Class A or Class C

[r1kirby]

I am considering a newer motorhome but not sure if I'd like a class A or a class C. Before I start looking at floor plans, and styles, which is easier to drive or handle?

[murffdog]

No problems driving or handling, my issue was maintenance, beds and sleeping arrangements. Maintenance of a Class A can be expensive and sleeps 4 with "maybe" a child on the dinette table. My Class C can sleep 6 with a teenager on the dinette and being a gas rig, maintenance is simple and I can do it myself. Storage was also an issue although a Class A has ample storage as my Tioga 31, some Class C's have little storage.

[bukhrn]

Then there's cost, (Unless thats not an issue)GENERALLY, A's cost more than a C, notice I said generally,as I've seen Super C's with a price tag that puts them right up there with some A's.
There is also size, a C usually tops out at about 32 ft, an A can go to 40???.
And an A also has a higher towing capacity, and higher CCC. GENERALLY!!:)

[clayl]

For me the class A is easier to drive than the C. The view is much better and I can see better to the rear. The cabin is not cramped like the C feels to me.

Also the cabin becomes part of the living space when stopped since the captains chairs can be turned around.

A's can usually handle more cargo, tow heavier cars, and have more outside storage space.

If you have kids that alters the situation though because unless you get an A with bunk beds, A's usually don't sleep as many as most C's.

[betsytom]

'A' have never really appealed to me, I'll take a nice low B+/C anyday, diesel of course.

murffdog, we have had a gasser and two diesels and diesels really are the only way to go-there is very, very little difference in maint cost between the two fuels-and in fact the advantage goes towards the diesel.




Nothing like the 6.0 chugging along at about 60 mph-sweet. ;)

[murffdog]

'A' have never really appealed to me, I'll take a nice low B+/C anyday, diesel of course.

murffdog, we have had a gasser and two diesels and diesels really are the only way to go-there is very, very little difference in maint cost between the two fuels-and in fact the advantage goes towards the diesel.




Nothing like the 6.0 chugging along at about 60 mph-sweet. ;)

I guess your right, when I think diesel, I see gallons of oil instead of quarts, and filters that cost more than a weeks worth of groceries.

[betsytom]

OK you have a point, the PowerStroke has just about 16 quarts of motor oil, before we took delivery of our coach we had it taken to the local Ford dealer and were charged $68.50 for a semi synthetic oil change w/filter and lube.
I am willing to bet that any gasser will not be that much less expensive.

I switched to full synthetic at about 2,500 miles and changing it myself costs just under $100, the dealer will do it for about $135.

Maint really is a non issue, price however is not, the option cost us $6,500 or so, and diesel fuel traditionally has been more expensive than gasoline, sometimes like this year its very, very close to gas but last year was a bit on the ugly side-but even last year we broke even adjusting for the higher fuel mileage.

Any engine, if taken care of, will sadly outlast any of us, so the vastly increased longevity of the diesel over gas really cannot be intelligently argued as a benefit to a rv owner however what can be correctly pointed out is the fact that diesel is a much greener fuel than gasoline-much, much greener. Virtually no evaporative emissions, far less energy to refine diesel compared to gas, far less co2 emissions for the diesel and of course the significantly increased fuel economy of the diesel.

Which is why the Europeans choose diesel over 50% of the time for new car purchases.

Plus of course with a diesel you don't have to spend serious dollars to have the plugs changed and you don't have an engine-V10- with a well documented rep for spitting out spark plugs.

From someone who has owned both gas and diesel, diesel is the ONLY way to go-seriously.

Forgot, sometime ago I posted about a dealer who wanted to sell us a new rv for a big, big discount off list and he made it clear that the only reason he was willing to take our horrible Phoenix Cruiser in on trade was because it had the 6.0 diesel in it. And I have said on many occasions that the only good thing about our Cruiser is the E450 with the diesel. It is downright fast and I love pulling alongside very expenisve coaches on grades, after they have sped by us on the flats, and being able to pass them on the hill as they did on the level.

Of course a few minutes later they appear again in the mirror and blow on by again, as for us, its kept at just about 60 mph, roughly 2,000 revs where it sounds as though it will clatter on forever.

After 32,000 miles or so the DW still remarks-'I love the sound this -thing- makes' and she really enjoys driving it.

[murffdog]

It costs me $19.00 to change the oil and filter myself. (I'm sure you know but fyi)
A V-10 spitting out spark plugs, I never heard of that.

[betsytom]

murffdog, google V10 spark plug problems; you should get about months worth of reading.


We got about 7/8 mpg in our Shasta with a 460 in it, most people tell me that they get about that with a V10, its nuts to have a gasser in an rv-speaking from experience of course.

[murffdog]

I just got off the phone with a service supervisor at Ford who in conjunction puts the Tioga coach on the Ford chassis. He say, "yes, there have been reports of spark plugs coming loose but he hasn't seen one in a long time. The reason they do come loose is because people don't replace the plugs while the engine is stone cold. The aluminum heads must be cold so's not to stress the threads from the steel spark plug threads and not to overtighten. The spark plugs from the factory are 100,000 mile plugs and don't need changing anyway unless you do produce a miss in the engine for some reason".

[betsytom]

I guess it is like anything else, the v10 had issues-plugs and piston slap, and the 6.0 diesel did also, in fact some of the powerstrokes had an awful lot of issues- but Ford finally got the problems solved with the 6.0 and they came out with the 6.4..

As for the performance comparsion between the V10/powerstroke they are similar in hp and torque though of course the v10 gets its grunt at a little higher rpm, its just that I like the few extra mpg that goes with diesel ownership, will never recover the extra cost in my lifetime but its still nice to go the extra distance.

[wagon217]

For me the conveniences of an "A" far outweighs that of the "Bs, Cs or any trailers. I have plenty of room at the drivers seat, where in van type units crowd me. Handling a bigger rig, if set up correctly, provides a nice comfortable ride, especially with air bags and independent front suspension and a tag axle.

[betsytom]

I'll give you that the front of a van is not the most spacious environment, but -uncomfortable- it isn't or at least we don't find it to be so doghouse and all, with the diesel Ford did get it right with heat/noise, not that is is as quiet as a gasser, but we don't mind at all.

What I do not like about -A's- is what I don't like about vans, serviceability, or the lack there of, but then again they do pull the front of the body off on the F550's to get at the engine, regardless of whether its a gas or diesel.

And as hard as it is for me to believe I am told that a pusher is even more of a treat to work on; plus I am told that a pusher is less safe than a puller-but the facts I do not have.

Does anyone have reliable fuel consumption numbers on a gas -A-?

An awful lot of folks tell us that you haven't lived until you have pulled/stayed in a fiver....

[steveownby]

The question of A vs C from the OP is one that can only be answered be the OP because the projected use of the vehicle must be answers first.

Generally, class C's sleep more people over shorter (weeks not months) periods of time. Class A's are better for a couple for longer periods. After the primary usage of the vehicle is established the it really becomes a matter of personal choice or $$$.

Go out and look at A LOT of vehicles. Drive all you can. When you narrow your search down then research particulars.

Safe travels,
Steve O