Are Class B Transit's here to stay?

[bojiro]

The Ford people at the Hershey RV show emphatically stated they are now aggressively going to compete with Mercedes for class B and C sales. They cited the new features in the 2020 Transit as an important step.

[MsNomer]

I upfitted my PM with no propane similar to RossWilliams' description of his Roadtrek—plugging in is maybe once/twice per year.

I also upfitted my son's 2017 Sprinter, so for several months I had the two side-by-side. We found nothing to justify the Sprinter's price tag except that he simply preferred the layout of the Sprinter cab and he needed the length of the 170". His slider works more smoothly than mine, and the interior trim is nicer, but I don’t have plastic pieces that break if you look at them, nor do I fear rust. And yes, the PM is a clear winner for DIY.

[GigaGeek]

As someone who has owned and had trouble with a diesel car with a DEF-based emission system, I believe this is the primary achilles heel of modern diesel vehicles. Diesel engines will often run forever if properly maintained, but the newer emission systems with their DEF pump and heater, utilizing a multitude of failure-prone sensors can be very problematic. The reports I've seen also tend to point to DEF systems shortening the life of a diesel engine. In addition, in the case of the MB Sprinter as a motorhome, a limited number of service centers on the road nationwide preclude me from considering a vehicle with such an engine. Every time I've re-evauated the Sprinter due to its advantages over the others, I come away shaking my head - NO!

Word has it that the gas engine that MB will be offering for the Sprinter is a 2.0 liter turbo. How is that little forced induction pip-squeak going to hold up pulling the weight of a motorhome?

My next coach is going to be on a ProMaster 3500, or maybe a 2020 Transit 350 EcoBoost chassis. For 2020, the later addresses my primary pet peeves with the Transit but I still dislike the narrow interior compared to the PM.

Originally Posted by BillsPaseo

The diesel being better for higher mileage is an outdated argument. Modern gas engines are good for 300K+ miles between rebuilds, and at 300K, you can drop in a remanufactured replacement for around $4-6k and be good for another 200K+ at which time the rest of the vehicle will be ready for the crusher, no matter what brand of vehicle your talking about.

[MountBranson]

We had Sportsmobile North in Indiana install a penthouse in our 2018 Promaster last summer. They had no problem with using that model for camper builds. We sure love the front wheel drive that Sprinters and Transits do not offer!