Recreational Vehicles are expensive because they include an engine to pull what is in effect a recreational trailer. They also are great because you don't have to attach/detach from another vehicle. Trailers are good because they are inexpensive - but you need to supply another vehicle and those in the towing vehicle cannot interact with anyone in the trailer (if it is even legal in your state to tow with anyone in the trailer). I suggest a vehicle that "docks" with a trailer to create an entire Recreational Vehicle.
Imagine the engine component as something like a pickup - with sides of the bed that drop down to make the vehicle very low. You back the "pickup" into a "dock" under the back of the trailer. The trailer looks like a full RV with controls and pedals, but has no engine - power is transferred from the docked vehicle by wheel grabbing devices. Control is done "by wire" when docked. Perhaps it could even leave the front wheels down to become the rear wheels of the Car-V (although you would have to configure the transmission to work equally well in forward and reverse).
What is nice about this is that you do not have to mess with trailer hitches, and you can have a vehicle ready to detach from the RV if you need to make a trip once you are at your campsite. You can even use the "pickup" component as a regular vehicle all the time you are not RV'ing, and get all the use out of having 1 engine.-- trekbody, Oct 28 2004 The first thing I found http://www.alaskancamper.com/slidesh.htmlAin't worth the energy to find more. [contracts, Oct 28 2004] A more hipper trailer http://www.halfbake...Hip_20Hop_20Trailer [theircompetitor, Oct 28 2004] But it is the remote control aspect that is the core of the idea.-- bristolz, Oct 28 2004 You've essentially described a "fifth wheel" camper, towed by a modified pickup truck. I don't see the advantage of "drive-by-wire," the pickup has a very competent set of controls built in already. If you want to drive the vehicle without stepping outside, get a Class A motor home and a tow dolly to drag the pickup truck behind.-- whlanteigne, Nov 03 2004 Why not combine the car with the RV cockpit. I'm thinking maybe a pickup style vehicle that docks in the front of the rv. Make the rear wall of the truck cab open up so passengers can get into the rest of the RV via the pickup box.-- BPhilpotts, Feb 09 2005 random, halfbakery