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04-24-2019, 06:56 AM
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#1
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Senior Member
Join Date: May 2017
Posts: 1,299
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Why isn't a B+ called a C ?
I always thought that a Class B, was basically a standard cargo van converted by an upfitter to be an RV. Every Class B+ I have seen has an aftermarket/upfitter body and the same features of a Class C, admittedly in a smaller footprint.
Is it just that "B+" sound better than "small C" or "C-" ?
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Retired. 31 year of automotive engineering for one of the Detroit 3, specializing in Powertrain Control Systems.
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04-24-2019, 07:44 AM
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#2
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Senior Member
Forest River Owners Club
Join Date: Jul 2015
Posts: 349
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I'd go with sounds better. C- reminds me of my 4th grade phys ed grade where as B+ sounds like the rest of my report card . There are B+ MH bigger than my class C They're just missing the front overhang.
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Mary and Me😷😷Stay Safe
2015 Sunseeker 2650s "Finally" 2015 Jeep Cherokee Toad
2016 Ford Transit 350HD Cargo Van HR 3.2L I5 3.73RA DRW EL"Red Roamer"
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04-24-2019, 08:04 AM
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#3
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Senior Member
Join Date: Sep 2018
Posts: 1,944
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Quote:
Originally Posted by n-e-d
They're just missing the front overhang.
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Which is why I think calling it a C- is more accurate, as it's a Class C, minus the overhang.
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04-24-2019, 01:07 PM
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#4
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Senior Member
Join Date: Mar 2017
Location: Sarnialabad, Peoples Republik of Canuckistan
Posts: 2,223
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The mythical B+ exists only in the minds of some unscrupulous manufacturers and salespeople who sense that some shoppers don't want to buy a Class C. It's a means of fooling the potential buyer into believing they're really buying a slightly larger Class B. RVIA doesn't recognize their existence either, and they make the rules in the RV world. By definition of that same organization, if it's not an upfitted van, including the chassis and body, but rather a box placed on top of a cab chassis, then it's a Class C. (substitute the word Type for Class, where applicable, as that definition has changed too)
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04-24-2019, 04:29 PM
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#5
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Senior Member
Join Date: May 2017
Posts: 1,299
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Correct me if I am wrong. On the Transit, the van is built with unibody/monocoque construction. A B+/C would be built on a cutaway chassis which uses typical "ladder frame" construction.
Anyone know how the Mercedes B and C are built ?
In theory, the ladder frame should stronger or at least experience less body flex and possibly have a better trailer towing capacity.
__________________
Retired. 31 year of automotive engineering for one of the Detroit 3, specializing in Powertrain Control Systems.
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04-24-2019, 07:40 PM
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#6
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Senior Member
Join Date: Jan 2017
Posts: 166
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Marketing wise, the industry missed it. The should have called B+ as a C# or “C sharp” if you know music.
Part of the reason I have a B is I appreciate the engineering and safety built into a van body that is fully tested by the chassis manufacturer. Do Class B+/C manufacturers do crash testing?
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04-25-2019, 04:02 AM
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#7
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Senior Member
Forest River Owners Club
Join Date: Jul 2015
Posts: 349
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Push come to shove I think I'd rather be in my E450 Class C than my Transit in an accident(knock on wood)
__________________
Mary and Me😷😷Stay Safe
2015 Sunseeker 2650s "Finally" 2015 Jeep Cherokee Toad
2016 Ford Transit 350HD Cargo Van HR 3.2L I5 3.73RA DRW EL"Red Roamer"
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04-25-2019, 05:05 AM
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#8
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Senior Member
Join Date: Jul 2010
Posts: 5,309
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Quote:
Originally Posted by theoldwizard
I always thought that a Class B, was basically a standard cargo van converted by an upfitter to be an RV. Every Class B+ I have seen has an aftermarket/upfitter body and the same features of a Class C, admittedly in a smaller footprint.
Is it just that "B+" sound better than "small C" or "C-" ?
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You are correct that B+ sounds better than C-. Sounds like something must be missing or a lower level unit. To many a C has to be one with the bunk over the cab and the B+ doesn’t (that missing thing!).
