Truck camper vs Sunrader, and a dog

[Idres]

Hi, I'm at the beginning of the RV life planning phase. I'm torn between a 4x4 v6 Sunrader and a 4x4 V6 Tacoma with a camper. I really want to be able to move from driving to living without always going outside, for safety. Does anyone out there have experience with a pickup with a cut through to the camper? 
My goal is to be at the RTR 2020, but before then purchase and fine tune my new home. 
I also wonder about heating and cooling RVs during the day....is it feasible to keep an RV comfortable all day for a dog?  I plan on working and I would love to have my dog with me.
Thanks for any ideas!

 

[maki2]

You likely won't have much choice. A 4x4 V6 Sunrader is likely to be impossible to find on the open market and if you do find one it won't be reasonably priced because they  have waiting lists of people wanting to buy them.

 

[Idres]

Good to know, that makes the decision easier! I'm leaning more toward a Tacoma anyway because of reliability, but I do love the set up of a Sunrader.

 

[highdesertranger]

Welcome Idres to the CRVL forums! To help you learn the ins and outs of these forums, this "Tips, Tricks and Rules" post lists some helpful information to get you started. We look forward to hearing more from you. highdesertranger

 

[maki2]

One more thing about Sunraders, the framing for the cabinets and the furring strips behind the walls are all made of particle board. I used to own a Sunrader, and I know what I am talking about. They have a lot of pluses but they also have some minuses. For instance the floor down the center aisle did not have sufficient support so it sags down and bounces. Most people have to lay a second layer of plywood on top of the original layer and bond and screw the together. That cuts down on the headroom so if it is already tight on you it will be more so. A 5'11" man can barely stand up inside with the original flooring. The floor pan on the bathroom is not well supported from below, they can split and crack. I had to inject some expanding foam under it in front of the toilet area and also do some fiberglass repair work near the opening for the toilet flange to fix cracks in that floor pan.

There are screws all along the center join line. The screws they used were often too long. They should have been cut shorter by the mechanics who built them but sometimes they did not do that. That meant that over time water got trapped inside of the metal trim that has a vinyl insert. Then those stainless screws started rusting out and small leaks happen all along that joint line, leaks that are unseen behind the walls but that soak all that particle board furring behind the walls. That leads to cabinets coming apart, floor material rotting and mold behind the walls too. It was also the unkown cause of leaks in the overcab where people kept thinking the leaks were coming from the windows rather than realizing it was coming from that belly band joint in through the screw holes. Those pesky little leaks caused a lot of frustration for owners who kept trying to fix the seals on the windows., especially those curved corner front windows and still had leaks and failed. When all along the problem was the hidden behind the vinyl trim and wall panels screw holes that were doing the slow leaking. It is best to take a Dremel with a fiber cut off disc and add a few drain slots at the lower edge of that metal trim band so that standing water does not accumulate inside of the trim band.

The Sunraders of the era who had running lights up top invariably have all of them leaking. The tail lights also leaked and you can't get them anymore so you have to rework those openings and put in substitute tail lights.

So while they are pretty cool rigs they are not nearly as leak proof as people make them out to be. You do have to take the time to address the known issues and then they will live up to what you expect from them.

 

[Firtree]

IMO without real world experience but with a new to me 3/4 ton 4x4 truck, I think it is very hard to get a truck camper that’s not going to be overloaded and hard on the truck, springs, brakes etc. Watch those 4 wheeled camper & truck go down the highway and take a curve or change lanes and there seems to be lots of motion going on. Your shocks, springs, tires, all front end mechanics need to be in tip top shape. Duallies seem to handle the sway better but then you have 6 tires, two inside to check tire pressure, a full ton frame and then if you want 4x4 you have an expensive and complicated machine.
I’m looking for something light enough and safe for my truck. I’m early in my studies but doesn’t appear good.

The crawling though the back window and camper window is not something I’d want to do but maybe once. Both windows need to be wide enough and I don’t know how strong and sharp the window frames and edges are.

My thinking a 3/4 to full ton van the easier, safer way to go. Forget the 4x4 and see all the wonderful places you can 2x4.
Hopefully I’m wrong about all this and someone will correct.