Before You Drive an American Motorhome

Posted by sophiamilller on December 26th, 2012

If you are looking for convenience when holidaying, finding and buying a unit from companies that offer motorhomes for sale is a good idea.  American motorhomes will provide you with home comforts plus vehicle flexibility. You may wish to visit foreign countries without having to worry about your accommodation expenses.  You may also be allowed to have access to locations which are out of way.  However, when you travel abroad in a motorhome, you are required to carry with you the correct documentations such as passport, driving license and insurance.

When you buy a motorhomes for sale, you’ll find that most of them have the same basic design like a driver’s cab with an accommodation space at the back.  It has windows, kitchen, beds, and a toilet.  The number of berths or built in beds is dependent upon the size of the American motorhome.  During daytime, the beds are converted into seats surrounding a dining table.  You may also find some motorhomes for sale containing a cab compartment that you can use for sleeping also, so adding to the number of berths.

If you have a car driving license, that is enough for you to drive an American motorhome.  But, if your motorhome is rather large and has a weight of more than 3.500 kg., it is likely that you will need to secure a special license like the medium goods vehicle license.  You may also have to apply for an international license when you go holidaying abroad.  With regards to insurance, it will be wise to shop around.  Motorhomes are viewed by some insurance companies as a vehicle which is less risky compared to many vehicles traveling on the road.  So check everything and  see if your policy covers personal items, international travel, and so on.

If you want to carry as many passengers as you can in your American motorhome, you are allowed to do so, provided they are with their seatbelts on.  The many motorhomes for sale today have numbers of the designated seats all with seatbelts, and these are the only number of passengers that you should carry.  You are liable for their safety, so it is important that you do not exceed the required number of people that you carry.

The toilet of a motorhome is a chemical toilet, where waste is deposited in a tank filled with chemicals.  The tanks should be emptied in the proper places like the caravan parks and never on the sides of the roads.  There is also a proper place designated for disposing your laundry water.  This will prevent your water resources to become polluted. 

The payload refers to the weight of your motorhome.  You can find your vehicle payload in the manufacturer’s literature that comes with the unit.  It is important that you know your vehicle payload when you are at boarder controls and are crossing bridges and  ferries. Be careful not to overload the back axle when putting extra weights or packing your personal effects in the compartment at the back

In America, motorhomes are larger than in Europe, so an American motorhomes are a good investment, so choose wisely and select the motorhome suitable for your use from the huge number of motorhomes for sale available in the market.