any one understand the Winnebago motorhome product line?

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Sailorkane

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I am fairly new to motorhomes.  Bought a 1999 Adventurer 37G in gas (Ford).  Love the motorhome concept.  Love the layout and the quality and support of Winnebago.  Only issue is the coach is getting older.  And there are lots of upgrades that we have been doing or planned.  Now starting to think that maybe an upgrade to a newer coach would be in order.
Looks to me that diesel pusher is not necessary.  Over perhaps a 60K miles lifetime of a coach in our hands, we would never recover the cost of the diesel in mileage savings.  Our Ford V10 gas works very well.  Can't see driving more than 10,000 miles per year.  I'm thinking of about a 2005+- Winnebago in 35-40' length.  I see Vectras, Journeys, Adventurers, etc from Winnebago.  Can anyone sort out these models for me?  Which ones are entry level, which ones are diesel, gas, which are high end with lots of options, etc? 
I pulled up a 2005 Vectra which seems identical to the Adventurer layout in diesel.  Is the Journey entry level diesel pusher?  Or what?
 
In 2004-2007 model years, the Horizon/Vectra were the 'queens of the fleet' and the Journey was the entry level pusher.  Whenever the Forza was released, it replaced the Journey as the entry level pusher.

The 2004, 2005 and maybe the 2006 Horizon/Vectras have the desirable side radiator.  Some have the Cat engine, some have the upgraded Cummins ISL.  Unless the fuel tank was replaced, they all suffer from a badly design fuel tank (the vent is under the fill pipe) which causes a very slow fill.  The last 20 gallons of fuel have to be almost trickled in.

If you ever drove for a day in a pusher, you would never go back to gas.
 
Go to Winnebagoind dot com

Simply click on the class you are interested in.

Whoops, this would be for new and you were asking for used. It may be useful anyway.
 
John Canfield said:
If you ever drove for a day in a pusher, you would never go back to gas.

I lived in a dp for a year and when I left my girlfriend 6 years ago I never wanted to see another pusher again in my life. I have owned two gassers since then and not once did I ever consider returning to a dp. I have no need to tow and that is the only advantage a dp had. I do miss the length though.
 
Since you are looking for used, check out the following web sites.

rvt.com

pplmotorhomes.com
 
Journey & Meridian (Itasca) are entry level diesel, while Vectra/Tour/Horizon/Ellipse are higher line diesel pushers. Adventurer is the big Class A gas, but there are lower trim models as well. Names have changed over the years, so you need to talk a specific year to get all the model names sorted properly. Vectra, for example, is no longer used.

You can view the brochures for most any year Winnebago/Itasca at https://winnebagoind.com/product-resources/product-information
 
John Canfield said:
In 2004-2007 model years, the Horizon/Vectra were the 'queens of the fleet' and the Journey was the entry level pusher.  Whenever the Forza was released, it replaced the Journey as the entry level pusher.

Gary RV Roamer said:
Journey & Meridian (Itasca) are entry level diesel, while Vectra/Tour/Horizon/Ellipse are higher line diesel pushers. ...
Is there an echo in here?  ;D
 
Is there an echo in here?

LOL that's my line! Too bad that folks don't read other responses before posting their own missive. The forum software lets you know that someone already responded, but I understand when someone has spent time researching and typing a response.
 
Here is something I did in 2014 for a friend that was purchasing a new Winnie. It shows ranking of Winnebago and their Itasca twins.
Took this info from the Winnebago web, maybe it will help maybe confuse.
The lowest number or letter are entry level.  I hold true on older models also, my 2006 Minnie is a 300 series 324V to be exact.  Dick

Class B & C number series in front of model number
2014 Winnebago I = Itasca
Access (200) Same as I  mpulse
Access Premier (200)
Minnie Winnie (300) Same as I Spirit
View (500) Same as I Navion
View Profile (500) This is why the one dealer had his model 24V listed as a 524V
Trend (600) Same as I Viva!
Aspect (700) Same as I Cambria

Class A Changed to Letter series in front of model number
Sightseer (D) Same as I Sunova
Vista (E) Same as I Sunstar
Via (H) Same as I Reyo
Adventurer (J) Same as I Suncruiser
Forza (L) Same as I Solei
Journey (P) Same as I Meridian
Tour (R) Same as I Ellipse

W = Winnebago  I = Itasca

 
Too bad that folks don't read other responses before posting their own missive.

I didn't realize that was a problem. When many answers are opinions anyway, getting the same answer from multiple sources would seem to indicate it is probably a better answer, or at least a more likely proposition.

But in this case John had already answered well and my answer was largely superfluous.  :-[
 
At the risk of being redundant and getting yelled at, "entry level" needs to be qualified because it's not exactly accurate for all models of that time. In the early 2000's the Horizon (and Vectra) could have been considered the entry level coaches for Winnie until their name changed to Journey/ Horizon and the two others started getting a little classier. BUT... Winnie also left behind the 32 & 34' Horizon, meaning you had no choice but to go "entry level". I have been in both of that era allot, and the only arguable difference is the cabinetry. Chassis, engine, appliances, other interior options are the same or come as upgrades with the exception of body paint that the Horizon (at least) didn't have, or I have never seen. Full body paint ended up as standard on both Journey and Meridian, with gel coat being a downgrade option on the SE, and there are VERY few of those around. They also came with ISB's as CAT was a $15k option at the time. They truly were considered "entry" as almost $50k of options were removed. The only one I've ever seen belonged to a neighbor.

