New class B forum

[skp51443]

The forum was still empty this morning so I'm adding a post so any class B owners using the new content viewing tool will see it.

[sandsys]

Welcome to my world. I didn't start this forum but I am one of the few Escapees traveling in a class B so I'm here. I'm currently blacktopping at a facility in Durham, North Carolina, so not actually traveling but I am living in my Class B motorhome. Going to have to find a place to dump my tanks pretty soon. Anyone else out here in a B? Or know a good place to dump around here?

 

Linda Sand

[Newt]

http://www.sanidumps.com/sanidumps_usa.php?id=47

[trostberg]

I travel in a class b and volunteer in warmer than WI climates in the winter. I will be on the road for 8 months this week enter since I left early for the balloon fiesta in ABQ last week.

[jondannewald]

We have new to us, Class B+ motorhome!

 

It's a 2007, Triple E Regency, 28 ft long, 2 slides on a Ford E450 chassis powered by a V10. Our towed is a 2008 Honda Fit.

 

We 'upsized' our 5th wheel to a Excel, 40 foot with 4 slides that will stay on our lot in Alamo Texas. We traded our 30 foot 5th wheel and Ram 2500

for the motorhome.

 

Now we can travel from northern Ontario to southern Texas in comfort and have a big place to spend the winter. We also have comfortable housing for summer travel from our lakeside cottage in Haliburton.

 

To us the B+ is the perfect fit for our lifestyle, big enough to be comfortable for traveling several weeks of the year and small enough to not break the bank while it sits for months at a time.

[katsus98040]

Hi, I'm Katsus, luvin' my 2005 Rialta QD - a 20' VW cab with a Winnebago coach that I can drive all over, park wherever I want, and live comfortably for months at a time. I just returned from a 14,000+ trip that took me from our home near Seattle, WA down the west coast and across I-10 to Fort Lauderdale FL. There, I parked my Rialta while I went on a 2 month cruise to Carnival in Rio and up the Amazon River. Back in the US, I followed warm weather up the east coast doing genealogy, visiting Civil War battlefields, and meeting a lot of great people. After 3 months, I turned back west in Quebec (too much rain!), went to Niagara Falls and spent a couple of months in NY, MI, OH, and IA doing more genealogy. I couldn't pass up the challenge of driving the "Going to the Sun Road" in Glacier National Park on my way back to WA. I boondocked all but 10 nights - easy in my Rialta - and averaged 16.7 mpg. I have now been in all but 2 continguous states in my RV - missed Wisconsin and Rhode Island somehow - I'm saving Alaska for next summer. All I need is a couple of solar panels on my roof and I'm set!!! Any other Rialtas out there??? Regards, Kat

[Kirk W]

Welcome to the forums, Kat! I've not owned a class B, but we have a couple of friends who own & love them.

[jeomelia]

We just got home after 40 day on the East coasts, Myrtle Beach, the Outer Banks NC, Assateague Island, up to RI with CT an RI being the last of the lower 48 that we have camped in. We took the old routes until we got close to NY then Traffic got heavier as we approached I95 and I was glad I was driving the Roadtrek and not the truck with the trailer'

[sandsys]

I'm currently in North Carolina living in the parking lot of a place that is helping me become a healthier me. I am so happy to have a vehicle that fits right next to the facility's shuttle bus plus solar panels that let me do things like this.

 

Linda Sand

[TXiceman]

My sister-in-law travels in a 17' Road Trek. She loves it, but is now looking to move up in size to the small Allegro rear diesel chassis. Quiet a step up.

 

Ken

[cooksd]

We just bought a much used but well cared for B. Still have our A but believe we will like the versatility of having two sizes. Anyone else doing this?

[Jack Mayer]

We just bought a much used but well cared for B. Still have our A but believe we will like the versatility of having two sizes. Anyone else doing this?

We are looking for a small A. About 27-28'. But no larger than a MAX 30', and that is really larger than I want. We are in no hurry....

 

Right now our top pick is the Winnebago Vista 27N (identical to the Sunstar 27N). We will keep what we have and use the small MH for extended side trips into areas where our larger rig would be less than ideal.

[cooksd]

Jack, I enjoy and learn from your comments and web site. Thanks for the time you invest. Our A, a 34' 07 Bounder, is far from huge but it is too large to park in the trailhead of many of the bike trails we like. The size suits us just fine for four months in Florida each winter. We visit family at several locations in Florida and move around some, but mostly stay at Summer Oaks in Bushnell.

 

The "new" B is a 98 Leisure Travel Widebody, purchased from the original owner after he lost his wife. I hope I can keep it as nice looking as they did. We have already used it in ways we could not have used the A. The fuel mileage makes up a little of the extra cost of owning two.

[DRK]

We keep down sizing from a 40 foot pusher when we were full timing. When we stopped FT to a 29 foot C and just 3

months ago went to Forest City to pick up our new 2015 Winnebago Era (Sprinter). We took it on a 3600 mile test run to Canada and back to California. It is a joy to drive and handles great and getting 17 to 18 mpg is nice also. Takes a little time to adjust to the smaller space but it is worth it. NEW TO THE B WORLD!!

[DuffMan]

I've always wondered where the dividing line is. Is this a B or a C (It's built on Van chassis and no bed in eyebrow)

 

[sandsys]

I've always wondered where the dividing line is. Is this a B or a C (It's built on Van chassis and no bed in eyebrow)

 

For me a B is built within a van and a C is a new house built on a cutaway chassis. That would make the one pictured a C.

 

Linda Sand

[DuffMan]

For me a B is built within a van and a C is a new house built on a cutaway chassis. That would make the one pictured a C.

