at 6:35pm
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Yep another fine point I missed! Thanks for pointing out about camp site sit up and leaving and coming back. Haven't really thought about that. Ya'll have such a great attitude on helping me and to get my hubby on board with this camping thing. Thanks again!! ------------- Kimmie from Kansas Just passing thur LIFE |
Posted By: Kimmie
Date Posted: 31 Mar 2019 at 6:38pm
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Love the idea of renting but something I'll have to talk to hubby about. Hum.. so much to think about! You guys are great! ------------- Kimmie from Kansas Just passing thur LIFE |
Posted By: Kimmie
Date Posted: 31 Mar 2019 at 6:42pm
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You know I never thought about the tiny little roads in some of the cutest RV parks. 31ft is going to be I believe to much of a dance I would want to go thru. Another bit to ponder over. Still I'm glad I have had this chance to have you all help me. Thanks ------------- Kimmie from Kansas Just passing thur LIFE |
Posted By: Kimmie
Date Posted: 31 Mar 2019 at 6:49pm
Oh that's a hoot of a story! Love your Newfoundland rv trip story!! Hubby is really wonderful its just that pushing him will make him put breaks on and I don't want that. My van would work for us to travel in as it has a large bed, kitchette and potty in it. However I lost my spleen to cancer and I don't want to catch something in a public bathroom shower that my body can not fight. Hum..Life is so short and we both being in our 60's has changed our lives thought pattern. How did you get your spouse to go on an rv trip with you? ------------- Kimmie from Kansas Just passing thur LIFE |