The peto kolo vs. travel trailer debate can cause some confusion. If you’ve decided to join the camping world and buy an RV, you have some decisions to make. Perhaps you know you want a towable RV, but you may not know whether a fifth wheel or travel trailer would best suit your needs. 

Visokokakovostno ulito sedlo JSK 37C

How do you decide which one is best? Let’s take a closer look at the fifth wheel vs. travel trailer debate. Maybe then you’ll have a better understanding of what each type of towable has to offer!

Prednosti vlečenega avtodoma

Narrowing it down to a towable RV shows progress. Motorized RVs, sometimes called drivable RVs, certainly have their perks. But you’ll find some advantages to owning a towable RV. 

First, you have a separation between your living space and your vehicle. Often this means more space inside the RV, even if your towable is shorter because you don’t have the front cab taking up several feet. The separation of home and vehicle also means when you travel, you can put more things in the truck or SUV and not take up room in the RV.

Imeti ločeno vozilo je tudi prednost, ko prispete in se postavite v kamp. Nato lahko vzamete svoje vlečno vozilo in stečete v mesto po živila ali se zapeljete po slikoviti obvoznici, ne da bi s seboj povlekli celotno opremo.

Peta kolesa v primerjavi s potovalnimi prikolicami na prvi pogled

Now let’s look at the fifth wheel vs. travel trailer dilemma. There are several differences worth noting. Once you have an idea of how you want to travel and where you plan to camp, you can make the best decision for your needs.

The differences below don't make one good or bad; they’re just different. Although you can set up a fifth wheel more easily, you have more towing options with a travel trailer. So just note both have pros and cons.

Velikost

Pri različnih vrstah avtodomov se velikost zelo razlikuje. Lahko vozite 30 ft avtodom razreda A ali 40 ft avtodom razreda A. Najdete lahko 30 ft dolge potovalne prikolice in težje 25 ft dolge prikolice. Ne glede na velikost, ki jo želite, lahko najdete tisto, ki vam najbolj ustreza.

In general, the space inside a fifth wheel will feel larger than the space inside a travel trailer because of the higher ceilings. If you compare a 34 ft travel trailer and a 28 ft fifth wheel, you might feel like the fifth wheel is bigger even though it’s several feet shorter. A fifth wheel’s ceiling measures about 9 ft compared to a typical travel trailer’s ceiling, around 6 to 7 ft, because the front cap sits over the truck’s bed. For taller individuals, this matters a lot.

Poleg višine stropa so sedla običajno daljša in širša od potovalnih prikolic. Ponujajo največ za vaš denar. Sedla imajo običajno več prostora zaradi drsnikov na nasprotnih straneh, ki povečajo prostor. Prostor glavne spalnice je prav tako večji zaradi tobogana.

Voznost

Sedla bodo skoraj vedno zmagala v kategoriji voznih lastnosti. To je zaradi različnih vrst kljuk. Potovalna prikolica, imenovana tudi vlečenje odbijača, se prek sistema krogle in kljuke pritrdi na zadnji del vlečnega vozila. Nekateri ljudje menijo, da je potovalno prikolico težje vleči, ker je vlečno vozilo manjše. Vozniki občutijo več nihanja in manj nadzora, čeprav bo težko tovorno vozilo pomagalo nekaj tega odpraviti.

On the other hand, a fifth wheel attaches to a special hitch in the bed of a truck. Because it has several feet and a couple of thousand pounds of the RV in the truck’s bed, it places more weight on the rear axle. This means you have more control when towing. 

The turning radius decreases because the fifth wheel hitch pivots to about 90 degrees. Drivers don’t have to swing out as far when making tight turns. The ride is also smoother when towing a fifth-wheel because of the hitching system.

Cena

Usually, a fifth wheel will be more expensive than a travel trailer. Regardless of length, fifth wheels are heavier and require more production time due to the front cap design. If you have a smaller budget, you probably won’t find a fifth wheel to suit your needs. 

Nova potovalna prikolica bo stala okoli 25.000 do 35.000 $, medtem ko se bo novo sedlo začelo pri približno 40.000 $, vendar lahko zlahka najdete modele nad 100.000 $. Tudi to se razlikuje glede na velikost, možnosti in znamko.

Notranja oprema

V obeh vlečenih možnostih lahko dobite vse, kar želite. Če želite kuhinjski otok, lahko najdete potovalne prikolice in tlorise sedla, ki ga ponujajo. Ali pa če želite pograd, bosta oba vlečena avtodoma imela modela s prostorom za otroke. Če je stanovanjski hladilnik obvezen, ga lahko dobite v potovalni prikolici ali sedlu, če imate 50-amperski model. 

So the inside amenities compare. The biggest difference inside is the ceiling height and number of slides. As already mentioned, these features make fifth wheels feel bigger and homier, even if they’re shorter.

Poraba goriva

Poraba goriva je bolj odvisna od velikosti in teže vlečenega avtodoma kot od dejanske zasnove. Ker so sedla običajno težja, bolj obremenjujejo tovornjak in povečujejo porabo goriva. 

Additionally, many fifth wheels need to have trucks or diesel engines to tow them, which adds to the cost of fuel. A smaller travel trailer will be much more efficient traveling along the interstate or up mountain inclines because they don’t weigh as much.

Enostavnost namestitve

This aspect of the fifth wheel vs. travel trailer debate is about the hitching system. Because you can easily unhitch a fifth wheel, setting it up feels like a breeze compared to setting up a travel trailer. The kingpin simply slides out of the hitch — no manual labor involved. Often, fifth wheels come with automatic leveling, so with the push of a button, your rig will be set up in a matter of a few minutes.

Po drugi strani pa morate opraviti več dela, da odpnete odbijač. Morate dvigniti jezik in sneti nihajne drogove in verige. Večina zahteva nekakšno ročno izravnavo, zato boste morda porabili več časa za postavljanje kampa s potovalno prikolico. 

Shranjevanje

Sedla imajo običajno več prostora za shranjevanje kot potovalne prikolice. To je posledica njihove povečane višine. Sprednji predali za shranjevanje so višji zaradi 2 do 3 stopnic, ki vodijo do sprednjega pokrova. 

The bottom of the RV remains at the same height while the interior floor goes up about three feet. This gives you more storage space underneath. They also have the addition of the storage bay under the front cap that travel trailers don’t have because of the tongue.

Make Sure You’re Towing with the Right Vehicle

One of the most important decisions when choosing an RV is having the right tow vehicle. If you already own an SUV, you will need to look for travel trailers. You can’t tow a fifth wheel with an SUV.

You also want to pay attention to towing and payload capacity of trucks when considering a fifth wheel. Even though a fifth wheel may only weigh 9,500 lbs, its payload may exceed what your Ford F-150 with Ecoboost engine can hold. It’s recommended to tow fifth wheels with a three-quarter-ton truck or heavier so the rear axle can handle the extra weight.

You must pay careful attention to the GVWR of the RV to know what towing capacity your vehicle needs to have. Many RVers choose to follow the 80/20 rule, which means not exceeding 80% of the vehicle’s towing capacity. This leaves room for human error in any calculations and doesn’t put too much stress on the tow vehicle.

Katera vlečna naprava je prava za vas?

Your dreams to visit state parks, mountains, and beaches can come true with the right RV. You just have to decide which type of towable will work best for you. When you’re shopping for your perfect RV, we recommend acting like you’re using it. Pretend to cook a meal, lounge on the couch, stand in the shower, and sit on the toilet. If you do this in enough RVs, you’ll be able to tell which floor plan and layout will work with your family.