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Old 09-23-2021, 03:39 PM   #1
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Winnebago Adventurer or Georgetown GT5

Posturing for a future purchase of a late model class A gasser. Have it narrowed down (maybe) to Adventurer or Georgetown GT5.
Any info about these 1-3 year old units will be of help.

Blessings,

Tim
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Old 09-23-2021, 03:58 PM   #2
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I have a 2017 Adventurer. Be aware that in 2018 Winnebago discontinued the Adventurer because it had gotten to over $200,000 MSRP... Mine was $210K. There were only a handful of 2018's made. Then in 2019 Winnebago took a lessor model called the Vista LX and renamed it the "all new Adventurer."

The "new" Adventurer is still a very nice RV but a real step down from the old model.

The older Adventurer was basically their Journey diesel pusher interior on a F53 Gas chassis. The main differences between the 2017 Adventurer and the 2019 Adventurer were all wood furniture and cabinetry throughout and a fully ducted A/C system. The re-labeled Vista LX had real wood doors but not frames, etc. And they made the ceiling thinner which got rid of the fully ducted A/C. The outlets are ducted but return air is via A/C unit protruding in the ceiling. Fully ducted is quieter and more efficient. Real wood is better than just wood doors.

I bring all this up because of the age of the units you are considering.

Keep in mind for both brands that Ford changed to a 6-speed transmission in 2016 and it shows up most often on 2017 and later. It's a vast improvement over the old 5-spd. You can spot it immediately by looking at the PRNDL on the shift column. The 6-speed has Drive followed by a 4 and the 5-spd has Drive followed by a 3. You really want a 6-speed.

The Georgetown motorhomes I looked at in 2017 were a serious step down over the Adventurer at that time. But then, I was moving from a Forest River Forester Class C to a new Class A and I had so many problems with my Forest River product that I was not about to purchase another.

We still have our 2017 Adventurer - camping in it right now as I write this - and we love it. It's a great, well-built motorhome and Winnebago has been super to work with.
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Old 09-24-2021, 10:34 AM   #3
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All good things to know. I didn't know that they downgraded the Adventurer. Probably a show stopper since one of our critical points is quiet AC. We have a Hathaway 5th wheel now and the AC noise is marginally acceptable.
Thanks for the history lesson!

TC
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Old 09-24-2021, 02:25 PM   #4
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Tcrossan View Post
Posturing for a future purchase of a late model class A gasser. Have it narrowed down (maybe) to Adventurer or Georgetown GT5.
Any info about these 1-3 year old units will be of help.

Blessings,

Tim
I'm sorry my opinion won't mean much to you. But I'd like to get a better idea. You just said Adventurer and Georgetown gt 5. What is the Yr you are looking at? What Model? The GT5 has 4 floorplans and lengths and the Adventurer has 5. I don't mean to inconvenience you, just wanna get a better picture.
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Old 09-24-2021, 08:59 PM   #5
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We are considering either new or maybe 3 years old. Thinking of selling our 5th wheel in January 22
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Old 09-25-2021, 05:03 AM   #6
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We are considering the 34h5 and the 36B5 GT the 35F or 36Z Adventurer.
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Old 09-25-2021, 05:38 AM   #7
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Look closely at the Cargo carrying capacity (CCC) on the Adventurer. The two you are looking at are on the 22,000 lb chassis and CCC is pretty skimpy.
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Old 09-25-2021, 07:25 AM   #8
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I disagree that the 6 speed transmission is a lot better than the 5 speed. We have a 2011 that we drive in the mountains a lot and it does fine. Also, the 6 speed only uses 5 gears at a time. It changes the shift pattern with air temperature.
Definitely look at OCCC for any coach you are considering. We have 4025# of OCCC on a 20,500# chassis and our next door neighbor has 3100# on his 26,000# chassis. We currently use about 3400# of ours and there are only two of us. We have owned two Winnebago coaches and now own a Coachmen (owned by Forrest River). We have had far fewer issues with the coachmen, but I do not know how the newer units compare. I would expand my search to include coaches back to 2010 for gas and back to about 2004 for diesel.
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Old 09-25-2021, 11:02 AM   #9
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I disagree that the 6 speed transmission is a lot better than the 5 speed.
That's fine. I've owned both and the 6 speed is a huge improvement. Plus search any discussions about this on this or other forums and you'll see universal agreement on this fact.

