Hershey show observations

[thejsofa]

I visited the "B''s and smallest "C"'s only at the huge Hershey Pa. Rv show. I thought the Leisure Travel Vans Uniti series were exceptional. Pleasure Way and Roadtrek had lots to offer, with my nod to Pleasure Way. Winnebago had some 20-25' units, just awful, by comparison. Small"C"s liked the Phoenix Cruisers gave the B's a run for the money.A new small C company , Nexus, looked pretty good.

Oddest unit was a Nissan Van with a pop top. It had seats everywhere, a cramped tiny galley, no water facilities of any kind, and 2 beds in the pop top. Maybe good for taking lots of scouts to the jamboree, but i could not figure its other uses.

Great West Van was listed but was not there. Sportsmobile was not there
Born Free was not there.

There were some nice young couples looking at B's and eager to learn and compare. That was encouraging.

[Fastpaddler]

My wife was looking enthusiastically at a Leisure Travel Van SS with the rear bathroom/shower and lots of cupboards/storage.She even liked the mid coach bed. It is the right size when we upgrade next year. I have favoured PW & GWV.Too far for me to go to Hershey from here!!But most of these brands are made in Canada and I can go to the factories in Manitoba,Saskatchewan or Ontario to see them before ordering.

[1775]

Arizona Kid wrote:
It would be nice to hear from someone else who went to the show, and get a report on the new models . Was the E-Trek, or Advanced RV there?

I was not at the show, but from another forum I know that the Roadtrek E-Trek was there. The Roadtreks at the Hershey show will be featured on the Travel Channels show about this year's Hershey show. I believe it airs the night of New Years Day.

[erip]

I was at the Hershey show with the specific purpose of seeing the new Winnebago Travato. The Travato was very disappointing. The number of class B's is drastically reduced. Pleasureway is no longer using the ford van and is really pushing their new B plus, which has a huge bathroom and no storage. It seems that until the Promaster and Ford Transit become entrenched in the country the amount of B's will be decreased. The B plus market is growing as LTV, Pleasureway, winnebago and coach house are actively building this product.

[Arizona_Kid]

The LTV Unity is a small Class C, and there are some owners over in that forum.

[armdave]

My wife and I went Friday. The thing we love about Hershey is that there is no pressure like when you go to a dealer. We both really hate the process of buying an RV.
But, anyway we are looking to purchase another B class. We had a Roadtrek 210 versatile a couple of years back and sold it because we just weren't using it enough. We were really looking forward to seeing the Pleasure-Ways as we like the twin bed set up. But we were sadly disappointed as we saw nothing at the Pleasure-Way exhibit we liked.
Neither the PW or RT seemed to have much to look at.
Fortuanately we discovered Leisure Vans which honestly wasn't on our minds at all. They had several great layouts that we liked very much. We're looking at the Unity model and are really leaning towards getting one after the first of the year.
Would love to hear from other Leisure Van owners on what they like or dislike

Thanks

[Arizona_Kid]

It would be nice to hear from someone else who went to the show, and get a report on the new models . Was the E-Trek, or Advanced RV there?

[thejsofa]

My observations were based on my experience and things I have learned to look for from this brilliant forum and tips at the B4 rally. Folks have gone to great lengths to advise others to look for the RV that suits their particular needs... and budget. When you buy used, as I did on my Great West Van, you buy "as is", features, layout, wear and tear, but of course you save money.

You can pay some companies to totally customize a new RV or buy an available new unit like the ones at the show, with the greatest # of pluses and fewest minuses.

I find the shows to be enlightening and the "what will they come up with next" qualities can be fascinating. And RVers in general are quite the friendly lot. I know they have been kind to us in some situations where we needed help.

Maybe one of our RV historians can educate us on the history how the the "B" companies evolved in Canada for the most part the most other types came out of Indiana and the USA. I really don't know.

[atreis]

First World cost comparison problems... Yeesh.

OP: Thank you for the interesting post, and your opinion on the direct comparison of build quality.

[RSchleder]

I'm sure everyone enjoys their B's regardless of cost and yes, I did over estimate the cost of the unit in question. My "bad"!

[Fastpaddler]

Heh, you richer guys: I bought my used 2006(2007) PW Plateau TS for about 20,000$(Canadian) below market price--so we poorer folks do ok too. But I AM saving for a new Sprinter so I will keep your collective viewpoints in my radar...

[gerrym51]

RSchleder wrote:

thejsofa wrote:
I visited the "B''s and smallest "C"'s only at the huge Hershey Pa. Rv show. I thought the Leisure Travel Vans Uniti series were exceptional. Pleasure Way and Roadtrek had lots to offer, with my nod to Pleasure Way. Winnebago had some 20-25' units, just awful, by comparison. Small"C"s liked the Phoenix Cruisers gave the B's a run for the money.A new small C company , Nexus, looked pretty good.

Oddest unit was a Nissan Van with a pop top. It had seats everywhere, a cramped tiny galley, no water facilities of any kind, and 2 beds in the pop top. Maybe good for taking lots of scouts to the jamboree, but i could not figure its other uses.

Great West Van was listed but was not there. Sportsmobile was not there
Born Free was not there.

There were some nice young couples looking at B's and eager to learn and compare. That was encouraging.

Yeah, me and my $40,000 that I saved by buying a Winnebago ERA seem to be doing just FINE, Thank you!

cool info on maintenance price


linky

[yizit]

The ERA's were offering their B's for $85K new. If you go by the MSRP it would appear you saved $40K. Dealers show MSRP, but no one pays that, or at least, shouldn't.

[gerrym51]

paying a price and then comparing over some created "msrp" or comparing to another brand that is similiar seems like a measurement contest:B

[Davydd]

I hate to say it but you did not save any $40,000 over my Great West Van Legend.