Review of the 2018 Winnebago 70a | A Modern Class B Camper Van That Sleeps 3

Is a fantastically flashy finish enough to convince you to buy this 24 foot camper van that sleeps 3?

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"Ohhhhh" and "Ahhhh" were the first two sounds I uttered stepping into the glitzy and shiny Winnebago Era 70a. The rope LED lighting glares off the highly polished cabinetry and the curved transition from the front facing cabinets above the cab to the those above the side-facing jumpseats immediately grab your attention. This is a modern-looking coach. The staid, plain-styling, hand crafted cabinetry of yore have been tossed aside for something that screams chic and European. Everything about the look of this coach is designed to make you think you're in a premium camper van. The problem is, you're not.

This coach does feature some premium, high end components like the Truma Combi system with ducted heating (including in the bathroom); multiplex wiring with convenient controls intelligently placed around the interior; a color touch panel display that consolidates most of your controls and things like solar and an inverter. But, some of the components are decidedly unpremium like the rooftop air conditioner which has manual setting controls and is not integrated into any kind of thermostat control, let alone the color touch screen control center; a manually controlled rooftop antenna (versus an automatic one); and the use of regular foam versus memory foam for the bedding and front jump seat. None of these things are deal breakers and it is important to remember that the listed price of this RV as we reviewed it was just a tad over $100k.

The lack of premium components all around aren't the only things holding this van back from being a premium coach. There are quite a few design deficiencies that are head scratchers as well. For instance: One of the biggest selling points of the 70a is its ability to sleep 3. The front jump seat converts into a single bed. This is great for families or grand parents with a grandchild or two. The problem is that while the jump seat has an additional 2 seat belts, they are only lap type belts and not 3 point shoulder restraint seatbelts. In my book this means those seats are not suitable for children and that means the bed is virtually useless. Why did Winnebago not put in 3 point seatbelts on this jump seat. It doesn't make sense. Additionally, the size of the lounge was sacrificed in order to accommodate that jump seat - so you have a small lounge to boot.

The kitchen is a good size with lots of counter space for preparing meals but it features that dreaded marine style sink with the fold down faucet head and control which easily turns on by accident when you collapse it down and close the glass top. You'll drain your fresh water tank before you make it out of your driveway. There's a nice, large 3 way refrigerator but it is manually controlled. Why didn't Winnebago put in the model that switches between propane and charging by the engine automatically. This would have made it much more palatable.

The bathroom is nice and large. It features a unibody construction so that there are no seams making it watertight. That's nice. But those accordion doors are too complicated and there are too many hinges where little fingers can be caught and smashed. I pinched my hands pretty badly trying to close them. They are a bad design and have to go. Why not put a sliding tambour door in like they use in the Travato line?

The rear permanent bedroom is spacious and I like that you have two large twin beds placed at a reasonable height. Each person can easily get in and out of bed without disturbing the other person. If you want to make the bed into one large one you can fill in the center section. There's plenty of storage in overhead cabinets and there's even a second flat screen tv in the bedroom. The mattresses look okay but are not memory foam so I can't attest to their comfort level for a night's rest. There's plenty of light and good ventilation.

Obviously throughout the 70a are black metal trim around the doorway to the bedroom and facing on the front of cabinets. You would be forgiven for thinking that Winnebago is using welded aluminum for its cabinet framing. It's not the case. Behind the slick, black facing is stick framing and staples to hold everything together. Not what I want to see in a $100k van.

Then there's the 1 year warranty that Winnebago offers on the Era 70a. In this day and age of some coach builders offering 5 and 6 year warranties it is unacceptable to still be offering only a 1 year warranty on a camper van. For this reason alone, I cannot recommend the Winnebago 70a to potential buyers. Even at the amazing listed price of $100k, Winnebago should be able to offer a 5 or 6 year warranty as its competition does.

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Видео Review of the 2018 Winnebago 70a | A Modern Class B Camper Van That Sleeps 3 канала Neil Balthaser