Off Road Class C Motorhome and Extended Tray

Now we are getting somewhere

Robert...will this do?

Gary Haupt wins the prize The 4x 4 Conversions like the Sportsmobile i appears\ to be using other than a graded road.

PNichols wrote:
P.S. Please don't get discouraged with this thread ... it's much more interesting than most RV forum topics such as floorplans, black tank dumping, and battery recharging.

I am not . I had similar discussions about Trucks with a group of Canadians and US citizens(Better term than Americans) on my European trip:)

Robert ... not mine and not a 4X4, but merely a "typical American 2WD Class C" like you imply that I have ... will this do (ignoring the fact that the driver doesn't know how to steer):

In the case of the E350 he was not making "much forward progress" as they would say here. The Muddy conditions would not have helped his car control. The fellow pulling the Campertrailer could have been a bit lighter on the throttle as the trailer was starting to get some pendulum momentum behind his Pickup.

PNichols wrote:
I may not go as fast as them, but never the less make it I would

That maybe much more difficult than you think. Anyway the Pickups and Motorhomes are in that video are traveling on a graded gravel road, not Off Road, a Road but a gravel/mud one nonetheless..

PNichols wrote:
Also, regarding "These are built to go vast distances Off Road for a long period of time.": I guess you don't think that Ford finally knows how to build trucks or Winnebago finally knows how to build boxes that can do that too??

No US Sourced vehicles have enormous problems getting parts outside the US. The "Winnebago" in the Video has no relation with Winnebago in The US(They had a court case about it). How relevant a Pickup based Off Road Motorhome to a Japanese Cabover or European Cabover based one is another topic in itself.

Robert,

Those high and narrow offroad expedition type rigs are expensive to buy and operate, as well as looking unstable on side-slopes.

There is a way to inexpensively go anywhere offroad and also have a very wide track while you're at it:

Robert ... not mine and not a 4X4, but merely a "typical American 2WD Class C" like you imply that I have ... will this do (ignoring the fact that the driver doesn't know how to steer):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eqL2qZ3YsMg

In your photo in your post above ... I would indeed take my 2WD Class C into places exactly as you show that SUV and trailer in. I may not go as fast as them, but never the less make it I would ... because of the 8600 lbs. centered on my four rear driven wheels as opposed to approximately only 4200 lbs. (or less?) sitting on all four driven wheels of the SUV.

Also, regarding "These are built to go vast distances Off Road for a long period of time.": I guess you don't think that Ford finally knows how to build trucks or Winnebago finally knows how to build boxes that can do that too??

P.S. Please don't get discouraged with this thread ... it's much more interesting than most RV forum topics such as floorplans, black tank dumping, and battery recharging. :R

Robert...will this do?

http://youtu.be/7ZsDmjS2XbU

or this?

http://youtu.be/FhANZhUG6WE

Both mine.


Gary Haupt

Carringbh wrote:
Class C motorhomes can go off pavement just fine. The wide frame rails and track width actually makes them much more stable than they look.

They are not that stable, but "Off Pavement" is much better term than "Off Road"

Finally, there's http://earthroamer.com/ who probably made expedition style rigs popular in the US

Let's face it, 99.9% of RV owners have no reason to leave pavement. Heck, most of the US doesn't even have good opportunities to get off the beaten path

There not as you said 99.9% of US RVers stick to pavement.

PNichols on the SLR Motorhome with Patio it is

Wheelbase is 11.138 ft. Distance between the tires about 5.5 ft. This is on the non modified truck.

You also get these as well 8000lb roughly, could be a lot heavier, Off Road Caravan unique to Australia.These are built to go vast distances Off Road for a long period of time. There are vehicles with flipped axles and coil springs in the US, but have limited range and are not so gentle to the RV. Yes we have Truck Campers,Unconventional Truck Campers, Off Road Campertrailers, Hybrid or Crossover Caravans

Thanks for the replies, lot of misconceptions in definitions and what things are like Overseas.

Pnichols wrote:
Robert,

Maybe what you're calling "offroad" in reference to your expedition vehicle photos and discussions is close to what we call "rock crawling" here in the States.

Of course my Class C, or no Class C, can do that kind of aggressive roving around in the wilderness

No what you have is a RWD Class C Motorhome that goes down graded dirt roads which was my point earlier A Rock Crawler is something like a modified Jeep that crawls up rocks, with no payload.
Class C 4 X4 Motorhomes can easily do extreme Off Roading or "aggressive roving in the wilderness" not "rock crawling" which would be a waste of time and resources.

