Thor Forums

[Chance]

An interesting thing to know about James and Stephanie of The Fit RV, who conducted that sound-level test, is that they removed the Onan generator from their Travato and replaced it with lithium batteries and an under-hood second dedicated high-capacity alternator (probably 280 Amps).

More recently they purchased a Winnebago Ekko compact Class C and opted to delete the Onan 2800 inverter generator and add an additional high-capacity lithium battery (I think 315 Ah or 4 kWh if I recall correctly). That gives the Ekko 630 Amp-hours or 8 kWh of battery capacity, but James mentioned in one video that he plans to add even more.

Apparently the 2800i isn’t quiet enough for them, or they don’t run their air conditioner for extended periods. As discussed in other threads, with present technology, A/C usage is the main reason for needing a generator. He also mentioned they drive a lot during the day, which charges the batteries.

While I like the idea of having a small 2800 inverter generator to power A/C for long periods, I’d have a very hard time justifying replacement of a brand new 4000 Watt generator just to save a little gas or make it 8~9 decibels quieter. Granted, that’s a lot quieter, but not enough for me to spend the money. It’d be different if motorhome came that way from Thor at no extra cost.