Community Forums

jackreno · 12-19-2020, 06:53 PM

I have been posting on 2 forums about a certain class B+ motorhome and also notice the same with others but someone on every thread always says there is no class B+, its either class C or B..

Well yes it is a fact there in no class B+ but there should be, a class C has that long over head bed and usually looks like a box, class B is just a glorified van turn into a rv..

Than there is that cutaway van without the over head bed and is sleek looking, in-between and a class B/van and a class C without the long over head bed.

Some on the class C forums say you need to go ask on the class B forums while on the class B forum they say go ask on the class C forum, its time for this madness to stop.

Even certain dealers use the term class B+..

I think its time for a actual class B+ term and a section on the RV websites.

Just my 2 cents..

groswald · 12-19-2020, 06:59 PM

Certainly there're B+'s. We started our RV adventure 7 years ago looking at B+'s. We really didn't like the beds though, too many years in a king.

We ended up with a 25' class A in 2014. It was really a D-, but that's another story. Our current coach is definitely and A though.

Regards,

Randy

Winterbagoal · 12-19-2020, 07:08 PM

Some manufacturers of small Class C (mini) motorhomes also refer to their units, without the cab over bunky, as "B Plus" motorhomes, because some buyers seem to balk at the idea of buying a "small class C". The dealers that refer to them as B Pluses are doing the same thing, trying to fool the buyer into thinking "you're not really buying a class C, it's just a bigger B" which is nonsense.
The RVIA is the authority on what's what in the RV world, and they do not recognize the mythical "Class B +" anywhere in their documentation except maybe to dispel it's existence. This list is the gospel of RV types. Motorized and towables.
http://https://www.rvia.org/news-ins...october-record
So, if it's not a van body that's been converted, intact, to a motorhome, there's no "B" in it. It's a small "C". If it's a box sitting on a cab chassis, it's a C, doesn't matter whether there's a cab over bunk or not, it's still a class C. I know, because I have one without the cab over. You'll see when you get the title document for your B+. It will say Class C motorhome. Same for when you insure it.
I'm not trying to pick an argument, just trying to help.

atreis · 12-19-2020, 07:08 PM

Currently the definition of what qualifies as a B+ is up to the manufacturer because it's purely a marketing term. I agree with the OP. It should get formal recognition and a definition from RVIA that would standardize its use across brands.

richard5933 · 12-19-2020, 07:09 PM

All depends on how you define things...

For many years it was something like this:

Class A - Motor home manufacturers started with a chassis and no body, then built the entire upper portion (both the cab end and the house end.)

Class C - Motor home manufacturers started with a cutaway chassis. The cab was already in place when they got it, but no house section. There are Class C motor homes out there with and without an over-cab bunk.

Class B - These were delivered to the motor home manufacturer as a complete van, with both the cab and body portions. Sometime portions of the body would be cut out and replaced with fiberglass panels. The over-cab bunk wasn't what made these a class B, it was that they were delivered to the motor home manufacturer as a complete van.

The house portions of the Class A and Class C have a totally build method than most Class B units. Since the chassis under the house is wide open, they often have the interior build first while it's still totally accessible, and then the walls and roof are fitted around them. That's why you'll see side walls on some units which are actually connected to the floors over the flooring.

Class B units are built inside already-existing van wall, which makes for a much more difficult construction style.

To me, the Class B+ identity started out as a marketing scheme, trying to set some models apart from others implying that they had more to offer than a traditional Class B. Often the over-cab bed was one of those things. Then you started seeing Class B+ units built on a small cutaway chassis, and things started getting very confusing.

Personally, I prefer to call a Class B+ a Class C- instead, since that's really what they are...diminutive Class C motor homes.

jackreno · 12-19-2020, 07:20 PM

I posted this thread on the class B forum and the moderators have moved it to the class C forum while keeping it linked to the class B forum for a week, so I am now more confused..

Winterbagoal · 12-19-2020, 07:27 PM

Trust the moderators, they know...

Dcbenny · 12-20-2020, 05:29 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by richard5933

All depends on how you define things...