They also left behind the shorter lengths that are still in demand depending on where you camp. Because of that, I bought for length, not price, and get questioned all the time about selling it when at the beach.


 
You won't be getting fussed at by me Jeff!  The Vectra appeared many years ago as did the Horizon which you pointed out and I don't think they shared anything in common.  In 2004 Winnebago reintroduced the Horizon and Vectra as their top models (by price), then they disappeared in the late 2000s.  I remember looking at the 2005 Vectra 36RD which Winnie dropped at some point.  Models come and go and we might see a Vectra or Horizon appear again (or not!)
 
I'm not Jeff but the Meridian is the Itasca branded version of the Journey.  Same unit basically, they all go down the same assembly lines in the factory. There could be different fabric choices, etc.  On the Itasca versions there might be more standard features that were an option on the Winnebago version.  Winnebago positioned the Itasca line as sort of a Oldsmobile vs. Chevy but they essentially the same.
 
What he said...  Meridian, unlike the Journey comes with all the checkboxes hit: Leather, electric locks for the door and storage bins, sleep number bed, full coach inverter/ chargers, CAT C/7 over the ISB, etc. that brought the Meridian in just shy of $225k for the 34H. You CAN get the Journey the same way but it was often a special order where the Meridian just came that way. The Meridian had an 'SE' version too that was stripped all the way back; everything.... That was meant to compete with the real 'entry' market and with a stock Journey, but they went all the way back to stock. IIRC an optioned out Adventurer was about the same price. And you could see that vast differences across the lot, starting with the gray gel coat finish vs. Adventurer FBP by that time. It never took off.
 
I'm the OP. I'd like to post a followup question and have also PMed John.  Wife and I have traveled in our 1999 Gas Adventurer for a year and like it.  Thinking about longer trips.  Thinking now more specifically about 2000-2005 Winnebagos DP.  You all mentioned Journey is entry level.  John also mentioned "Some have the Cat engine, some have the upgraded Cummins ISL".  What is "ISL", "ISB"?  From my boat days, and truckline days,  I like the Cat engines better than Cummins--just my own bias.  I am considering 2002 Journey with Cat/Freightliner as a possibility.  Any issues, except slow tank fill John mentioned?  What am I missing on "entry level" vs "queen of the fleet"?  Upgraded interior fixtures, cabinets, et al?  Options?  What should I look for?  My current Adventurer is pretty well equipped.  For all the models that have Cat/Allison/Freightliner, then the differences are options and interior trim?  Whats difference between Journey and Journey DL?
I'm thinking condition in a 15 year old coach probably trumps interior trim and even options?!?
 
Cummins motorhome engines, in order of increasing size, are the ISB, ISC, ISL, ISM, and ISX. They are all in-line six cylinder engines but vary in displacement (liters), torque and horsepower. ISB's are 5.9L or 6.7L, depending on year. ISC is an 8.3L, ISL is 8.9L, etc. You can find specs on the Cummins website, or just Google ISL [or whatever] Cat C7 is similar to Cummins ISC, Cat C9 is similar to ISL, and so on.

For Journey/Meridian vs Tour/Horizon, "entry level" is basically trim and options. The Journey & its Meridian sister are equipped similarly to an Adventure of the same year, while the others are more upscale. Read the archived brochures on the Winnebago website and you will know as much as anybody.
 
Good summary Gary, I answered him in a PM but I didn't remember the displacement of the engines. Couple of other comments - the ISX is the top dog engine found in the most expensive Class As and is popular in over-the-road tractors, it's a true million mile engine.  The ISL is used in regional haul trucks, cement mixers, etc. and of course RVs.  Not sure what the market for the ISB/ISC engine was, maybe targeted to the RV market.

The slow fuel fill problem I mentioned was specific to the 2004, 2005 (maybe the 2006?) Vectra/Horizon. This was a brand new model line beginning in 2004 and a 2004 Horizon does not compare to an earlier model Horizon. Like Gary says, study the brochures.
 
ISB and ISC are simply smaller engines (weight & power), designed for smaller trucks and smaller RVs.  Dodge pick-ups trucks have utilized the "B" series Cummins diesel for over 25 years. Variants are also widely used in agricultural equipment. The B engine is available as a 4 cylinder as well, for even smaller power applications.

Since the latest ISB engines now provide up to 360 hp, the ISC isn't used much anymore. Likewise, the ISM has been squeezed out by improvements in the ISL power range, so the current Cummins highway engine line-up is essentially ISB, ISL and ISX. There is also a 3.9L, 4 cylinder diesel used in smaller vans and similar applications (but not really relevant for motorhomes), and a new 5.0L V8 diesel intended for pick-ups.
 
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