What's new in 2006?

[Bill]

I recently traded in my 2002 2720SL on a new 2006 of the same model. I took delivery a few days ago, and have been madly preparing for a big trip. Meanwhile, a couple people on this board have asked me what changes have been made over four years, so I thought I would take a moment to list the things I see. I’m sure I have missed some things – I’m moving fast. And bear in mind that I am comparing between two 2720SL models – other models may not reflect these observations exactly.

It appears to me that the 1990’s were years of revolutionary change in the design of the TM. Every year, the new TMs had major changes and improvements over the year before. Aluminum framing vs wood, round wheel wells vs square, spare tire underneath rather than on the back bumper, air conditioner on the roof instead of in a kitchen cabinet, are examples. Finally, somewhere around 2001 or 2002, the design just got so good that there were no more major improvements to be made – and the design improvements became evolutionary rather than revolutionary. But the engineers and builders at TM continued to make the product better and better, easier to use, and better looking inside and out. Although I have no “insider” knowledge, I am sure that this board was the inspiration for many of the changes I am seeing. Some of them were previously discussed here at great length. The TM company apparently puts high value on customer input and feedback – what a refreshing change from other companies that ignore their customers once the sale is made.

So, in no particular order, I find the following:

1) There is an outside light over the water hose connection area. How many times have I cursed as I tried to hook up the hose in the dark, a flashlight in my teeth, and water all over me? I love this one.
2) The method for mounting the horizontal propane tanks is SO much better. Removing them for filling used to be a knuckle-buster. Now a single wing nut secures each tank.
3) The storage area under the couch in front is much bigger. The slideout models used to have a big “cubbyhole” carved out of the front wall and under the couch, to provide clearance over the propane tanks and apparatus. The cubbyhole is gone, and all that space is now available for storage. I’ve got a couple folding chairs and a folding table that used to ride on the couch, and we had to deal with them every time we opened and closed. Now they will ride out of the way, in a proper storage area.
4) The lift kit + the low profile A/C = lower overall height. Not by much, but it is a big help in a residential garage.
5) The battery compartment in the rear is 4-5” deeper than before, because of new cord storage arrangement. This amounts to lots more space for tools, water hose, extension cord, TV cable cord, etc.
6) The battery compartment is carpeted – not a big deal, but a nice touch.
7) The battery is still recessed into the floor, which I think is an invitation to disaster. But at least it has been moved over against the outside wall where the floor may be stronger.
8) The wires to the battery are handled a lot better. Instead of being long and unconstrained and flopped around on the floor, they are now much shorter, and tied down in protective tube.
9) The main battery fuse is still the old glass cartridge fuse. The fuseholder has failed for a number of people on this board (including me), so I will retrofit an automotive ATC fuse and holder, or a self-resetting circuit breaker, immediately.
10) There are now two outside lights on the entry side – one near the entry, one at front right corner. They are controlled by a common switch (inside) plus individual switches (outside).
11) The outside door has a deadbolt on the lower half, and it uses the same key as the regular door lock.
12) The old design had a 12-volt fluorescent light in the bathroom, which was great. But it had incandescents everywhere else. Now there are four 12-volt fluorescents – in the bathroom, over the kitchen sink, over the stove, and over the bed. There are still several of the old (and kinda cheesy, IMO) incandescent fixtures – one in the hall next to the wardrobe, two in the ceiling vent in the living room, and two on the forward ceiling over the couch.
13) The “elegant lights” have been replaced by two more of the same incandescent fixtures.
14) The front cabinet now has three doors instead of two. I’ll miss the clock, but the storage area will be more useful. However, the doors still don’t have hold-opens, and slam down on your wrist if you’re not careful.
15) There is now a carbon monoxide detector beside propane detector. Nice addition, IMO – I was always more afraid of CO than propane, because you can't smell it.
16) There is a GFI AC outlet and a TV antenna outlet in the hallway beside the bed, next to the converter.
17) The pipes and wires under the sink are rearranged to give a bit more storage space. Since the water tank is under the sink in the slideout models, this is more important than it may seem.
18) There is still no switch by the sink to control the water heater’s electric element. I thought this had been done, but somehow I misled myself. Fortunately, it is an easy add.
19) The chair seems to be a few pounds lighter, which makes it easier to horse around.
20) A new converter, American Enterprises model CS6000XL, replaces the old Magnetek unit. This is a 60-amp unit. The owner’s manual was inadvertently omitted from my trailer – TM is sending one – but I think it is a filtered power. I’ll post more when I know more.
21) The microwave box is really nice. Oilspot made the first one, back in 2002, and factory has picked it up very nicely.
22) It appears that there is now support under the entire front edge of the slideout floor. Earlier models lacked center support, and the floor began to sag. Several of us “slideout people” had to jerry-rig supports to keep the floor up.
23) The shower curtain is shorter, but not short enough. It should have another 3 or 4” cropped off.
24) The outside connections to the TV and telephone hookup are nice – so is the inside telephone jack.
25) The refrig is now Norcold, rather than Dometic. They seem remarkably similar, but as a nit, I note that there is no cutout in the lower shelf for tall bottles such as milk and soda.
26) I think – but haven’t confirmed yet – that the air conditioner has a heat strip. That used to be a fairly expensive option.
27) The rubber air scoop on the ceiling at the aft end of the air conditioner is gone. Something about the new A/C or the new mounting kit enables it to blow fore and aft without a scoop.
28) The stove/oven is Atwood, very similar to the old one. The only nit here is that it will be harder to get the grate off for cleaning, since the squeeze clips have been replaced by serrated washers. I’m going to try to find some of the old squeeze clips – but this is really minor.
29) The wheel wells and other openings to the outside are now sealed with expanding foam caulk, rather than the silicone caulk that failed for so many people. This has gotta be better.
30) The thermostat is different, but is still adjustable for “longer cycles” as was discussed back in ’02.
31) There is a rub strip across the roof of the rear shell! The wear here was the subject of a big discussion in July ‘04. There needs to be another rub strip on the ceiling of the front shell, and I will install that myself as soon as I can.
32) The furnace is a bit larger, I think – 20K vs 16K BTU/hr?
33) And of course, the new rear bumper configuration. The jury (at least mine) is still out on this.

