00buck-FRF
Senior Member
- Joined
- Jul 5, 2012
- Posts
- 290
Just returned from a three week trip to Arizona and New Mexico. Trip from hell, but that's another story. Here's my assessment of the 2021 Leprechaun 260DS after 5053 miles of travel and 20 nights spent in it.
Outside storage is excellent. There is plenty of room for everything. The small compartment in the rear holds 2 folding chairs and 3 folding tables. The small compartment in the back of the passenger side holds a double GasOne stove and cans of butane.
The large compartment at the back of the driver's side holds almost anything you could want to carry. I added a piece of ¾ plywood to the wall adjacent to the water tank. Putting that in made me nervous about piercing the tank, but now I don't worry about adding hangers to the wall.
Unlike every motorhome and trailer I have previously owned, I have empty storage compartments. We'll see how long that lasts.
The bumper is heavy duty and provides storage of 2 10 ft sections of sewer hose. It's nice not having to deal with keeping those in a compartment.
Inside storage is plentiful, but somewhat inconvenient. This coach has 7ft ceilings and that makes the cabinets rather high. OK for me at 6'1” but not for the spouse at 5'6”. The cabinets are also open through the entire length and require rods to keep items reasonably separated. I'll probably add some plywood dividers between the sections. Magnets that hold the doors closed are really strong. I put two layers of electrical tape over them and they still held without issue. The longer cabinets had two sets of magnets. I removed one of them and double taped the remaining one. Worked just fine.
We took way too many clothes expecting cool and hot weather. The closet held most of the stuff, but was packed pretty tight. My lexington 235s actually had better closets, but the closet on the Leprechaun is more than adequate if you don't go nuts like we did.
The bed is excellent with the addition of a memory foam topper. We loved our Lexington, but sleeping on the couch and table just became too painful for our old bodies. A real bed was the primary driver leading to a different RV. My concerns about a split bed turned out to be worry about nothing. We can't feel the fold and the mattress provides a firm foundation (too firm by itself) for the topper. Making the bed is a bid of a chore, but worth it for a decent night's sleep.
The living area is spacious but the table is way too small. There is plenty of space for two people in this coach. Any more would start feeling crowded, though a couple of smaller kids could be doable. The coach has a J-lounge which ended up being primarily for storage of junk my wife bought. It would be really inconvenient for anyone who had to sit on the inside of the table. The slide out seating stored in the lounge was strong enough to hold my 230 lbs, but we mostly used a 15 X 30 folding ottoman that did triple duty as a seat, a footrest, and storage for gallons of water.
I bought a pine stair tread, a piano hinge and sliding supports to add an extension to the table. It works great for two people but precludes anyone from sitting on the inside section of the J-lounge.
The coach had an aftermarket double recliner added by the previous owner. It left my wife's feet dangling four inches off the floor. It also encroached 5 inches into the the walking space, making it really tight when the slide was closed. I replaced it with a 58” couch from Amazon so I can't attest to the comfort of the original furniture.
The Kitchen area is tighter than my Lexington 235s. There is almost no counter space in the kitchen area. It has a flip-out extension that significantly squeezes the walkway to the bath. We didn't use it much. Moreover the flip-out is substantially lower than the counter. I added a ¾ pine board to the underside to make it even. We also bought an 18 x 20 cutting board to set atop the stove. Not great but it worked.
The microwave is dangerously high for anyone shorter than 6 feet. It also cannot be accessed when the slide is closed.
10 cu ft Norcold DC fridge worked very well. The door sags if it's loaded to heavily – so we discovered. Not a deal breaker but it won't latch properly if overloaded. A swinging fridge door as you're driving down the road is no fun. Finally, I was concerned about it draining the lead acid batteries (65 amp hrs usable power) but the Chevy's alternator kept it running through 10-11 hour travel days.
