dcason
New York
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Hubby and I have begun looking for a smaller c with over cab bed AND a rear bed (no sleeping on kitchen table). About 24 foot and I think somewhere i read mpg of 12 - 14 mpg....Any recommendations on this?
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Ponderosa
Western US
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Joined: 06/24/2003
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While you may hear 12 mpg from some, a much, much more realistic number is 8-9. You can do better if you go 50 mph or so, but who is going to do that?
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ron.dittmer
Northern Illinois
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The Ford with the large V10 engine is by far the most popular chassis used in motor home construction. So most rigs you look at will have a Ford E350 chassis for the <24 foot length.. With that said, the cab-over bed will have a lot of wind resistance.
Our aerodynamic rig seen in my signature is <24 feet long with rear corner bed and obviously no cab-over bed. We get just over 10 mpg when we don't tow our Jeep Liberty, but we do cruise at a faster 70 mph.
The Winnebago View 24J Shown Here has both a cab-over bed and main floor double bed in a 24.5 foot length. It is constructed on the Mercedes Sprinter chassis will achieve the mpg figures you are shooting for.
If purchase price is a huge factor, consider the Coachman 19CB Shown Here at 21.5 feet long, or the slightly longer Freelander 21QB Shown Here at 23.5 feet long. Both are are half the cost of a Winnebago View. But both are constrcuted on the Ford E350 which will yield that 10 mpg.
Anything you look at <24 feet constructed on a Ford E350 will be 10.5 mpg at best. An E450 will do a little worse due to the gear ratio required for the bigger/heavier rigs, and such associated weight placed on the chassis.
May I ask why both a cab-over and main floor bed? Are you accomodating one or more children? I ask because the View with kids could get "testy" due to tight quarters. The Coachman model 21QB has much better family accomodations.
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ReddInc
Tampa (for now)
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Fleetwood made the Pulse, the Quest, and the Icon all on the Mercedes Benz Sprinter base. The 'L' plan has a couch in the slide and a 'L' shaped sitting area in the rear that converts to a full bed. We moved the sitting area table to the front - - cut it down 4" in height - - in front of the couch. Perfect for the two of us. An occasional guest with a folding chair. We keep the rear bed 'set-up' adding a 1" rubber pad and an IKEA 'pillow top' - - as comfortable as our bed at home. We also added an IKEA cutting-board/one drawer work station (OA 18"x18"x36") that makes the galley an 'L' - - also perfect since the drawer holds our 'silver' (there's no other good drawer for it, by the by).
We have the full-over the cab for an occasional relative and the full queen, under the couch, if the spirit moves us (it hasn't yet).
Mileage is historically between 15 and 18 mpg of diesel. The engine and drive train should last longer than I will,
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Rolin
Oregon
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We have a 23ft Jayco Class C with the Chevy 8.1 liter engine and get 9 mpg driving between 55 and 60mph. I believe that the same size with a Chevy 6.0 liter engine will get a little over 10mpg. A B+ of the same length with the 6.0 liter engine would get slightly better.
The Four Winds 19ft class C with the Ford 5.7 liter gas engine and without duals on the rear is suppose to get about 14mpg. It is lighter and more aerodynamic than many Class C's. I don't know if anyone has verified the mileage.
Aerodynamics, weight, engine size, and tires (rib tires get better mpg than mud/snow tires) all effect the average mileage that you may experience with your motorhome. Road conditions, wind, and terrain also impact it. So if you live in the Rocky Mts or in windy Wyoming it may be worse.
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Bordercollie
Garden Grove, CA, USA
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My understanding of motorhome gas mileage is as follows: Aerodynamic drag from the frontal area of Class C's is about the same regardless of length. Rolling resistance of a heavily loaded Class C on six tires will vary somewhat with total weight carried. A longer rig will weigh more than a shorter one. Driving on flat terrain at 55 mph with no headwind, at low altitudes, will usually get best gas mileage that a given rig is capable of. Driving at high altitudes at a given speed, will use more gas than driving at the same speed at low altitude. Driving a Class C at 70mph will use much more gas than driving at 55mph. As speed rises, aerodynamic drag increases exponentially.
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skipnchar
Topeka or somewhere else
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Joined: 12/17/2003
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Kind of wondering when they'll come out with a "pop up" motor home 
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Rolin
Oregon
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Other than gas mileage and rear bed, what other attributes are you looking for?
Price range:
Used/New
How New (2000+ or ?)
Gas/Diesel
Used with reasonable quality: I like the Thor/Four Winds.....they have a number of units in the 23/24 foot range with the rear bed. A Winnebago is also a good choice in this size. Jayco also has some nice units in this size. Lazy Daze is more aerodynamic (less tall), higher quality and more expensive.
When we were looking, I searched the web, looked at local dealers until we found one that had the key features and condition that we required. So far so good.
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dcason
New York
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Looking for used ... price is definetly a factor as we are trying to retire or semi retire early with no pension just savings (but we are frugal).
We are planning to travel in this extensively...at least several months at a go.
Not interested in diesel as hubby cannot work on diesel engines. Although we've seen Views/Navions that caught my eye.
We need the two beds as hubby is tall and most rv beds are just too short and we sleep in a king at home. I don't mind the tighter quarters of a smaller unit but I want room to sleep. One of us will get the cabover and one will get the back bed.
Currently we are using a 20 foot travel trailer and van which we go out in and work (juried art shows) for a four month trip each year...plus a few short trips.
Thanks for your help and I will keep looking and thinking about anything that could be tweaked to our needs.
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PhilR.
Central Texas
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dcason wrote:
Not interested in diesel as hubby cannot work on diesel engines. Although we've seen Views/Navions that caught my eye.
Then you will not find anything that will fulfill the requirements stated in your first post. You are going to have the re-think either the size requirement, or the mileage requirement.
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