2014 Winnebago Travato - Page 9

bobojay · 11-25-2013, 05:46 PM

Here's the first "official" Travato video. Sliding screen door, but looks like they are leaving the 2 cab seats in their original PM seat covers. That looks cheap to me. It's what they did on the first couple years of their View/Navion Sprinter line....

[youtube:e8ri0jvg]0vhWZatIj2g[/youtube:e8ri0jvg]

mlts22 · 11-25-2013, 07:04 PM

I'm guessing that until they get their own seats or covers that fit/replace the original PM ones, the OEM cloth seats will be in place. The brown woodgrain is also sort of boring, but functional. Of course, the sliding glass door under the bed may not be the top choice. Wish they went with some other mechanism because if something heavy is in the back, one good bump that shifts things might cause it to slam into the glass.

It is a good video... I it is helping make a list of mods for it (such as replacing the above mentioned sliding doors with cut to fit sheets of tinted polycarbonate/Lexan that have the same dimensions and fingerhole.) That way, a good thunk from a shifting box might pop it out of the channel at the worst.

So far, it seems like a decent model with a few shortcomings, but nothing that would be a deal breaker. The worst is having to fire up the generator 20 minutes before taking a shower due to the water heater being all electric, and that is not too big a disadvantage for the most part.

Davydd · 11-25-2013, 08:06 PM

It lacks storage and tank capacity, and that 48" wide bed with a clipped corner is just not acceptable for two people. At best it might be suitable for a single person, IMO.

If you have to fire up a generator to get hot water then that is definitely a deal breaker. We camp in too many non-hookup campgrounds that either restrict generator hours or don't allow them at all. Besides that, I think running the generator is the rudest most obnoxious thing you can do and more so in the more wilderness campgrounds or around tent campers.

mlts22 · 11-26-2013, 05:36 AM

The ironic thing is that the compartment for the water heater is exactly the same as on the Trend. This means that I can buy an Atwood OD-50 on-demand water heater which is LP gas based, pipe propane to it, shove it in, and I would have 50 gallons an hour of very hot water. Of course, the cost is $750, but for showering, or even using it as a method of doing hydronic heating, it is something else to toss on the upgrade list.

bobojay · 11-26-2013, 08:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mlts22

The ironic thing is that the compartment for the water heater is exactly the same as on the Trend. This means that I can buy an Atwood OD-50 on-demand water heater which is LP gas based, pipe propane to it, shove it in, and I would have 50 gallons an hour of very hot water. Of course, the cost is $750, but for showering, or even using it as a method of doing hydronic heating, it is something else to toss on the upgrade list.

Good point about the Trend heater compartment. It would be a fairly easy swap I think, discounting the $$$$

Davydd · 11-26-2013, 09:20 PM

In regard to the cab seats, could it be leaving them Promaster stock was simply intentional? It seems they are trying every trick in the book to keep the cost down on this unit. On my two Bs (Pleasure-way and Great West) the seats weren't just recovered with Ultraleather. They were custom cushioned as well.

Ok pete · 11-27-2013, 02:19 AM

Hi David,
I have a 2011 MB chassis up fitted by Pleasueway 2012. Not wishing to be argumentative, but my seats were just recovered. My seats were rebuilt by Aero Oregon and t hey did a nice job of reconfiguring the foam. The original MB are a type of cast foam which is in my opinion ,uncomfortable but durable. I've checked underneath three different makers and appears to be the same material. According to several sources, to be certified by MB you cannot change the seat. Pleasureway, also confirmed that they only recover. I' ve not inspected adventure or Gwv. I really like my 2012 plateau rb, especially after the seat rebuild. The factory support is the best . Perhaps, the early models were different. Happy holidays

booster · 11-27-2013, 03:39 AM

When we were looking in 2005-2008, we found all the Sprinters to have basically the same "feel" to the seats, whether they had been reupholstered, or not.

