Fit RV gives detail review of Travato 59K

[meagain]

It doesn't seem hard to me to avoid buying right when a new version is coming out. Just a matter of asking around, sorting things out, putting 2+2 together. I wouldn't buy a Travato 59G right now for instance. Especially after the 59k specs came out because you know some if not all of those things will be incorporated into the G. IMO

[Davydd]

The Winnebago Trends are out there. This is one that parked overnight in the surface parking lot next to us behind Excalibur on the Las Vegas Strip last February.

[bobojay]

Originally Posted by Davydd

The Winnebago Trends are out there. This is one that parked overnight in the surface parking lot next to us behind Excalibur on the Las Vegas Strip last February.

A few are. We saw 4 of them on our recent Florida trip. Our friend MD drove one the other day just for fun, said it was pretty scary in lane to lane quick maneuvers. Obviously real close to being maxxed out on weight from the factory

[wincrasher]

Well, there is no accounting for cheap. These can be had for $65k with virtually no negotiations.

Heck, look at all those awful mid-80's and 90's class A's that are still on the road - absolutely dangerous to drive in a lot ways - but they are dirt cheap, so people put up with it.

[bobojay]

Originally Posted by wincrasher

Well, there is no accounting for cheap. These can be had for $65k with virtually no negotiations.

Heck, look at all those awful mid-80's and 90's class A's that are still on the road - absolutely dangerous to drive in a lot ways - but they are dirt cheap, so people put up with it.

I agree

[stanw909]

I don't understand the comment " Dangerous to drive in a lot of ways " unless you are talking about inexperienced drivers. My mid 90's Bounder aka Big Bertha is not dangerous to drive as long as you understand it's characteristics and keep up on maintenance. I do think European class C renters are very scary and those vehicles are from the 2000's.

[Davydd]

I think the small Class Cs are less expensive because they are simply easier and faster to build. Just about every manufacturer that has done both Bs and Cs has admitted that. True they can shatter on a crash and roll-over but they still share the engineered cab protections the same as a B. You can't say that for certainty with Class As especially in a competitive reduce costs as much as possible market.

So, you do get more space and enough width to make a more economical and functionally located dry bathroom. That is clearly appealing to a lot more people. Interestingly, especially on the Sprinter chassis limited to 11,030 GVWR you end up with amenities that don't quite match the spatial capabilities and don't have the weight wiggle room to come close to hookup independence as Advanced RV and Roadtrek are working to achieve. Those small Class Cs are tethered even more to hookup campgrounds than Class Bs. They all come close to needing or longing for a toad. Pleasure-way's most prominent advocate with a Plateau XL pulls a toad and pretends he is just like a B with a constant reminder of the 22'-9" length. The biggest appeal is those shower stalls. Ironically, you still have to do the Navy shower routine to conserve your tanks and the space is typically smaller than a B wet bath in regard to elbow room and convenience.

[wincrasher]

I've looked hard at the Trend and the Dynamax REV. At first blush, they seem amazing - the door is contemporary (for RV standards) and you have a ton of seating, cabinets, dry bath, etc.

But the tanks are not any bigger than a B van. So that nice shower can't really be enjoyed unless you are in a campground.

And all those great cabinets? Yeah, you can't fill them without being overloaded.

Seating for 6, no problem. But how would you carry that many people and there stuff without being overloaded.

So I can see getting sucked into buying one of these, but end up with major buyers remorse.

The Transit cut-away chassis may change all that for this class of RV though. It will be exciting to see what they come up with this fall at Hershey.

[markopolo]

Re: capacities, CCC, OCCC, payload etc. for small C & B+ units - It'll be interesting to see how this all ends up.

The 21' Trail-Lite B+ I owned had 3,227 lbs CCC. That was more than enough capacity. It was on a Chevy cutaway chassis.

The cutaway Ford E-450's can have a payload rating of 9,040 lbs.
The cutaway Chevy 3500 can have a payload rating of 7,248 lbs.
The cutaway Chevy 4500 can have a payload rating of 9,156 lbs.

Compared to:

Ram Promaster cutaway max payload rating of 5,160 lbs.
Ford Transit cutaway max payload rating of 6,020 lbs.
Sprinter cutaway max payload rating of 6,401 lbs.

Note: I tried to find the maximum payload rating for all the models.

[wincrasher]

One thing that stands out to me, if you catch it in the video, is that they are including a "power management system".

I think that is because this coach is dangerously close to exceeding 30 amp service if the right combo of 110v devices are on.

The dirty secret of the Truma system is that when on AC, that two (2) 950 watt heating elements are on. That is quite a few amps if you do the math. Add to that the refrigerator, battery charger/converter, etc, etc. and you could go over 30 amps I suppose if you activated any 110v appliances in the coach like a coffee pot or the microwave.

[Davydd]

Originally Posted by markopolo

Re: capacities, CCC, OCCC, payload etc. for small C & B+ units - It'll be interesting to see how this all ends up.

The 21' Trail-Lite B+ I owned had 3,227 lbs CCC. That was more than enough capacity. It was on a Chevy cutaway chassis.

The cutaway Ford E-450's can have a payload rating of 9,040 lbs.
The cutaway Chevy 3500 can have a payload rating of 7,248 lbs.
The cutaway Chevy 4500 can have a payload rating of 9,156 lbs.

Compared to:

Ram Promaster cutaway max payload rating of 5,160 lbs.
Ford Transit cutaway max payload rating of 6,020 lbs.
Sprinter cutaway max payload rating of 6,401 lbs.

Note: I tried to find the maximum payload rating for all the models.

Capacity is what you have and you adapt. However, as you point out in the cutaway chassis of the Promaster vs Transit vs Sprinter if you want the comparable "B+" that Promaster is 1,241 lbs less than the Sprinter. That's a big handicap in a class that already really does not deliver up to the potential they try to sell with dry baths and more than two people camping.

[booster]

I think if they are going to try to get to the traditional Chevy/Ford class B+ or C size rigs and capacities they will have to step up to the next size of import cutaways. Maybe something from Iveco or Isuzu, maybe Volvo. The units based on the unitized body vans just don't seem to have the ability to get to the higher load capacities. The Europeans and Japanese make some very nice cutaway, body on frame, small trucks.

[GeorgeB]

Originally Posted by eurovanman

They are showing the three different heights.

A better graphic of the different sizes of Transit vans.




The interesting aspect of the very high roof Transit (81" inside) is being able to squeeze in a second suspended bed for a family
From http://www.promobil.de/test/superche...t-6580027.html