Save Me {?} = - = Day Dreaming of a Class C

AnOldUR

CrabTab said:

A quality impact wrench, clamshell style strut spring compressor and a beefy bench vise are the main things you'll need to make a suspension lift happen ...

I took the easy way out. Bought a TeraFlex lift kit on Amazon and having my local mechanic do the install. Didn't want to mess too much with steering geometry that could adversely change towing handling, so only went 1.5". It's going in tomorrow. Excited to see the results.

CrabTab

AnOldUR said:
I took the easy way out. Bought a TeraFlex lift kit on Amazon and having my local mechanic do the install. Didn't want to mess too much with steering geometry that could adversely change towing handling, so only went 1.5". It's going in tomorrow. Excited to see the results.

Absolutely nothing wrong with payin' someone to turn the wrenches @AnOldUR. The biggest change I've noticed with adding a lift and associated wheels/tires is that it 'eats up some gear'. It takes a bit more torque to get everything moving. My truck, an old F-350, has a 4" lift. Since it is a 1-ton truck, it can't pull the T@B. I have used it towing a car hauler though.
Haven't added anything to my T@B's TV yet (wife's Colorado), as I'm waiting for the factory warranty to expire (the dealer won't touch a lifted vehicle). 

AnOldUR

CrabTab said:
The biggest change I've noticed with adding a lift and associated wheels/tires is that it 'eats up some gear'. It takes a bit more torque to get everything moving.

Interesting. My Jeep had a 3.21 axle ratio and it struggled on hills pulling our T@B. Regeared to 4.10 made a huge difference. I bought a scan tool to reprogram for the new gears. Was suppose to adjust shift points, but can also make adjustments for tire size. New wheels are on my wish list, but I hadn't thought about the additional torque requirement at start up. Wonder if the scanner does anything to help?

CrabTab

@AnOldUR

Your 1.5" lift will change the thrust angle of the driveshaft and, I think, may require a bit more torque. If you added the weight of bigger tires/wheels it would surely take some torque to get them turning. I wouldn't worry about it unless YOU notice a difference driving.

Denny16

The 4:10 final gear drive should be more than adequate for the 1.5” lift, and up to 35” tires, as this is the stock gesring for the new Rubicon Wrangler/Gladiator Jeeps.
cheers

SLJ

We were tenters and finally went to a camper van and then to a Class C. After several years in our class C we sold it and went for a T@B 320S Boondock. We found we missed being able to get into smaller campsites we liked with the C and 7 MPG was killing our budget. Our T@B fits the sites we like for canoeing and pulling it with our tow vehicle still gives us a way for day trips without breaking camp.  We found out our T@B is the hard shell tent we wanted.

MuttonChops

SLJ said:
We were tenters and finally went to a camper van and then to a Class C.  . . .
We find out T@B is the hard shell tent we wanted.

 

MuttonChops

Well I today I looked at, sit in, poked-around a Class-C.
It was only { " ? " } a 22-footer and it was huge . . . . . . .

Actual 'coach' construction quality/materials was better then I expected but not near what I hoped for when compared to a nüCamp product.  As a plus it was on an E450 chassis so has a 7,500# tow rating. Towing that wishlist more capable 4x4 would be fine - - - could even put it on/in a trailer - - -

Overall the Class-C did not "feel me".  I've always been attracted to smaller less main-stream items be it houses, cars, recreation stuff and the Class-C felt very main-stream (an over priced for the quality).

Will keep daydreaming/thinking and tire kicking.
Hope to see a Bigfoot 17.5G (trailer) locally in the next 6-months and depending on how US/Canada border crossing Covid Rules play out might go to the Escape factory and look at a 17B. There are also the 'more off-roadie' TV what-if's.
But I'll not be stopping the T@B 320S Adventures.

Some Rambling:
While a super-C on a real truck chassis could be wonderful  - - they really can only be justified in my mind if full-timing.  They also have very limited options in smaller lengths - - another 'bigger is better' super-sized product.

If your length target is 22-feet or less then you'll quickly end up with van conversion style vehicles that have tow rating that are just too low.

The looked at Cross Trail 22XG, Coachman, Class-C is one of the few smaller Class-C's with some type of usable 'toy' storage and a good tow rating . . . as always I'm a consumer that is out-of-sync with corporate marketing department.

My Winter 4x4 Jamboree trip was very enjoyable.  At least 10-days with sunny skies, 55+F temps, and nights only as low as 30F.  The TV stock Colorado did very well on the 3-rated trails I drove . . . many of the Jeep'ers were saying that Colorado does not seem to have any issues.  One couple from North Dakota said they had a 4x4 Canyon at home and they had no idea how capable it was
- - - I could see the wife's mind gears wondering 'why did I let him buy the Jeep' - - -

Here's a video link of one Trail driven:

https://youtu.be/F9X5CVCWduc

dsfdogs

@MuttonChops I saw an Escape 17B near Salem. You can request to view an ambassador's trailer from the Escape website. (It's a bit glitchy, don't filter by model or distance, then you can see what trailers are closest to you to request the owners info). The size is perfect and felt spacious compared to the 320, but would require some mods to be right for me, like a 12v fridge and moving batteries inside and stove top change to start. Feel free to message me if you have questions. I've watched all their videos a few times and emailed with them. Current lead time is November 2023! I'm putting in a deposit tomorrow to hold a spot in production. 

Dutch061

I went to the RV Show in Charlotte a couple of weeks ago with the expressed interest of looking at the Black Series HQ19. The NC dealer that sells them had 2 different HQ19's to look at, all I can say is that for the money I was not impressed.

The chassis and suspension were impressive, but that is really all that was.

The interior looked as if it were thrown together with a few things that stood out to me. Whether it was the factory in a rush, the dealer not thoroughly prepping, or a combination of both, I can't say. But there were obvious things that were not "right" in my less than 5 minutes of looking at it. 

An absorption refrigerator, non-thermostat-controlled air conditioner, plus a few other things and it looked more like a 20-year-old coachmen on a trick chassis. Okay, maybe that is a little harsh, but you get the point. 

The "washing machine" in the bathroom is very small, maybe a single pair of blue jeans and that is all. I get it, it would be used for undergarments more so than outer garments and if you are boondocking who would waste the water anyway? 

Overall, it would be several steps backwards from what NuCamp offers, in my opinion. I will continue with adding heating pads to the tanks and plumbing along with insulating the underbelly and keep the one that is paid for. 

Brad

P.S. they did have 1 trick Class B, but it was nearly 200K for a 4 x 4 van with an RV interior!

SLJ

Don't miss the 7 - 10 MPG our class C motorhome got. Worse in the hills. 10 was on a good day downhill. Don't believe any dealer that tells you you will get 12-14 MPG in a class C. You won't unless you're driving on completely flat roads at no more than 50 mph with the wind at your back.