I have a truck camper right now. It’s time for a different RV.I was looking at all sorts of ideas for an overland type RV but gave up on that. All I really want to be able to do is drive on those awful roads that go into disbursed camping in places like the National forests and BLM land in Colorado. BUT, I’m also looking for lots of tankage, propane, insulation heat/AC to be off grid for weeks at a time. It would also be great if it looked nice inside. Modern, clean look. I’d also like it to fit into 2 standard size parking spots, end to end. I don’t do a lot of campgrounds. More just winging it and going wherever. Under $100K used? Diesel or gas doesn’t matter. I thought it did but I realized it really doesn’t matter one way or another. I’m coming from a diesel/manual transmission. So I at least need a super reliable powertrain in automatic/gas. Any ideas of things that come close to fitting?

Winnebago EKKO, but they're new, and pricey. Some more exotic units exist, but they're closer to truck campers. Earthroamer, for one. Very pricey, but they sometimes have used ones for sale.

My Tiger meets those criteria but it's not for sale. There are few used ones available but you might look on the Tiger forum here: https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/tigerowners/ Or you could order a new one here: https://www.tigervehicles.com/

Pre-scouting and careful driving could get a smaller C into many boondocking sites. Carry winch, shovel, traction pads etc.

We used our 2003 Itasca Spirit off-road in AZ. Tried in CO but it was much rougher and too many camping even far from developed campgrounds. We had pretty high clearance and had 22 ft of RV to get around single lane mountain roads and across desert roads to the edge of wilderness areas. It was wonderful. But camping was much less popular in AZ than CO. A truck camper will get you further than most RV’s though there are 4wd retrofits.

EMD360 wrote:We used our 2003 Itasca Spirit off-road in AZ. Tried in CO but it was much rougher and too many camping even far from developed campgrounds. We had pretty high clearance and had 22 ft of RV to get around single lane mountain roads and across desert roads to the edge of wilderness areas. It was wonderful. But camping was much less popular in AZ than CO. A truck camper will get you further than most RV’s though there are 4wd retrofits.There we go! That’s more the spirit of the RV I’m looking for. Something like 25-30ft.Do people ever successfully beef up the clearance a little on these? I have a 2wd truck camper now and I got into everywhere this summer. Crested Butte (that was hard), Divide Colorado disbursed camping, some crazy 1 lane road up behind the mansions in Aspen, another crazy 1 lane road going down to the river in Buena Vista. It was fantastic. But my truck and camper are kind of getting tired. They are also just not very nice inside (arctic Fox) and I want to be able to put a motorcycle cycle rack on the back for a small enduro to go to town on.

Is there a Class C that can be driven into sketchy terrain?

VA-Apraisr
Explorer II
Dec 05, 2021
I've gone up to WV in my 28' RV and crossed creeks, single-lane dirt roads BUT was not on super steep terrain/mountains or washed out roads. The rear overhang is the issue on very rough/steep roads and can "tail drag" which can lead to serious issues especially if you can't back up to clear it! The Tiger looks great although doesn't seem to offer much more useable space than a slide-in truck camper. If you can find a reasonable used RV ($40-50k) and have it converted into 4x4 (Quigley 4x4 or similar $20-$22k) then added larger tires/front winch/lights/solar/Lithium batteries (another $6-8k) you'd be in business. I've off-grid camped in mine for 16 years now and wouldn't trade it for the world. If it's worth doing, it's worth doing RIGHT!!! Good luck!
AdvancedQs
Explorer
Dec 05, 2021
EMD360 wrote:
We used our 2003 Itasca Spirit off-road in AZ. Tried in CO but it was much rougher and too many camping even far from developed campgrounds. We had pretty high clearance and had 22 ft of RV to get around single lane mountain roads and across desert roads to the edge of wilderness areas. It was wonderful. But camping was much less popular in AZ than CO. A truck camper will get you further than most RV’s though there are 4wd retrofits.

There we go!

That’s more the spirit of the RV I’m looking for. Something like 25-30ft.

Do people ever successfully beef up the clearance a little on these?

I have a 2wd truck camper now and I got into everywhere this summer. Crested Butte (that was hard), Divide Colorado disbursed camping, some crazy 1 lane road up behind the mansions in Aspen, another crazy 1 lane road going down to the river in Buena Vista. It was fantastic. But my truck and camper are kind
of getting tired. They are also just not very nice inside (arctic Fox) and I want to be able to put a motorcycle cycle rack on the back for a small enduro to go to town on.
EMD360
Explorer
Dec 05, 2021
We used our 2003 Itasca Spirit off-road in AZ. Tried in CO but it was much rougher and too many camping even far from developed campgrounds. We had pretty high clearance and had 22 ft of RV to get around single lane mountain roads and across desert roads to the edge of wilderness areas. It was wonderful. But camping was much less popular in AZ than CO. A truck camper will get you further than most RV’s though there are 4wd retrofits.
Lwiddis
Explorer II
Dec 05, 2021
Pre-scouting and careful driving could get a smaller C into many boondocking sites. Carry winch, shovel, traction pads etc.
mockturtle
Explorer II
Dec 05, 2021
My Tiger meets those criteria but it's not for sale. There are few used ones available but you might look on the Tiger forum here: https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/tigerowners/ Or you could order a new one here: https://www.tigervehicles.com/
MDKMDK
Explorer
Dec 05, 2021
Winnebago EKKO, but they're new, and pricey. Some more exotic units exist, but they're closer to truck campers. Earthroamer, for one. Very pricey, but they sometimes have used ones for sale.

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Is there a Class C that can be driven into sketchy terrain?

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