Winnebago Era 70C - with slide out

[Fastpaddler1]

At 24ft 1inch the 70C will be longer than the LTV Free Spirit SS which is I recall, 22ft 9ins. That would rule it out for me. I refuse to go over 22ft9 on a 3500 Sprinter. Otherwise, I might as well go back to the C class again and then there is the original list of problems for us who like to boogie around city parking lots and narrow roads where I can wiggle in. The turning circle on my 06(07build)PW Plateau TS is remarkably tight but I can live with a bigger TC with the GWV or LTV.

[iyoon@aol.com]

Actually LTV lists the length of its Free Spirit, Free Spirit SS, and Free Spirit TE as 23'4''. 23'10'' if you include the rear spare tire carrier.

[Davydd]

The LTVs are built on the 170" WB regular body which is a van 22'-9" long. That is the size we are talking about not including any spare tire carriers. The next Sprinter size is a 170" WB extended body which is 24'-1" long and what the Era 70X and 70A are. I'm not sure the 70C is built on the extended body. There are no published floor plans and the one exterior photo available looks like a regular body to me.

[Fastpaddler1]

Yes.I agree. We started with 20ft Sprinters, then 22ft and then 22ft9ins. I traded a 24ft Trail-lite which was called a C! I would get the LTV SS s/o at 22ft 9 before a 24ft 70C but that is my choice. I do a lot of parking in small lots where I can (now) park my 21ft11 PW Plateau with no problem.
To me 24ft or more is a C. Much bigger turning circl too. Booster has a good perspective on B(?) sizes. See my other post re not wanting a spare tire at rear. Personal choice i guess.

[Fastpaddler1]

Originally Posted by iyoon@aol.com

Actually LTV lists the length of its Free Spirit, Free Spirit SS, and Free Spirit TE as 23'4''. 23'10'' if you include the rear spare tire carrier.

True but I dont have nor want a tire carrier.But with dually you cant put tire underneath like in my rig. So I would do without like i do with my BMW with runflats.

[SiennaGuy]

Has anybody heard anything more about this model? I have the feeling that it was a trial balloon.

[mlts22]

I have a feeling that we won't hear much about the model until summer/fall if that. I also think it might have been a prototype to see if there was any interest.

[SiennaGuy]

I was looking at the 2015 Updates for LTV. They show a new floorplan for their Free Spirit SS that looks almost identical to the floorplan for the Winnebago Era 70C. It's not clear if this new floorplan replaces the old one or if it's another option.

Here's the update page:
http://www.leisurevans.com/2015/2015...es_LTV_Web.pdf

[HeavyRailer]

Originally Posted by SiennaGuy

I was looking at the 2015 Updates for LTV. They show a new floorplan for their Free Spirit SS that looks almost identical to the floorplan for the Winnebago Era 70C. It's not clear if this new floorplan replaces the old one or if it's another option.

Here's the update page:
http://www.leisurevans.com/2015/2015...es_LTV_Web.pdf

It is a new floorplan for the 2015 model that replaces the 2014 model.

[accrete]

First, i totally like the Era 70C slide out floorplan. I think it would work for two people for extended adventures, maybe even full time living for a compatible adventurous couple. The wardrobe/clothing storage is wonderful. The bath was a bit extravagant but nice! The only thing holding my wife and i back from something so _large_ is it would still be a daily driver for one of us for the next few years.

An additional comment has to do with a combination of these two comments made earlier in the thread...

Originally Posted by georgelesley

...Unless one does not mind dumping and filling tanks every day or two, the size of the waste tanks in any "B" makes remote boondocking without hook ups impractical if two people plan showers everyday...

Originally Posted by booster

...As mentioned by several folks, tanks and water are a big deal. With a big shower, and a couple of people who are out getting dirty, cooking, pottying, while boondocking, having 200 gallons of total tank capacity is not all that unreasonable...

If i keep the AmericanRVmanufacture glasses on then i am in 100% agreement with the above comments.

My wife and i chose to take those glasses off and think waaaay outside the RVbox when we designed our conversion. Now i've shared elsewhere the "whys" of our rig, suffice to say, it is possible to take a "Shower" every other day (or daily if desired) and have clean cookware for a five day adventure with a total fresh water capacity of 25 gallons (10/van + 15/trailer) (gray tank @30gal). And we almost always come home with ~5 to 7 gallons left in the supply.

