Coachmen Galleria

[jmp]

Considering purchase of a new Galleria. And am looking for feedback positive/negative

[cruising7388]

Originally Posted by jmp

Considering purchase of a new Galleria. And am looking for feedback positive/negative

Pro: High quality cabinetry.

Con: No inverter.

[Manx]

I looked at a few recently.

I liked:
Nice cabinetry
12V TV and BD player
Nice seats up front, with good MB options (heated seats, blindspot monitor etc.)
Ergo power bed in some models (2016?)
Rear screen runs in tracks
Legless awning
Spare tire under the coach
Good street price

Not so much:
Wet battery which are hard to access and maintain
Induction cooker in some models, doesn't seem to make sense without decent electrical infrastructure
No inverter
Not a huge fan of its bathroom
Power sofa models have awkward ridge at the rearward side of the ottoman that might hit you when you sleep on it
Not sure if I like the choice of flex solar panel and its dead-center placement

I think the 2016 models had better leather color (dove), and more interesting floorplans. Ergo bed might be 2016 only.

just my $0.02

[bobojay]

There's not many out there so you probably won't get many opinions. The cabinetry is the jewel of the interior.
Don't pay to much for it as they are going for 28-30% off list from some dealers. We talked to a couple that were new owners awhile back with a new one they had just bought for $99k. Didn't ask where they bought it...

Personally I think they are trying to make the cabinetry the selling point of an otherwise run of the mill class B design and over pricing it. Granted the cabinetry is nice....

[Davydd]

Run of the mill means decade old school RV design where it is assumed one travels to full hookup RV campgrounds only just like the big rigs. Why else would they sell an electric induction cooktop without an inverter or battery capacity?

[carl4255]

I have a 2016 quad seats with the rear sofa.

Likes; Sprinter ride
long bed 6+ feet
floor plan with 7 seat belts
new cost is near what 5yr old Sprinters cost

cons:
radio/nav negates some of the steering wheel info system
hinge in side benches hit when bed is made (2 inch high density foam topper fixed)
having problems with coach battery charging - Coachmen is fixing

[wincrasher]

For the price the Galleria is a solid offering.

Induction is something people are asking for. Using a portable unit would be better to give you the interior counter space and the flexibility to cook inside or out. But it is an option - you don't have to get it.

The leather and the cabinetry in the Galleria is top notch. I'm surprised to see someone dismiss the bathroom in the comments above - it was the only Sprinter side bath at Hershey where I didn't seem pinched or hit my head. The Era bathrooms are basically unusable for showering, as are the Roadtreks. The Midwest was passable sizewise. The Galleria was the largest.

Unlike in the view of some, low-tech has it's appeal. Many folks aren't interested in spending the money or want the complexity of the off grid systems. I'd venture to say, in the right weather, this coach is quite capable to camp outside of RV parks/plugin for several days to a week. At $99k, one of these would definately be on my list if I was in the market. So what if you need to buy new batteries - have the dealer change them out for $500 and include it in the deal.

[bobojay]

What wincrasher said

[booster]

Originally Posted by wincrasher

For the price the Galleria is a solid offering.

Induction is something people are asking for. Using a portable unit would be better to give you the interior counter space and the flexibility to cook inside or out. But it is an option - you don't have to get it.

The leather and the cabinetry in the Galleria is top notch. I'm surprised to see someone dismiss the bathroom in the comments above - it was the only Sprinter side bath at Hershey where I didn't seem pinched or hit my head. The Era bathrooms are basically unusable for showering, as are the Roadtreks. The Midwest was passable sizewise. The Galleria was the largest.

Unlike in the view of some, low-tech has it's appeal. Many folks aren't interested in spending the money or want the complexity of the off grid systems. I'd venture to say, in the right weather, this coach is quite capable to camp outside of RV parks/plugin for several days to a week. At $99k, one of these would definately be on my list if I was in the market. So what if you need to buy new batteries - have the dealer change them out for $500 and include it in the deal.

I guess I don't get the desire for the induction cooktop, but then we don't ever use our stovetop, either, and would never go without propane for the gas grill that cooks nearly everything we eat. No incentive for induction for us.

While the galleria appears to be old school in electrical systems, batteries, and charging, it does have an electric only refrigerator, it appears. This makes for a much less than desirable setup for going without shore power, as the frig will limit the time a bunch compared to a true "old school" system, that would have a propane frig and be much more capable of off grid stays. I think they will find they need to address the mismatch, which would probably mean improved power capacity rather than going to a gas frig.

[BobB]

Well, it does come with an LP generator and 100W solar panel, which helps. Funny that induction cooktop is standard, but no mention of inverter; maybe they expect you to (a) always be plugged in or (b) always run the generator when you want to cook.

My tendency would be be (1) go with optiional propane cooktop; you can always sue a portable induction cooktop. (2) change out the batteries to AGM (200AH total min. more AH would be better) , and given the compressor fridge, see if dealer can install add'l panels. If you do want to run 110v items while unplugged or running genny, ask about inverter. And make sure it has a good battery monitoring system.