For what it's worth, there are plenty of U.S. Class B 4X4 models on the retail market than can come pretty close to rock crawling and still provide an indoor shower when you get there - but at far, far less dollars then those expedition looking vehicles

No you do not have "plenty" as Carringb pointed out most people in the US travel on paved roads in the Wilderness, Not that applicable here. There are about 2 or maybe 3 Off Road Class B manufacturers in the US, Sportsmobile and Tiger being them.

Yes, I do call what my pickup was doing in my photo the beginning of "offroad". Perhaps you should have seen the 30%-plus side-tipped grades in the ravines that we had to travel shortly after that river crossing shot. I do this kind of stuff several times a year performing volunteer maintenance in a California outback wilderness park where only backpackers/hikers are allowed except via special vehicle permits for us volunteers.

What your describing is what a lot of People would do, but they may go through Mud in their pickups or SUV's. I get the impression they are firetrails and you need to remove dead branches, rock slides etc

Caringhb wrote:
Carringb
For somebody needing a true expedition vehicle, the most popular choice an an E350 Sportsmobile

Not an Expedition vehicle here but a Class B 4 X4 Motorhome

Carringb wrote:
I've spent enough time driving Japanese cabovers I know I would not want one for an RV chassis

Would normally agree with you, but the Springs dampers and axles have been changed to give them a SUV ride, much smoother than a F250. You also have air seats as well. No they are very comfortable over very long distances Off Road.

Carringb wrote:
That said.... my long term plan right now is to make build a Dakar-style Frightliner Argossy all terrain motorhome. I like cabovers for some uses, but not the little cab forward trucks

Would not touch an Argosy with a barge pole if you want to go Off Road. Yes Australia, New Zealand and South Africa are the only markets they sell them in, but as a Cabover road vehicle. Freightliner is not tat popular here.

Carringb wrote:
PS the fold-out patios are a neat feature, but since not everything on the ground is trying to kill us on this continent, it's not as important.

Australia and New Zealand are extremely safe places to Camp unlike North America or Europe. No Carnivores, nothing to hunt you. No Bears, Wolves, or large animals like a territorial moose. Yes there are snakes(just like the US)and Spiders. That is about it. Most common cause of fatalities in the Australia wilderness are deaths from the European honeybee and someone falling off a cliff or a car accident, people get bitten by snakes but a death is extremely rare. Oh Yes we do have Crocodiles(think alligators in the Everglades) in the extreme north and sharks, but fatalities from them are a lot less than from injuries and deaths from Bears in North America.

Pnichols wrote:
Thanks for bringing up Earthroamer ... I neglected to mention them. The ER models are similar to (but go beyond) what could perhaps be custom built by Tiger for customers. ER models seem to include more extreme systems engineering and marine products in them than Tigers do, however

EarthRoamer build Expedition vehicles that are mainly limited to the Americas. No that practical anywhere else. They are limited to the terrain they can go Off Road, but do have diesel engines unlike Sportsmobile.

Bryan,

Thanks for bringing up Earthroamer ... I neglected to mention them. The ER models are similar to (but go beyond) what could perhaps be custom built by Tiger for customers. ER models seem to include more extreme systems engineering and marine products in them than Tigers do, however ... but of course Earthroamers cost a lot more.

P.S. That extreme offroad Class B photo you linked to is outstanding and shows way better than the one I sometimes post. Here's another link showing a Class B doing ANYTHING that an extreme full-on expedition vehicle could do:

http://www.sportsmobile.com/ultimate.html

PS the fold-out patios are a neat feature, but since not everything on the ground is trying to kill us on this continent, it's not as important.

Class C motorhomes can go off pavement just fine. The wide frame rails and track width actually makes them much more stable than they look.

If a standard 2wd isnt enough, you can easily add 4x4 to any Class C, but they are still best for snow and sand because of the departure angle.
Here is one done by Ujoint Offroad, but QuadVan does them too.


For somebody needing a true expedition vehicle, the most popular choice an an E350 Sportsmobile:


Then there's also XP Camper which can be built on any cab-chassis pickup or van based:


Finally, there's http://earthroamer.com/ who probably made expedition style rigs popular in the US.

Let's face it, 99.9% of RV owners have no reason to leave pavement. Heck, most of the US doesn't even have good opportunities to get off the beaten path. But for those who need something, there are options. I've spent enough time driving Japanese cabovers I know I would not want one for an RV chassis. That said.... my long term plan right now is to make build a Dakar-style Frightliner Argossy all terrain motorhome. I like cabovers for some uses, but not the little cab forward trucks.