I'm not sure exactly why Travco got into trouble. Maybe the increased cost of oil in the mid-70's upped the price of the fiberglass body to the point where they weren't competitive? Travco was bought out by what became Foretravel Motorhomes so in a sense they are still in existence today but under another name. Foretravel kept building them with the Dodge chassis and drivetrain for a number of years before switching exclusively to diesel pushers. Foretravel also used the Detroit 8.2 along with the Cummins 555 and Cat 3208.

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1977 300d 70k--sold 08
1985 300TD 185k+
1984 307d 126k--sold 8/03
1985 409d 65k--sold 06
1984 300SD 315k--daughter's car
1979 300SD 122k--sold 2/11
1999 Fuso FG Expedition Camper
1993 GMC Sierra 6.5 TD 4x4
1982 Bluebird Wanderlodge CAT 3208--Sold 2/13

I want one. Is there a forum that supports them?

There's a Yahoo group.

__________________
1977 300d 70k--sold 08
1985 300TD 185k+
1984 307d 126k--sold 8/03
1985 409d 65k--sold 06
1984 300SD 315k--daughter's car
1979 300SD 122k--sold 2/11
1999 Fuso FG Expedition Camper
1993 GMC Sierra 6.5 TD 4x4
1982 Bluebird Wanderlodge CAT 3208--Sold 2/13

Like kerry said, there is a Yahoo group. Also the Classic Winnebagos & Vintage RV's site (it's a semi-haunt of mine-would love to find a Winnebago D18-20 someday). It's somewhat Winnie-centric but with the exception of the bodies, the majority of the rest of the pieces/parts are from the same sources.

Not real active, but there is Travco.org (lots of inspiring pics, though )

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1980 300TD-China Blue/Blue MBTex-2nd Owner, 107K (Alt Blau) OBK #15
'06 Chevy Tahoe Z71 (for the wife & 4 kids, current mule) '03 Honda Odyssey (son #1's ride, reluctantly) '99 GMC Suburban (255K+ miles, semi-retired mule) 21' SeaRay Seville (summer escape pod)

Not a bit of problem with the 440's. The Mopar B Motors of that period were absolute top quality IMHO. ANY motor home drivetrain will not last very long due to being completely loaded everywhere they go.

__________________
2001 SLK 320 six speed manual
2014 Porsche Cayenne six speed manual

Annoy a Liberal, Read the Constitution

I never saw a 318 in a Class B motor home. The ones that were not new at the time I was around them, had 413's. The 360 became quite popular in the Class A's that were popular later. I'm not saying there was never a 318 in a motor home. I am only saying that I never saw one and we had a constant stream of them through the shop.

__________________
2001 SLK 320 six speed manual
2014 Porsche Cayenne six speed manual

Annoy a Liberal, Read the Constitution

Travco started making motorhomes in the early 60's. Almost all were class A's. Most of the early ones had 318's. I'm pretty sure it was the late 60's before 413's or 440's became standard.

__________________
1977 300d 70k--sold 08
1985 300TD 185k+
1984 307d 126k--sold 8/03
1985 409d 65k--sold 06
1984 300SD 315k--daughter's car
1979 300SD 122k--sold 2/11
1999 Fuso FG Expedition Camper
1993 GMC Sierra 6.5 TD 4x4
1982 Bluebird Wanderlodge CAT 3208--Sold 2/13

Like I said I never saw one with an A Motor. As with any dealer, Dodge Trucks was actually a factory owned shop, but operated very much like a dealer, we typically only saw the vehicles new enough to be under warranty, so the 318's had probably lost favor before that time.

I may not be using correct terminology. I thought that a Class A was the ones based on a Van chassis. That may very well have been a term denoting chassis capacity though.

__________________
2001 SLK 320 six speed manual
2014 Porsche Cayenne six speed manual

Annoy a Liberal, Read the Constitution

Class A is a motorhome which starts with just the chassis and drivetrain. Class B is a converted van. Class C is a motorhome which begins with a van or pickup cab on a chassis and typically has a bed portion of the motorhome extending above the cab.

__________________
1977 300d 70k--sold 08
1985 300TD 185k+
1984 307d 126k--sold 8/03
1985 409d 65k--sold 06
1984 300SD 315k--daughter's car
1979 300SD 122k--sold 2/11
1999 Fuso FG Expedition Camper
1993 GMC Sierra 6.5 TD 4x4
1982 Bluebird Wanderlodge CAT 3208--Sold 2/13

Thanks for the education Kerry. Learn something new everyday around here.

What I was calling a Class A, was actually a Class C. Those are the only ones in which I ever saw A motors.

__________________
2001 SLK 320 six speed manual
2014 Porsche Cayenne six speed manual

Annoy a Liberal, Read the Constitution

Some history: Curbside Classic: Travco Motorhome – The Granddaddy Of The Motorhome Name And Genre

__________________
1977 300d 70k--sold 08
1985 300TD 185k+
1984 307d 126k--sold 8/03
1985 409d 65k--sold 06
1984 300SD 315k--daughter's car
1979 300SD 122k--sold 2/11
1999 Fuso FG Expedition Camper
1993 GMC Sierra 6.5 TD 4x4
1982 Bluebird Wanderlodge CAT 3208--Sold 2/13

Here's a blog for a very ambitious resto-modding of a '72 Travco that I had been following for awhile but has gone dormant. Pretty neat to see the "skeleton" once everything is stripped away.

__________________

1980 300TD-China Blue/Blue MBTex-2nd Owner, 107K (Alt Blau) OBK #15
'06 Chevy Tahoe Z71 (for the wife & 4 kids, current mule) '03 Honda Odyssey (son #1's ride, reluctantly) '99 GMC Suburban (255K+ miles, semi-retired mule) 21' SeaRay Seville (summer escape pod)

X2, a Cummins in one of those would be perfect!

I know of at least two people who put a Cummins 6BT in a Travco. The process was documented on the web. Not very difficult.

__________________
1977 300d 70k--sold 08
1985 300TD 185k+
1984 307d 126k--sold 8/03
1985 409d 65k--sold 06
1984 300SD 315k--daughter's car
1979 300SD 122k--sold 2/11
1999 Fuso FG Expedition Camper
1993 GMC Sierra 6.5 TD 4x4
1982 Bluebird Wanderlodge CAT 3208--Sold 2/13

Was it a 318 polysphere ? Cool engine a lot heavier than the thin wall A.