The Drifter - Specs and FAQ

About 41.5

 

Mine is similar. Not a huge deal but it would be nice to have it stay fully open when driving.

 

I just go back from a 3,500 mile road trip from CO down south. I now have a love hate relationship with the way the vent fan is installed.

The lid/cover was secured closed when we left but it didn't survive the Kansas winds during the first night of driving. I don't think the wind deflector is adequate in protecting the cover. I noticed it was blown open filling up with gas in the morning after driving all night. The lift arm was bent beyond roadside repair. I was able to re-purpose some mini d-rings I had used in the camper and had a bungee strap to hold the cover down. I was able to fashion an nice block of mahogany to use to prop the cover open (a stick would work). We camped in the Smoky Mountains and the fan was very nice to have. It ran all night, through pretty heavy rain, with no leaking.

Anyway, I appreciate the reverse mounting but a fan with some sort of travel lock should be used. I'll reach out to vagabond to see if there is anything they could do.

 

Nice meeting you at NWOR. It was nice being able to check it out in person instead of IG or YouTube lol! I will definitely pull the trigger one of these days when my bank account is ready lol! Wish I checked out @danneskjold Drifter more when I installed the Pelfreybilt front bumper on his old Taco at my house but I wasn't into the #wedgelife yet LOL!

 

Great time at NWOR this year! Thanks to everyone that came by!

 

This is the only reason why I want to opt out of the fan option, but I really want the fan.

Whats the resolution to this? I would be upset if it popped open while driving.

 

The fan problem isn't really a vagabond problem, or even a mounting backwards problem, though the reverse mounting probably plays a part. At NWOR, i talked to a good dozen people that all said the same thing, no matter how they mounted the fan. The door doesn't stay closed, rattles horribly (really annoying in sprinters), bent door arms, etc.

I haven't had any problems with mine yet, and have been in some pretty nasty winds, but that's probably just luck at this point. Deflector seems to be working fine. Soon to be adding solar in front of it for even more wind deflection.

 

I agree the problem isn't specific to vagabond. However, the reverse mounting certainly increases the likelihood of a catastrophic failure. I still fully support the orientation. I was able to prob the broken cover up and run the fan in the rain which is awesome. I think the solution is a different fan. Perhaps a maxxfan with dual lift arms would work better.

 

I'm wondering if one can tell VB to install the Maxxfan instead of the fans they currently install? I should be getting my Drifter at the end of the year so wondering if the Maxxfan is a better unit.

$297 MAXXAIR Maxxfan Plus High Powered 10-Speed RV Intake and Exhaust Fan - Manual or Remote Control Electric Opening, Easy Ceiling Controls, Rain Sensor with Automatic Lid Closure, Smoke (00-04500K)

https://www.amazon.com/Maxxair-0004...maxxfan+4500k&qid=1561499475&s=gateway&sr=8-1

Seems like a superior unit compared the the ones offered now.

 

I requested and have a Maxxair fan on my Drifter. I know that Phil is looking into making this an option since it has two arms and is lockable with a small knob (not sure where he’s at in the vetting process though). It’s only a specific model Maxxair that fits, not the one with remotes and whatnot. So far, I haven’t had any issues. If you’re in the queue for a Drifter, I’d recommend discussing that option with Phil. The only downside is that the Maxxair model that fits the Drifter does not have a reverse function.

 

I know mine popped up on me while driving, but it's because I was messing with the fan prior to my trip and didn't re-secure the knob to open/close the lid and it came off during driving. Haven't had a problem since.

 

We’re definitely working on the Maxxair fan and have installed a few of them. I personally wired in DPDT switches with crossover wiring, for each installed unit, to make them reversible. Very time consuming and we finally found the right switch combo.
It has dual arms and a locking lid. We may transition over to this fan and will offer it as a non- reversible option.
We’re hoping that Maxxair starts offering the reversible switch, or we can offer it with the switch as an option. It takes me 2-3 hours per fan currently, but I’m getting faster.

I personally haven’t had any issues with the Fantastic fan after approximately 20k miles on the road. But we’re always working on improvements.

 

It looks like the MaxxFan 4301K exhaust only fan and the MaxxFan Plus 4000K exhaust/intake both have the same footprint? I tried to download the pdf documents to see the differences why the 'Plus' model won't fit in the Drifter but I was getting dead links.

According the pictures seen the MaxxFan and MaxxFan plus have the same footprint. The MaxFan Deluxe is the one that has a different footprint.

http://www.maxxair.com/products/maxxfan/maxxfan.php

I do not see why the MaxxFan Plus exhaust/intake 4000K or 4500K models cannot be used in the Drifter?? Unless I'm missing something.

Exhaust only version:

$191 Maxxair 00-04301K White Roof Top MaxxFan with Mounting Tabs

https://www.amazon.com/Maxxair-00-04301K-White-MaxxFan-Mounting-x/dp/B00T36YP4E

Both Intake/Exhaust Version:

$204 Maxxair (00-04000K 12V Roof Top Fan/Vent

https://www.amazon.com/Maxxair-00-04000K-12V-Roof-Vent/dp/B0050EEO94

Remote Version:

$297 MAXXAIR Maxxfan Plus High Powered 10-Speed RV Intake and Exhaust Fan - Manual or Remote Control Electric Opening, Easy Ceiling Controls, Rain Sensor with Automatic Lid Closure, Smoke (00-04500K)

https://www.amazon.com/Maxxair-0004...E7CXV5SVB8D&psc=1&refRID=CR13KBNXFE7CXV5SVB8D

 

As far as I can tell, it looks like you'd be right.
The below parts list shows the main structural pieces as the same part across base and Plus models.
https://www.airxcel.com/docs/defaul...maxxfan-plus-xp-08-2017.pdf?sfvrsn=8ecc016b_8

Maybe a depth issue(?), but that doesn't seem likely either, based on the parts list.

 

Maybe @Overlanerd can chime in and let us know.

 

A quote from Phil in response to my email about the fan:
"The fan we use is actually made, per our selected features, by Dometic. Mainly for the low profile base and flat lid. The combo typically needs to be specified.The fan we use is actually made, per our selected features, by Dometic. Mainly for the low profile base and flat lid. The combo typically needs to be specified."

 

There's several things that need to be taken into consideration when looking at the fans. The current fans have "pancake" motors which allows a flat top to be used and greatly reduces the overall height. The other thing the minimum thickness the fan needs. With some it's over 2" which means some of the fan will stick down below the ceiling of the camper.

 

O my gosh I have a permanent smile on my face...

 

WOOOOO!!! hell yeah man congrats!

 

Thanks for being so generous with your time at the NWOR