Downsizing

[tim_eisele]

My wife and I are considering downsizing from a 40' 5th wheel to a camper van 21'-24' long. Looking at Roadtrek and Airstreams right now. Difficulty with 5th wheel range from 2 blown tires and $9,000 in damages, lack of flexibility on road, necessity to map out every road, lack of fuel availability with a 60' rv and tow vehicle.
Have any of you downsized, for what reasons and are you satisfied with your new campers???
Any recommendations would be appreciated.
TAME

[magicbus]

The bed in our Era A was a huge surprise for us. It is a king that we can leave made up as it is in the rear, but the mattress and really funky "box spring" seem to work to make it very comfortable. I say funky because under the mattress is an array of plastic springy finger-like things that all work together to support the mattress. I never saw anything like it and we had our doubts, but we love it.

Dave

[Roy_Lynne]

We downsized and then downsized again to a B and for the most part, I am very happy with our choice (but not what we paid for it) I love that we can go just about anyplace, park anywhere and don't have to consider the size. I love that the gas mileage is better than our C or A. I like driving the smaller size better.
What I don't like. Our bed has got to be the worst. Its uncomfortable sleeping and sitting on it. We finally bought a foam top but storing that became and issue. So I'm not comfortable sleeping or sitting.
Surprisingly enough, we have the room and plenty of storage and that isn't an issue.
If I had to do it over I would have kept our Class C

[PSW]

We have never had a large rig and over thirty 37 years of RVing, we have always had Bs or Cs. Two of the Cs were called B+ but as we all know they are Cs.

We had a 1996 Roadtrek 190 P we bought new and loved it for years. We got the itch to buy a new "B+" when we first had that term used and bought a BT Cruiser that was 24 feet long and really enjoyed it for a few years, but missed the abilities of a B. In 2006 we bought a new Roadtrek 210P tricked out to our specifications. We wanted the twin beds instead of the couch that converts to a bed because we wanted all that big storage area with rear door access that the twin arrangement provided.

We sold our Roadtrek in 2013 and it was purchased by a lady in Houston. We had purchased a Phoenix Cruiser 2350 Class C (they call them B+) and it is a great motorhome almost 24 feet long but more narrow than most and with less height. We have thoroughly enjoyed the Phoenix Cruiser and it is really considered one of the better Class Cs built today. We boondock for weeks at a time and the PC works perfectly for that purpose. BUT....we missed our Roadtrek! When the nice lady that had purchased the RT from us decided to sell last summer, we bought it back from her!! She had taken excellent care of it and it was essentially just like when we sold it to her a few years ago, and she had only driven it about 5K miles. It is now in a garage attached here at our home in Oklahoma City.

I go through all this story to make a point and the point is that different kinds of use dictates our preferences. Nothing we have ever owned beats our Roadtrek 210P for performance, reliability, usability and touring. We kept the Phoenix Cruiser and will probably spend much of the summer in it up in cooler climes. We tow a Jeep behind it and that is a hassle.

Our Roadtrek has more storage than the Phoenix Cruiser. That is not a guess but a fact after measurement of cubic interior and exterior storage capacity. We use the RT for touring and the PC for long term camping and boondocking for periods of a week or more in one place.

Simply put, a B is a lot less hassle to drive, park and utilize than even a small C. A B by definition is a van. A C by definition is a truck. A van is easier to handle, at least for me, than a truck.

I suspect we will sell the Phoenix Cruiser in a couple of years and just keep the Roadtrek. Class Bs simply give more flexibility than anything else and prove less is more in all the junk you carry when you travel. Our tank capacity in the RT allow us about five days of careful unhooked usage. I can whip into any place to buy gas and not worry about a toad behind me. Add up the Phoenix Cruiser, the hitch equipment and the Jeep and we are talking 45 feet going down the road, twice the Roadtrek.

Paul

[paddykernahan]

Trekkar wrote:
I find that if you put stuff away when you're finished using it,
the storage issue is minimized. Most of the other issues have been covered.

Everything gets put away after use.
We are ready to roll on a moments notice.
Sometimes you just have to go and get some ice cream.

[Trekkar]

I find that if you put stuff away when you're finished using it,
the storage issue is minimized. Most of the other issues have been covered.

[arm]

Been RVing since 1971. Have had every type, fold downs, truck camper,travel trailers,class A, class C, 30’ 5th wheel, and now class B. Every unit was great at the time and for the intended use. All RV’s are a compromise. Right now the”B” is perfect for our use (in our 70’s). We tell people in has everything or 5th wheel had except it’s all in a phone booth. It has been the easiest RV to travel in, get into any campground, or boondock, 31 gal water, 25 gal grey, 13 gal black. Good for a week boondocking if careful.
It helps that we are hobbits, some people love them, but most could not spend a lot of time in one. We are in ours about 6 - 7 months a year and travel about 16,000 miles a year.

Only you will know if it can work for your
needs and expectations.

Good luck on your choice.

[pasusan]

jjson775 wrote:

Trackrig wrote:
Not to be argumentative, but other than length, you can have the same problems with any rig.

