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Old 04-04-2014, 07:51 AM   #1
CarbonFun
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Carbon 327 Shakedown Trip Review

We went out on our first shakedown trip last weekend with our new Carbon 327 and enjoyed the new 5er immensely. We decided to head to the Columbia River and camped at Gifford Campground operated by the National Park Service. We didnt have the best weather with rain showers and temps at night in the 30s but the trailer kept us dry and warm.

We dry camped the whole weekend and the battery never got below the 2/3 mark between generator use. Our previous tow behind was a 24ft polar package Cougar so we could tell the difference between a well insulated trailer and the Carbon but over all the Carbon did well. I attribute the high ceilings and more empty living space as why we had a hard time keeping it comfy warm when needed. We kept the thermostat at 70 and sitting in the couch area it was really 61ish.

We did find that the shower leaked water under the door slide with our first use. We've already spoken to the dealer and they are going to recaulk that when we take it in for our 90 day warranty service. Also the carpet is loose a bit in the bedroom causing a roll so we have asked them to restretch it too.

Other than that we lost the radio antenna on the way out of town (must have hit a low branch) and we also noticed that the low water drain for the hot water didnt snap shut completely so we were losing a little water and the water pump would kick on for a second every 5 minutes or so. We didnt figure this out until it stopped raining on day 2 and could see the puddle on the ground under the water station in the passthru. Once we got that line completely closed it solved our issue.

Lastly we love our garage. Although we didnt take any toys on this trip we did take both of our dogs and the garage made a great dog room especially when they were wet and muddy from playing outside on the beach. I didn't have anxiety of letting them in the trailer in this condition, I just made sure they were let in using the back door.

Almost forget but must mention the bed matress was horrible! After our first night we actually made a trip into the closest town and bought a new matress for the trailer. Our second nights sleep was much better than the first.

Cant say enough how much we love the Carbon. It towed great especially in and out of the Columbia gorge which is 6 miles of grades 6% on each side. We cant wait to take it out again soon. Just wish the weather would warm up.





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Old 04-04-2014, 08:57 AM   #2
matandjen
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Always great to hear about a great first trip. Congrats on a great rig and a successful outing

We have our first one coming up in 1 week.

Cannot wait
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Old 04-04-2014, 12:11 PM   #3
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Glad you had a great trip. Hopefully it is just the first of many!
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Old 04-10-2014, 08:21 PM   #4
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I'm glad to see you finally got to take your Carbon out and enjoy it!! That looks like a great place to camp and I'm glad to hear that the weather did break for you for a little while. I understand your qualms with the heating and the mattress. The mattress is one of those things that I can live with as long as I have a decent pillow to sleep on and the heat I guess is understandable given the ceiling height in these coaches. The one thing I did notice is that at night when we had our bedroom door closed and the heat cranked up for our guests in the garage that our bedroom would get really hot! I am A-OK with the bedroom getting so warm because I know that on trips when it is cold and it is only the two of us we will be plenty warm! haha

Congrats again on getting your first trip under the belt and I wish you many more great trips! Thanks for the review.

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Old 07-01-2014, 07:20 PM   #5
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Any new updates for us CarbonFun?
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Old 07-01-2014, 09:35 PM   #6
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Since our 2 maiden trips to the Gifford Ferry area on the Columbia River we did take a trip to Lewiston, Idaho and then over to Washington Wine Country in Walla Walla. Both stops were in RV Resorts and we were quickly reminded why we love to dry camp... less $$$ and more nature. The trailer did great and this time we hauled our new mountain bikes. No real issues and all our mods have worked out great. Since Easter our other toy, a 30ft Chaparral boat has been in the water so its been hard to balance time between the two however once Fall returns I forsee more road trips. We did upgrade our tow vehicle and now run a 2015 Ford F350 DRW to haul our toys around. With the upgrade we had to switch out our superglide hitch to a reese drop in since we now have a full bed.
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Old 07-02-2014, 03:53 PM   #7
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Thats great to hear, I totally understand the boat taking up time! How do you like your 2015? My dad runs a 2011 6.7L and I have been very impressed with that, but how do you feel about the new turbo charger on the 2015 as well as the bump in power?
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Old 08-03-2014, 08:09 PM   #8
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I love the added power on the second generation 6.7L and the turbo seems a bit more aggressive. Although I still have to get used to the usual turbo lag. I feel so much more confident and secure with the drw.
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Old 08-05-2014, 06:50 PM   #9
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The DRW would definitely be nice towing these large coaches. I'm hoping the 2016 F-Series trucks have the aluminum body like the new F-150 does, I may have to go pick one up if they change a few key items I'm looking for in the new Ford.
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