1. This site uses cookies. By continuing to use this site, you are agreeing to our use of cookies. Learn More.

Class C RV's

Discussion in 'General' started by JTRC51, Jul 9, 2019.

  1. Mongo

    Mongo Administrator

    Air seats out of a semi :D
     
    ducnut likes this.
  2. ducnut

    ducnut Well-Known Member

    They’re all pretty universal, if they’re not OEM seats. Just pick something that appeals. You may swing by an upholstery shop and inquire, as well. I had a shop add more lumbar and an air bladder under my Thor’s original seat cover.

    If you follow Mongo’s suggestion, Seats Inc make the Legacy lineup and are known as one of the best commercial seats on the market. I have their Legacy Low model. However, I don’t believe you’re looking to spend $1000-$1500 a seat.
     
  3. KCFirebolt

    KCFirebolt Large man. Little bike.

    Love your profile pic! We're you stalking me across Italy?!?!?! LOL!
     
    JJJerry and renegade17 like this.
  4. renegade17

    renegade17 Well-Known Member

    Hahaha, just thought it was a great pic, just a man and his machine about to take on the world.
     
    ducnut likes this.
  5. KCFirebolt

    KCFirebolt Large man. Little bike.

    Thanks man! That was the start of a great day bombing up and down that coast road.

    I bought a 250 GTS off a craigslist while I was there and just picked it up. Having a blast scooting around town.

    The Harley riders around Flint keep giving me funny looks. I'm sure it's the shit-eating grin on my face that throws them.
     
    TurboBlew and renegade17 like this.
  6. Razr

    Razr Well-Known Member

    A friend sold his Ford powered class C for a similar class A you have posted. It had a 7.4 Chevy with an Allison trans. It pulled much better than the Ford and got better mileage even though it was a bigger RV. This one you posted seems like a good deal.
     
  7. TurboBlew

    TurboBlew Registers Abusers

    the 7.4 can be made into a stump puller with some basic hot rod stuff but the allison is really the show stealer the way it drives on grades & descents.
     
  8. assjuice cyrus

    assjuice cyrus Well-Known Member

    Back on subject here. Leaning more towards the class C or maybe class A(if you can talk me into it) for next year. Looking for some more detail info.

    How old is to old?

    How many miles is to many miles?

    What year did the auto leveling feature start?

    Any brand/models better then others?

    Any frame better then others? (ford ,chevy etc.)

    Are class c good to drag a 12 to 14ft trailer around?
     
    Last edited: Aug 12, 2019
  9. ducnut

    ducnut Well-Known Member

    Class is dependent on what you want. A small Class A (27’+) is better than a large Class C (~30’). Class A is built on a commercial chassis, with larger brakes, heavier suspension, heavier tires, higher weight ratings, more power, lot more room, etc. Class C are fine, if you’re staying in the 25’ range and don’t want to drive something that feels large. They don’t have a lot of room in weight ratings, though. They both get similar mileage, in the ~8mpg range.

    Don’t buy anything carbureted. Otherwise, age comes down to how dated of a coach you’re willing to live with and are you OK with performing updates?

    I don’t know if mileage is as big of deal as whether or not it’s spent its life sitting outside, rotted tires, winterized, rodent infestation, etc. A well-kept unit that has been enjoyed isn’t a bad thing.

    Auto-level is model dependent. It’s usually optional on affordable coaches and included on higher-end stuff.

    Thor, Jayco, and Winnebago are going to be what you should probably look at. I wouldn’t touch a Coachmen. There are some others out there like Lazy Days, Tiger, and other niche, quality coaches worth looking at.

    Ford is the dominant brand and familiar to anyone in the industry. From what I’ve read of people who’ve owned similar models on the two chassis, the Ford drivetrain seemed to be preferred.

    A Class C will easily pull that trailer size.

    If it’s just you and another, I’d go 25’ Class C. If it’s you and multiples/kids/pets the Class A is much more liveable, especially going down the road.

    I don’t know your budget, but, if you shop hard, you can get into a diesel pusher for reasonable money.

    FB Marketplace is loaded with used motorhome options.
     
    assjuice cyrus likes this.
  10. ChemGuy

    ChemGuy Harden The F%@# Up!

    To expand slightly on what Ducnut said, which I agree with...

    A small A is probably a better deal unless you really want a small unit. Almost all the C and smaller A's I see are ford based frame/drivetrain. Chevy has just started getting back into the cutaway, chassis a bit with 4500 and 5500 units.

    On brands to get...Damon (now Thor), Jayco and Winnebago are usually decent. Along with duc's coachmen reference iI would probably add gulfstream. They have been on life support for years. If you want to be a baller, thor outlaws, newmar and entegra are nice but are $$$$. IF you find one you think you like just google the shit out of the model and year range to see known issues.

    If its older plan on spending some time and a little money on sealing the windows, doors, roof, etc as a maintenance thing.

    Good luck and may the odds ever be in your favor...
     
    TurboBlew, assjuice cyrus and ducnut like this.
  11. assjuice cyrus

    assjuice cyrus Well-Known Member

    It would be me, wife, 8yr boy, and 2 yr daughter. Mainly use for going to race track. Mainly smaller kart tracks,since boy has a couple years to go before wera. No saying we wouldnt ever use it for a vacation but mainly track duty to make life easier for all of us.

    Budget is one of those things I guess is flexible. I dont wanna drop $100k. But I dont feel like I'm going to find anything that will make me happy at 20k either. What does 30 to 40 get you in a class a?
     