I also know that it is possible to go out for 5 day adventures (between charges) on a small 110ah battery bank (2x55ah Optima Blue Top AGM) and only use ~30 to 40 ah in the bank and have LED lighting and all the TechGadgets with fresh charges.

Sure we cheat... we camp in the Pacific Northwest and temps are mild. Yes we go out ~Monday through Friday and are hooked up somewhere on the weekends to do laundry, charge battery bank, and fill tanks. But it works for us in our simple style and all in a 1/2 ton AWD regular body van and plulling a 15ft fiberglass trailer. Not your typical "B" only rig but serves our purposes.

Happy Trails,
Thom

[stanw909]

Forest River used to make an MB Cruiser on a Sprinter chassis with 25glns fresh,30 glns black,25 glns grey tanks. There is one on eBay right now. Big rear bath and garage. The only bad thing was pitifully small fridge but room by the side door for a portable fridge(compressor style,my preference) could make up for that short coming. I may look for one someday but I boondock in rest areas and Wal-Mart type places when travelling quick to be able to have a slideout.

[gerrym51]

Originally Posted by stanw909

Forest River used to make an MB Cruiser on a Sprinter chassis with 25glns fresh,30 glns black,25 glns grey tanks. There is one on eBay right now. Big rear bath and garage. The only bad thing was pitifully small fridge but room by the side door for a portable fridge(compressor style,my preference) could make up for that short coming. I may look for one someday but I boondock in rest areas and Wal-Mart type places when travelling quick to be able to have a slideout.

i was looking at roadtrek specs. It appears that rodtrek now puts compressor refrigerators in all sprinter models and the ranger-thats a change?

[Mike]

Probably to reduce or eliminate propane use.
They're trying to be an eco-friendly manufacturer. (E-Trek?)
I guess.

[stanw909]

Compressor fridges are also less finicky about being level.That is why Sportsmobile has been using them as standard for over a decade.The logic being that their customers are more outdoorsy and may have to park at trailheads for many hours that might not have very level parking areas.

[booster]

We have a compressor frig that we put in shortly after we got out 07 Roadtrek 190. We really like it compared to the 3 way, which we always had to switch modes, get level, etc. It worked poorly in high temps. The compressor frig does take a lot more battery power, however, at 20-50AH per day. If you want to be off grid for more than a couple of days, you need quite a bit of battery bank, and/or solar. 100 watts of solar will run the frig in normal weather, if it isn't cloudy, 200 watts almost all the time, and is able to make up for a cloudy day or two, once it clears. For us, there is no comparison, as we would take a compressor frig + solar over the 3 way any day.

[Mike]

Speaking of level absorption fridges, I think the amount out of level any one fridge might tolerate is a lot more than most manufacturers would lead you to believe. However, some (Atwood for example) have added a level sensor that prevents the fridge from operating when those tolerances are exceeded.
Given the choice, I'd go compressor.

[avanti]

We went compressor in our new GWV Legend as well. It will use more electricity than a 3-way in propane mode (obviously), but if you compare it in electric mode, our NovaKool is spec'd to use 1/3 the electricity of a similarly-sized Dometic 3-way.

[booster]

Originally Posted by avanti

We went compressor in our new GWV Legend as well. It will use more electricity than a 3-way in propane mode (obviously), but if you compare it in electric mode, our NovaKool is spec'd to use 1/3 the electricity of a similarly-sized Dometic 3-way.

The electric mode on a 3 way is pretty much unusable on DC. I wouldn't be surprised if it was considerably more than 3X, mainly because on DC it will be pulling full current and the compressor frig will run about 25% duty cycle.

They advertise that the new 3 ways handle out of level better than the older ones, but I think it may be that they don't get damaged as easily when out of level but do still lose a bunch of cooling capacity.

[gerrym51]

the e-trek option for roadtrek sprinter vans dictates all electric fridge. e-trek eliminates propane

[SiennaGuy]

Well, the 70C is now posted on the Winnebago website:
http://winnebagotouring.com/products/20 ... loorplans/