Knowing that we wanted to economize we set out to find a used vehicle. After a three week exhaustive search we finally found a 2003 Newmar Kountry Star 38 1/2' diesel pusher that someone had traded in for a newer version. The extra six feet longer than our rental gave us a hanging closet, washer dryer, and a few feet of room behind the passenger's seat so Adam can recline. I always said I needed to be a country singer in order to live in one of these buses and now mine says I am right on the front! It is complete with a living room/dining room, separate bathroom area and corner shower, and a bedroom fitting a queen-sized bed. It has three slide-outs so the space inside gets more comfortable once we open the slides. The living room grows to about 200 sq ft. We have leather captain's chairs up front, a sofa bed and recliner. It sleeps about four-five people given that the sofa and dining booth convert to beds. Granted, we don't have the fancy finishes a real country star would have, but it's very comfortable for us. 
Next we needed a tow-car. The RV community refers to this as a "toad" or "dinghy." Most full-timers tow a car rolling on all four wheels so they don't have to deal with a car dolly. We discovered that flat-towing our Toyota Hilander was impossible because it is an AWD hybrid and there are no third-party adaptations that would allow this to work. If we pulled it as is, then we would ruin the transmission. That meant we were off to research cars. Saturns and Jeeps tend to be the tow-cars of choice because in most cases no adaptations are necessary to flat-tow them. They are also lightweight. However, because my husband requires an electric wheelchair we needed a vehicle that could carry it which limited us to minivans.
There are also tow weight limits for each type of motorhome depending on their engine. Diesel pushers tend to be able to tow up to 7500-10,000 lbs and gas vehicles can usually only tow up to 5000 lbs. Minivans all weigh more than 5000 lbs so it was important for us to know what we were towing before we purchased our motorhome. It was a good thing we did this research all at the same time. The tow bar equipment was also dependent on the weight of the towed vehicle. We settled on a Toyota Sienna and the Blue Ox tow bar system that allows towing up to 10,000 lbs. The Blue Ox system offered invisible connections on our van so when we disconnect from the RV we do not have to ride around with a large bar on the front of the car obviously identifying it as a towed vehicle. This system will work for any vehicle for which Blue Ox makes a baseplate.
Now that we knew what was needed to connect the van and the RV the last step necessary in order to flat-tow the minivan required modifying the transmission with the Remco lube pump. This is not without risks and potential failures, but overall we are very happy with the third-party product and the ability to pull the car that suits our lifestyle.
Many states require an additional braking system installed inside a tow car and since we are planning to travel through most of the states and we were towing a heavy vehicle we decided to be safe and put one in. Many retailers were pushing "Brake Buddy" which is a large box that sits at the base of the driver's seat and applies pressure to the car brake based on a digital signal. Since we didn't want to rely on a signal or have a huge box to store in the car we went with an air pump proportional braking system called "Brakemaster." It looks like a metal tube that connects to the brake pedal and braces at the base of the seat. This is Roadmaster product and many places don't like to put them in because they have to run an air hose the length of the RV, so it's a bit of work for the shop. But, the difference in price of product and price in labor end up making the products about the same price. We love the system, the size and the fact that we are hard-wired together. Thanks, Kevin at Camping World for the suggestion!
We can not live without one other piece of equipment: our Garmin Nuvi 465T gps system. The key feature that makes this unit so special is the truck mode feature that enables us to enter our total specifications and avoid narrow roads and low overhangs. Maps are great, but with this I have great peace of mind. It also lists where there are truck stops and gas pumps with high clearance, repair shops, and other items pertaining to over-the-road trucking. Following these guides makes my life much easier and less stressful. Our train is complete at 55' total feet long, 10' wide and 13' high. And we are off!