Light and Ventilation is excellent. If Coachmen had cut one more hole in the roof, I think it might have collapsed. Perhaps not, but there are two power vents, two regular vents in the living/kitchen, area, and the usually cheap noisy bathroom fan vent (I replaced the fan with a larger more effective one.) Turn on the power vents in the bedroom and bathroom, open the vents in the living area and the air changes very quickly.
There is plenty of light in the living area. Overhead lights, cabinet lights, large side windows, and a large window in the cab overhang. The bedroom is a bit dark with the slide closed. The bathroom is well illuminated with two led lights, a skylight and a vent. Our only issue was a dark stairwell. Solved with a couple of battery operated motion sensor lights.
The bathroom is abominable. It's very small. To sit comfortably on the John you need to open the door. The sink cabinet is really low and the sink itself is suitable for only hand washing. The shower is adequate but not roomy as you might expect. Medicine cabinet is spacious, no complaints there. It has a large slide out counter. That's nice but it prevents access to the toilet. Every RV requires compromise. This is one we made. I've torn the sink out to replace it with a larger sink, taller cabinet, and plan to angle the cabinet for more leg room. Working on that now.
The Chevy chassis was admirable if also hungry. As far suspension goes, everything is stock. Handling was no issue. No sway, no big pushes from 18 wheelers, and no complaints. Relatively easy driving. Gas mileage was a shock after getting a little better than 11 mpg with the Lexington. First leg of trip from western New York to Indiana was 6.7 mpg (very windy). Ouch! Overall average was between 8 and 8.5, running usually around 75 mph. Best was 10, mostly across northern New Mexico.
One huge disadvantage is leveling. The front end sits 3+ inches lower than the back end on level ground. The Level Mate Pro read 6-9 inches low in nearly every “premium” site I rented. Two sets of Lynx levelers is not enough. There are leveling jacks in my future but first have to buy a dinghy set-up for local trips and camping. Paid 75k cash for this, so wife is not crazy about another ten. Jacks will wait until next year (thinking about Big Foot).
While researching this coach, I didn't find a lot of info. Hence, I've added my two cents to help anyone considering one. The model has been around for quite a while. I can see why. We deem it a “keeper” for what will probably be our last RV.
Outside storage is excellent. There is plenty of room for everything. The small compartment in the rear holds 2 folding chairs and 3 folding tables. The small compartment in the back of the passenger side holds a double GasOne stove and cans of butane.
The large compartment at the back of the driver's side holds almost anything you could want to carry. I added a piece of ¾ plywood to the wall adjacent to the water tank. Putting that in made me nervous about piercing the tank, but now I don't worry about adding hangers to the wall.
Unlike every motorhome and trailer I have previously owned, I have empty storage compartments. We'll see how long that lasts.
The bumper is heavy duty and provides storage of 2 10 ft sections of sewer hose. It's nice not having to deal with keeping those in a compartment.
Inside storage is plentiful, but somewhat inconvenient. This coach has 7ft ceilings and that makes the cabinets rather high. OK for me at 6'1” but not for the spouse at 5'6”. The cabinets are also open through the entire length and require rods to keep items reasonably separated. I'll probably add some plywood dividers between the sections. Magnets that hold the doors closed are really strong. I put two layers of electrical tape over them and they still held without issue. The longer cabinets had two sets of magnets. I removed one of them and double taped the remaining one. Worked just fine.
We took way too many clothes expecting cool and hot weather. The closet held most of the stuff, but was packed pretty tight. My lexington 235s actually had better closets, but the closet on the Leprechaun is more than adequate if you don't go nuts like we did.
The bed is excellent with the addition of a memory foam topper. We loved our Lexington, but sleeping on the couch and table just became too painful for our old bodies. A real bed was the primary driver leading to a different RV. My concerns about a split bed turned out to be worry about nothing. We can't feel the fold and the mattress provides a firm foundation (too firm by itself) for the topper. Making the bed is a bid of a chore, but worth it for a decent night's sleep.
