Can you sleep 4 in a class B

[holstein13]

I'm toying with the idea of replacing my Ford F-150 with a class B travel coach.

My plan is to tow it behind my 45 foot DP as we travel throughout North America so I need two things 1) the ability to sleep two adults and two children and 2) the ability to tow 4 down.

I'm thinking that a class B van will have plenty of room for daily travels and shopping plus we could use it for day trips or even short term camping in national and state parks where a 45 footer wouldn't fit.

Does that make any sense? What brands should I consider? What else should I be looking for.

[stan909]

Nice rig. Too bad the side door and steering wheel are on the wrong side.

[RobertRyan]

mrlandlord wrote:

holstein13 wrote:

stan909 wrote:
Remember.O.P. has a 45 foot pusher.This will be a dingy for day tripping and some overnights.It is nice to go to a spot and have toilet,kitchen etc...

Exactly, I don't plan to overnight in it often. I think the kitchen and bath will be the most useful.

But Mr. Landlord makes a great point that I hadn't thought of. It would probably make sense to stow sleeping bags in this rather than bedding.

I took a look at the Winnebago Travato a couple of days ago and was not impressed. It looked very poorly constructed. I will focus on Roadtrek and Airstream next.

I almost laughed once in the Travato. I agree on its construction. Worse though for me was the lack of legroom and general comfort of the front seats. For long trips, it was totally unacceptable. If I was in my early 20's and did not have any kids, it might work for 5 years or so. The only production quasi sleep 4 class b was the Airstream Westfalia that was built in 2005. I was so sad that they stopped production on this. I would have bought one in a second if they made this today. Even though we are about 10 years later, these go for over 50K with over 100K miles.

Best Ducato Class B conversion in Australia is Horizon Casuarina, looks bit like the New Zion See video below and internal shot
Horizon Casaruina Video
As well IVECO Dailys have been replacing the Sprinter here as a. base for a Class C Motorhome Presumably the very new Model of the Daily is very good

[stan909]

I must have looked at the best Travato out there. It looked to be well made.

[mrlandlord]

holstein13 wrote:

stan909 wrote:
Remember.O.P. has a 45 foot pusher.This will be a dingy for day tripping and some overnights.It is nice to go to a spot and have toilet,kitchen etc...

Exactly, I don't plan to overnight in it often. I think the kitchen and bath will be the most useful.

But Mr. Landlord makes a great point that I hadn't thought of. It would probably make sense to stow sleeping bags in this rather than bedding.

I took a look at the Winnebago Travato a couple of days ago and was not impressed. It looked very poorly constructed. I will focus on Roadtrek and Airstream next.

I almost laughed once in the Travato. I agree on its construction. Worse though for me was the lack of legroom and general comfort of the front seats. For long trips, it was totally unacceptable. If I was in my early 20's and did not have any kids, it might work for 5 years or so. The only production quasi sleep 4 class b was the Airstream Westfalia that was built in 2005. I was so sad that they stopped production on this. I would have bought one in a second if they made this today. Even though we are about 10 years later, these go for over 50K with over 100K miles.

[holstein13]

stan909 wrote:
Remember.O.P. has a 45 foot pusher.This will be a dingy for day tripping and some overnights.It is nice to go to a spot and have toilet,kitchen etc...

Exactly, I don't plan to overnight in it often. I think the kitchen and bath will be the most useful.

But Mr. Landlord makes a great point that I hadn't thought of. It would probably make sense to stow sleeping bags in this rather than bedding.

I took a look at the Winnebago Travato a couple of days ago and was not impressed. It looked very poorly constructed. I will focus on Roadtrek and Airstream next.

[stan909]

Remember.O.P. has a 45 foot pusher.This will be a dingy for day tripping and some overnights.It is nice to go to a spot and have toilet,kitchen etc...

[mrlandlord]

I struggled with a solution to get 4 people to sleep comfortably in a class B. I created sportsmobile floorplans and everything. The bottom line is "not unless you are willing to sacrifice something". The main problem you are going to have is storage and livability. Every morning and evening, you get to play, what I call, "the lego game" either putting everything in the mode to sleep or to use for dining. For me, it was only wife, 7 year old daughter and myself. The single bunk I used on the front 2 seats in my CS Adventurous. That alone was a pain in the butt. With 4 people, forget bedding, you are only going to be able to use sleeping bags and maybe pillows. Add in clothes and food and all your storage is full in the class B. Good luck being able to bring chairs, firewood, a grill, toys and stuff.

After my first season camping, I am going to add a travel trailer (RPod 182G) that will be dedicated for sleeping only. When I get up, I want to not have to put away my bedding and then covert the bed back to a dining table. I want to get up, make coffee and breakfast and be done. I feel that I would spend over an hour everyday playing this lego game and this ruined the RV experience.

[RobertRyan]

NoVa RT wrote:
Isn't there a B manufacturer that has a drop down bed over the cab area, as well as a double or queen in the back? Don't recall the company, but thought I saw that. Maybe not ideal for adults, but could work with kids.

Quite common in Australia. When I showed a drop down bed in a Sprinter B, sometime ago, it was a real novelty for North Americans. Now becoming almost the norm in the US for B's

[Davydd]

Sounds like a Chevy Roadtrek might be the best bet.

[toedtoes]

The OP is looking to tow the B behind a 45 ft Class A. The max length he can have in Florida is 65 ft. Therefore he can't go anything larger than a 20 ft B.

[mlts22]

A warning about Rialtas: VW has stopped making parts for the chassis this year, so they are truly orphan vehicles.

Instead, if looking for a "C", I'd go with a Winnebago Trend, as one floorplan has three sleeping surfaces, and can sleep up to 4-6 in a 24 foot length.

[bee_46]

We looked at a used 1999 Rialta and noticed that the tires were going to need replacing, so before we committed to buying we researched the availability of the tires. Basically the tires were unavailable. Needless to say, we did not buy the Rialta. We did own a 1987 LeSharo, the forerunner of the Rialta, and it was very underpowered and we also had issues with the drive air conditioning. I would avoid the Rialta.

We did eventually find a really nice Pleasure Way.

[My_Roadtrek]

A Rialta (Class C) might have been something to consider 15 years ago, but with all the nice used Class B's out there now I don't see a reason to take a chance on one of these. Unless your a very good mechanic, have time to hunt down expensive, and sometimes almost impossible to find parts, I don't think a Rialta is a very good purchased.
The newer ones had pretty good power, but that's because the Rialta had very limited CCC's. I think the standing height is only 5'10" so a lot of people will have to bend over.
A VW dealer won't touch it, so one would have to find a mechanic who has a lift big enough, and the knowledge to repair it.
I think the under built rear ends are one of the major repair problems, and costly.
I have heard brakes, and even tires can be had to find.
If you want a hobby, and have time, and some extra money, a Rialta might be a consideration, but not for the average RVer.
I did a Google search but could find nothing on the Rialta being towed 4 down.

[mkguitar]

Arizona Kid wrote:
plagued with problems.

Sorry to hear of your problems- the ones I have seen seemed pretty dandy.

underpowered yes I think so too...they'll be in the slow lane on 6% grades... designed and geared better for flatlands.
The 2001+ version has about 10% more power.

parts/service- like anything if you are not DIY, then call around. If you are married to dealer service then your options will be fewer- dealers will accept all your cash in the first few years- but will orphan a vehicle as soon as they are free of mandated obligations to stock parts...call around.

VW stuff is pretty easy to get, the chassis is a std VW chassis...millions and millions served.


Mike