FYI - I think available supporting documents are a good indication of the support you will get, I always check out what is available online. It does not give me great confidence that when I download their "Class B 2017 manual", it says "Forest River" on it. And it is not very specific to the Galleria. But they do say they have interactive manuals accessed via an app. so I would check those out.

[booster]

I would certainly agree that it could use more solar as 100 watts is not going to do a lot. The "old rules" said that 100 watts of solar was a perfect match for covering a compressor frig, which is true, but only in good sun every day and a 3cf frig that is running very efficiently. We are seeing substantially larger frigs lately, and from the chatter it appears that many aren't running great, probably from venting issues as adding fans seems to help. They also seem to be using a lot more power than many people expect them to. Getting enough solar to catch up after cloudy days, with enough battery to make it through those cloudy days is essential for a compressor frig/solar setup, unless you are willing to run a generator of some sort to recharge.

I think the Galleria could be a very nice rig, with some upgraded electrical.

[talktodean]

Agree wholeheartedly. Galleria is exceptionally nice. And bathroom is great size for a "B". Price wise, Galleria gives you a lot of bang for the buck. Chassis has all the safety features, and new Fusion Navigation system is amazing. Cabinets, structurally and appearance, superb. The leather seats and sleep areas are high fashion design, colors exquisite, and exceptional overall quality. B people should be driving these off the lots in big numbers. My first choice! Oh yes, exterior color Arctic White is the only color that will truly keep you cool in the summertime. I see no other manufacturer offer it. Smartest choice.

[cruising7388]

Originally Posted by talktodean

Agree wholeheartedly. Galleria is exceptionally nice. And bathroom is great size for a "B". Price wise, Galleria gives you a lot of bang for the buck. Chassis has all the safety features, and new Fusion Navigation system is amazing. Cabinets, structurally and appearance, superb. The leather seats and sleep areas are high fashion design, colors exquisite, and exceptional overall quality. B people should be driving these off the lots in big numbers. My first choice! Oh yes, exterior color Arctic White is the only color that will truly keep you cool in the summertime. I see no other manufacturer offer it. Smartest choice.

Why no inverter? Considering the modest cost involved, why don't they include it? Who else builds Bs without providing one?

[talktodean]

I agree about the inverter. Seems like minimal cost, but a necessary front line item to have in the coach. Write to Mark Steele at Coachmen, he is the product manager for the line. I met him once, and have spoken with him. He is attentive and smart, so I'm sure he'll respond.

[BobB]

Originally Posted by cruising7388

Why no inverter? Considering the modest cost involved, why don't they include it? Who else builds Bs without providing one?

Winnebago Class Bs - Travato, Era and Paseo - do not come with inverters. Not an option, either as far as I know.

[talktodean]

RT might have been to aggressive in the market place, but I applaud them.
Winnebago occurs as falling behind, not even willing to convert to all frameless windows, nevermind inverters.
Pleasure Way seems to have the best overall blend of technology, that is proven to date, and suffices for most scenarios, without over the top stuff that inherently causes more issues.
Coachmen will get there as well. Now will see what others do too?

[cruising7388]

Originally Posted by BobB

Winnebago Class Bs - Travato, Era and Paseo - do not come with inverters. Not an option, either as far as I know.

Thanks for this heads up. In this current day and age this seems just remarkable to see a coach with a 140k msrp without an inverter.

[cruising7388]

Originally Posted by talktodean

Price wise, Galleria gives you a lot of bang for the buck.

American River RV has a new 2016 Galleria for 89.9k. For a Sprinter platform, price wise, that's may be as good as it gets.

[BobB]

Originally Posted by cruising7388

Thanks for this heads up. In this current day and age this seems just remarkable to see a coach with a 140k msrp without an inverter.

But as noted elsewhere, it does not have a huge battery bank and the batteries are flooded cell.

An inverter does not make much sense, IMO, unless the rest of the electrical system is up to it.

[cruising7388]

Originally Posted by BobB

But as noted elsewhere, it does not have a huge battery bank and the batteries are flooded cell.

An inverter does not make much sense, IMO, unless the rest of the electrical system is up to it.

Not necessarily. For extended high load conditions, you're right. But for moderate loads and even brief high loads like a microwave oven use, 200ah of flooded cell batteries will fill that bill. I do it regularly with a Magnum 2000 watt inverter with 200 ah battery support. LTV has the same battery ah profile (except they are AGM) as the Galleria and they provide an inverter which used to be 750 watts which I think has been beefed up to 1200 watts.

FWIW, if you're short on battery capacity during a an extended high load requirement, you can always fire up the engine and even at idle you can get an additional 100 amps (mas o menos depending on the particular alternator) to temporarily supplement battery support of the inverter.

What's interesting is that while the cost per watt of the inverter has decreased, the cost for the supporting battery cable has gone up through the roof and represents a significant part of the total installation cost. The last time I stumbled through West Marine, 2/0 was $8 per foot and 3/0 was $12 per foot, sans terminals.