Our old 2000 van has cost us plenty this year. We take good care of it and are up with the maintenance but things happen.This year alone we have replaced all six tires, new rear brakes, new motor for passenger side window and new computer. We headed out on a nice Friday in July and our destination was the Grand Mesa in Colorado. We got as far as Sweetwater, Texas, where we stopped for lunch. The van would not start. After some "wraggling" with Good Sam Roadside Assistance we found a place that would at least look at it and it was towed to a Dodge Dealer in Abilene. The rebuilt ECM that was replaced in May failed...so a new one was ordered and our trip was history.Now we have a gray water water leak and we are replacing the Dometic refrigerator that died in October.We looked at new vans (yikes $$$$$$) and saw some real "Purdy" ones but decided to wait.Now for my question: We looked at some ERA's and an airstream and they were 24 feet long. Do any of you use these as a daily driver? And where do you hang your clothes? We saw some very small closets. Do you hang your clothes in the shower stall?We will keep on camping with our beloved old van but will continue to look for a gently used van that fits our needs.Does anyone else have an older van that they keep pouring money into?Thanks!

My wife and I were just talking about how we have put money into our 2006. The bottom line is that it is still less expensive than a new one or newer one. We looked at new units at Lazy Days in Lakeland FL. Lazy Days is a great place. The new units were awesome, but not that much different than ours. We like the old girl and will never pay as much to keep her going as buying a new one. We think our 22' is marginal in many situations. If you're going to go 24' you had better love the layout. The ERA is nice, but look at the Pleasure Way, Road Trek, and Leisure Travels, too. They all have their good points. They are all tempting!I'm jealous of that new refrigerator!

there all money pits, and the older they the more money. still cheaper than, and once you get her all tuned and bugs out ,she,ll treat you good. brakes tires battery etc are normal cost of rving.

I guess our simple answer to hanging clothes is to take more that can be folded. Our style of RV'ing uses few hanging clothes, and we use the rod in the shower to hang coats, towels, etc when they are wet, then store them. In our ERA there is ample storage room for us.

What I've seen is that all RVs are money pits. Class "B"s are more expensive initially, but for cost per mile, they are as cheap as it gets, all things included.If you want to know what a money pit is, just try fixing water/mold/wood rot damage to a class C cabover, or dealing with delamination issues.Right now, "B" prices on new models are through the roof. If you can, bide your time for a few months to see how well/poorly the Travato does (as it is built on a less expensive van frame than a Sprinter), or if one can wait a year, until the Transit gets into showrooms and see what upfitters do with that. The Ford Transit is a workhorse, and two out of the three engines offered are turbocharged (read, minimal HP loss in the mountains), so if it can handle the weight, it would be an ideal chassis for a "B".Both the Ford Transit and the Fiat Ducato (er, Dodge ProMaster) are workhorse vans, and have been handling real world stuff in Europe and South America for many years now. Both are going through some engine/drive changes before they hit the US market, but if they are as good as their worldwide counterparts, it will make some reliable "B" vans possible.

I agree with mits22. There is a explosion of new class B vans coming as the RV makers figure out that is where the market is going. Prices, options, and model choices should multiply soon. mits22 is also right about RV's in general becoming money pits, they all can at anytime. That being said, we love ours and now that we are retired, will continue to use it and pay whatever that costs, the rest of our days.

24 foot Class B Questions | Good Sam Community

jjrai
Explorer
Aug 15, 2013
My wife and I were just talking about how we have put money into our 2006. The bottom line is that it is still less expensive than a new one or newer one. We looked at new units at Lazy Days in Lakeland FL. Lazy Days is a great place. The new units were awesome, but not that much different than ours. We like the old girl and will never pay as much to keep her going as buying a new one.

We think our 22' is marginal in many situations. If you're going to go 24' you had better love the layout. The ERA is nice, but look at the Pleasure Way, Road Trek, and Leisure Travels, too. They all have their good points. They are all tempting!

