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The esteemed RV maker provides yet another quality product for a luxurious and comfortable camper vanning experience with the Eclipse RV.
The rise in popularity of RVs and motorhomes was one of the few saving graces of the dreadful Covid-19 pandemic and the restriction of staying indoors it brought along. 2 years have passed since then, but it seems that RVs are still quite popular. Why else would we get new and tempting offerings from serious RV-makers every year?
Not only that, many companies have been making ultra-luxurious motorhomes with price tags ending with the word ‘million’ at the end. One of the prime examples is the Marchi Mobile RV, a $3 Million RV that’s more luxurious than most people’s houses. But campervanning is not an activity reserved for just the wealthy.
We can have RVs in all shapes and sizes, corresponding to every budget segment in the automobile industry. The most popular ones often fall in the middle to slightly high luxurious category. These RVs have enough features and necessities to have an extravagant holiday without remortgaging your actual house.
Holiday Rambler Corporation is an old and esteemed manufacturer in this segment. They have made recreational vehicles since 1953 and gave the industry some cool and innovative ideas. The 2023 Eclipse RV is their newest creation, and we think it’s worth considering if you’re planning to buy an RV.
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Think about a basic house. Now think about all the things you need to call a ‘home’. Most of us think about a place to sleep, a place to cook, a bathroom or two, and some space to keep all our stuff (wardrobe, cabinets, etc.). Most RVs have that, so we started getting more and more luxurious RVs. The Eclipse has all those things we mentioned and some.
Holiday-Rambler has packed 2 LED TVs, a residential refrigerator, a microwave, a jackknife sofa, theater seats, and a drop-down loft among other little things into the Eclipse. Other than that, you can have alternatives such as bunk beds, an extra lavatory with a shower area, a bigger dream dinette, and more, depending on the floor plan you choose.
Looks and appearance are a huge part of making something luxurious. So Holiday-Rambler has taken care of it by giving us different decor options to choose from. These three options, Bayview, Newport, and Portobello, have a distinct set of textures and color/patterns on the sofa, floor, bedding, flooring, countertop, and other places.
They hope to appeal to as many people as they can by giving multiple options to choose from, and we’re sure you’ll find something you like in there. The wardrobe is extensive enough to hold clothing for several people for a few days, and the beds are king-size if any taller people are worrying about that.
To run all these appliances, the Eclipse comes with 6-volt deep cycle house batteries, a 200w inverter, and a 55 amp power converter. It’s also got a Wi-Fi ranger, Solar Panel pre-wire, water heater bypass system, cable tv/satellite hookup, a 5500W Onan Quiet generator, multiplex wiring system, water city hookup, and a 30,000 BTU furnace, and much more.
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Since the Eclipse takes you and several amenities to a remote place, it needs to be big enough to fit all of that without feeling congested. Thankfully, it feels neither. The Eclipse is a class A gas motorhome that is 33 feet and 6 inches long. The interior is also 6.8 feet high, so most people won’t have to hunch their backs while moving inside.
We will explore individual features down below, but let’s just say that it’s jam-packed with amenities and convenience features, along with all the necessary basic stuff. To hold all that weight and carry it safely, the chassis needs to be super strong, and it is. In the words of Holiday Rambler, the Eclipse 2023 gets some serious support from the 22,000 lb. Ford F53 chassis.
The F53 is a single-channel ladder-frame platform of e-coated 36,000-psi Steel. Ford also fitted a beefier anti-sway bar than previous OEM versions. Ford also went back to Bilstein shocks rather than Sachs. However, there is some amount of body roll in the F53, especially with the heavy body on top of it.
It’s something you might need to have solved if you’re planning a long journey. But the chassis has lots of positives. For example, GVWR range from 16,000 to 26,000 pounds. If you want to drag even more stuff, there’s a tow hitch with a capacity of 8,000 lb. at the back.
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Packing a lot of stuff in an RV needs a big and strong chassis, and hauling that big and heavy chassis requires a lot of power. And we know how a V8 is a tried and tested way of solving any power-related problems. And most of the time, it works! The aforementioned F53 comes with the housing of Ford’s 7.3-liter V8. It produces 350 hp and 468 lb-ft (634 Nm) of torque.
Even this figure might be low for some people, but we aren’t here to race, we’re here campervanning, and this big ol’ V8 does the job. More importantly, it maintains a low rpm of 3750 revs. Big vehicles require more power down at the lower end of the tachometer to haul heavy loads, so it’s the ideal power band. This way, you’ll get more efficiency and a longer engine life too.
Monish Mandavra grew up surrounded by Indian car culture and likes anything on wheels, but especially loves Japanese cars and classic vehicles. When he is not writing or working, he is either playing video games or headed towards the gym.