Thinking of upgrading to Mini Lite 2503S

[Gottaluvlife]

We are orig owners of a Jayco Kiwi 23B and after 13 years its time to upgrade! Looking at 2016 or 2017 Mini Lite 2503S model..love the murphy bed, slide out kitchen, lots of storage, big bathroom with entry door...but still not sure about maybe 2502KS or 2504S? or smaller 2304KS?
Pro's Con's for each? What vehicle do you use to tow? Thoughts please.

[Jay2504]

We are the proud owners of a 2016 2504s. Tow it with a 2wd 2014 Silverodo double cab with a 262 cubic inch v6 and 3.23 gears. Love it so far. I like the fact that you have a straight shot at the tv. The twin bunks make perfect grandkid beds or storage when not in use. Wish the couch had a little more support but fixing that is on my to do list. Another thing I really like is the total of 6 outside storage doors. Sorry this is my first RV so I don't have anything to compaire it to. Jay

[fella10]

Originally Posted by Gottaluvlife

We are orig owners of a Jayco Kiwi 23B and after 13 years its time to upgrade! Looking at 2016 or 2017 Mini Lite 2503S model..love the murphy bed, slide out kitchen, lots of storage, big bathroom with entry door...but still not sure about maybe 2502KS or 2504S? or smaller 2304KS?
Pro's Con's for each? What vehicle do you use to tow? Thoughts please.

we love our 2015 Micro Lite 25KS, the twin of the Mini Lite 2503S, for the same reasons you mentioned,... and consider it perfect as a couples trailer,..... a world of storage and an amazing amount of mods that we've done to make it comfortable for us,.... DW finally has enough counter space for her cooking(all elect. so I removed the propane tanks), the back door is much more practical than I thought it would be, and the large bath room is great,..... I don't think you'll be disappointed if you choose the 2503S or the 25KS,.... we tow with a 2015 F150,...... happy trailering..........

[Gottaluvlife]

Thanks so much..just curious what mods you made? Why only electric? No propane?

[rockfordroo]

We looked at the 2304KS but went with the 2503S. The 2304KS seemed to have less outside storage and I didn't like the utility connections at the rear instead of the street side. Once the DW saw the size of the bathroom in the 2503S, she was hooked. The bathroom sink seems like it's in a closet in the 2304KS, but you've actually got counterspace in the 2503S.

Here are the mods I've done. (I think fella10 has done several of these, plus a few others that I haven't.)

1. Inside switch/pilot light for hot water heater electric element

2. Honeywell RHB111B digital thermostat

3. Fencepost sewer hose holder

4. PVC pipe WDH spring bar holder

5. BAL Hide-a-Spare for spare tire

6. 2” receiver/beefed up frame for bike rack

7. 4 pin connector for bike rack lights

8. Routed fresh water tank drain to side of trailer

9. 110VAC outlet on street side sofa table

10. New locks all keyed together (except outside shower)

11. Dura Single Handle faucet in shower

12. Replaced on-board water filter with coupler and outside filter

13. Accur-Rite fridge/freezer temperature monitor

14. Computer fans on fridge condenser coils

[fella10]

Originally Posted by Gottaluvlife

Thanks so much..just curious what mods you made? Why only electric? No propane?

DW is from China and prefers to cook w/elect,... removing the propane tanks gave a perfect place to carry our bikes,..... rockfordroo's list shows there is no end to what you can do to this model,... pics below show a few,...

1) DW counter top, there's more stuff there now
2) capped table to enlarge table top area
3) removed plastic drawer under sofa to make more storage
4) made two new drawers in unused area below kitchen cabinet
5) bike rack in front of tt

[fella10]

oh, just in case you don't know this, if you click on any photo in the forums it will enlarge and you can see it better

[bikendan]

Originally Posted by fella10

DW is from China and prefers to cook w/elect,... removing the propane tanks gave a perfect place to carry our bikes,..... rockfordroo's list shows there is no end to what you can do to this model,... pics below show a few,...

