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  1. #1
    Seasoned Camper
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    Imagine XLS 22MLE vs 22RBE

    We were planning to buy the XLS 22RBE when I retire as it has what we need and not a lot of what we don't need, plus it is small enough to be manageable and it will fit in our garage. The only thing I was a bit hesitant about was the two theater seats being the only seating. Now the XLS 22MLE is here and it is pretty much the same trailer except the slide is bigger and they squeezed in a booth dinette. It also lost the bedroom sliding door in exchange for a curtain. With the added booth dinette you can see from the floor plan pic that the spaciousness is somewhat reduced. I also wonder if the bath is accessible with the slide in? Haven't gone to see it yet to get a feel for the spaciousness, anyone have one yet? Or any thoughts?
    Attached Thumbnails Attached Thumbnails 22mle.JPG   22rbe.JPG  

  2. #2
    Seasoned Camper
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    I could be wrong but I'm guessing that you would have bathroom access withe the slide in. This would be too small for our needs but the 22MLE looks to have covered nearly all the bases for a small TT. Our first TT was 25 ft and the only seating was was the dinette. We quickly learned that while a table was handy the dinette was not made for comfort. We eventually pulled it out and put in a jacknife couch.
    That 22MLE looks like it it really hits the sweet spot in a compact package.
    Norb
    Upstate NY
    2020 Imagine 2800BH
    2013 Keystone Bullet 23BHS
    2015 Sportcraft AR-ONE 25BH


  3. #3
    Seasoned Camper
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    Thanks for the comments, sometimes I wonder if we are going too small but our situation is such that we just want a place to sleep, shower and eat when we travel. We do not plan on living in it full time but there may be times in the summer when we want to escape the heat and could end up in it for a month or two. If we go bigger we will have to store it off site, right now we can fit it in the garage which is 29 feet deep and has a 12 foot ceiling with 11 foot roll up door. We thought we'd like an Airstream but the two issues we have with those are the shower is too small and the other is they are too hot in the summer, we live in the Arizona desert.

  4. #4
    Left The Driveway
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    I'm exactly where you are, narrowed down to those two, for now. I've been in both and both are fully functional with the slides in. The MLE is more cramped, even with the slide out. I like the better bedroom and bathroom of the RBE. They should put the big slide in the RBE and a dinette booth in the slide with the theater seats. That would be a better model than both. I wonder what we'll see this spring when the 2021s come out?

  5. #5
    Seasoned Camper
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    Quote Originally Posted by Dhahn54 View Post
    I'm exactly where you are, narrowed down to those two, for now. I've been in both and both are fully functional with the slides in. The MLE is more cramped, even with the slide out. I like the better bedroom and bathroom of the RBE. They should put the big slide in the RBE and a dinette booth in the slide with the theater seats. That would be a better model than both. I wonder what we'll see this spring when the 2021s come out?
    I thought the MLE would be cramped from looking at the floor plan. We too liked the nice bedroom and the huge bath of the RBE. Will have to go look at the MLE soon. Hadn't thought about waiting to see what the new models bring, or what gets dropped.

  6. #6
    Fireside Member CaptMac's Avatar
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    We love the MLE for the following reasons, 1. It feels larger to us than the RBE because it all open you can see the back wall from the front wall, its not sectioned off in 3 compartments. 2. The front bed is open and easier to get around and you can use the big TV in bed. 3. Being all open, the windows make it lighter and brighter. 4. More storage inside a pantry plus 13 drawers. 5. Last but not least it has a designated dinette booth, it just doesn't feel natural without one and it looks out at your camp site, the theater dinette is awkward when eating and unstable and in the way when not using it.
    Some may like the private bedroom and larger bathroom, but my wife is claustrophobic and needs the openness this plan provides HWHL, it feels quite large for being a small trailer.
    2020 IMAGINE XLS 22MLE

  7. #7
    Fireside Member Chief T's Avatar
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    We fell in love with our 22 MLE. The open floor plan is nice without the restriction of a bedroom wall; lets in plenty of light. Access to the frig and bathroom is no problem with the slide in. Plus, there is so much storage. Keep in mind the 22 MLE is back heavy with rear kitchen and bath, so make sure you have a good WDH. You didn't mention what your tow vehicle is.
    2012 GMC Sierra 1500 SLT Z71 6.2l aka "Luci"
    2020 Grand Design Imagine XLS 22 MLE aka "Desi"

  8. #8
    Seasoned Camper
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    Quote Originally Posted by Chief T View Post
    We fell in love with our 22 MLE. The open floor plan is nice without the restriction of a bedroom wall; lets in plenty of light. Access to the frig and bathroom is no problem with the slide in. Plus, there is so much storage. Keep in mind the 22 MLE is back heavy with rear kitchen and bath, so make sure you have a good WDH. You didn't mention what your tow vehicle is.
    Tow vehicle is a 2002 F-350 CC diesel in near mint condition. A tad close on payload as configured but still enough for this trailer and the heavy PPP hitch. (Planning on a Pro-Pride hitch). Thanks for all the replies, now really looking forward to taking a look at the MLE.

  9. #9
    Fireside Member Chief T's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by bigb56 View Post
    Tow vehicle is a 2002 F-350 CC diesel in near mint condition. A tad close on payload as configured but still enough for this trailer and the heavy PPP hitch. (Planning on a Pro-Pride hitch). Thanks for all the replies, now really looking forward to taking a look at the MLE.
    Plenty of TV, so no worries there. My only two complaints are the location of the low point drains. Kinda squeezed in with the left rear stab. Also, the black tank flush is door side, but I got a couple flex hoses to get around that.

    Safe and happy travels.
    2012 GMC Sierra 1500 SLT Z71 6.2l aka "Luci"
    2020 Grand Design Imagine XLS 22 MLE aka "Desi"

  10. #10
    Left The Driveway
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    We have a 22MLE. No kids, and a large English sheepdog. The floor plan is awesome for us. Plenty of room, plus it is fully accessible with the slide in, you could even camp in it that way. With the slide out, it has more then enough room for both of us, it feels very spacious since you can see all the way to the end of the camper. The dinette was a must since I work from home, and needed a place to study and work while on the road. It’s very comfortable, well insulated, and with the smaller size, easy to pull into any gas station. We looked at the 22RBe as well, and didn’t like how the slide opens up into the campsite. Also, I can tell you that the attachable table that they have for the sofa is basically useless. You can’t lock in in place, so when you put any pressure on it, it rotates away from you, and because it is in the middle of the sofa, if your sitting at the end, you get maybe half a table to put your plate on. Also, because it spins on an axis, if you bump it while getting out, the opposite ends swings around into your spouse. The dinette, (for us) was a much better option. We’ve already used it to eat dinner, read, and have a place to sit when it was raining outside, plus with the recliners, you get a place to relax if you want to. It tows well, and is easy to handle. Objectively, The build quality is very good, far better than anything else we walked through made by keystone or Thor. We love the new lighter decor as well. A great couples trailer.
    Last edited by steelerider; 01-26-2020 at 09:26 AM.

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