Compact Class C RV's All The Same?

[coachmanjay]

I am a current CH owner, my second. Had the first one for 9 years and had virtually no problems. They have a 3 year warranty that can be handled at any shop that can do the work. They sell factory direct so you don't run into "I didn't sell I won't fix it". Their one piece fiberglass shell is virtually bullet proof. Initially expensive but you get what you pay for and their value holds up. They do all the work in house. Same appliance mfg as other C's but they use top line models and the installation is done correctly. They are a family owned business that believes is customer service. I am in Sacramento, so if you would like too see the unit PM me

[avfordguy]

I have had a lot of motor homes class a class c and 2 diesel pushers, the biggest bsng for the v buck is a class c on a ford e450 chassis, solid chassis currently downsized from a 38 ft monaco dp to a fleetwood 31m, solid coach lots of room for its size,and price was right, buy used never new as it gives you a learning curve.

[SarahW]

Originally Posted by SuperJoe

Wow. That’s pretty darn limiting. I think I looked at a few B vans that have more capacity than that. Is this low OCCC the fault of the Sprinter chassis itself?

The Sprinter generally does have a more limited OCCC, but some manufacturers have found ways to maximize it. A Winnebago Navion 24V we saw today has 1302 lb OCCC. This varies significantly depending on the options, slides, etc. Always pay attention to the yellow sticker on the driver's door!

[milkman55]

After much research, we purchased the Dynamax Isata 3 24FW. Our unit’s yellow sticker is 943 lbs which is fine for the two of us and the 8 lb dog.

The fit and finish is great and the full body paint is hard to beat.

These can be bought for anout $90k, well below the Winnebago price point.

[SuperJoe]

Originally Posted by milkman55

After much research, we purchased the Dynamax Isata 3 24FW. Our unit’s yellow sticker is 943 lbs which is fine for the two of us and the 8 lb dog.

The fit and finish is great and the full body paint is hard to beat.

These can be bought for anout $90k, well below the Winnebago price point.

I looked at those. I found that the Rev had some actual innovation to it with the drop down bed in the front. Only problem is it seems to severely limit headroom, and blocks an AC vent when it's up. Sometimes I wonder what the heck these RV designers are thinking sometimes.

That Isata in your picture looks heavy on the rear axle. Is that just my imagination?

[SuperJoe]

Originally Posted by coachmanjay

I am a current CH owner, my second. Had the first one for 9 years and had virtually no problems. They have a 3 year warranty that can be handled at any shop that can do the work. They sell factory direct so you don't run into "I didn't sell I won't fix it". Their one piece fiberglass shell is virtually bullet proof. Initially expensive but you get what you pay for and their value holds up. They do all the work in house. Same appliance mfg as other C's but they use top line models and the installation is done correctly. They are a family owned business that believes is customer service. I am in Sacramento, so if you would like too see the unit PM me

Hey, I'm in Sacramento as well. I may take you up on the offer. I like the one piece shell concept that Coachhouse is using (turns out I must have requested a brochure from them as one is sitting under a pile of other stuff ).

If I went that route it would be very helpful to see one in person. Did you actually go out to Florida to check them out prior to ordering, and if so did they actually compensate you airfare and such? By the way, they look very expensive (like, Airstream Atlas expensive). Am I correct in that regard (you don't have to give me specifics)?

[AudiDudi]

Originally Posted by SuperJoe

Wow. That’s pretty darn limiting. I think I looked at a few B vans that have more capacity than that. Is this low OCCC the fault of the Sprinter chassis itself?

My Sprinter based Prism 24G has an OCCC of 1656.

[Dave Wish]

Check out Class C's by:

Phoenix Cruiser

Dynamax

Dave

[kellylipp]

We took delivery of our LTV Wonder FTB model on May 9, 2018 and took it for a five night maiden voyage in SW Utah. Ordered through Wagon Trail (now Van City) in Vegas last October after driving one during a one day show there. Loved the new floor plan.

Had the usual birth of an RV that you get when you buy an LTV. Rarely do you get to buy one "off the rack" and wait times can range up to a year.

We had a 2016 Unity MB that we sold to buy the new Wonder. Five key features were required to get us to move from the MBZ rig to Ford rig: Similar sized bathroom, better galley, better vehicle performance, better storage, better or equal sleeping. The Wonder FTB checked all the boxes. We already knew the build quality of the LTV and had toured a 'bago View. The difference is astonishing. You simply will not believe the difference in fit and finish and the Wonder is no different.

CCC of our rig is 1797 lbs. That surprised me. I don't recall what the Unity MB was but it wasn't that much. Granted the Ford only has a GCWR of 13000 Lbs (or so) so towing something is a concern but we only tow a Polaris RZR on a trailer so that didn't matter to us.


We are For people. Always had at least one Ford and now have three. Like the fact that you can get them serviced just about anywhere and the vehicle warranty is better than offered by MBZ. Important to us on our upcoming trip to Alaska.