1) DW counter top, there's more stuff there now
2) capped table to enlarge table top area
3) removed plastic drawer under sofa to make more storage
4) made two new drawers in unused area below kitchen cabinet
5) bike rack in front of tt

How do you heat the trailer without propane?
Electric heaters?

I guess you don't plan on ever dry camping or boondocking.

[fella10]

Originally Posted by bikendan

How do you heat the trailer without propane?
Electric heaters?

I guess you don't plan on ever dry camping or boondocking.

two small ceramic heaters, one is enough for trailer comfort, but the second one heats the bathroom for DW when showering,.....

ever heard of generators?? .....they do an amazing job of providing elect. in remote areas where no company provided elect. is available and they are just right for campers who don't want to carry two 30# propane tanks around with them 24/7.

[craigster_mi]

Originally Posted by Gottaluvlife

We are orig owners of a Jayco Kiwi 23B and after 13 years its time to upgrade! Looking at 2016 or 2017 Mini Lite 2503S model..love the murphy bed, slide out kitchen, lots of storage, big bathroom with entry door...but still not sure about maybe 2502KS or 2504S? or smaller 2304KS?
Pro's Con's for each? What vehicle do you use to tow? Thoughts please.

happy owner of 2504S. lots of storage for the size. can sleep 6 if needed. the latest model 2509S which has a similar front to ours but the back has larger bunks on opposite side with an outdoor kitchen. few of my mods:
1. mounted power management in storage bay
2. slide out drawers in pantry
3. added fireplace
4. made magazine rack

have fun deciding,

craig

[bikendan]

Originally Posted by fella10

ever heard of generators?? .....they do an amazing job of providing elect. in remote areas where no company provided elect. is available and they are just right for campers who don't want to carry two 30# propane tanks around with them 24/7.

Yes I've heard of generators. I have two of them.
But I use them sparingly so I don't disturb neighbors.
Plus campgrounds have limited hours for generator usage and NONE allow running them overnight.

[fella10]

Originally Posted by bikendan

Yes I've heard of generators. I have two of them.
But I use them sparingly so I don't disturb neighbors.
Plus campgrounds have limited hours for generator usage and NONE allow running them overnight.

I don't understand why you are so concerned that we don't use or carry propane? If we needed it or wanted it, we would,..... but we don't, so we don't!........ Our propane use or non-use is not the subject of this thread,....... this horse is dead, so we can stop kicking it now..........

[OscarsMom2]

In July 2016 we downsized to a Rockwood MiniLite 2503S. Just a year later we traded it in on a Wildcat Maxx 26BHS.

I really liked the idea of the Murphy bed, but didn't realize that our cats could get behind it when up and also down by the headboard when it was down. This took a lot of modification on my part to cat-proof that area.

The pass-through storage is also under the couch. The first trip we took, I was connecting the water, electric, and sewer outside and left the cargo door open. The next thing we knew our little short-legged munchkin was outside under the TT.

I liked the large rear bath with the outside door. It was very handy when guests wanted to use the bathroom. They didn't have to go through the entire coach. It also gave us access to the bathroom when traveling on the road. No need to extend the slide-out. It also had lots of storage for towels and a small wardrobe closet where my granddaughter kept her clothes. The cupboard under the sink had another door to the outside. There was just a little half wall between this cupboard and the water heater. Again, cats got into cupboard and jumped over the half wall and were by the water heater. Also, the cupboard under the wardrobe allowed one of the cats access to the water heater space, again.

Having our granddaughter with us meant making the dinette into a bed every night for her. She was a big help, but it was still a pain. (Our new trailer has bunk beds.) Speaking of the dinette table, it folded down and had to be in that position when traveling down the road.

My husband sometimes takes a nap during the day. The bed was not available unless we brought it down. Tried using the jack-knife sofa one day and it just didn't work. Just taking it up and down everyday got old. Our new trailer has residential size queen bed that is in its own bedroom.

I was expecting the slide out to be as big as we had in our old 5th wheel. If I recall correctly, the slide only goes out 22 inches. The slide on our Wildcat Maxx extends 36 inches. I just remembered that the last day of camping in the MiniLite, our little munchkin got behind the slide-out after I'd pulled it in. It was a real chore trying to entice him to come out. The Wildcat Maxx has a couch and the dinette in the slide so we won't have that problem, again.