So that is a pretty long list for only 4 years. I’m really impressed by how TM has listened to us, and phased in the changes we need. I’m very pleased with what I am finding. Almost every change is an upside – the downers are nits at most.

By the way, special kudos go to Custom RV in Anaheim California, for pulling things together in what must be record time, and delivering a well-prepared TM. Thanks go especially to Matt.

Bill

Just about every item that you mention is also in our 2005 3326 King that we took delivery in September 2004. A few thing that you did not mention are as follows:
The fabric for the couch and chair of much better quality.
There are two matching pillows for the couch.
The curtains are of better quality fabric.
The shower curtain track is wider for more elbow room.
The burber carpeting is of much better quality and will wear well.
The kitchen faucet is metal, not plastic as in previous models.
The countertops have rounded corners.
There is an outside hot and cold faucet. The only complaint about it is that there is a restricter on it, reducing the water pressure. Also, it is installed upside down. I wonder why.

Things that I have done.
I added a battery operated clock to the center cabinet door above the couch. I drilled a small hole and inserted the clock hands mounts through the hole. The clock mechanism is on the inside of the cabinet door. It works well in order to change the time or change a dead battery.
I reversed the four bolts on each arm that holds the torsion bars. In other words, The head is on the inside and the nut on the outside. Thus this prevents the scratching of the metal molding when folding down.
On the front and rear awnings, the wing nuts would not tighten because round screw heads were used. I disassembled the arms and replaced the round screw heads with 15/16 hex screw heads. Now when I tighten the wing nuts, I have no problem with tighten the wing nuts to hold the awnings up.
I added drawers in each of the cabinets. I wish that TrailManor would offer this as an option.

Since this is our third TrailManor, I see how they have come a long way to offer a top quality product.

genesc

[BOB_STRONG]

Bill,

You forgot to mention some other things:

1. The spare tire is under the front of the trailer now which is nice.

2. They offer the receiver for the rear of the TrailManor. Can be used to attach a bike rack.

3. They changed the antenna for the new models. You don't have to worry about extending it.

4. They now use the nice berber rug & new style slate linoleum.

5. The counter tops are a lot nicer material.

6. Yes the a/c does come with a heat strip as standard.

7. They now offer the 3 drawer caninet as an option for the front slide out models. It was only available with the 3124KS model.

8.They changed the outside trim molding. It's wider & a lot nicer looking.

9. They now offer the fold down TV stand for the rear bed area.

10. They offer the 3 way type microwave. Our 2002 had a microwave, but it was just the standard traditional one.

11. Don't forget the metal faucet in the kitchen. No longer plastic.


Now all they need to perfect is a screen door that is permanent. That would be just great.

Good luck with your new unit.

[Bill]

Well, it is obvious who is the engineer in my family! I missed every one of the appearance upgrades.

Genesc wrote

Just about every item that you mention is also in our 2005 3326 King that we took delivery in September 2004.

Wow! No improvements at all this year? You don't think they passed off an old 2005 model on me, do you?

and

There is an outside hot and cold faucet.

This must be peculiar to the 3326. I'm seeing the outside shower, but no faucets.

Bob Strong wrote

... (a number of things I missed - thanks, Bob) ...

The spare tire under was a midyear change in '02, I think. When I ordered in late 2001, my dealer told me it would be on the rear, and we were both surprised when it showed up underneath. This was the same time that the A/C moved from the kitchen cabinet to the roof - I had an option for either mounting when I ordered.