Our Unity was technically larger and had more storage than our new Wonder the but the floorplan is so much more efficient and the storage better exploited. We are better campers as well so the whole rig simply feels more like home.

Perhaps the best thing about the Class B/C rigs is their portability. They handle so nice and can be parked just about anyplace you can use them without a towed vehicle. Setup and tear down is quick and the wife loves to drive which helps a bunch.

To the OP's original point about floorplans: there are only so many things you can do in 160 SQ FT! Gotta sit in a bunch of them in order to learn what you like and don't like. We liked the B+ because we know we won't be having guests and we have no kids or grandkids.

It's time get one and get out there!

[Bhhowie]

I am not a long time RVer, however I can tell you that the average Ford dealer is not a good bet. A lot them have little no experience with a E-350 or E 450 chassis, it is not the same as a cargo van.
I have used a truck shop with good results for normal work, oil, fluids, brakes.

In my mind looking at the little things that a MFG puts into the units or the engineering of them makes one or more stand out.

Just because they push out more units does not make them the best.

Make the time to make a trip to a factory to see them built.

[kellylipp]

And to echo your comment: the fact that this is a Transit and not the E series vans probably makes it a bit worse. However, from a supply chain point of view getting a spare part in the boonies for the Ford is probably easier than for the MB. And the sheer volume of Ford shops is a positive as well.

[russ harper]

my wife and I just purchased our first RV about 3 months ago. an 07 view. after a long learning period we,ve have taken a long trip to northwest, to southwest and then bac home to wisconsin. and really have'nt had any issues. very happy with the rv. seems like a great size for two of us. very reliable and the fue miliage is great compared to gas

[Ron Dittmer]

Hi SuperJoe,

You are right in that motor homes in the same size category can all look the same after a while.

Your consideration for a Coachhouse is a very good idea. We owned a seamless rig SEEN HERE for 24 years and it was great in that regards. As you can see in the linked pictures, ours was a stripped-down entry level without facilities. As simple as our rig was, it still took a lot of my attention for many years before the "repair/improvement madness" ceased.

Us turning 49 years old back in 2007, my wife and I needed more for our later years. We applied what we learned from that simple rig and special-ordered our Phoenix Cruiser 2350 SEEN HERE. That was 11 years ago. Based on all the required attention of our first motor home, I was expecting a lot worse with our second rig because of all it's facilities. I have had my hands in our second one a lot, but for other reasons, good reasons, fun reasons, just making it better to meet our needs better. Repairs to our PC have been very reasonable by comparison to our first rig. Little understandable things happen like our waste management macerator got tired, our kitchen faucet started dripping from calcium build-up, and I did address a few squeaks and rattles. My own worst enemy is myself, making mistakes with my own enhancements.

A Phoenix Cruiser will be cheaper than an equivalent Coachhouse. The Phoenix USA pricing tool HERE will total up your selection, then provide the factory-direct price at the end. The company recently had a price-hike, but rumor has it that you will be able to negotiate further down from that price. Also, if you don't want a slide out, like they did for us deducting the slide-out in our model 2350, doing so yields significant savings.

Three things Phoenix owners love about their rigs
1) over-all quality of design, fit, and general workmanship (no slop)
2) customer service (11 years later for us and I still receive great customer service for my little enhancement projects)
3) Phoenix does not price-gouge for your special-requests when special-ordering ex: If your request saves them a dollar, you save that dollar. A dollar more for them costs you a dollar more. I over-simplified, but you get the idea.

One final note if ordering a Phoenix Cruiser. If you want to carry a spare tire, you need to make certain they understand. They install a completely different rear exterior wall system to store the spare tire as seen on our PC. Buying a ready-made PC, the rear wall will not have a spare tire storage compartment.

If the Coachhouse is either too costly or otherwise unsatisfactory, consider one of the many models of the Phoenix Cruiser.

[two2go]

Originally Posted by SuperJoe

I did, however, just check out Coachmen, which is what I originally thought you meant (my bad). While my original general comments about “non uniqueness” still holds true for their Prism, at least the Orion is on a Ford Transit chassis. They deserve another look from me.

I'm a happy Orion owner. We've had our '17 model almost two years and only problems were a few coach QC issues which a dealer fixed. The drop-down bed is one of the top features for us. Real queen-size bed always made up, yet takes no floor space away. Yes, one vent and a/c outlet covered, but rarely an issue. I'm 6' tall and used to slightly ducking under the bed. As far as weight, the Transit seems quite capable. Here are my actual weights from a CAT scale. I didn't get my weight because I had to practically jump up to hit the call button beside the scale. We also tow a Smart car. BTW, these weights were with extra full load of liquids, 5 boxes of household gear, tools (transporting between winter and summer homes), and my wife and cat.

(Scale-GVWR-Margin)

Front axle 3220 - 4130 - 910 (740 if I deduct my weight)
Rear axle 5940 - 7275 - 1335

Total RV 9160 - 11300 - 2140

Smart car 1960

Total combined 11120 - 12300 - 1180

I've documented lots of experience on my blog .