6 Years with a Roadtrek Zion Campervan: How it's Holding Up & Do We Still Love RVing?

[@loriurban1070]

Helpful info, thank you! I just bought a 2021 Zion SRT last year and am a single solo camper ..just me and my 13 lb dog..so far I love it and I agree that the propane furnace is brutal! It clicks on sooo loud..I now use a small ceramic heater ..doesn’t use much electricity and of course I have to use the inverter .. Happy camping!!

[@hikenrv]

Enjoy and Wishing you safe travels! 🚐

[@20111111jorg]

Your summary at the end mirrors our own experience. More people, reservations etc. We still camp year round being in California, but now tend more towards BLM or Forest Service lands.

[@hikenrv]

Thanks for sharing! For well known parks we will still make a reservation if we can (or get lucky and find a cancellation), but often prefer to simply go to ones that remain first come first serve…more often than not it works out, in part because we are flexible when we can travel. We find that more northern areas are usually less busy as well.

[@carolmelton9067]

I'm running late so just watched this. Another great review, you have a knack for hitting all the crucial points with the minimum of time and fuss. I follow a few rv/van groups and it seems it's very hit and miss with problems. Some people have multiple major issues just a few months in, some have none, and some, like you, have a few that were fairly easy to resolve. Our snowpack here in Washington is too low also, so I am also worried about the summer and the possibility of fires and water restrictions. It might be a good year to stay close to home.

[@hikenrv]

Thank you! Appreciate your comments! You probably described RV ownership well..at times a bit hit and miss! We covered most of our issues as we went along with our channel…most were electrical related and it did take us over 2 years to resolve all. At times we were a bit frustrated (folks at Roadtrek were quite helpful though) and we had anticipated the first year would have a few. On review it doesn’t seem too bad now, a couple we simply accepted though if we were to buy a different new RV we expect we may have a new cycle of some sort. Most folks we know had several initial issues, but like us nothing that kept them from getting out. We learned quite a bit along the way. As our van ages we will likely have to deal with new challenges of course. As for weather…let’s cross our fingers!

[@larryvincent2098]

BS & BK & BC !! Interesting stuff !!

[@hikenrv]

🙏

[@cedarforest4621]

That what reservations have been like in Washington State for the popular places for a long time. You have reserve when then open with about 4 computers and hope you get your site! We love camping in BC as well. No matter where you get on Vancouver Island, you really can't go wrong!

[@hikenrv]

Agreed!

[@dawn7612]

Have you had to get a new CAB battery in the last 6 years? We bought a Roadtrek Zion in Sept 2022. It was in the shop numerous times for the side traffic safety ∆ warning lights never working. June 2023 we were in a colission. The RV was in a SC RV repair shop for 4 months waiting to be fixed. Finally August they began the repairs that took too long. We picked it up in October. Then December my husband had 2 major blockages in his heart while drivingnit back from up north and had a pacemaker defribullator implant. He is still recooperating. January while henwas invthe hospital two werks the RV was clicking every time I walked past it. It would not start with the key for me. Upon testing and jumping it twice it runs till I turn it off and is completely dead again. So we have a dead battery after owning 1 year and 4 months. Nothing was left on in the cab. The clicking seems to be when the dumb step on the cab try to go out when you open the door. So the battery is on the driver's side floor under the carpet and too heavy for my husband necause yte foctor will not let him lift anything for two months. So we are stuck with not being able to run it every month to keep the rodents out from under the hood. Honestly, if you subtract the month or more for the side safety lights that still do not work, and the 4+ months for the collision, and 2 months for the dead battery we actually have been able to use it 6 months, we are not happy travelers. By the way this is our 5th Motorhome in 24 years. Dawn

[@hikenrv]

Very sorry to hear both of your husband’s health issues and the challenges with the van. Hoping both resolve soon. Our first two years of ownership had a number of issues as was mentioned. The step issue can be a problem it appears as we have seen it referenced often. We repaired our driver side a few times and thought we had it disabled , so we never really thought about it as an issue any more. Literally had it start to make noises yesterday and now have disabled it ourselves. Other steps work fine. We replaced the van/ Promaster battery about 20 months ago which seemed reasonable. . Chrysler dealer suggested at best 3-4 years if not used a few times a week or if not hooked up to trickle charger.

[@marcdsh6998]

My 2018 Roadtrek Simplicity is holding up well even if I have not used it as much as I would have liked. Agree with you on a higher bed for greater storage area. On the whole quite happy with my Roadtrek.

[@hikenrv]

Glad it has worked well for you too!

[@ScubaSteveCanada]

Hi Mickey, I was so close to getting the same RV back in the day but the pricing held me back. The Class B I now have has served me well since 2019 although the generator just bit the dust (won't start but I rarely use it). It's a shame what the Hymer North America executives did to Road Trek ... Fortunately, new ownership has helped. Enjoy watching your videos over the years. Cheers, Steve

[@hikenrv]

Thanks for your comment, Steve! Sorry to her about your generator but glad your class b worked out for you over the years as well. Yes - it all worked out for Roadtrek in the end. 👍

[@cleanerlakes]

Thanks for the update! 😊

[@debbiemurphy5553]

Have you given any thought to venturing through Canada, checking out our other provinces? We did a trip last summer from NFLD right out to BC, and it was epic. We did travel the whole summer, June into September, but it was awesome! (Had to work around the fires though, changing routes, but it was still a great trip).

[@hikenrv]

We have and it would be awesome…not sure Finch would be a good fit though. On a smaller scale: We also ran into some folks who did a Roadtrip from BC to Saskatchewan and shared some great camp spots there too. We are worried about what summer may bring here: the BC snowpack overall is low (locally our mountains look more like it’s June not mid Feb) so fire and drought concerns already being raised. We will see if it improves in March. In some ways we are hoping for a bit of a cool and wet start to summer to offset.

[@douglasmcbryan3705]

We follow the KZbinrs HappilyEverHanks that are full time RVers that travel with a cat. Are you going to the RV show this year and show us whats new? Nancy

[@hikenrv]

We hope to…had planned to go today, but other things took precedent. Not sure too much new, but we enjoy and often run into folks who follow the channel. Latter is probably the best part!

[@underscr0e]

If there was one thing you could have had and or upgraded in that rv what would it be?

[@hikenrv]

Great question! We talked about things we would like in previous reviews, but if we had to choose one now it would be floor-plan with a small fixed eating/work area up front. We always leave our bed made up so never really use the back lounge/rear sofa set up…and if that bed could be a bit higher so we could have a bit better storage underneath, but that would be two things! Otherwise quite pleased overall, albeit always something.

[@ScubaSteveCanada]

@@hikenrv Not two cats??

[@hikenrv]

@@ScubaSteveCanada we often talk about…largely because Finch requires us to play with him for around 90 minutes each day! A feline friend might do some of that for us!

[@ScubaSteveCanada]

@@hikenrv Meow I know.

[@dawn7612]

​@@hikenrv~ 1) we are not pleased with how hard the cabinets under the bed are to open. You need too hands to grasp the double latches. Dumb design. 2) yes the bed is low so no storage underneath except what you can squeeze in the tiny drawers. Dumb design. 3).The toilet seat falls down when you try to sit down because it is on a corner and you need to Velcro it to hold it open. Dumb design. 4) And the CAB battery that costs several hundred dollars is dead after a year and a half under the driver floor. Dumb design. I go on.... 😢