Class C, B RV makers need better floor plans; Triple E and Leisure Travel close

Having looked at the floor plans for a lot of Class C and B motorhomes, all I can say is that none of them meet our needs, but a couple come close. RV designers must be men, and they must be young.

They build units with small, inaccessible corner beds, rear baths and kitchens that limit exterior storage and cabinets that are light and fragile. They put beds over cabs that are  inaccessible to many of their aging customers. And too many have lousy web sites that leave out important details.

Finally, they use the Ford E 450 chassis that is very uncomfortable for people who like to drive several hundred miles a day. Some of the units are built in ways that make them hard and expensive to maintain, and dealers for some of the majors seem to be unwilling to support their own brands unless they've sold the unit that is 500 to 2,000 miles from home. Continuous quality improvement and quality assurance seem to be unheard of in the halls of RV makers.

Our Roadtrek Adventurous, which is on a 2005 Sprinter Van chassis has a king size bed in the back and pretty good storage under the bed, which is not a power sofa. The head is ok but there is no dinette, which we'd like.

The Triple E 24 Ft "B Van", which is being carried by Vancityrv.com in St. Louis, comes close to our needs. It is a true 4-season unit, and it offers a queen murphy bed. But who knows whether you can operate the bed manually when the power bed fails? And VanCity is a long way from Denver. They're good folks. They sold us our Roadtrek, but I don't want to drive 2,000 miles round trip to buy an RV. Finally, the unit is on the Ford E 450 chassis, which offers terrible foot space for the front seat passenger. DW and I split driving 50/50.

Similarly, a Triple E subsidiary, Leisure Travel, also offers the Sprinter Van with a murphy bed and dinette, but it doesn't have much exterior storage because the plumbing for the bath is in the back of the coach. And like Triple E, there doesn't seem to be a viable Leisure Travel dealer in or near Denver who stocks the vans. Van City sells both. Our hesitation with the Leisure Travel murphy bed is for the same reason that we're wary of E Travel's. What happens when the bed's power system fails as it surely will. Who will  fix it? Can it be operated manually? The Triple E and LT web sites don't say, and I haven't asked anyone.

The Triple E and LT videos do a heck of a good sales job, but there are some unanswered questions and design flaws in both products, imho. So we're sticking with the Roadtrek, which has a king sized bed and is small enough to go just about anywhere ---tight city streets, state campgrounds, boondoggling, Starbucks, etc.---without costing us higher insurance premiums, license plate fees or investments in another RV.

Am I an outlier, or what?

This is why class A units are so popular with full timers. The more time you spend in an RV the more important the floor plan becomes. Cs and Bs are limited with their floor plans due to lack of space. Especially class Bs. They are just so small and it is like cramming 10 pounds of poop into a 5 pound bag. They don't need better floor plans, you need a bigger RV.

I'll second the above with the caveat that a 24' class A is significantly bigger than a 24' class C. Less wasted space at the front, storage under, or more, less constraints on layout since the unit is essentially square.
Its also easier to drive!
Ernie

PS  When you are spending $100K, better gas mileage is the poorest argument I can think of for going smaller!

We like our small, a bit cramped Roadtrek B van because we can drive it like a big pickup or SUV without a toad. We can park in any parking lot and often on the streets of major cities as well as in almost any campground. And the thing keeps up with traffic on the Interstates when we have to do 600 miles in a day. My wife is very comfortable driving our B van and is not thrilled with the idea of driving bigger vehicles or about towing a car, travel trailer or 5th wheel.

I'd like something a little more comfortable for wet, cold days and nights, but as long as my Verizon MIFI card or my iPhone modem let me surf the news, I can put up with a few discomforts until a better 24-25 footer comes along, if it ever does.

Oldedit,, your problem is simple, design your own unit and include all the amenities you want in the constricted space that is available in a B or C class M/H.. You will find it near impossible to please everyone, maybe even yourself!!>>>Dan (Oh, and make the manufacturing plant with in 20 miles of your address)

You just need a taller one.  If it can't be wider or longer, that leaves taller - maybe a two story? :

The RV makers need feedback. I'm giving mine. And I'm saying to prospective RV buyers, do you really want to sleep in a tiny rear corner bed in a Class B or C? Do you trust a murphy bed? Do you want to put your passenger in a seat with no foot room?

Think many times about an A, B or C class RV. They all have compromises and none seem to take into account the needs of older customers, especially the women.

Not everyone is a full timer or uses their RVs as second homes. Some of us use them as big SUVs with heds and comfortable beds, and we drive long distances rather than sit in RV parks and state parks for weeks at a time.

Different strokes for different folks.

If the RV makers can't meet our needs, there are other ways to entertain ourselves. Nothing like a nice time share or resort or motel.

