Am I seeking the impossible?

We also removed the cabover mattress and use ours for storage. Put down a a roll of anti-slip mat and found bins with a clear door that opens on the side so you can see the contents. You can store a lot up there. We store dry food, extra bedding, camping gear, clothes, etc. It's all easy to get to and there is a curtain that pulls across to cover our "attic". We have a large storage area (105 cubic feet) outside under the bedroom and with the cabover space we are fully packed with lots of storage room to spare even though ours is only 26 feet.

I agree you won't see much of a difference in mileage if you get one that has plenty of headroom. Some of the lower profile "B+" units may get slightly better mileage but you will sacrifice either headroom or outside storage space.

Dakzuki wrote:
The cabover makes for great storage. That's why we intentionally bought one with the bunk up there and removed the mattress. The difference in fuel economy is minimal.

Same for us removed the mattress and use the cabover for storage of light bulky things. As far as walk around queen beds in small motorhomes its always a trade off. They seem to take up 2/3 of the space and leave you with a wet bath and super small kitchen. Also we wanted nothing behind the drivers and passengers seats that would stop them from moving full back so we can recline them full back. They make nice recliners. Many rigs have some thing behind the seats and you can not even move the seat back or tilt the back any. Found one I could not fit between the steering wheel and seat. I am 5'8" and 170 lbs.

What ever you do, set it up for travel and then spend a couple hours in the drivers and passengers seat and be sure you find the comfort you need. Lots better to do that and end up with some thing you can put in long days traveling than find after a couple hours you are in pain.

Take a look at the Coach House Platinum Class C's (sometimes mistakenly called B+'s), they have good headroom and are very well built. Go for a used unit as new ones are pretty pricey.

Our Sunseeker 2300 has a 60x80 queen in the rear. It can be ordered with an entertainment center over the cab. We have the bed there and use it for storage. I'm not sure of the interior height.

pnichols wrote:

fireflock wrote:
The headroom is there, except right under the air conditioner.

Hmmmm .... doesn't Lazy Daze use ducted air conditioning?
.

Nope if you are taller than 6' 2 it is a head bumper........or walk with a spring in your step.:B

fireflock wrote:
The headroom is there, except right under the air conditioner.

Hmmmm .... doesn't Lazy Daze use ducted air conditioning?

Our 24 foot Itasca has it and as such, both the main A/C intake grill and all ducts are flush with the ceiling. I'm 6'2" and our Itasca has plenty of headroom for me everywhere - including the shower with it's bubble in the ceiling.

You might want to consider a Lazy Daze if you haven't already.

The headroom is there, except right under the air conditioner. Many models have either a long couch (that folds into a single bed) or 2 couches that fold together to make a huge (larger than king) bed. The downside is folding/unfolding the beds each day since the couch/bed is a dual use space.

Some models replace the overcab bed with a TV and cabinets, but still maintain the overcab profile. From what I've heard from other E-450 owners, everyone gets about the same fuel mileage regardless overcab or lack of.

www.lazydaze.com

Dakzuki wrote:
The cabover makes for great storage. That's why we intentionally bought one with the bunk up there and removed the mattress. The difference in fuel economy is minimal.

x20

I know this doesn't really address your question, but we were in a similar situation so I thought I'd respond. We have something quite similar to the Itasca 25B you mention (see signature/profile for info). Ours is <26' and has a shorter bed than the Itasca (only 74" long). My husband is also 6'4" (a scosh over) and I'm fairly tall as well (5'11"). However, that short corner bed has been fine (I recognize this is really subjective; we liked the floor plan so much that we figured if we were wrong about the corner bed working for us long-term, there was always the gigantic cabover bed to move to...fortunately, it's been perfect). The interior height is fantastic (6'10.5") and the shower has a skylight and is therefore tall enough. We looked at several similar models (even from the same mfg) and this was the only one where he could stand up in the shower, so be aware of that issue as well. For us, the couch+dinette w/full time corner bed in a short C has been such a fantastic floor plan....we've never seen anything else to make us second guess our purchase.

pnichols wrote:
The Phoenix Cruiser is one example: Why not have their small, single fiberglass piece, and streamlined cabover area still be a single bed - as an option? That way one would still get some gas mileage benefit, but have the option of two permanent sleeping locations for flexibility - the corner bed in the rear being kindof a queen and the cabover bed being kindof a single.

IMHO, the name of the game in any well designed RV is flexibility - with as much as possible double or multiple use of it's layout configurations and always a Plan B on how things can get used by the owner.

The reason we're partial to the Phoenix Cruiser is the fact that the maker is willing to configure the interior to your specs. They aren't one of these mass produced assembly line companies where you're expected to just accept what they put on the model lot. If you want these things, ask Phoenix Cruiser and they will do their best to accommodate your wishes. Their customer service is outstanding.

We have a 24V Itasca and use both queen beds. The DW has a bad back and needs the full spread-out room of the rear corner bed, so I use the cabover bed. Both are real comfortable with great mattresses on them as installed by Winnebago.

However ... our 24V is a basement design Class C, so the floor is closer to the cabover bed than with the non-basement design ... so my climb up into the cabover bed is not very high and very doable. Our cabover bed's height to the ceiling is also pretty good, as I can sit up in it with my head not quite touching the ceiling. Of course, the dinette can always be converted into a double bed for emergency sleeping by two more (grandkids?).

It seems to me that the cabover bed design in a Class C with both queens, at the very least, certainly offers more flexibility in use of one's Class C. If you don't want to use the cabover bed for sleeping, then it's a huge storage area. I you do want to use it for sleeping, then you have two queens available if and as needed.

What Class C manufacturers could do but don't well is, in Class C models with cabover beds, still make the front of the motorhome more streamlined and molded from a single piece of fiberglass ... just like with "Class B+" rigs. The Phoenix Cruiser is one example: Why not have their small, single fiberglass piece, and streamlined cabover area still be a single bed - as an option? That way one would still get some gas mileage benefit, but have the option of two permanent sleeping locations for flexibility - the corner bed in the rear being kindof a queen and the cabover bed being kindof a single.

IMHO, the name of the game in any well designed RV is flexibility - with as much as possible double or multiple use of it's layout configurations and always a Plan B on how things can get used by the owner.