The living area is spacious but the table is way too small. There is plenty of space for two people in this coach. Any more would start feeling crowded, though a couple of smaller kids could be doable. The coach has a J-lounge which ended up being primarily for storage of junk my wife bought. It would be really inconvenient for anyone who had to sit on the inside of the table. The slide out seating stored in the lounge was strong enough to hold my 230 lbs, but we mostly used a 15 X 30 folding ottoman that did triple duty as a seat, a footrest, and storage for gallons of water.
I bought a pine stair tread, a piano hinge and sliding supports to add an extension to the table. It works great for two people but precludes anyone from sitting on the inside section of the J-lounge.
The coach had an aftermarket double recliner added by the previous owner. It left my wife's feet dangling four inches off the floor. It also encroached 5 inches into the the walking space, making it really tight when the slide was closed. I replaced it with a 58” couch from Amazon so I can't attest to the comfort of the original furniture.
The Kitchen area is tighter than my Lexington 235s. There is almost no counter space in the kitchen area. It has a flip-out extension that significantly squeezes the walkway to the bath. We didn't use it much. Moreover the flip-out is substantially lower than the counter. I added a ¾ pine board to the underside to make it even. We also bought an 18 x 20 cutting board to set atop the stove. Not great but it worked.
The microwave is dangerously high for anyone shorter than 6 feet. It also cannot be accessed when the slide is closed.
10 cu ft Norcold DC fridge worked very well. The door sags if it's loaded to heavily – so we discovered. Not a deal breaker but it won't latch properly if overloaded. A swinging fridge door as you're driving down the road is no fun. Finally, I was concerned about it draining the lead acid batteries (65 amp hrs usable power) but the Chevy's alternator kept it running through 10-11 hour travel days.
Light and Ventilation is excellent. If Coachmen had cut one more hole in the roof, I think it might have collapsed. Perhaps not, but there are two power vents, two regular vents in the living/kitchen, area, and the usually cheap noisy bathroom fan vent (I replaced the fan with a larger more effective one.) Turn on the power vents in the bedroom and bathroom, open the vents in the living area and the air changes very quickly.
There is plenty of light in the living area. Overhead lights, cabinet lights, large side windows, and a large window in the cab overhang. The bedroom is a bit dark with the slide closed. The bathroom is well illuminated with two led lights, a skylight and a vent. Our only issue was a dark stairwell. Solved with a couple of battery operated motion sensor lights.
The bathroom is abominable. It's very small. To sit comfortably on the John you need to open the door. The sink cabinet is really low and the sink itself is suitable for only hand washing. The shower is adequate but not roomy as you might expect. Medicine cabinet is spacious, no complaints there. It has a large slide out counter. That's nice but it prevents access to the toilet. Every RV requires compromise. This is one we made. I've torn the sink out to replace it with a larger sink, taller cabinet, and plan to angle the cabinet for more leg room. Working on that now.
The Chevy chassis was admirable if also hungry. As far suspension goes, everything is stock. Handling was no issue. No sway, no big pushes from 18 wheelers, and no complaints. Relatively easy driving. Gas mileage was a shock after getting a little better than 11 mpg with the Lexington. First leg of trip from western New York to Indiana was 6.7 mpg (very windy). Ouch! Overall average was between 8 and 8.5, running usually around 75 mph. Best was 10, mostly across northern New Mexico.
One huge disadvantage is leveling. The front end sits 3+ inches lower than the back end on level ground. The Level Mate Pro read 6-9 inches low in nearly every “premium” site I rented. Two sets of Lynx levelers is not enough. There are leveling jacks in my future but first have to buy a dinghy set-up for local trips and camping. Paid 75k cash for this, so wife is not crazy about another ten. Jacks will wait until next year (thinking about Big Foot).
While researching this coach, I didn't find a lot of info. Hence, I've added my two cents to help anyone considering one. The model has been around for quite a while. I can see why. We deem it a “keeper” for what will probably be our last RV.
