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Old 12-08-2014, 06:22 PM   #1
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What would you change on the Interstate?

Narrowing down my choice, and it looks pretty good for the 2015 Grand Tour EXT.

I am going to have the stock inverter swapped out for a Pure Sine 1000 Watt unit. That's a must and an easy fix. Otherwise I'm quite happy with the rig as is.

What other changes have you folks made or would like to see from Airstream or the dealer?
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Old 12-08-2014, 07:38 PM   #2
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I am going to have the stock inverter swapped out for a Pure Sine 1000 Watt unit. That's a must and an easy fix. Otherwise I'm quite happy with the rig as is.
Doesn't it come stock with a Magnum inverter/charger? They're good units and don't really need to be changed out. But when you buy your Interstate, it IS yours, and you can change the inverter if you want.

As for other changes, the Airstream Interstate has evolved nicely in the past few years. You might consider replacing your two 12v house batteries for two 6v batteries in series; you can just about double your usable amp-hours that way.

You may also want to replace the stock solar panel with larger and/or more panels.

And you definitely ought to consider adding a resonator to the generator exhaust. You can reduce the noise by about 3dB, which doesn't sound like much when you look at the numbers, but that's equivalent to cutting the sound volume in half.

Not a modification, but get yourself a good-quality insulated windshield/front window cover. The Airstream privacy curtain doesn't do much for keeping out the heat in the summer through that big greenhouse windshield.
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Old 12-08-2014, 07:56 PM   #3
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IIRC there's a thread somewhere on the forum where modifications were discussed.

Here's the main one.

Here's a short one:

http://www.airforums.com/forums/f240...ns-125649.html
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Old 12-08-2014, 08:22 PM   #4
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Nothing. I am good the way it is.

One thing I would miss if I owned the Grand Tour is the 4 seats up front. I use mine a lot as an around town touring coach with another couple and have a blast even when not camping or out on the road.
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Old 12-08-2014, 09:09 PM   #5
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Nothing. I am good the way it is.

One thing I would miss if I owned the Grand Tour is the 4 seats up front. I use mine a lot as an around town touring coach with another couple and have a blast even when not camping or out on the road.
I agree with Ron. Having the four seats up front let's us and our kids sit together while the grandkids are in the back. Also, while we gave serious thought to the longer version, a recent trip to two of Oregon's traffic heavy tourist towns made it clear the shorter version is better for us. We were able to park in regular parking lots without causing a disruption to other drivers and we often parked on the street in regular spots. I surprised one store owner who came out to watch as I parallel parked between a couple of cars! One attempt did it. (I practiced the maneuver about 20 times before we left home.)
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Old 12-09-2014, 05:55 AM   #6
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...

What other changes have you folks made or would like to see from Airstream or the dealer?
I'd like to see Airstream revert to offering at least one floor plan that is optimized for use by two people doing extended travel in true RV fashion (including boondocking). IMHO, they've enhanced the vehicle's soccer Mom potential at the expense of its camper van ethic. That's fine for soccer Moms and I'm sure there's market demand for it, but one would think that, with about ten different floor plans between the AI and the AI-EXT, at least one of them could remain true to something closer to its original design.

My husband and I find frustrating the fact that this isn't offered. Our original plan was to buy an older pre-owned Interstate, use it for a few years, and then once we know exactly what we want, upgrade to a new model. Except Airstream no longer makes what we want, which happens to be exactly what we have, at least from a lay-out perspective (the Sprinter itself leaves plenty of room for refinement).

Seriously - how do you owners of newer models live with absolutely NO counter space in the galley?! It would drive me bonkers. I wonder if you know what you are missing. So much void space in the newer Interstates. Plenty of bling but the ergonomics suck.

Anyway, long term, this leaves us with two choices if we want to keep using this kind of vehicle: Either invest heavily in the 2007 that we have, or embark on our own custom Sprinter conversion. Right now we're leaning toward the first option, and there are 34 items on our long-term to-do list. Many of those are very small projects (several are storage improvements) but some are fairly major (e.g., add a back-up camera and a solar system).
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Old 12-09-2014, 06:02 AM   #7
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Many of those are very small projects (several are storage improvements) but some are fairly major (e.g., add a back-up camera and a solar system).
Now that Pluto isn't considered a planet anymore, I guess adding a solar system isn't as big a deal as it used to be. But seriously, adding a star and eight planets to an Interstate is still more ambitious than anything I would try!

