Winnebago Travato thread here

[Scottbaldassari]

Originally Posted by cmcetchin

We just bought a 2017 Travato G and I was wondering what other Travato G owners use for bedding/linen?

Try the Travato Owners and Wannabes FB page for more brand and model specific recommendations.

[fruch]

We are still looking, but we always come back to the Travato as our favorite.
I am thinking that I want to order the factory roof racks and factory bike rack on our Travato. I figure that since the roofline is not clean any way, the roof rack wouldn't really add that much in the way of wind resistance. I also think the roof rack with the moveable ladder might be helpful when cleaning the roof or solar panel. I won't really need the roof rack for anything else.

I also like the factory bicycle rack, I would use it often.

My questions are:

1.Is the roof rack a good idea and worth it for what I would use it for?

And

2. How sturdy is the bike rack? How much weight will it hold and will it stand up to frequent use carrying 2 standard weight adult bicycles (not carbon fiber super light bikes)?

Thanks for any thoughts or opinions.

[BBQ]

.

The roof rack is not cheap. $$$

The bike rack is cheap... I mean poorly built with easy-to-break plastic clips.


ps. WGO changed the bike rack supplier this year. The old one was made by Fiamma. It was sturdy. The new one has the better design, but poor execution.

[Saldar]

We have the WBO roof rack and ladder. Yes, expensive, but at least very sturdy. It's easy to move the ladder around, but keep in mind it can't mount on the awning side. We use the ladder to hang our comfy La Fuma recliners. These are light but long and wouldn't fit inside. I made a bag that also hangs on the ladder to drain wet shoes, since we are waders. I don't think it all looks too tawdry.

WBO mounted the solar panel on the rack. We had to struggle with them about this in December, but I think it's standard now (you might confirm). We just received a second 100W panel and believe it is possible to reconfigure and mount the two side by side the back of a 59K. If the dew point ever falls below 70 degrees here someday we will find out for sure.

We don't carry bikes, so potentially for us, I would consider the Fiamma bike rack. It looks like it can carry other things. Somebody used it for a stubby kayak, someone else for a spare tire, and in Europe it has all sorts of attachments. Maybe we will see creative uses of the WBO bike rack soon, too.

[BBQ]

Originally Posted by Saldar

...

WBO mounted the solar panel on the rack...

WGO have mounted some of the panels on the rack, and some on the roof.

I am not sure if it is a K vs G thing, or a year to year thing.


:

[wincrasher]

The Fiama rack is excellent. I'm going to install on on my Aktiv like this - will nicely clear the spare tire carrier..

[BBQ]

Originally Posted by wincrasher

The Fiama rack is excellent. I'm going to install on on my Aktiv like this - will nicely clear the spare tire carrier..

Make sure you wear safety glasses when you try to open the rear doors

I don't want the tire rails to poke your eyes out.

[wincrasher]

LOL. Never did on my Travato. Always worked great.

[fruch]

Another bike rack question, when I was at the dealer looking at the new bike rack on the Travato, It looked pretty easy to remove when you had no plans to use it. I didn't notice if there was a way to lock it inplace on the Travato once it was installed. Does anyone know if there is a way to lock it in place? Also, is there a way to lock the removable ladder in place? Thanks.

[fruch]

I stopped by the dealer to have another look at the 2018 Travato removable bike rack and roof rack with the removable ladder. There is no factory provision or option offered to lock either the bike rack or the removable ladder to the vehicle. This is not a deal breaker as I could probably figure out a way to cable lock these items in place to prevent them from walking off. It probably won't look as good as a factory installed option though. I am a bit surprised that Winnebago wouldn't see the need for locks on these expensive pieces. I realize that locks won't stop someone determined to take these items, but why make it easy? I may look for alternatives to the factory bike rack.

[eric1514]

Just a quick mod to remind me not to leave the porch light on at night. I couldn't tell if it was on from inside so I replaced the OEM brown switch with a lighted one that glows red when the outside light is on. You need to run a ground to it but there are lots of choices including the ground screw on the cooktop 1 foot away.

[riplips]

We love the Fiamma rack and feel the same about the WGO OEM replacement.

At any given time, I have $10k in mountain bikes on me Fiamma rack. They are High and out of the way of Trouble.

The mounting hardware is pretty secure.

I would not buy the WGO rack and would purchase a fiamma on the aftermarket if i were to buy a newer Travato.

If WGO asked my advice (they don't) I'd send them back to the drawing board on their factory bike rack system as it un-does all of the great features offered by its fiamma predecessor.

YMMV, but if you have really high end bikes, low and unlocked is a terrible combination...

[Scottbaldassari]

eric 1514:
good idea... We just left ours on for a day or two without noticing it...

Now, if someone could just figure out some sort of warning light for the exterior speakers...

[eric1514]

Originally Posted by Scottbaldassari

eric 1514:
good idea... We just left ours on for a day or two without noticing it...

Now, if someone could just figure out some sort of warning light for the exterior speakers...

No kidding. It can be very embarrassing and not to mention, rude.

Here's another quick one I did the same day. If I'm going to be gone long enough that I'll have to dump, I like to take a better hose than the one WGO furnishes and I store that in a tube, but the elbow on the end that goes into the hole in the ground is too large. I know I probably could have found one that fit in the tube but I like this one and so I bought a flange, shaved it flat with my tile saw and mounted it up under the van on the plate the dump handles are secured to. The elbow then secures to it the same way it secures to the hose. There's a small safety wire as insurance in the unlikely event the elbow wants to rotate off.

Valterra Flange

[RamblinReynolds]

That's a really cool idea.

[Saldar]

Great solution for storing that thing outside the van. Thank you for the details.

[eric1514]

We needed a mirror that you could actually see yourself in so I mounted this one to the panel outside the bathroom of the coach. If you're familiar at all with the G you'll know where this is. It's kinda confusing at first glace because of the reflection.

The mirror is 12"x36" and it's acrylic. I didn't want a piece of glass flying at me in case of an accident. It is light and optically very good. It's also pricey compared to glass but much safer.

Amazon Link.

Typical Amazon. The price went up $7 since I ordered it.

[Rapid Robert]

As to the privacy on the rear bath, On our 2017 59K WGO has provided a snap on screen to block the view with the doors open.

[Rapid Robert]

As for outside storage we added a swing away storage box made by Rola Systems that gives us plenty of much needed room for chairs, rugs, tools, kayaking gear or what have you. I fabricated a PVC sewer hose storage tube that will accommodate the hose with all the fittings attached using a 5"X5" PVC fence post cover and mounted it to the brackets that swing out with the storage box. If you leave the latch pins out when camping it allows the rear doors to open for an emergency exit. With the box in the extreme open position you can fully open both doors to get to the outside shower and hose storage. You can also remove the storage box leaving the tray it sits in to haul whatever suits you. We just road tested this system out on a coast to coast 9000+ mile trip and it was an wonderful addition. I have no connection to Rola whatsoever just happened on it by chance on eBay. Cost is about $650 & mounting is simple.

[BBQ]

.

How does Rola compare to Stowaway2?