We made a major RV DOWNSIZE! No more just throwing the idea around and researching multiple options. It was scary making the final decision to say goodbye to Vinny and go this small, but we were ready and it felt good. “PatricksMovinOn” is moving into a new phase of living and exploring on the road. We are excited and once again embracing change.
We took a leap of faith in 2018, when we sold our Washington home and went full-time for three years in Vinny. We never regretted that decision! Covid-19 prompted a change for us in 2021. Our full-time traveling became 6-7 months of the year vs all 12 months. We no longer had to house everything we owned within Vinny and our Jeep. That is what paved the way for this downsizing option. Our travels over the last 7 years with Vinny have been incredible. Vinny had the perfect floor plan for us and he treated us very well! Quality and comfort were priorities then, and continued to be as we looked for the right RV for us as our downsizing choice.
Dealing with change is about mindset. An open mindset is imperative for a nomadic lifestyle and how it may evolve! There are pros and cons to every choice.
So how did we go from such a nice, roomy Class A with a full wall side and two opposing wall slides, a bath and a half, and a washer and dryer, all the way down to a CLASS B VAN???
We had “window-shopped” online and a little in person over the last couple years. When visiting a McClains RV dealership in Dallas, I was frustrated with the lack of comfort and quality in two of our main contenders. The salesman told me if I wanted comfort to sit in the Grech. I sat in the lounge model. This was the comfort I wanted! But it is so small.
Ironically, our friends, Michelle and Brian live, work and travel full-time throughout the country in a Grech class B. We could not see ourselves going that small. However, when we revisited the Grech Tour model about a week later, we found it roomier inside than we expected. Shockingly, we both believed this could be a viable option for us as our primary home traveling for 6-7 months every year. The Grech Strada Ion-Tour class B motorhome will facilitate a more simplified and nimble travel style that we were looking for. The pros of the Grech definitely outweighed the cons for us. Grech RV has the best rated customer service of all RVs! Company customer service is an important factor when purchasing any rv. We continued diligent research, and I joined the Grech RV Facebook page.
On October 4, we agreed to a deal with La Mesa RV in Phoenix, AZ through Barry Nellums. I was in contact with Barry N over several months. NEVER did I feel any pressure from him to hurry up and make a deal. He respected our travel calendar. We left at sunrise on October 9, and drove Vinny to Phoenix for the transaction.
The sales agreement remained contingent on our test drive and inspection of the vehicle. It was bittersweet saying goodbye to Vinny, but we are “Patricks MovinOn”, and we are very excited to move into new and different adventures with Mini-V!
Super comfy couch and ottomans that come together with a push of buttons to make a bed 66″ x 76″ (not including the headrests). This area was perfect for us. I was happy to not feel claustrophobic. The windows were great. This would be our main “living area”. The laguna table swivels around to accommodate various uses from the different seats. We love all the windows. We can bring the shades up and down individually or all at once. I love all the natural light from the large windows.
Barry Nellums, our salesman, was very patient with Barry and me throughout the process, but especially today as we went through the Grech. He has a poster in his office space that is the philosophy he practices.
“Rule #1 If we don’t take care of the customer, someone else will.” So true!
(My) Barry made reservations for us at the Encore Paradise RV Resort about 20 miles away from the LaMesa dealership. We spent two nights there so we could try everything out. I fixed dinner in Mini-V. The kitchen space is doable! I even took a shower in the wet bath. A lot of people freak out about a wet bath. I had plenty of room, and it was fine! It’s not like the water is spraying all around like a loose garden hose. The bathroom has a window, air vent and 3 lights. (2 of them are dimmable!)
Travel-living in this Grech is going to work well. We are very happy with our decision to purchase the Grech Strata-Ion-Tour, and look forward to taking a few short getaways prior to heading out on our next 6-month travel excursion in 2025.
Parking was a breeze! And, oh my — the amount of space all around Mini-V on our site was incredible!!
Roof view – 300 watts of Solar is the standard install on the roof for the Ion models, which along with a designated alternator, will charge our 1260 ah battery. We have NO propane, and NO generator!
THEN: Vinny – Heading out as full time RVers June 2018.
NOW: Mini-V 2024 – Back in Yuma & Ready for New Adventures!
Putting Mini-V into our storage spot. We’ll be taking off next week for a weekend trip to Bullhead City for pickleball with Jim Richardson.
I wanted to use blue for accent colors inside. I found the perfect rugs at Walmart!
Thank you, Brian and Michelle for all your LivinRVision YouTube videos specific to the Grech, but especially for your feedback to all my texts over these last 5-6 months! Thank you, Jerry & Belinda for all your words of encouragement! 🙂
Can’t wait for the tour and discussion time. Happy for you both and now time to go out and use that puppy! As always we thoroughly enjoy your posts and understand how much time they can take doing. Jerry & Belinda
Thank you, Jerry & Belinda! Happy to give you a tour! We just had Mini-V at the house most of yesterday. We will bring it over again this next week since we are going away for the weekend in it. Of course we can always go over to its storage spot – it’s so far. LOL
Love your blog Nancy! Always interesting and educational!
Thank you. 🙂
Congratulations! It looks very nice.
Enjoy your new adventures
Amazing! I can’t imagine downsizing to that degree! Good for you! Glad you are making your dreams come true!
LOL. We couldn’t either. But once we did the pros and cons and opened our mind to it, we realized it was the right one. You’ll have to come over and see it inside. Certainly no bath tub. LOL