If you've only had the 5 speed you may not really know what you're missing. Even if you spring $500 for the 5-Star ECM flash that changes the shift points on the 5-speed the 6-speed is miles better overall.
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Old 09-25-2021, 11:11 AM   #10
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One of the things about Winnebago products is they provide a vast amount of online info about each model, going back over 20 years.

You can find wiring diagrams, plumbing diagrams, and an interactive 3D Parts catalog that lets you fly over your coach and zoom in on every part. In many cases you can drill down to the exact screws used to install the part.

Each Winnebago motorhome comes with a custom printed Operator's Manual - not a collection of product manuals from 3rd Party vendors and these product manuals are also available online so you always have access to the info you need.

For instance, here's the Operator's Manual for a 2020 Adventurer:

file:///Users/pgreen/Desktop/20Adventurer.pdf

And here's a link to the 3D Parts List for a 2020 Adventurer 35F built in the 2nd half of the model year (yes, it gets that detailed):

https://catalog3d.winnebagoind.com/2020/20wff35f.htm

When I bought a new Forest River Class C in 2015 all I got was a plastic bag with manuals from 3rd party OEM suppliers and they didn't have any of this more detailed info available online. Granted, I don't know if that's true for their Class A products.
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Old 09-25-2021, 12:38 PM   #11
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[QUOTEAlso, the 6 speed only uses 5 gears at a time. It changes the shift pattern with air temperature..[/QUOTE]


Do you have a technical reference for this? I have about 15,000 all-season miles on my 2019 F53 and have never had an occasion when all 6 gears were not available.
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Old 09-25-2021, 03:06 PM   #12
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Quote:
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Quote:
Also, the 6 speed only uses 5 gears at a time. It changes the shift pattern with air temperature..

Do you have a technical reference for this? I have about 15,000 all-season miles on my 2019 F53 and have never had an occasion when all 6 gears were not available.
I have 40,000 miles on mine and I too don’t think the 6 spd operates as stated. It’s not changing shift pattern with air temp.
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Old 09-26-2021, 04:48 AM   #13
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Thanks. You all are giving us helpful information. I like getting an owners manual for my specific product. I also got a bag of mostly useless tech sheets and installation manuals with the Hathaway. Generic manual is available online.
We may also look at a Canyon Star by Newmar. The have bath and a half floor plans in them although now the '21 m/y is diesel and way past what I'm willing to pay for a rec vehicle.
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Old 09-26-2021, 06:18 AM   #14
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I disagree that the 6 speed transmission is a lot better than the 5 speed. We have a 2011 that we drive in the mountains a lot and it does fine. Also, the 6 speed only uses 5 gears at a time. It changes the shift pattern with air temperature.
Definitely look at OCCC for any coach you are considering. We have 4025# of OCCC on a 20,500# chassis and our next door neighbor has 3100# on his 26,000# chassis. We currently use about 3400# of ours and there are only two of us. We have owned two Winnebago coaches and now own a Coachmen (owned by Forrest River). We have had far fewer issues with the coachmen, but I do not know how the newer units compare. I would expand my search to include coaches back to 2010 for gas and back to about 2004 for diesel.
Umm, no.

The 6 speed uses all 6. I built an OBD II-based “head up-ish” display that shows both the stalk setting (Selected Gear) and the actual gear the TCU is calling for (Commanded Gear). All 6 are used, all the time, in the newer tranny.

Per a Ford tranny engineer, the 5 speed is actually two three speeds bolted together. Of the 6 available gears only 5 are used at a time. A search of the forums will find his excellent posts.

Having had both, the 5 is quite capable, but the 6 is a definite improvement. Shifts are smoother and less frequent, and the double-downshift from 5th to 3rd is gone.

Regards,

Randy
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