I liked the fairly large wardrobe/pantry combination with large drawer underneath. We kept our jackets in there and used the closets on each side of the bed for my and my husband's clothes.

If you are going up in size and don't have cats, a Rockwood MiniLite 2503s may work fine for you. It just wasn't for us.

[cap10gus]

We like ours for all the same reasons: roomy bathroom, second exterior door, storage, Murphy bed. Only con would be having to put the bed up and down, for the benefit of the extra room. Towing with F150 with a tow package and WD hitch. Toes well, stops well.

[rockfordroo]

I don't believe the OP is NOT looking to host more than 2 people, so I'm not sure why folks hosting more than 2 feel the need to comment. Don't see how it helps the OP.

Oh, well.

[Ridenfun]

Originally Posted by fella10

DW is from China and prefers to cook w/elect,... removing the propane tanks gave a perfect place to carry our bikes,..... rockfordroo's list shows there is no end to what you can do to this model,... pics below show a few,...

1) DW counter top, there's more stuff there now
2) capped table to enlarge table top area
3) removed plastic drawer under sofa to make more storage
4) made two new drawers in unused area below kitchen cabinet
5) bike rack in front of tt

Fella10, nice mods overall. Have thought about this as well. Have a couple of questions:
1. With the counter cover expanded with the red/white cover, where is the cooking surface now. Does it have to removed or what are you cooking on for pots, frypans etc.

2. Does this mean the oven is also changed out to electric. How does that work with only 120 volt supply (ie I' guessing it's a special oven model, can you clarify/expand on what you did there.
I ask this as I've considered changing but was going to delete the oven and get a good sized convection microwave to be able to handle some of the typical oven jobs. Was this in fact you approach to electric only?
Thks in advance

[fella10]

Originally Posted by Ridenfun

Fella10, nice mods overall. Have thought about this as well. Have a couple of questions:
1. With the counter cover expanded with the red/white cover, where is the cooking surface now. Does it have to removed or what are you cooking on for pots, frypans etc.

2. Does this mean the oven is also changed out to electric. How does that work with only 120 volt supply (ie I' guessing it's a special oven model, can you clarify/expand on what you did there.
I ask this as I've considered changing but was going to delete the oven and get a good sized convection microwave to be able to handle some of the typical oven jobs. Was this in fact you approach to electric only?
Thks in advance

I did not change the stove or oven in any way,..... everything is still in place and can be easily converted back to propane if ever wanted,......I meant, all the gadgets she cooks with are elect., ....2 rice cookers, small crock pot, large crock pot, hot plate, grill, Keurig Mini, and a couple of elect. pots just for boiling water,.....

our cook top had a hinged glass cover,...... when I removed it, I still didn't have a flat surface, there was a small raised ridge from the cook top that was still higher than the surrounding counter top,... I cut a 1/2" plywood piece to fit and cover that whole area, and added a 1/2" high border underneath to raise it above that ridge to have a flat surface,..... wrapped it with the red & white and added the front piece so I could secure it in place,.... in short, I turned the whole area into just a counter top so she could use all the elect. gadgets she wanted to,...

the oven,.... she uses it as a dish cabinet, same thing at home, plus at home the dish washer is also a dish cabinet,... shes short and finds those are more convenient places to hold the dishes that she uses the most,.... for any oven cooking in the tt we use the Presto Pizzazz Rotating Oven, its small, easy to store and does a great job on pizza, fries, cheese sandwiches and everything else we've used it for, and its elect...... plus, I can take it outside to our little table under the awning to keep the extra heat out of the trailer,.....

https://www.amazon.com/Presto-03430-...+rotating+oven

[fella10]

I forgot to add, ... no, we don't remove or store any of that stuff for travel,.... we clip on the fence and are ready to do,..... we use a similar fence around the table for the same purpose,....... we leave our laptops and everything else just where it is, don't remove anything,.... the fence is cut from a 5" vinyl post and is removed when we get to the cg,......