For many years it was something like this:

Class A - Motor home manufacturers started with a chassis and no body, then built the entire upper portion (both the cab end and the house end.)

Class C - Motor home manufacturers started with a cutaway chassis. The cab was already in place when they got it, but no house section. There are Class C motor homes out there with and without an over-cab bunk.

Class B - These were delivered to the motor home manufacturer as a complete van, with both the cab and body portions. Sometime portions of the body would be cut out and replaced with fiberglass panels. The over-cab bunk wasn't what made these a class B, it was that they were delivered to the motor home manufacturer as a complete van.

The house portions of the Class A and Class C have a totally build method than most Class B units. Since the chassis under the house is wide open, they often have the interior build first while it's still totally accessible, and then the walls and roof are fitted around them. That's why you'll see side walls on some units which are actually connected to the floors over the flooring.

Class B units are built inside already-existing van wall, which makes for a much more difficult construction style.

To me, the Class B+ identity started out as a marketing scheme, trying to set some models apart from others implying that they had more to offer than a traditional Class B. Often the over-cab bed was one of those things. Then you started seeing Class B+ units built on a small cutaway chassis, and things started getting very confusing.

Personally, I prefer to call a Class B+ a Class C- instead, since that's really what they are...diminutive Class C motor homes.

paddykern · 12-20-2020, 05:31 AM

Four years ago I was on a quest to find the perfect MH for us.
Had a lust for a class B and looked at all the websites to see the inside layouts.
Discovered what was marketed as a B+. A small class C without an over cab bed.
Was considering something small but just slightly larger than a B.
Searching for B+ got me to exactly what I was looking for.
If I searched for a C, I got the large over cab bunk models.
Searching for a B+ I was able to find an interesting unit about 25 miles from my house.
Looked like the perfect MH for us.
Took the wife on a whirlwind tour of a bunch of dealers and saved the B+ for the last visit.
Wife fell in love with the B+ and we bought it.
So using the B+ for searching helped me exactly what I wanted while filtering out the larger C's I was not interested in.
So yes I know we have a C but describing it as a B+ tell most everyone that it is a smaller class C with no over cab bed.
Don't care if it is really a C or B+ or C-, I found what I wanted.

kenandterry · 12-23-2020, 03:00 PM

I KNOW we have a Sunseeker B+ because I know we absolutely DO NOT have a bed over top of the cockpit. Also, the interior width dimension is not as wide as other Sunseeker Class C units, and is in evidence by the rear wheel fender flares over the rear duallies.

Evidence photos attached.

garmp · 12-23-2020, 03:52 PM

We have a B+ and love it. The B+ we bought is made better than any C on the market. There are several reasons why I believe there should be a separate category for the B+. True that according to the original definition about the cut away and adding a body vs staying with in the existing walls, as in a B, they are a class C. But we do like being elitist and want our own category. Whats going to happen to the class B when they add slides? Call it a C-?

paddykern · 12-23-2020, 05:20 PM

Class D? :-)

Ron Dittmer · 12-23-2020, 06:28 PM

There are a rare few class B+s where the B+ cap is a mini-bunk. Phoenix Cruisers can be ordered in such fashion, though almost unheard of. The draw back with a bunk up there is the loss of easy entry into the front cab. But it increases rollover and side-impact protection because the van roof is not cut as is typically practiced throughout the class B+/C industry. The bunk makes for a bulk storage area, or sleeping provisions for youths or pets.

I had found this picture years ago of an old Phoenix Cruiser B+ with such a bunk.

This cut into the van roof is avoided which increases rollover and side-impact protection.

Calson · 12-27-2020, 09:36 PM

You must get terribly confused when you rent a car and see what is now called a standard or midsize or compact or large car or SUV.

I remember in the 1970's when a 1 pound coffee can started to appear on the market shelves with 14 ounces of coffee and then later when the 5 pound bag of sugar became a 4 pound bag.

People are equally confused about a 1-ton truck that now has a payload of 2 tons but they are still referred to as a 1-ton truck. And we have cars where the model designation refers to the displacement of the engine and has nothing to do with the actual car.