In the Chevies, the Pleasureway and Roadtrek cloth seats were the Chevy upholstery, I think. The Roadtrek was repadded when they put on the ultraleather, but we didn't see a Pleasure-way Chevy with ultraleather. Pleasure-way Excel with cloth was also not repadded, it appeared. Those are the only ones I remember, and we didn't see all of them in cloth and ultraleather.

Davydd · 11-27-2013, 04:10 AM

You might be right about the Pleasure-way. It was reupholstered with Ultraleather. The Great West Van however was completely redone including the foam. Here's the 2011 Great West Van seats.

jscott1000 · 01-10-2014, 04:02 AM

From a video I saw, the reason the seats were not reupholstered because they have airbags in them.

stanw909 · 01-12-2014, 10:03 PM

I got to see one in person and can report very favorably about the Travato. Nice fit and finish. Big bath with china bowl and cleaning sprayer. Front seats are firm and could stand a little more padding for lounging. Did not test drive although offered. I don't see the "every trick to get it cheaper ". Electric step and awningx bath set-up stated before. Pluggins galore and propane tap for bbqx Bluetooth, led lighting. Cabinet s and latches superior to the Era. Not cheap at all. The front driver and passenger entrances need steps badly and lp tank is not adequately protected but little else to complain about. I don't like Ultra leather and would prefer fabric but others will feel differently. Front end still ugly.

stanw909 · 01-12-2014, 10:30 PM

I forgot to mention the cab window covers. They are a stout fabric with insulative qualities and magnets sewn inside. Simple but effective.

bobojay · 01-13-2014, 02:12 AM

I can say that we really miss the positive cabinet latches that we had in our Navion, which are the same as in the Travato. We've had them come open a couple times in our ERA with resulting ejection of the contents

markopolo · 01-13-2014, 11:56 AM

Thanks for the Travato updates Stan.

------------------------------
Re: seats

Quote:

Originally Posted by jscott1000

From a video I saw, the reason the seats were not reupholstered because they have airbags in them.

I had an email from someone who indicates that the oem front seats in 2014 Sprinters, ProMasters and Transit vans will all have airbags. Altering or changing the front seats will not be an option as the air bags, all together, act as a system.

ontheroad · 01-13-2014, 06:33 PM

Greetings all.
A friend is very interested in purchasing aTravato. She asked me to look it over to see what I think. I am quite familiar with TTs and 5ers but have never owned a B. The unit should be delivered to the dealer some time this week. What are the not so obvious things I should consider?
Thanks. Dave

mlts22 · 01-13-2014, 06:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ontheroad

Greetings all.
A friend is very interested in purchasing aTravato. She asked me to look it over to see what I think. I am quite familiar with TTs and 5ers but have never owned a B. The unit should be delivered to the dealer some time this week. What are the not so obvious things I should consider?
Thanks. Dave

This is a pretty lengthy discussion previous to this, but the only real shortcoming that might be an issue that isn't fairly obvious is the 120VAC water heater. This means you will need to fire up the generator or have shore power to have it run. It also is a four gallon unit. There -might- be a way to toss it and upgrade to an Atwood on-demand water heater which would fit in the same space, but the vehicle is so new that it will be a while before a dealer has tried to do this type of upgrade.

Mike · 01-13-2014, 07:10 PM

Further to mlts22's specifics about the water heater.
I would want to know why she is interested in purchasing a Travato in the first place? Is she a first time buyer in the class B market or does she have any previous RV experience of any kind?
Price, size, fuel economy, fit and finish, warranty, handling, features, value for money, etc., are all the usual reasons someone is interested in a particular make/model of motorhome or other RV. I'm sure I've missed a few.
I'd ask her what drew her to it in the first place, and take it from there. You may be able to debunk some of her initial impressions of it, by actually seeing one in the flesh. They're so new, it'll be hard to guess at it's level of performance until some of them get bought up and used for a year or so. So functional analysis will be speculative at best.
Going by some recent up close and personal experiences, it may be a pretty good overall choice for someone looking for a small, nimble, well fitted and equipped, fuel efficient (jury's still out on that one), touring style, motorhome, as opposed to something that you would normally drive to the destination and park for days/weeks/months at a time. That would arguably be the main difference between driving your RV, and pulling it. Make sure she's a "tourer" and not a destination camper. I would also caution anyone looking at them to realize that they are probably only large enough to support 2 adults on longer trips, consider with salt grains the "sleeps four" claim of the manufacturer.

