The other night over dinner, my lovely bride and I were discussing a potential future conundrum. If fate (and/or free will) allows us a life of unlimited leisure in retirement, we’d like to roam the country in a recreational vehicle of some sort. Sounds normal. Both of us, on the other hand, lean toward a “homebody” temperament, and there’s no way I’ll be separated from my ridiculous fleet of old cars for long periods of time. Of course, you’re probably already shouting at me that this is no conundrum at all; you can just rent an RV, and that’s the conclusion we mutually arrived at. However, my predilection toward the nostalgic and cheesy would certainly prefer a ’70s Winnebago, and this one would be theoretically perfect. Our reliable Barn Finder T.J. located it on Marketplace in Christine, North Dakota, for an obscenely reasonable $8,000. It’s a good thing we’re not quite ready to take that trip, but maybe you are.
How many ’70s Winnebagos are restored? From what I’ve read as a casual fan over the years, they weren’t really built to be shuttling families and retirees around the country 55 years into the future. Furthermore, most of them have been moldering outside with a leaky roof since the Reagan administration, rendering the shag carpeting and fake wood paneling so teeming with mold that anybody with a hint of allergies would be dead by the time they hit the county line. Those problems are solved if you buy this D-22 (a 22-footer, hence the name). The interior has been restored (although I don’t know if I’m a fan of the diamond paneling), including a new sink, toilet, refrigerator, water heater, and air conditioning. The black, gray, and fresh water tanks are also new.
Surprisingly, the biggest Winnebagos for 1970 used a Dodge chassis with the small-block 318. It wasn’t too many more years before big-block 413s and 440s made their way under the cab, but the reliable LA-motor did its job in what I can only assume to be a slow and steady way. I’m a little curious what the fuel mileage would be with that little 318 working hard under there. Regardless, the automatic transmission was standard, and the 318 has been rebuilt, so you should be able to tour America indefinitely if you’re not a homebody like me.
The seller hasn’t used the Winnebago since its restoration, and says that he doesn’t “have the time to use” it or “the space to keep storing it.” His loss can be your gain, because it’s nearly impossible to buy a clean RV with rebuilt and replaced components this inexpensively. The best part is that it still looks like a ’70s Winnebago, which in my opinion is the “rightest” looking recreational vehicle devised by humans. Winnebago has uploaded its classic brochures, so if you want to shop the D-22 and its linemates further, click here. Let us know if you buy this D-22 and where you plan to go on your next vacation.
From a time when “Winnebago” was THE name in motor homes. “Gonna take the Winnebago on a cross-country” meant you were taking a motor home. There were few other brands at the time. This unit looks good from what I can see, but i’d probably pull the tried and trusty but slow 318 and put a massaged 360 in its place.
Pull the 318 and install a Cummins, but the problem is RV spots won’t let you in based on the age alone, when you reserve online or other method you have to put down the year and some places will refuse you based on the year alone
Have a co-worker who had been worried about the age thing with his and he’s found that if you email/text wherever you’re wanting to stay and send them a photo showing you aren’t operating one that’s falling apart, it’s condition more than anything else. and they’re generally happy to accommodate you.
I can’t let my wife see this posting or we will own it. In 1970 we lived close to the Winnebago plant in Forest City, Iowa. Winnebago became synonymous with RVs like Kleenex is to facial tissue. The company went public at about this time and numerous locals became overnight millionaires. (The very fact that I know this dates me)
I bought a 70s Mini Winnie 18 or 19′ that had an original 440.It would climb any hill, which it did.
My father had one this size with a 413 with the low gears it had it definitely liked gas of course gas was 32 cents a gallon then so it wasn’t such a big deal. The problem with these RVs was because they sat around so much we had problem’s with the brakes between the parts rusting and the seals rotting there’s nothing like stepping on the brakes and having them go to the floor when your coming up on a sharp bend. You’d be surprised how far they can lean and not roll over.
Now this,,,was my parents first motorhome, I believe before they had Native American names, that are probably offensive to those great people, they were called out by their length. While it’s fun to actually see one again, let me be perfectly clear, we’ve come a loooooooooooong ways in motorhomes. People disagree with me, but these are essentially a plywood and aluminum box mounted on a Dodge light duty straight truck chassis, and boy howdy, it rides like one. Gas too. We as kids liked it for the many gas stops we had to make. I remember one gusty wind trip, the old man had his foot to the floor struggling with the steering wheel. The 318 was not the best choice, BUT,,,once you got there, provided you survived the harrowing trip, they were a nice camper, as such. Going anywhere once “settled” was always a pain too, as the motorhome is a clumsy ride around town. Watch out for that Dairy Queen overhang. Many pull a vehicle for such trips, but worsens the already poor gas mileage.
In conclusion,,,we’ve come a loooooooooong ways in motorhomes,,,
This would be great for cross country trips! You could park it under a bridge anywhere and folks will think you’re just another homeless family. You just need a few rusty bikes tied on somewhere and an old Webber grill to set out at night.
”Where did all the Winebagos go, long time ago…”
Aren’t the homeless buying up all of these right before they are set to go to the junkyard?
Not unless they’re free.
The homeless have a tendancy to destroy these things, and weathering in storage ruins them as well.
My folks had one way back when.
Based on the Chevy duce and a half.
292 inline 6, don’t remember if it was an automatic.
We would do camping trips in the Mojave with his buddies from the Sheriffs Dept.
Dirt roads shook it to pieces.
I bought it.
Going to use it as a travel tattoo studio/camper.
I will probably put a larger motor in it eventually.
It’s clean, well taken care of and everything works