We have a 40' DP with a toad and have no problems finding fuel and we don't use the high priced truck stops. This last ear we went from AZ to FL and MN to LA.

Bill

You will almost certainly have fewer problems with a Class B than any other type of RV. 100% factory drive train from GM, Ford or Mercedes. No need to pull anything. If you want to stay parked somewhere for a while and want to get around, rent a car. We will be doing just that at spring training in FL in a few weeks.

Or get an Uber - that's what we did at Niagara Falls and it worked out great!

[jjson775]

Trackrig wrote:
Not to be argumentative, but other than length, you can have the same problems with any rig.

We have a 40' DP with a toad and have no problems finding fuel and we don't use the high priced truck stops. This last ear we went from AZ to FL and MN to LA.

Bill

You will almost certainly have fewer problems with a Class B than any other type of RV. 100% factory drive train from GM, Ford or Mercedes. No need to pull anything. If you want to stay parked somewhere for a while and want to get around, rent a car. We will be doing just that at spring training in FL in a few weeks.

[magicbus]

obgraham wrote:
We made the switch you are considering: 38' DP to RoadTrek.

We couldn't be happier. The RT drives like a high end car, fits in a regular space in most places, and has everything we need.

After picking up our Era A yesterday I have to say the handling was the biggest surprise to me. I had to install steering stabilizer on my first 32 footer just so I could drink a cup of coffee while driving. When I moved to a 36 DP I found the previous owner had installed a pneumatic steering stabilizer that I really learned to appreciate when it stopped working. The Era drives like a car, tracking down the road with little guidance. It has a paddle transmission so that going down steep hills it is simple to downshift and let the engine take up some of the braking, although I do miss the exhaust brake from my DP :W.

I was spoiled by having a place to seal the slinky away in a tube in the basement of my DP. Then today I found a spot running under the rear bed where I can suspend a 4" PVC tube and put the slinky in there and put the cap on. Bought the parts today to install this week before we take off for warmer weather.

Dave

[KAYPAY]

theoldwizard1 wrote:
A Class B will have next to no storage !

I would look for a small Class C.

When we first got our Roadtrek, wifey was looking for more stuff to fill all the storage. Did all of Canada and 46 states in 3 years with no problems.

[thataway]

I started RVing in 1962 with a Chevy Corvair Green Brier conversion (no pop top), similar to the Volkswagen Wesfalia. We have been up and down a number of times, including two VW's, and about everything down from our current Holiday Rambler Ambassador PDQ 40, with 4 slides. (our first slides) We bought that to take the grandkids all of the USA before they got...too old...Now we are downsizing again. I loved a RoadTrek Popular 21, which I kept in Calif. as my "Condo" My wife hated it. Now we are considering a Phoenix Cruiser or Coach House in the 26 foot range--a little larger than the Class B, I would rather have--and smaller than a 30' + class A my wife would prefer.

[RSADVENT]

We have a 2012 Roadtrek RS... nice rig.. fuel economy on the road is 19 to 20 depending on your speed...18 MPG cruising at 70... speed does affect the MPG...

On storage.. yes, it's limited..take only what you need... most people who purchase a Class B.. know this going in.

The flexibility, ease of driving, and nimble handling of these smaller rigs is definitely their strengths...

It's a very smooth ride, and fairly quiet.. plenty of power... remember, it's 190 HP, and only 23 feet... consider this, those large 40 foot Class As have between 350 and 400 horsepower.. they are more than twice the weight of a Class B....

Driving a Class A and towing a car is a real commitment..and you have to practically radio the "air traffic controller" ...LOL .. just to figure out your next stop...no thanks..

We got ours for traveling, some camping and fun.. we don't live in the rig...I can only understand people driving Class As who intend to make it their permanent home and travel a few places ... snowbirds...etc.

Only thing we found is that the heater is a little noisy, so is the generator and air conditioning... Plus, when it's cold the heater cycles on all night long (especially at 32-38 degrees)...it can dry out your sinuses quickly.....

I imagine that the radiant heat would have been nice.. but, we don't have that...

Enjoy your Roadtrek... they are very well built as many other Class B's..
Most of the really cheap interiors I've seen are on the inexpensive Class C rigs.

[somuch2see]

We downsized last year. Went from a Fleetwoo Excursion 39L to a Rialta 03QD. Love the move, wife can drive, we can park it anywhere, fuel savings(15+ vs 8, gas vs diesel), still have two beds and can use as a second car when we are home just to name a few advantages. Left on a six thousand mile trip the month after purchase. Yes we have limited space but I carried three tool boxes with me before and can't really fix anything. We do have to pack a cooler as ref. is small but that really is the biggest disavantage. We really enjoyed the Fleetwood and do not regret owning it at all but it was time for us to downsize and we are really enjoying the move.
Ron 03 QD

[jjrbus]

I went from a full size class A to a Toyota mini. Due to a change I have been watching for a class B. I look and I look and can not bring myself to switch and will probably stick with the C.

Most small B's have small holding tanks and I don't like the idea of changing from bed to table or couch every night.

I also do most of my own maintenance and work and things are too tight on the B's that I have looked at.