 

Linda Sand

 

Is there even an industry definition? I used to say if ithad drivers and passenger side doors it was a B - Then saw Dynamax 40'.- Hard to call that Super c a B!

 

To muddy the waters further - how about a Roadtrek or Pleasureway? (Both incorporate partial houses on cutaway Van chassis yet are sold as Class Bs)

 

[sandsys]

 

Is there even an industry definition? I

No there is no firm definition. There used to be but the waters got muddied as manufacturers started developing new descriptions of what they were now building. That why I said, "For me..." Also for me there is no such critter as a B+ although that's what a lot of people would call the rig in your photo. For me it is either built within the confines of a standard vehicle or it is not. If that makes me an old stick in the mud so be it.

 

Linda

[Kirk W]

The various class types have become very blurred in the self-propelled RV world. Here is the way that the RV Consumer Group defines a class B.

 

The class B was born in the 1970's when the RV industry decided to classify van campers as a new motor home type. This worked because vans were versatile, compact, economical to drive, and easy to convert.

Production of Class B motor homes doubled from 9,000 in 1971 to 23,000 by 1972. The fuel shortage of the early 1970s may have contributed to this increase because by 1977, over 40,000 had been built. Over the years, more choices of other RV types and a manufacturing trend toward bigger RVs brought a drastic decline in the production of the Class Bs. As of 1996, 16 manufacturers built as few as 4,100 Class B motor homes, and their numbers have continued to dwindle along with the number of manufacturers building them.

Today's Class B motor home is a modified, full-sized Ford, Chevrolet, GMC, or Dodge van. Conveniences include: sleeping, kitchen, toilet facilities, 120-volt hookup, freshwater storage, and city water hookup. Most have a top extension to provide more headroom.

Class B motor homes have sleeping space for two, though some can accommodate up to four people. They are best suited for short trips and do not work well for snowbirding or fulltiming. Much of their appeal is economy, maneuverability, and safety - and the fact that they drive more like the family car than a truck. Over the years the design of the class B motor home has evolved from a rough, homemade look to a polished, sophisticated, and aerodynamic design, giving the consumer a highly improved product.

[sandsys]

"Class B motor homes have sleeping space for two, though some can accommodate up to four people. They are best suited for short trips and do not work well for snowbirding or fulltiming." RV Consumer Group

 

Kirk, Like you often say about your gas motorhome with no slides--good thing I didn't know that in advance. My Class B sleeps one and I spent almost 7 months snowbirding in it my first year of ownership. I did design it to be easily converted to sleep two but since Dave was not going with me I decided I'd rather have aisle space than the wider bed.

 

Linda Sand

[teacher's pet]

We took our 2004 R-Vision Trail Lite 213 B+ (actual RV name by manufacturer) to Alaska last year 79 days and 11,200 miles away from Phaeton Place. Our "B+" is a cutaway Chevrolet 3500 with a built up box w/o sleeping accommodations over cab, that fiberglass front cap has room for storage and TV,DVD and Sat receiver. "MinnieMee" as scottiemom calls her, is in storage at present and we are in the Phaeton in south Texas for the winter.

[Magee]

Hi, I'm Katsus, luvin' my 2005 Rialta QD - a 20' VW cab with a Winnebago coach that I can drive all over, park wherever I want, and live comfortably for months at a time. I just returned from a 14,000+ trip that took me from our home near Seattle, WA down the west coast and across I-10 to Fort Lauderdale FL. There, I parked my Rialta while I went on a 2 month cruise to Carnival in Rio and up the Amazon River. Back in the US, I followed warm weather up the east coast doing genealogy, visiting Civil War battlefields, and meeting a lot of great people. After 3 months, I turned back west in Quebec (too much rain!), went to Niagara Falls and spent a couple of months in NY, MI, OH, and IA doing more genealogy. I couldn't pass up the challenge of driving the "Going to the Sun Road" in Glacier National Park on my way back to WA. I boondocked all but 10 nights - easy in my Rialta - and averaged 16.7 mpg. I have now been in all but 2 continguous states in my RV - missed Wisconsin and Rhode Island somehow - I'm saving Alaska for next summer. All I need is a couple of solar panels on my roof and I'm set!!! Any other Rialtas out there??? Regards, Kat

Kat, certainly enjoyed reading your topic! Does your Rialta have the 6 cyl motor? Haave you found it to have adequate power to travel in the Rockies? I'm thinking I would love to have one, but keep getting negative comments about their lack of power and generally poor construction.

[jayco1]

Does anyone have any comments on Airstream Interstate? We have TT, dually etc. but the Interstate looked like a great choice for long trips, not staying too long in one place.

[dewilso]

I am now traveling in my 36' Foretravel, I have my 26' Lazy Daze, sitting at home base. This summer, I have become aware of the realities of age, along with missing access to many nice remot sites. When we return in Oct/Nov, I believe both of the "big" units will hit the market. We have owned, and used motorhomes, since the '70’s, traveling 6-8 months a year. Our ownership experience has included 2 Sprinter based B's, so we are pretty familiar with pluses and minuses of all types. Hoping Dodge or Ford will bring out a ~ 170" WB, diesel van. I loved our Sprinters, but was not comfortable with the lack of a dealer support network.

[ganto]

i like my class B motor home i can drive anywhere and it drives good as well and is comfortable and i can park it anywhere and not stick out . the biggest draw back for me is lack of storage and lack of dealer support as well as some of the MB features that's available in there standard vehicles such as massaging seats satellite radio . for what it's worth i think the sprinter vans are way over priced for what they are .