(Yes, I know that's not what you meant, but I just couldn't resist!)
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Old 12-09-2014, 06:12 AM   #8
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Now that Pluto isn't considered a planet anymore, I guess adding a solar system isn't as big a deal as it used to be. But seriously, adding a star and eight planets to an Interstate is still more ambitious than anything I would try!

(Yes, I know that's not what you meant, but I just couldn't resist!)
My husband is an aerospace engineer. Please don't give him any ideas.
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Old 12-09-2014, 07:35 AM   #9
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Originally Posted by InterBlog View Post
I'd like to see Airstream revert to offering at least one floor plan that is optimized for use by two people doing extended travel in true RV fashion (including boondocking). IMHO, they've enhanced the vehicle's soccer Mom potential at the expense of its camper van ethic. That's fine for soccer Moms and I'm sure there's market demand for it, but one would think that, with about ten different floor plans between the AI and the AI-EXT, at least one of them could remain true to something closer to its original design.

.......

You need to look closer at the Grand Tour floor plan. It is optimized for two people doing extended RV travel. There are no seats behind cab area up front.
http://www.airstream.com/touring-coa...pecifications/

Enjoy,


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Old 12-09-2014, 07:46 AM   #10
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OMG... The bed from he-- This was the one thing that almost had me buy the competitor! It is a bad as I expected it to be, maybe worse.
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Old 12-09-2014, 07:47 AM   #11
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Originally Posted by Bambino1 View Post
Narrowing down my choice, and it looks pretty good for the 2015 Grand Tour EXT.

I am going to have the stock inverter swapped out for a Pure Sine 1000 Watt unit. That's a must and an easy fix. Otherwise I'm quite happy with the rig as is.

What other changes have you folks made or would like to see from Airstream or the dealer?

As Protag said the 2015 Interstates should have a Magnum 1000 watt inverter/charger. It is one of the best on the market. If it has a Tripp-Lite 750 watt inverter then changing it makes sense. Check with dealer on specific inverter when you buy so you don't spend money on something you don't need. But do consider adding more solar. I upgraded mine to 400 watts and it was the best mod I've made to my rig.


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Old 12-09-2014, 08:44 AM   #12
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IMO you get out of these vans what you put into them.

Read lots and lots of threads on here on how others have tweaked, converted or repaired issues.

Learn how to understand and operate everything as best you can by reading old threads here on the various systems, ask your own questions and read the airstream manuals. Yes, this takes a lot of time but is worth every minute when you are out on the road or camping in your Interstate. Enjoy
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Old 12-09-2014, 10:56 AM   #13
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There only thing I would definitely change about my AI — if I could afford it — and would be a full air rear suspension to prevent launching lounge passengers into low earth orbit while underway.

There are a few other things that fall into the "nice to have but not essential" category such as (in order of precedence)…
  1. a second video camera to get the full parking and backing view available from the Kenwood entertainment system
  2. Chip tuning the engine (it isn't that necessary but neither is it that expensive)
  3. a higher capacity A/C unit for those hot summer nights in the South and Southwest
  4. Protag's higher capacity 6 volt batteries
  5. a significantly quieter genset
If I win the lottery the airbag suspension would definitely be the first order of business.
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Old 12-09-2014, 11:05 AM   #14
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OMG... The bed from he-- This was the one thing that almost had me buy the competitor! It is a bad as I expected it to be, maybe worse.

I doubt the beds on any of the B-vans with folding lounge beds are any better. Going to a twin layout probably gives the best basic bed. I added a 3" memory foam topper with another 2" pillow topper on that to give a nice comfy bed. I roll up the toppers during the day so I have more floor space to move around.


