Thor Axis drivability

Ductape Dave wrote:
I believe they chose the E350 instead of the E450 is because the E450 chassis is 4.5" wider and The Axis is only 96" wide at the back. I checked one out at a show and did not like the flimsy bathroom double door and large windshield. I had an A and that would let in a lot of sun and more area to get stoned. After switching to a C I like the fact that I have a nice sun visor (overhang) easy windshield to replace, airbags and our own doors. I didn't like the fact the front dash was so far extended and hard to judge and see compared to the C. I did like the twin rear beds and couch though.

This is my first post here. My understanding on the E350 vs. E450 chassis is twofold, the E450 has a higher rear gear (4.56 vs. 4.11) and is a higher cost chassis. The E350 chassis has a 18,500 # capacity vs the 22,000 on the E450. This extra load capacity is from a heaver duty frame and the higher gear which would increase weight, cost and fuel consumption. The E350 still provides a towing capacity over 6,000 pounds, how much more towing does this unit really need?

My Wife and I recently sold our older Chevy Class C and were looking at a new Winnebago Navion 24V. At at recent camping show, we walked into the Thor Axis model and liked the layout better than the sprinter chassis class c. It is also nearly $20K less for a very similar layout. That $20K is a lot of diesel fuel.

We have not drove either model yet and scheduled a test drive for next weekend on both models at our local RV Dealer. I have read quite a bit about the driving characteristics of the Ford Chassis. It seems very common for the model to exhibit wandering due to improperly inflated tires and miss-alignment from the factory. I have also read where some people have added a "Safe-T-Plus" to assist with any push/pull effects, particularly on bumpy roads. has anyone else had anyone else had any issues here?

As a note: we did not like the Ford Class C Van because the engine hump was much more intrusive than our previous Chevy Class C. Particularly on the Passenger side where the foot room was very small.