But yes, I did miss several things, and had to go rap a fork on the kitchen faucet to confirm it is metal. Nice!

Bill

I stand corrected. It is an outside hot and cold shower, not a faucet.
I also have a radio/cd installed above the refrigerator, with two speakers built into the front top cabinets.
I have a hitch receiver installed at the factory, under the rear bumper for my bike carrier.

genesc
2005 3326 King
2002 Oldsmobile Bravada

[wesslvm]

Originally Posted by Bill

I recently traded in my 2002 2720SL on a new 2006 of the same model. I took delivery a few days ago, and have been madly preparing for a big trip. Meanwhile, a couple people on this board have asked me what changes have been made over four years ...<snip>

2) The method for mounting the horizontal propane tanks is SO much better. Removing them for filling used to be a knuckle-buster. Now a single wing nut secures each tank.
3) The storage area in front is much bigger. The slideout models used to have a big “cubbyhole” carved out of the front wall and under the couch, to provide clearance over the propane tanks and apparatus. The cubbyhole is gone, and all that space is now available for storage. I’ve got a couple folding chairs and a folding table that used to ride on the couch, and we had to deal with them every time we opened and closed. Now they will ride out of the way, in a proper storage area.

Bill,

Can you provide a picture showing how the tanks mount now? Also, I'm really curious about the space above the propane tanks. After reading your post I went and looked at mine and I don't see why the did it that way in the first place! What a was of space!

Anyone have any ideas in how I could recoup the wasted space? It looks to me like the clearnance I have is not needed.

Thanks!

Vince

Originally Posted by wesslvm

Bill,

Anyone have any ideas in how I could recoup the wasted space? It looks to me like the clearnance I have is not needed.

Thanks!

Vince

This probably what you would not want to hear, but I would think the only way to recoup the wasted space would be to return your TM to the factory to have that section rebuilt.
genesc

[Bill]

Bill,

Can you provide a picture showing how the tanks mount now?

Vince -

This area is very hard to photograph, as you can imagine, so please forgive the picture quality. But here goes. All photos are taken from the front, and facing aft.
1. The first photo is just to get you oriented. The swing tongue has been swung over to the right of the picture, and I haven't even taken the paper covers off the tanks yet. However, look carefully at the front of the tank on the left side of the picture. Directly below the valve, you can barely see the top of a silvery eyebolt.
2. This photo is a closeup of the front of the same tank. Now you can clearly see the eyebolt. This bolt extends down through the front support cross-member, replacing the little threaded stud that used to be there.
3. This photo is taken from directly in front of the TM, about 18" off the floor. Remember that the swing tongue has been folded aside. In this picture, you can see the eyebolt, and the wingnut down below the cross-member. So, to remove the tank, you reach underneath and unscrew the wing nut, then lift the front of the tank upward. The eyebolt comes up with it.
4. This picture is taken from underneath the tanks. In the bad old days, the rear support bracket on each tank (white) was dropped over a pair of threaded studs welded to the cross-member, and a nut was tightened onto each stud to secure the rear of the tank. In the new setup, there are no studs. The edge of the white support bracket is simply inserted into a cleverly-welded slot on the rear cross-member. It is hard to see the slot, but that lumpy pile of black metal on the cross-member is the welding on each edge of the slot.

I have to give the boys in Lake City extra credit for this one. I had no idea how they could resolve the inconvenience of the old mounting method, and so I learned to live with it and not complain. This is a great improvement!

Also, I'm really curious about the space above the propane tanks. After reading your post I went and looked at mine and I don't see why they did it that way in the first place! What a waste of space!

I suspect that in the early days of the slideout, something protruded up a bit higher than it does now. Perhaps the regulator assembly? Dunno. Anyway, I guess you could pull out the couch temporarily, and build a new floor and front wall for the cubbyhole. Not my kind of construction, but perhaps yours?

Bill

[mjlaupp]

Originally Posted by Bill

I suspect that in the early days of the slideout, something protruded up a bit higher than it does now. Perhaps the regulator assembly? Dunno. Anyway, I guess you could pull out the couch temporarily, and build a new floor and front wall for the cubbyhole. Not my kind of construction, but perhaps yours? Bill

The cutout was to clear the horizontal propane tanks that were mounted on top of the frame. When the swing tongue was introduced, the tanks were moved back to their present location and lowered. TM probably decided to mount all of the tanks in the rearward position so they could give you the additional storage space.

MJL

[Bill]

Originally Posted by genesc

I added a battery operated clock to the center cabinet door above the couch. I drilled a small hole and inserted the clock hands mounts through the hole. The clock mechanism is on the inside of the cabinet door. It works well in order to change the time or change a dead battery.

What did you do about a dial face? I would like to see a picture, if you can post one.

Thanks

Bill