Winnebago ERA

Sounds nice, and I'm sure you'll enjoy it!
One of the things I liked about those models, is that they are less "Conversion van" than RV....you don't have to keep changing things around each day.
I'm 6' 7" tall, so the "B" is out for us.....though we did look at one or two, hoping, but ended up with a 30' "C".....LOL!! Lots of head and leg room!!

Good luck, and happy Camping:)

I'm under 6', so almost any high-top rig is decent enough. The main attraction for me of a "B" is that I can park it in a driveway, as opposed to having to drive out of town to hit a storage area.

The ERA is a nice rig, and if all goes well, I should be getting one because of a recommendation of one in the forum (which got me to take a visit to the nearest ERA dealership.) The main advantage is its price: $20k or more cost difference. I know I probably mention this too often, but the only disadvantage of the ERA is the length -- 24 feet. However, it still is a "B" and the added length just means more room inside if one is less concerned about being able to fit in sardine can parking areas.

I also looked at a similar rig to the Navion, the Forest River Solera. The price is good, however, I'd have the storage issue (which means I'd end up never using the rig), and hitting a small town toad-less would be difficult in it.

Hey George & Lesley. If you guys are the ones I think you are, we met a couple years ago at the class B social that was held at the Grand Marais city campground.
We are picking up a new ERA in a couple weeks and just thought I'd mention if you guys have any questions about it shoot me a PM.
Good Luck!

georgelesley wrote:
Well yesterday we test drove the Itaska Navion, a class "C" and a Winnebago ERA. I guess we are just "B" people at heart. The ERA was the clear winner. I must confess it is exactly what we want, floorplan, features, chassis, etc. The DW and I both had a list of must have and nice to have items, and it has them all. The wife loved driving it as did I. I was surprised how quiet and responsive the MB diesel was, and I really liked the lp generator. The fact it might use a bit more fuel that a gas genny would does not concern me. I must confess I was quite surprised at all the goodies it has for the price. New with tax and tags out the door for about 90k.

We did look at Roadtrek and Pleasureway as well, but found most of their models get wide in the waist, the DW really likes the long and skinny style. Price value was better with the Winny as well.

We have a few things to get in order before we can do this like sell our present MH and some other things, but will likely pull the trigger soon.

Congratulations on your soon to be purchase. I currently own the 2012 ERA model 70X (with the rear electric coach/bed. I enjoy my ERA and certainly agree that the Class B RV is the way to go for the kind of travelling I do. I travel as opposed to camp. It's great for day trips as well. I am an amateur photographer now that I am retired and it is great to take off for the day ... and if it gets too late I just find a place to park for the night and who care when I get home. :)

I also use it in the summer in my area (Niagara Falls, Ontario) to just park along the Niagara Parkway overlooking the Niagara River and spend the day reading, working on pictures, taking pictures or just plan resting and snoozing. I have all my facilities, food, water ... everything I need to enjoy the beautiful weather.

I noticed a previous poster comment about parking. Yes ... you have a 24 foot unit, but you know ... I have never found a place that I couldn't park ... with just a little planning. In a Walmart lot for example ... I take up 1 1/4 spaces. Not a huge deal because I've had smaller cars actually pull in behind me. I can't really think of any place that I can't go to for lack of a parking space.

Keep us posted as to when you get you unit. All the best.

Karsty

I looked at the Era 70A again yesterday at a B friend's house in Kerrville, Texas. The most impressive thing to me was the fixed bed in the back with the V notch that you could leave out or fill in. I think I would leave it out and use the storage space for something else where you would normally store it away. There is a lot of storage under the bed and a nice feature is you can access that storage by lifting the hinged bed top from inside.

The aisle is much tighter for two people to pass by than our Great West Van Legend. We rarely use one TV so two seems excessive. Our Legend has a more open feel.

The front side sofa that folds out to a bed probably best for a kid is a nice touch but a third person sitting sideways is not. They could offer more options for that space.

They need side and back screen options. We can't live without them anymore with our Legend. They could easily design a nifty back door screen.

Fit and finish is average. Probably better than 90% of the RVs people settle for but not of the standards set by the Canadian B converters. But then the price isn't the same either.

I too like the ERA and it is priced well. But I am bemused somewhat about a 24ft B Class motorhome. My Class C Trail-lite was 22ft10inches(my Winnebago Aspect 28). I always thought B's would be 20 ft and maybe a little more say, up to 22 or 22ft9ins.But at 24, as much as I love the extra space around me, I am not convinced to wheel something that big around. Some C class rigs are smaller! But, if it is your FIRST B then you might get used to it. I have had the bigger units and now am only going to move up to a 22ft9ins B ie a PW Plateau TS or Great West Van Legend. I DO hope you all find 24ft workable in parking here and there. I didnt! But then again, some people love their Roadtreks with a bathroom in the hallway.No offence here but it gives me pause, somewhat. I wonder how many people actually use their RV shower facility if they have one?
But, I must say I found Winnebago had some good features such as ducted heating, which I miss a lot. Happy rving in whatever you have/.
AL

The Itasca Navion class C we just traded in was 25', and we drove it in downtowns, parked on the street (paid for 2 spots) & parked in municipal parking lots.
The width of a vehicle bothers us more than the length, but the european based chassis makes for a narrower vehicle.

bobojay5 wrote:
The Itasca Navion class C we just traded in was 25', and we drove it in downtowns, parked on the street (paid for 2 spots) & parked in municipal parking lots.
The width of a vehicle bothers us more than the length, but the european based chassis makes for a narrower vehicle.

The width was the deciding factor for us as well. That is why we passed on many other "B" models, because they often are built wider farther back on the chassis. Length is not a concern to us just width.

We also just plain love the floorplan. The bedroom is prefect for us. Being able to get out of bed easily and not having to climb over the spouse sealed the deal along with the beds being wider at the head that most other brands were, thus giving the feel of a larger bed.

Congratulations on your choice of a new ERA. We bought our 2012 ERA new a year ago in Jan, 2012. So far, we have 14,000 miles on it and have not regretted our purchase for a second. We down sized from an 40' Allegro Bus DP'er and continue to feel great about our decision to down size as well as going with the ERA.
There's no doubt in my mind that you going to luv the ERA and the Sprinter van is 1st class in all aspects. Enjoy your fine class B and many miles of safe travel!

Width and height, not length are the separators of Class Bs from Cs. I've driven on several roads just this past year you would dare not or could not take a Navion, View, Serenity or some other shorter Class Cs for instance.

As for that length. I can still get my 22'-9" Sprinter into pull in angle parking spots in most places and some straight in spots if there is space to overhang at the curb. My previous 21'-11 Sprinter was easier. A 24'-1" Sprinter would be chancey. However, if you are hauling bikes, a cargo carrier or spare tire you are pushing it with all three. The Era 70A storage in the back is ample so you would not need a cargo carrier. The 24' Advanced RV was designed with the idea of carrying bicycles inside the cab. So in both instances they solve the extension to length issue. Spare tire? I have none. How about that? And to think I drove 10,500 miles on the Alaska Highway, Yukon Highway, Cassiar Highway and gravel On Top of the World Highway. I did chicken out driving the gravel 400+ mile one way Prudhoe Bay Highway that I wanted to do.