So we're sticking with the Roadtrek, which has a king sized bed and is small enough to go just about anywhere ---tight city streets, state campgrounds, boondoggling, Starbucks, etc.---without costing us higher insurance premiums, license plate fees or investments in another RV.  Am I an outlier, or what?

Click to expand...

Nope not an "outlier" ... our 21' Chinook also provides King-sized bed, adequate bathroom amenities, and an ability to go wherever we want!  Sweet!   

Oldedit said:

The RV makers need feedback. I'm giving mine. And I'm saying to prospective RV buyers, do you really want to sleep in a tiny rear corner bed in a Class B or C? Do you trust a murphy bed? Do you want to put your passenger in a seat with no foot room?

Think many times about an A, B or C class RV. They all have compromises and none seem to take into account the needs of older customers, especially the women.

Not everyone is a full timer or uses their RVs as second homes. Some of us use them as big SUVs with heds and comfortable beds, and we drive long distances rather than sit in RV parks and state parks for weeks at a time.

Different strokes for different folks.

If the RV makers can't meet our needs, there are other ways to entertain ourselves. Nothing like a nice time share or resort or motel.

Click to expand...

The only feedback RV makers will listen to is your wallet. Talk is cheap. Put your money where your mouth is. If you don't like the RVs that are on the market then don't buy one. Yes, all RVs have compromises, there is no other way to build one. You are putting a 2000 square foot house and a vehicle into the same package, how could there help but be compromises? I live in my RV full time and I love it. That is because I spent many months shopping for it and I found just the right one. If you haven't found just the right RV then you haven't been doing enough shopping.

While in RV sales a partner of mine reported on a couple that wanted a 28' motorhome, but didn't like the floor plans.  Too cramped.  They wanted to peek into a 34 A.  This is PERFECT!  Now show me this in a 28' motorhome.  That is the Harry Potter model of course.  28' on the outside, 34' on the inside.

More bed space, less bathroom or kitchen space.  Bigger bath in back, push bed to corner. 

If I were you, I would design it myself.  Graph paper, lay out outside dimensions, now make cutouts of what you want and move them around.  Make it fit.  Have fun.

I've certainly "designed" my perfect RV in my mind. I haven't found a maker who offers the options I need to be happy.

What I've learned from my mini shopping is that for the price and ROI, I've got what I pretty much want. A king size bed. 80 cu ft. of exterior storage. A Mercedes Sprinter Van that's comfortable on long-haul drives. Fuel economy. Depreciated by a previous owner. Wife happy driving the unit. No toad. Easy to heat with a small electric heater. Low-cost storage. Paid off. Money in the bank.

As with all toys, a lot of RVers, me included, can't stop shopping. But we can resist buying if we don't find what we want.

I'm not about to order a custom-built RV that we never would use enough to make the big spend worthwhile.

Bought new TVs for the house instead.

The ideal RV would be made by the company that built the TARDIS.

TARDIS  'splain please

You obviously aren't a Doctor Who fan   Google it.

PancakeBill said:

TARDIS  'splain please

Click to expand...

Tardis= British police call box. [The same size and shape as the old U.S. Telephone booth] The outside is quite a bit smaller than the inside. In other words, you enter the small call box, and end up inside a mansion with more rooms than you could visit in a week.  ;D

P.S. It's also good for time and space travel.

Hi

My Jamboree Searcher 29' C Class has a nice layout.... before we bought it we were looking at 24' where the bed is beside the shower and toilet. We saw this 29' with the queen size bed, double wardrobes, cabinets and lights over bed, etc., and bought it straight away. The layout is great for a family and I have no grumbles about it.

Just a few things still to resolve maintenance wise but it's a nice camper



Geoff and Sally

Thanks for the splain.  No, never been a Dr Who fan.  Tried it a couple times,, just didn't fit. 

PancakeBill said:

Thanks for the splain.  No, never been a Dr Who fan.  Tried it a couple times,, just didn't fit.

Click to expand...

Must have not gone inside. :
that TARDIS would prove handy once & a while.

Oldedit,

No you are not alone.  Some things are compromises so that the RV can sleep a family.  That concept affects the floor plan in  every way.  As to the Ford van legroom, it's an industrial design being used for an RV. 

Have you looked at the Lazy Daze Class C's?
http://www.lazydaze.com/

I've looked at Lazy Daze and Born Free. Both are on Fords. Both seem stuck in their old ways. Neither is using the Sprinter chassis.

Born Free will be at this week's RV show in Denver, and I plan to give it another look along with Leisure Travel.

At this point, I"m still inclined to stick with our 2006 Roadtrek Adventurous RS. At 72k miles, it's barely broken in.