Gas engine vs. Gas engine (not diesel)
I know the debate over gas vs. diesel has been done MANY times, and most agree that diesel is "better", but more $$$$.
We were ready to trade our 10 year old Winnebago Class C to move to a Class A. Our budget was low $100k range, so although new diesel pushers were tempting, they are beyond our budget. And, we were not interested in a 10 to 15 year old DP. So, our options were new Class A gas or maybe a Class B Sprinter type. The Sprinters were too small.
My big concern was, how much of a dog would a Class A gas unit be? Its basically the same power train (Ford V10) as on the Class C and MUCH heavier. I guess the old rig loaded up (with towed) was about 17,000 pounds GCVW and the new about 24,000. That's a big increase!
The only difference in the drive train (that I know of) is that the Class A chassis get an extra valve in each cylinder and Ford has upgraded the transmission from 5-speed to 6-speed. I thought I would HATE going up mountains (Southern California).
Much to my delight, the new unit performs about the same as the old one, even with so much more weight to move. I am sure it burns more fuel, but I don't track that. An added bonus is that while the old unit had a somewhat unpleasant roar when working, the new one has a deeper rumble to it.
I am sure there are other differences, but overall, I am very happy that the new V10 does a lot more work than the old V10.
We were ready to trade our 10 year old Winnebago Class C to move to a Class A. Our budget was low $100k range, so although new diesel pushers were tempting, they are beyond our budget. And, we were not interested in a 10 to 15 year old DP. So, our options were new Class A gas or maybe a Class B Sprinter type. The Sprinters were too small.
My big concern was, how much of a dog would a Class A gas unit be? Its basically the same power train (Ford V10) as on the Class C and MUCH heavier. I guess the old rig loaded up (with towed) was about 17,000 pounds GCVW and the new about 24,000. That's a big increase!
The only difference in the drive train (that I know of) is that the Class A chassis get an extra valve in each cylinder and Ford has upgraded the transmission from 5-speed to 6-speed. I thought I would HATE going up mountains (Southern California).
Much to my delight, the new unit performs about the same as the old one, even with so much more weight to move. I am sure it burns more fuel, but I don't track that. An added bonus is that while the old unit had a somewhat unpleasant roar when working, the new one has a deeper rumble to it.
I am sure there are other differences, but overall, I am very happy that the new V10 does a lot more work than the old V10.