I'm jealous of that new refrigerator!
midnightsadie
Explorer II
Aug 15, 2013
there all money pits, and the older they the more money. still cheaper than, and once you get her all tuned and bugs out ,she,ll treat you good. brakes tires battery etc are normal cost of rving.
georgelesley
Explorer
Aug 15, 2013
I guess our simple answer to hanging clothes is to take more that can be folded. Our style of RV'ing uses few hanging clothes, and we use the rod in the shower to hang coats, towels, etc when they are wet, then store them. In our ERA there is ample storage room for us.
mlts22
Explorer
Aug 15, 2013
What I've seen is that all RVs are money pits. Class "B"s are more expensive initially, but for cost per mile, they are as cheap as it gets, all things included.

If you want to know what a money pit is, just try fixing water/mold/wood rot damage to a class C cabover, or dealing with delamination issues.

Right now, "B" prices on new models are through the roof. If you can, bide your time for a few months to see how well/poorly the Travato does (as it is built on a less expensive van frame than a Sprinter), or if one can wait a year, until the Transit gets into showrooms and see what upfitters do with that. The Ford Transit is a workhorse, and two out of the three engines offered are turbocharged (read, minimal HP loss in the mountains), so if it can handle the weight, it would be an ideal chassis for a "B".

Both the Ford Transit and the Fiat Ducato (er, Dodge ProMaster) are workhorse vans, and have been handling real world stuff in Europe and South America for many years now. Both are going through some engine/drive changes before they hit the US market, but if they are as good as their worldwide counterparts, it will make some reliable "B" vans possible.
georgelesley
Explorer
Aug 15, 2013
I agree with mits22. There is a explosion of new class B vans coming as the RV makers figure out that is where the market is going. Prices, options, and model choices should multiply soon. mits22 is also right about RV's in general becoming money pits, they all can at anytime. That being said, we love ours and now that we are retired, will continue to use it and pay whatever that costs, the rest of our days.
1775
Explorer
Aug 15, 2013
A 24 foot van is going to pose some parking challenges. You are going to need two spots back to back in most lots to park. And if you daily driving now requires parking in any indoor parking garages, no B (or any RV) is going to fit. The easiest daily driver is the Roadtrek 170 that will fit in most outdoor single parking spots. This is a small B and many find it cramped inside.

As to clothes - they get folded and put in cabinets or a fabric home closet organizer shelves unit that is hung from the closet rod. Clothes usually are not hung unless you are carrying very few clothes.
mlts22
Explorer
Aug 15, 2013
I'm personally waiting to see about the ProMaster vans, but if I were to look for a used rig that can be used as a runabout, I'd look at the Pleasure Way Ascent or a Roadtrek SS Agile. They are 20 feet or so in length, and are a decent compromise between the Roadtrek 170 Versatile and the 22-24 feet extended Sprinters.

If you want to park in parking garages, you will have to get a Sportsmobile pop-top conversion. They only sell pop-tops with the short Sprinter, Ford, and Chevy chassis models. Even then, watch the clearance, as some 4x4s may make it too tall. Any other "B" going into a parking garage will get scalped in short order.
GizmosMom
Explorer
Aug 15, 2013
Thanks, everyone.

Our Xplorer is 21 feet and just perfect to drive around. It's just getting so old. We wanted to keep it forever but now think that is unrealistic. Although I do keep seeing people post here with older vans that they have purchased or are restoring.

Will keep you posted.

No way can we afford to purchase now. We retire in about 4-5 years so....?
TheFitRV_James
Explorer
Aug 15, 2013
Well, I would really like a new one, but I keep pumping money and time into our current B. I've completely remodeled the inside, so I suppose it would be silly to try to trade up now.

If I can just get the outside to look as good as the inside, I think I'll be OK for a while yet.

Another poster said that it's always cheaper to keep an older one running than to buy a new one. I'd have to agree.
sergeant76
Explorer
Aug 16, 2013
Saw the video on the Winnebago Travato, it is not a bad looking unit, the price is less than $90,000.00, nice size refrigerator, nice bathroom, nice layout.

Will be considering it come December.

Ron