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Old 12-09-2014, 11:24 AM   #15
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Well, it's not really a change, but just something to help us out at a later date. When we picked up our ASGT the dealer spent a couple of hours with us going through everything, like I said before " head like a sieve". We should have thought about video, we could film the whole thing and go back over things we aren't sure about. Since we aren't full timing I could use a film to remind me how things work in the AS. I should have though about it early on.
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Old 12-09-2014, 11:56 AM   #16
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Originally Posted by InterBlog View Post
I'd like to see Airstream revert to offering at least one floor plan that is optimized for use by two people doing extended travel in true RV fashion (including boondocking). IMHO, they've enhanced the vehicle's soccer Mom potential at the expense of its camper van ethic. That's fine for soccer Moms and I'm sure there's market demand for it, but one would think that, with about ten different floor plans between the AI and the AI-EXT, at least one of them could remain true to something closer to its original design.

My husband and I find frustrating the fact that this isn't offered. Our original plan was to buy an older pre-owned Interstate, use it for a few years, and then once we know exactly what we want, upgrade to a new model. Except Airstream no longer makes what we want, which happens to be exactly what we have, at least from a lay-out perspective (the Sprinter itself leaves plenty of room for refinement).

Seriously - how do you owners of newer models live with absolutely NO counter space in the galley?! It would drive me bonkers. I wonder if you know what you are missing. So much void space in the newer Interstates. Plenty of bling but the ergonomics suck.
A couple of things we did on our ext model, that made a huge difference for us:

1. Removed second row seats. Now there's room for shoe storage containers, dog food container that fits inside a storage cube that we can also sit on, dog beds, etc.. You could use the space for another cooler, or any other kind of storage that you need.

2. Added more solar (thank you, Lew). We now ave 200w solar. Plenty for us to keep our batteries charged up.

3. Removed television in front. Now we can actually use the large storage bins properly. The TV partially blocked access, and we don't use the TV anyways. Still have the one in the back.

4. Flipped door hinges on rear half wardrobe so that we can access that from the front. We leave bed made as a bed all the time, and it was a pain to access it before.

The one thing we need to figure out, is how to extend the galley counter towards the front end. Agreed, not enough counter space. Drives me crazy. We wanted to add a drop down/fold up extension, like the one towards the rear, but that would interfere with the table top storage spot. So, haven't quite figured this one out yet.
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Old 12-09-2014, 01:22 PM   #17
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I would change bathroom design. One that drains and one that is more like Roadtrek and without the poorly designed expandable door. I would add more mirrors, again like the Roadtrek. Another towel rack in the bath (actually, I already did that). Bigger solar panels (mine has the anemic 40w panel). Better bed design. A macerator that doesn't hold water when stored so it won't be damaged when it freezes. And MUCH better quality in fit and finish instead of having the customer fix all the things the factory did wrong in the first place.

You asked.
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Old 12-09-2014, 04:14 PM   #18
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And MUCH better quality in fit and finish instead of having the customer fix all the things the factory did wrong in the first place.
It is that last item, and it alone, that caused me to leave the fold. Interstate designs are generally great, the execution is just sad. The good news is that most of the issues can be fixed. I was very proud of my Interstate by the time I sold it.
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Old 12-09-2014, 04:31 PM   #19
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I would like:

1. Air conditioned seats
2. More comfortable seats ( my pickup truck seats are more comfortable)
3. Air vents in the rear of the coach that are from the van AC. It gets hot back there and having to run the gen and AC is a waist of propane..
4. A screen for the slider..
5. Lights that look more like incandescent bulbs rather than fluorescent looking bulbs ( feel like I'm at work with those)
6. Self drive since my wife makes me do most of the driving. And damn it I want to watch a movie..



Other than that it's a great van that we absolutely love having..
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Old 12-09-2014, 08:27 PM   #20
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I've been up to the Cleveland area and visited with the guys at Advanced RV. I am contemplating having them build my next coach. Here are a few items or options that interested me.
Second alternator added to engine. No propane generator necessary.
Upgraded battery system/solar panel that can run the rear AC for a few hours on the batteries.
The ability to run the rear AC while driving with no generator
Air ride suspension.
Diesel burning instant heat system for hot water and to heat the coach, also heats the fresh water and holding tanks.
Heated floor.
Better designed bath/shower.
These are just a few, not to mention the ability to totally customize the floor plan, lights, cabinetry etc..
I haven't pulled the trigger yet but I really like the concept of a customized coach.
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