Davydd · 01-13-2014, 10:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ontheroad

Greetings all.
A friend is very interested in purchasing aTravato. She asked me to look it over to see what I think. I am quite familiar with TTs and 5ers but have never owned a B. The unit should be delivered to the dealer some time this week. What are the not so obvious things I should consider?
Thanks. Dave

A little more information? When you say a friend are you saying a single person is interested? There are so many ways to answer depending on the circumstance of use. The truth is right now so few of us that have been jawing about it in this thread have only seen photos and specs. But what I do know about it is I would absolutely never buy one as a traveling couple. But then I have too much experience to be willing to make way too many compromises from what I've had because I know they wouldn't work in the way I want to travel. For a single person it could work well with little of it overdone as far as needs go. The cost seems like it may well be the least expensive new B.

ontheroad · 01-13-2014, 10:49 PM

Thanks for the replies.
It's just her. I think what led her to the Travato in order is floorplan, price, fuel mileage and size.

Floorplan because she plans on using it as a mini TH. She likes the fact that the bed flips up for larger storage. I have pointed her to used RT, PW, LTV etc. in the same price range and it always comes back to floorplan.
I was thinking the build quality would be below par compared to others but a previous post of a first-hand walk through review from Stanw909 sounds like the fit and finish may not be so bad. I'll let you know what I find. I'm expecting everything to be laminated particle-board as opposed to solid wood or wood products. From previous TT's I have seen first hand how laminates don't hold up in a humid environment over time.

She can buy a new Travato for the price of a 4 or 5 yr old, gently used RT. Warranty comes to play here but the warranty on a ProMaster is 3 years whereas Winnebago states 1 yr on the Travato. I will ask about this when I go look at it.

The fact that it is 20' allows her better handling in tight spots and parking in standard parking spots. That's me talking but I do see it as a plus.

I pointed out the WH and tank size issues to her and that doesn't seem to be a concern to her. I think she will either be in campsites that offer 110V and showers or she will be boondocking away from everything and everyone.

She was a tent camper in the past but is ready to step up into something better. She knows what she is getting herself into and I'm not going to try to steer her in a different direction. I hinted a jeep and small teardrop or other small TT but now that I think about it, the van with a small trailer may better fit her. Besides, she has a fairly new subcompact that she would not give up.

This will be a weekender and maybe a week long outing or two for her. She has a small foldable boat that she plans on taking with her. That and a bicycle is what drives the TH mindset. It will fit in the rear area with the bed flipped up but I think the boat may interfere with the frig. I'll measure that when the time comes. The boat is too heavy for her to lift on top of a vehicle but she could lift it enough to get it into the van.

What I was hoping to get from this discussion is what you would look for when looking over a B as opposed to say a TT. For example:
Are there certain materials that some manufactures use that have proven not to hold up to the test of time?

Keep in mind this is not a PDI per se. I'm looking at it as a quality and functionality inspection and provide her my personal opinion.

Thanks

Mike · 01-13-2014, 11:18 PM

I see. I would think most of the fit and finish items and quality control issues will be pretty much the same as what you would be familiar with in TTs, THs, and fivers. Things like metallic surfaces and veneers and the substrates, are probably going to be pretty similar to what you're used to seeing in towables.
As far as the engine and drive train, sounds like you've already got that covered with warranty questions and anything else that comes to mind, like projected fuel economy, and perhaps service schedules for the Promaster chassis. The chassis may have the 3 year Chrysler warranty, and the Winnebago part is likely a limited 1 year coverage of the RV systems and finishes. Kind of a hybrid warranty.
Like others have said, most of us haven't seen these wee beasties yet, but most of those who have, have positive comments. You might ask about an upfit or retrofit for that electric water heater. Maybe there's an option available.

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