  12. r1owner

    r1owner All cars suck!

    You'd recommend a Class A over a C for a family? I guess I could see going down the road, but all the class A's I see require a bed to be pulled out of a couch for extra sleeping. That IMO would be a huge PITA. I seem to see a lot of class C's that have the over driver bunk, and you can even get a bunkhouse towards the back with a separate bedroom as well on the larger class C's. To me the class C's just seem to be able to sleep a lot more people easier.
     
  13. ChemGuy

    ChemGuy Harden The F%@# Up!

  14. assjuice cyrus

    assjuice cyrus Well-Known Member

  15. ducnut

    ducnut Well-Known Member

    Absolutely.

    The crucial thing with a Class C is weight ratings. Those long coaches like you mentioned are usually ~31’, have slides, bunks, etc, are close to, if not over, their weight ratings, once full of liquids, but, no people. When you add four people, all their crap, food, trailer tongue weight, and so forth, they’re usually overweight on the rear axle and can easily be overweight on their gross combined. This is why these things are known for blowing tires (225/75-16 isn’t much tire).

    The Class A chassis is much heavier. Since the OP is most likely going to end up with a Ford, these come with a 3-valve engine, which pulls better. They have heavy duty brakes, suspension, sway bars, tires, frame, lower gearing, etc. If one is looking at something 27’ and larger, a Class A really is the only way to go. A 31’ Class A feels like a go-cart, compared to the same length Class C. The just handle the weight so much better.

    Let’s talk about coaches. An older Class C coach is usually 8’ wide and newer models are 8’3” wide, while a Class A is 8’6” wide. That few inches may not seem like much, until you stand inside each of them, side by side. There’s noticeably more room in the latter. The cutaway of the Class C eats up a lot of room, with the cab and overhead bunk. Again, the Class A feels so much more spacious with it full-length ceiling height and tall windshield.

    Also, non-slide furnishings are shallower depth, versus slide furnishings. This means the dinette is narrower, closets and cabinets won’t be as deep, and so forth, because the designers maintain a certain walkway width down the middle, on a non-slide unit. With a slide unit, they know the wall slide will be extended, once parked, so the walkway isn’t as critical.

    You mentioned sleeping accommodations. You can get an overhead in a Class A, if desired. Most units get ordered with an entertainment center and big screen in place of the bunk. Or, you can get a bunkhouse in a Class A, as well. Whatever a buyer wants, it’s available, which is why it’s advised to buy the floorplan, first, and let everything else come after.

    The best thing I can tell anyone is go to a larger dealer, with kids in tow, and look at stuff. I’d strongly suggest staying away from Camping World (terrible sales staff and stripped units) and find an independent dealer. Spend enough time looking around and ideas of what type of floorplan will work best for one’s needs will come forth.
     
    TurboBlew likes this.
  16. r1owner

    r1owner All cars suck!

    Ah... gotcha. I didn't know all the specifics of weight. Thanks for the information!
     
    ducnut likes this.
  17. ducnut

    ducnut Well-Known Member

    No leveling jacks, which you mentioned.

    One A/C unit, which may struggle to cool that much coach. My 25’, full-slide, really worked to keep it cool with a 15K btu, ducted unit. I’d double-check the output of this one.

    Otherwise, that’s a nice motorhome.
     
  18. ChemGuy

    ChemGuy Harden The F%@# Up!

    For 40K you can get a nicer unit of similar vintage or even a diesel unit maybe 5-6 years older.

    Also in 2010 the V guys were coming out of the recession. In 2007 they shipped ~353,000 rvs in the US. In 2009 the industry shipped ~165,000 units. In 2010 they shipped ~242,000 units. I dont like that big jump around then as QC isnt usually job one for these guys. Its kicking units out the door....

    https://www.pplmotorhomes.com/used-rvs-for-sale/diesel-motorhomes/2002-newmar-kountry-star_rv-40803

    https://www.pplmotorhomes.com/used-rvs-for-sale/diesel-motorhomes/2000-newmar-dutch-star_rv-42825

    https://www.pplmotorhomes.com/used-rvs-for-sale/diesel-motorhomes/2006-damon-tuscany_rv-42096

    https://www.pplmotorhomes.com/used-rvs-for-sale/class-a/2005-winnebago-adventurer_rv-41113

    https://www.pplmotorhomes.com/used-rvs-for-sale/class-a/2005-newmar-kountry-star_rv-42584
     
    ducnut likes this.
  19. TurboBlew

    TurboBlew Registers Abusers

    My A is probably the worst floor plan for "extra" sleepers. But with the power couch and the dinette you can easily sleep 4 folks and not lose the isle to the back or bathroom. Turn the passenger seat around and recline it to roughly 150 degrees... theres a 5th place to catch Zs and thats not even counting the queen in the back.
    A "C "will may have the bunk over the cab but its typically a twin maybe a full sized bed. If it has a rear queen... you can put 2 on there. The bunkhouse is an option you dont see much on Cs. I think there is an RIVA standard for egress and sleeping bunk(s). I think all the "intended" sleeping areas must have an easy access window to escape.
    Thats some of the advantage of a 5th wheel... you can sleep 8-10 easy. If they are couples or just hard partiers... 20 for a nice round sleeping #...lol.
     
  20. ducnut

    ducnut Well-Known Member

    I don’t know what it is, but, FB Marketplace seems to have the cheapest motorhomes. And, you can see their price drops (sign of needing to offload it).

    If you go to vehicles, pick on filters, and select RV/trailers, to pull up listings.
     

Share This Page