Tiffin Open Road 34 TGA
Our RV is a Tiffin 34 TGA. There are lots of choices for size and type of RV for full-time travel. I think we were lucky to find one that fits our lifestyle. There is also a huge variation in price. You don’t need the most expensive or the biggest RV to have fun. I would even say it is not about the RV but rather, the RV is a means to the goal of travel. Our RV is a Tiffin 34 TGA is 35 feet long (plus bicycles) and while I wish it were shorter in length and shorter in height, I can’t find any part of it that I would eliminate to make it smaller. I would advise you that smaller RVs can stay in places that we are too big to fit and that you should balance comfort with size and do what is right for you.
Floorplan
Things I like about our floorplan is the three slides. The two opposing slides in the living room make the space very liveable. I wish they were even bigger and four would be better than three. Our walk-through to the bedroom is via the bathroom, shower portion and is closed off by two sliding doors. The bedroom is big enough for a real queen-size mattress, (as opposed to an RV queen-size mattress) but we would lose the nightstands if a king-size mattress were installed. We replaced the chair next to the door with a kitchen cart cabinet on rollers. When we move we position it in front of the bed and strap it in place.
Engine
Our engine is in the front, a Ford V10 gasoline hooked to a five-speed transmission. The transmission has a mode called “tow-haul” which programs the gearing down for climbing and descending hills. I describe the engine as adequate, not ample. You can judge my verbiage any way you like.
Capacities
We can carry 75 gallons of fuel, 70 gallons of freshwater and 24 gallons of propane. The built-in generator is 7000 watts and can power both air conditioners and recharge the battery at the same time. We added 700 watts of solar panels flat mounted to the roof so that we don’t need to run the generator.
I wish the overall size of the RV was smaller by about two feet, but I can’t find two feet that want to give up. This smaller length wouldn’t change the way we live. The most restrictions we have encountered were due to over-hanging trees and new growth that was preventing us from entering the camping spot.