First Ram Promaster van class B

RobertRyan wrote:
Here is a diesel Ducato Class B, in the US sense with an automatic adjustable height bed(Not fold down)
Video below.
Trakka Torino Ducato based Class B

That's a design that makes a lot more sense. The most interesting thing is that slide out of the way toilet. Here is a PDF brochure of the Trakka Torino Xtra.

Trakka Torino Xtra

RobertRyan wrote:
Here is a diesel Ducato Class B, in the US sense with an automatic adjustable height bed(Not fold down)
Video below.
Trakka Torino Ducato based Class B

A number of very nice features not available up to this point in North America. Should be very interesting for the next few years what PW, RT and others do with their B's.

Here is a diesel Ducato Class B, in the US sense with an automatic adjustable height bed(Not fold down)
Video below.
Trakka Torino Ducato based Class B

bobojay5 wrote:
Tonight Winnebago introduced a new class B offering on the new Ram Promaster van calling it the "Travato".
More info to come.

I dislike front wheel drive,so will never buy that rig,,

Dayvdd wrote:
I'm not impressed with this effort.

I would agree with your comments. As well as I posted before ,the interior looks terrible ordinary.
My Sister had to stay in my very elderly Uncles 2007 IVECO Class B(No extra bed in house). I had previously seen it when he was driving(Now trying to sell it).Although a Custom conversion it is vastly better than this Winnebago.

I would think the target for this van would be young families 2 adults 2'kids. Soccer mom. Easy to drive and park. Even the Roadtreks that supposedly sleep 4 people don't really sleep 4 adults. Bang for the buck. I think the Era is hands down the winner in class Bs but for many who would also want a daily driver it is too much of a good thing. Winnebago probably should have gone for a short Sprinter instead but there is something to be said for having a gasoline based B which until now (or rather,the fall) they did not.

mumkin wrote:

Davydd wrote:

mlts22 wrote:
Here is another video, which does a somewhat decent walkaround of the Travato.

That video is mostly about the ERA not the Travato. There was just a little bit on the Travato at the end and not a complete walkaround.

I thought it was pretty complete. Only the first minute was the exterior of an ERA. The last two minutes of the three minute video was of the exterior - didn't show us the storage though - and most of the interior of the Travato. It didn't show the bed down, but showed the bath, galley, fridge... and two men using the dinette area.

The way the bed folds up is interesting.

The first time I watched that video and posted my comment it got cut off on me. I watched it a second time to see the whole video.

I'm not impressed with this effort.

How do you stand at or sit on the toilet with the wheel well in the way?

The kitchen counter has no counter space as it is taken up by the sink and stove with covers. That's nice to use for temporary storing of stuff in camp but not for cooking.

My guess is the bed is at best 54" wide. That's a standard double width but in this day and age not very desirable for two people. Nipping out the corner for the bathroom door doesn't help.

They put an ottoman blocking the sliding door opening I assume to be part of a bed extension (is it?) as well as to be able to sit at the table. The table is an odd shape. The rear seat faces forward. The ottoman faces sideways. The cab seats are shoved forward to enable the table to fit. If the cab seats don't turn to face the table then this is the most ill designed setup I have ever seen in a B. If the cab seats turned you would think there would be no need for the ottoman and could extend the kitchen counter over.

There appears to be a real lack of storage other than a huge catch all potential under the bed. You have to balance storage with people and to imply this B could sleep 3-4 people is ridiculous.

The maximum 20'-10" long van which is 18" longer than a short Sprinter (RT Agile), 11" shorter than the pre-2007 Sprinters (my former 2005 P-W Plateau), 23" shorter than current regular length Sprinters (my 2011 GWV Legend) and 39" shorter than extended Sprinters (ERA) is going to be a challenge for designers. So base cost will be $10,000-$12,000 less than the Sprinter it appears and maybe cheaper still simply because it will be impossible to provide as much inside as the Sprinters. As it appears it will have a niche because of cost but will not be a direct competitor with the Sprinter on comfort and features. It will have design limitations similar to the short wheel base Sprinters.

Davydd wrote:

mlts22 wrote:
Here is another video, which does a somewhat decent walkaround of the Travato.

That video is mostly about the ERA not the Travato. There was just a little bit on the Travato at the end and not a complete walkaround.

I thought it was pretty complete. Only the first minute was the exterior of an ERA. The last two minutes of the three minute video was of the exterior - didn't show us the storage though - and most of the interior of the Travato. It didn't show the bed down, but showed the bath, galley, fridge... and two men using the dinette area.

The way the bed folds up is interesting.

Dayvdd wrote:
We're talking about Bs in this forum not Cs.

Right you are an IVECO Daily Class B. Sprinter sized

Unfortunately, the US vans are different from the Aussies. The two separate axles are not sold here, and all the vans and cutaways here are front wheel drive. An IVECO engine would be nice (perhaps a Hemi for a gasser), but right now, it is a pipe dream, as there may be a chance of Fiat just abandoning the van market in the US for good if they get into bad times again.

I'm guessing Winnebago had a choice -- they could either get the DRW chassis and lose the space underneath to the second set of tires, or they go with the SRW chassis and be close to the GVWR of the vehicle. This is ironic, as the Promaster is the best in class when it comes to weight capacity. The Promaster has a CCC of 5125 pounds, then the Sprinter 3500 at 5020, and the Transit with no specs out yet, but in Europe, it tops out at 3670 pounds.

I assume the Travato is a "version 1.0" upfit, made to test the waters and gauge interest. I think things will get better, with more interesting floorplans as time permits. I just hope they can move to a DRW configuration so they are not at the razor's edge of weight on the vehicle.

Of course, it would be nice to see a bigger diesel engine, but it might be difficult, as I don't know any transaxles that can take a large amount of torque.