Two related notes. Many dealers would advertise the old Winnebago Rialta as a B when in fact it was a classically built C. Two, Winnebago has several “B+” models but advertise them as C’s.
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Tom
2016 Newmar Bay Star Sport 3004
2021 Jeep Gladiator Sport Willys
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04-25-2019, 07:25 AM
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#9
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Senior Member
Join Date: Apr 2004
Posts: 3,773
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Slightly off topic, but here goes:
It could be that a van (or RV chassis van) is actually "safer" than your truck.
Given the complicated world of safety and emission standards, I wonder if the crash standards are different between a truck and van (Transit, Sprinter, etc vs. Ford F-150/250/350, Dodge Ram etc, etc). Or, for that matter, are there different weight/safety/mileage classes for different size trucks. I ask since manufacturers are always looking for ways to game the system. Did you know that the Chrysler PT Cruiser was listed as a "Light truck" since these requirements were more lenient than for a "car"?
Quote:
Originally Posted by n-e-d
Push come to shove I think I'd rather be in my E450 Class C than my Transit in an accident(knock on wood)
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__________________
George Schweikle Lexington, KY
2005 Safari (Monaco)Trek 28RB2, Workhorse W20, 8.1, Allison 1000 5 spd, UltraPower engine & tranny, Track bars & sway bars, KONI FSD, FMCA 190830, Safari Int'l. chapter. 1999 Safari Trek 2830, 1995 Safari Trek 2430, 1983 Winnebago Chieftain, 1976 Midas Mini
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04-26-2019, 03:36 AM
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#10
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Senior Member
Join Date: Dec 2016
Posts: 466
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When I started my quest for a small MH, searching for a class B+ got me the answers I wanted and made the search faster.
Filtering out the larger class C's with over cab bed helped me find the MH I wanted.
I decided on a 22' class C that I like to call a B+/C- when describing.
Maybe there should be a new class created, class D?
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2015 Pleasure-Way Plateau XL Wide Body
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04-26-2019, 04:55 AM
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#11
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Senior Member
Join Date: Sep 2012
Location: Palm Coast Florida
Posts: 12,995
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Actually calling an RV a B+ makes sense to me. I do not mind that marketing classification at all.
What I do not understand A, B, B+, C, super C is that B and B+ are in the middle of bigger A and C models.
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04-26-2019, 05:47 AM
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#12
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Senior Member
Join Date: Jan 2014
Location: Safety Harbor, FL
Posts: 2,483
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Quote:
Originally Posted by knit
Marketing wise, the industry missed it. The should have called B+ as a C# or “C sharp” if you know music.
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If your into software C, C++ and C# is a language. There is also the more obscure B and D.
B+ is definitely ambiguous in RV's I always thought the definition of a C was a cutaway chassis vs a B being a van shell. B+ seem to look almost like a van shell but on a cutaway.
Since Ford stopped doing E series vans you see companies like Sportmobile doing E series cutaways with a fiberglass shell that looks like the old van shell and only slightly larger:
Don't forget Super C.
How about an A+???
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2022 Thor Palazzo 33.5
2016 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited Rubicon Toad - Readybrute Elite Towbar
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04-26-2019, 06:08 PM
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#13
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Senior Member
Thor Owners Club
Join Date: Aug 2010
Location: Delaware
Posts: 614
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I'm always amused that anyone gets bent out of shape about the designation "B+." No, it doesn't necessarily make sense (but then if this categorization scheme was to make sense, wouldn't C be B and vice versa, due to size?), but the bottom line is that most of the RV world knows what B+ and Super C stand for. When we were looking to downsize, we wanted a B+ (because a B was just too small and most Cs were too big) and looked at coaches that were marketed as such. It worked for us, and for the manufacturers. Anyone else is free to call them whatever they want, I don't care!
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Crabby Mike
2024 Renegade Veracruz 30VRM
towing 2019 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited Sahara
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04-27-2019, 08:14 AM
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#14
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Senior Member
Join Date: May 2017
Posts: 1,299
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Is one of the differences between a B+ and a C no bunk over the car ?
__________________
Retired. 31 year of automotive engineering for one of the Detroit 3, specializing in Powertrain Control Systems.
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